EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
Underlining indicates amendments to bill.
Strike out indicates matter stricken from the bill by amendment or deleted from the law by
amendment.
*hb0918*
HOUSE BILL 918
P1, M4, M3 4lr2544
CF SB 777
By: The Speaker (By Request – State Treasurer)
Introduced and read first time: February 2, 2024
Assigned to: Environment and Transportation
Committee Report: Favorable with amendments
House action: Adopted
Read second time: March 1, 2024
CHAPTER ______
AN ACT concerning 1
State Treasurer and Comptroller – Membership Responsibilities 2
FOR the purpose of removing the State Treasurer from the Board of Trustees for the 3
Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation and repealing certain related 4
authority and duties; removing the State Treasurer or the State Treasurer’s designee 5
from the Maryland Commission on Climate Change, the Board of Directors for the 6
Maryland Environmental Service, and the Coast Smart Council; adding the 7
Comptroller or the Comptroller’s designee as a member of the Maryland Commission 8
on Climate Change and the Coast Smart Council; and generally relating to 9
membership responsibilities of the State Treasurer and Comptroller. 10
BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 11
Article – Agriculture 12
Section 2–503(a)(1), 2–510(d), (e), (i), and (k), 2–512(b) and (d), and 2–514(g), (h), and 13
(i)(4)(i) 14
Annotated Code of Maryland 15
(2016 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 16
BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 17
Article – Agriculture 18
Section 2–510(a), (b), and (c) and 2–514(a), (b), (c), and (i)(1) 19
Annotated Code of Maryland 20
(2016 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 21
BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 22 2 HOUSE BILL 918
Article – Environment 1
Section 2–1301(a) 2
Annotated Code of Maryland 3
(2013 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 4
BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 5
Article – Environment 6
Section 2–1302(a) 7
Annotated Code of Maryland 8
(2013 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 9
BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 10
Article – Natural Resources 11
Section 3–103(a) 12
Annotated Code of Maryland 13
(2023 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 14
BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 15
Article – Natural Resources 16
Section 3–103(b) and 3–1005(a) 17
Annotated Code of Maryland 18
(2023 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 19
SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 20
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 21
Article – Agriculture 22
2–503. 23
(a) (1) The Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation shall be 24
governed and administered by a board of trustees composed of: 25
(i) The [State Treasurer, the] Comptroller, the Secretary of 26
Planning, and the Secretary, all of whom shall serve as ex officio members; 27
(ii) Nine members from the State at–large to be appointed by the 28
Governor, at least six of whom shall be farmer representatives who are engaged in or 29
retired from active farming from different areas of the State, and four of whom shall be 30
appointed as follows: 31
1. One from a list of three nominees submitted by the 32
Maryland Agricultural Commission; 33
2. One from a list of three nominees submitted by the 34
Maryland Farm Bureau; 35
HOUSE BILL 918 3
3. One from a list of three nominees submitted by the 1
Maryland State Grange; and 2
4. One from a list of three nominees submitted by the Young 3
Farmers Advisory Board; and 4
(iii) Any designee appointed by an ex officio member under 5
paragraph (3) of this subsection. 6
2–510. 7
(a) An owner of agricultural land whose application to sell an easement has been 8
approved by the county under this subtitle may sell an easement to the Foundation on the 9
contiguous acreage of the agricultural land, subject to the requirements of this subtitle and 10
regulations of the Foundation. 11
(b) In order to be considered by the Foundation, an application to sell shall: 12
(1) Be received by the board at a time the board determines for the fiscal 13
year in which the application is to be considered; 14
(2) Include an asking price at which the owner is willing to sell an 15
easement; and 16
(3) Include a complete description of the land for the proposed easement. 17
(c) The board shall determine the maximum number of applications that it will 18
accept from each county in each offer cycle. 19
(d) (1) Within 30 days after the receipt of an application from the county 20
governing body, the Foundation shall notify the landowner and the county governing body 21
of the receipt and sufficiency of the application. 22
(2) If the original application is insufficient, the Foundation shall specify 23
the reason for insufficiency, and the Foundation shall grant an additional 30 days for the 24
landowner to remedy the insufficiency. 25
(3) If the application is made sufficient within 30 days of the notification 26
by the Foundation, the application shall be considered as if it had originally been submitted 27
in a timely and sufficient manner. 28
