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.
*hb1169*
HOUSE BILL 1169
F3 5lr0981
By: Howard County Delegation and Montgomery County Delegation
Introduced and read first time: February 6, 2025
Assigned to: Ways and Means
Committee Report: Favorable with amendments
House action: Adopted
Read second time: March 5, 2025
CHAPTER ______
AN ACT concerning 1
Howard County and Montgomery County – Board of Education – Mandatory 2
School Holidays 3
MC 6–25 4
FOR the purpose of requiring the Howard County Board of Education and the Montgomery 5
County Board of Education to close public schools in the county to students to observe 6
certain holidays beginning in a certain school year; and generally relating to the 7
Howard County Board of Education and the Montgomery County Board of Education 8
and mandatory school holidays. 9
BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 10
Article – Education 11
Section 7–103(a) 12
Annotated Code of Maryland 13
(2022 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 14
BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 15
Article – Education 16
Section 7–103(c) 17
Annotated Code of Maryland 18
(2022 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 19
SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 20
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 21 2 HOUSE BILL 1169
Article – Education 1
7–103. 2
(a) Except as provided in subsections (b), (e), and (f) of this section, each public 3
school under the jurisdiction of a county board: 4
(1) (i) Shall be open for pupil attendance for at least 180 actual school 5
days and a minimum of 1,080 school hours during a 10–month period in each school year; 6
or 7
(ii) If normal school attendance is prevented because of conditions 8
described in subsection (b) of this section, shall be open for at least 1,080 hours during a 9
10–month period; 10
(2) Shall be open for pupil attendance a minimum of 3 hours during each 11
school day; and 12
(3) May not be open on Saturdays, Sundays, or holidays in order to meet 13
the 180–day or 1,080–hour requirement of this subsection. 14
(c) (1) The following days are public school holidays: 15
(i) Thanksgiving Day and the day after; 16
(ii) Christmas Eve and from then through January 1; 17
(iii) Martin Luther King, Jr. Day; 18
(iv) Presidents’ Day; 19
(v) The Friday before Easter and from then through the Monday 20
after Easter; 21
(vi) Memorial Day; and 22
(vii) Primary and general election days. 23
(2) If the federal and State observances of a holiday are on different days, 24
the board of education of each county shall determine which date shall be the date of 25
observance for the public schools within the county. 26
(3) The public schools shall devote a part of at least one day to appropriate 27
exercises for each of the following: 28
(i) Washington’s Birthday; 29 HOUSE BILL 1169 3
(ii) Lincoln’s Birthday; 1
(iii) Veterans’ Day; 2
(iv) Columbus Day; 3
(v) Arbor Day; 4
(vi) Black History Month, with an emphasis on Harriet Tubman and 5
Frederick Douglass and the contributions they made in the fight against slavery; and 6
(vii) Any other day of national significance. 7
(4) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this article, the public schools, 8
in the following counties, may remain open and in session on primary and general election 9
days: 10
(i) Calvert; 11
(ii) Caroline; 12
(iii) Dorchester; 13
(iv) Kent; 14
(v) Talbot; and 15
(vi) Worcester. 16
(5) (I) THIS PARAGRAPH APPLIE S ONLY IN HOWARD AND 17
MONTGOMERY COUNTY COUNTIES. 18
(II) THE BEGINNING IN THE 2026–2027 SCHOOL YEAR , THE 19
HOWARD COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION AND THE MONTGOMERY COUNTY BOARD 20
OF EDUCATION SHALL CLOSE PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN TH E COUNTY, INCLUDING ALL 21
BUILDINGS AND OFFICE S, FOR STUDENT ATTENDAN CE ONLY TO OBSERVE THE 22
FOLLOWING HOLIDAYS : 23
1. IF ANY OF THE FOLLOWI NG HOLIDAYS BEGIN ON A 24
WEEKDAY, THE THE FIRST DAY ONLY OF : 25
A. DIWALI; 26
B. EID AL–ADHA; 27
4 HOUSE BILL 1169
C. EID AL–FITR; 1
D. LUNAR NEW YEAR; AND 2
E. ROSH HASHANAH; AND 3
2. YOM KIPPUR; AND 4
3. JUNETEENTH . 5
SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect July 6
1, 2025. 7
Approved:
________________________________________________________________________________
Governor.
________________________________________________________________________________
Speaker of the House of Delegates.
________________________________________________________________________________
President of the Senate.