(e) (1) If the application is submitted to the Foundation prior to county 29
approval, then within 60 days of the notification of sufficiency of the application, the county 30
governing body shall advise the Foundation as to the county’s approval or disapproval of 31
the application. 32
4 HOUSE BILL 918
(2) The Foundation shall grant a 30–day extension of this approval period 1
if the county governing body applies to the Foundation for an extension and states its 2
reasons for seeking an extension. 3
(i) (1) [Upon] ON approval of a majority of the board members at–large, and 4
[upon] ON the recommendation of [the State Treasurer and] the Secretary, an application 5
to sell shall be approved, and an offer to buy containing the specific terms of the purchase 6
shall be tendered to the landowner. 7
(2) An offer to buy may specify terms, contingencies, and conditions not 8
contained in the original application. 9
(k) (1) (I) At the time of settlement of the purchase of an easement, the 10
landowner and the Foundation may agree [upon] ON and establish a schedule of payment 11
such that the landowner may receive consideration for the easement in a lump sum, in 12
installments over a period of up to 10 years from the date of settlement, or as provided in 13
an installment purchase agreement under paragraph (3) of this subsection. 14
(II) At the time of settlement, the Foundation shall notify in writing 15
each landowner who sells an agricultural easement to the Foundation of the schedule of 16
anticipated ranges of interest rates to be paid on any unpaid balance after the date of 17
settlement. 18
(2) (i) If a schedule of installments is agreed [upon] ON, the 19
Comptroller shall retain in the Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Fund an amount 20
of money sufficient to pay the landowner according to the schedule. 21
(ii) 1. The landowner shall receive interest on any unpaid 22
balance remaining after the date of settlement. 23
2. The State Treasurer shall invest the unpaid balance 24
remaining after the date of settlement in a certificate or certificates of deposit at the 25
maximum interest rate offered by a bank servicing the State or at such other institutions 26
which pay the maximum interest rates payable on time and savings deposits at federally 27
insured commercial banks selected by the Treasurer, to mature in accordance with an 28
agreed [upon] ON schedule of installments as provided in this section. 29
3. Any interest earned on the invested unpaid balance shall 30
be paid with the installment when due, less 1/4 of 1 percent. 31
(3) (i) The Foundation may pay the landowner according to a schedule, 32
up to a maximum term of 15 years, established in an installment purchase agreement. 33
(ii) The installment purchase agreement shall: 34
HOUSE BILL 918 5
1. Require that the Foundation make annual equal 1
payments to the landowner of interest on the outstanding balance of the purchase price; 2
2. Require that the Foundation pay the landowner the 3
remainder of the purchase price at the end of the term; 4
3. State the total amount of money the Foundation will pay 5
the landowner, the interest rate, and the terms of the agreement; and 6
4. Require that the easement be recorded within 30 days of 7
settlement. 8
2–512. 9
(b) The Foundation may approve a local program of agricultural land 10
preservation [upon] ON request of a county, provided that: 11
(1) The county shall agree to make payments up to a specified aggregate 12
amount to the Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Fund to equal at least 40 percent 13
of the value of any easement acquired by the Foundation as a result of a matching allotted 14
purchase, made during the ensuing fiscal year; and 15
(2) The county shall show evidence that any county program for the 16
acquisition of agricultural land for preservation, or easements for purposes of preservation 17
of agricultural land, will not result in preservation of land which does not meet the 18
minimum standards set by the Foundation under § 2–509 of this subtitle; and 19
(3) The request for approval of a local program must be submitted to the 20
Foundation, together with any necessary agreements not later than 90 days prior to the 21
beginning of the fiscal year for which approval is being sought. 22
(d) Local programs shall be approved [upon] ON the affirmative vote of a majority 23
of the Foundation members at–large, and [upon] ON approval of the Secretary [and the 24
State Treasurer]. 25
2–514. 26
(a) (1) This section applies only to easements approved for purchase by the 27
Board of Public Works on or before September 30, 2004. 28
(2) All easements approved for purchase by the Board of Public Works on 29
or after October 1, 2004, are perpetual and not eligible for termination. 30
(b) An easement approved by the Board of Public Works on or before September 31
30, 2004, and held by the Foundation may be terminated only under extraordinary 32
circumstances and in the manner specified in this section. 33
6 HOUSE BILL 918
(c) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, after 25 years 1
from the date of purchase of an easement, a landowner may request that the easement be 2
reviewed for possible termination, subject to the requirements of this section. 3
(2) A landowner is not eligible to terminate any easement: 4
(i) Purchased using an installment purchase agreement, as 5
provided in § 2–510(k) of this subtitle; or 6
(ii) Approved for purchase by the Board of Public Works on or after 7
October 1, 2004. 8
(g) (1) If the board of trustees members at large deny the request for 9
termination because they determine that it is feasible to farm the land in a profitable 10
manner, the termination review process ends and the Foundation is not required to 11
continue to consider the request for termination. 12
(2) If the board of trustees members at large approve the request for 13
termination, the Secretary [and State Treasurer] shall review the request. 14
(h) (1) If both the county governing body and the board of trustees members at 15
large approve a request for termination, an easement shall be terminated only if [both] the 16
Secretary [and the State Treasurer approve] APPROVES the request for termination. 17
(2) The Secretary [and the State Treasurer’s designee serving on the board 18
of trustees] may approve or deny the request for termination. 19
(i) (1) If the request for termination is approved, two fair market value 20
appraisals of the subject land shall be ordered by the Department of General Services at 21
the direction of the Foundation at the expense of the landowner requesting termination of 22
the easement. 23
(4) (i) [Upon] ON receipt of the written statement from the 24
Department of General Services, the Foundation shall issue a notification to the landowner 25
of the approved fair market value. 26
Article – Environment 27
2–1301. 28
(a) There is a Commission on Climate Change in the Department to advise the 29
Governor and General Assembly on ways to mitigate the causes of, prepare for, and adapt 30
to the consequences of climate change. 31
2–1302. 32
HOUSE BILL 918 7
(a) The Commission’s membership shall consist of the following members: 1
(1) One member of the House of Delegates, appointed by the Speaker of the 2
House; 3
(2) One member of the Senate, appointed by the President of the Senate; 4
(3) [The State Treasurer COMPTROLLER , or the State Treasurer’s 5
COMPTROLLER ’S designee; 6
(4)] The Secretary of the Environment, or the Secretary’s designee; 7
[(5)] (4) The Secretary of Agriculture, or the Secretary’s designee; 8
[(6)] (5) The Secretary of Natural Resources, or the Secretary’s designee; 9
[(7)] (6) The Secretary of Planning, or the Secretary’s designee; 10
[(8)] (7) The State Superintendent of Schools, or the State 11
Superintendent’s designee; 12
[(9)] (8) The Secretary of Transportation, or the Secretary’s designee; 13
[(10)] (9) The Secretary of General Services, or the Secretary’s designee; 14
[(11)] (10) The Director of the Maryland Energy Administration, or the 15
Director’s designee; 16
[(12)] (11) The People’s Counsel, or the People’s Counsel’s designee; 17
[(13)] (12) The President of the University of Maryland Center for 18
Environmental Science, or the President’s designee; 19
[(14)] (13) The Chair of the Critical Area Commission for the Chesapeake 20
and Atlantic Coastal Bays, or the Chair’s designee; 21
[(15)] (14) One member appointed by the Farm Bureau representing the 22
agriculture community; 23
[(16)] (15) One member appointed by the Maryland Association of Counties 24
and one member appointed by the Maryland Municipal League to represent local 25
governments; 26
[(17)] (16) One member appointed by the President of the Senate and one 27
member appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates to represent the business 28
community; 29 8 HOUSE BILL 918
[(18)] (17) One member appointed by the President of the Senate and one 1
member appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates to represent environmental 2
nonprofit organizations; 3
[(19)] (18) One member appointed by the President of the Senate and one 4
member appointed by the Speaker of the House to represent organized labor, one of whom 5
shall represent the building or construction trades and one of whom shall represent the 6
manufacturing industry; 7
[(20)] (19) One member appointed by the President of the Senate and one 8
member appointed by the Speaker of the House to represent philanthropic organizations; 9
[(21)] (20) One climate change expert appointed by the Governor 10
representing a university located in Maryland; and 11
[(22)] (21) One public health expert appointed by the Governor representing 12
a university located in Maryland. 13
Article – Natural Resources 14
3–103. 15
(a) (1) There is a body politic and corporate known as the “Maryland 16
Environmental Service”. 17
(2) The Service is an instrumentality of the State and a public corporation 18
by that name, style, and title, and the exercise by the Service of the powers conferred by 19
this subtitle is the performance of an essential governmental function of the State. 20
(b) (1) There are four officers of the Service: 21
(i) An Executive Director; 22
(ii) A Deputy Director; 23
(iii) A Secretary; and 24
(iv) A Treasurer. 25
(2) (i) The four officers of the Service shall be appointed in accordance 26
with this paragraph. 27
(ii) 1. The Executive Director shall be appointed by the 28
Governor, with the advice and consent of the Senate solely with regard to the qualifications 29
for the duties of the office. 30
HOUSE BILL 918 9
2. The Executive Director serves at the pleasure of the Board 1
with the concurrence of the Governor and shall receive such compensation as may be 2
determined by the Board. 3
(iii) 1. The Deputy Director shall be appointed by the Executive 4
Director with the approval of the Governor solely with regard to the qualifications for the 5
duties of the office. 6
2. The Deputy Director serves at the pleasure of the 7
Executive Director and shall receive such compensation as may be determined by the 8
Board. 9
(iv) 1. The Secretary and the Treasurer shall be selected by the 10
Board from among the Board’s members. 11
2. The Secretary and the Treasurer serve at the pleasure of 12
the Board and shall receive such compensation as may be reasonably determined by the 13
Board. 14
(3) The Board of Directors of the Service shall consist of the following 15
members: 16
(i) The Executive Director, who shall serve as a nonvoting member; 17
(ii) [The State Treasurer, or the State Treasurer’s designee; 18
(iii)] Three members from the public sector in the State in positions 19
responsible for environmental, water, wastewater, or solid waste management; 20
[(iv)] (III) One member from the private sector in the State with 21
technical, financial, development, or legal experience related to environmental, water, 22
wastewater, or solid waste management; 23
[(v)] (IV) One member from the private sector in the State with 24
financial experience related to environmental, water, wastewater, or solid waste 25
management; and 26
[(vi)] (V) One member from the private sector in the State with 27
experience or expertise in matters related to business ethics, preferably involving board of 28
director ethics and conflicts of interest. 29
(4) (i) Subject to subparagraphs (ii), (iii), and (iv) of this paragraph, the 30
public sector and private sector members of the Board, as set forth in paragraph [(3)(iii)] 31
(3)(II) through [(vi)] (V) of this subsection shall be appointed by the Governor with the 32
advice and consent of the Senate. 33
10 HOUSE BILL 918
(ii) The Governor shall select at least one of the public sector 1
members of the Board from a list of recommendations jointly compiled by the Maryland 2
Association of Counties and the Maryland Municipal League. 3
(iii) The Governor may not appoint an employee of the Service to the 4
Board. 5
(iv) At least one of the public sector or private sector members shall 6
be a resident of a rural county in the State. 7
(5) (i) [Five] FOUR members constitute a quorum for the transaction 8
of business of the Board. 9
(ii) The affirmative vote of at least [five] FOUR members is 10
necessary for any action taken by the Board. 11
(6) Those members of the Board not already holding a public office shall 12
receive from the Service: 13
(i) Per diem compensation as established by the Board; and 14
(ii) Reimbursement for expenses under Standard State Travel 15
Regulations. 16
(7) The term of a member [other than the State Treasurer] is 4 years. 17
(8) The terms of members [other than the State Treasurer] are staggered 18
as required by the terms provided for those members of the Board on July 1, 2021. 19
(9) At the end of a term, a member continues to serve until a successor is 20
appointed and qualifies. 21
(10) A member who is appointed after a term has begun serves only the 22
remainder of that term and until a successor is appointed and qualifies. 23
(11) A member of the Board who is appointed under paragraph (3)(iii) 24
through (vi) of this subsection may serve only two consecutive full 4–year terms, plus any 25
partial term served before the initial 4–year term. 26
(12) Subject to paragraphs (13) and (14) of this subsection, the Board shall 27
select a Chair from among the Board’s members. 28
(13) The Executive Director may not serve as the Secretary, Treasurer, or 29
Chair of the Board. 30
HOUSE BILL 918 11
[(14) The State Treasurer may not serve as the Secretary, Treasurer, or 1
Chair of the Board.] 2
Article – Natural Resources 3
3–1005. 4
(a) The Coast Smart Council shall include: 5
(1) The Secretary of Natural Resources, or the Secretary’s designee; 6
(2) The Secretary of Budget and Management, or the Secretary’s designee; 7
(3) The Secretary of the Environment, or the Secretary’s designee; 8
(4) The Secretary of General Services, or the Secretary’s designee; 9
(5) The Secretary of Planning, or the Secretary’s designee; 10
(6) The Secretary of Transportation, or the Secretary’s designee; 11
(7) The Secretary of Commerce, or the Secretary’s designee; 12
(8) The Chair of the Critical Area Commission for the Chesapeake and 13
Atlantic Coastal Bays, or the Chair’s designee; 14
(9) The Secretary of Emergency Management, or the Secretary’s designee; 15
(10) [The State Treasurer COMPTROLLER , or the State Treasurer’s 16
COMPTROLLER ’S designee; 17
(11)] The Chancellor of the University System of Maryland, or the 18
Chancellor’s designee; and 19
[(12)] (11) Five members appointed by the Governor to represent local 20
government, environmental, and business interests. 21
SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect June 22
1, 2024. 23