Maryland 2025 Regular Session

Maryland Senate Bill SB477 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1
2	2
3	3	EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
4	4	[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
5	5	sb0477
6	6
7	7	SENATE BILL 477
8	8	M1 EMERGENCY BILL 5lr2444
9	9	CF 5lr2445
10	10	By: Cecil County Senators
11	11	Introduced and read first time: January 22, 2025
12	12	Assigned to: Education, Energy, and the Environment
13	13
14	14	A BILL ENTITLED
15	15
16	16	AN ACT concerning 1
17	17
18	18	Port of Deposit State Historical Park – Size and Scope 2
19	19
20	20	FOR the purpose of altering the size and scope of the Port of Deposit State Historical Park; 3
21	21	extending the deadline for the Bainbridge Development Corporation to transfer 4
22	22	certain property to the Department of Natural Resources; altering the purpose for 5
23	23	which a certain appropriation may be used; and generally relating to the Port of 6
24	24	Deposit State Historical Park. 7
25	25
26	26	BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 8
27	27	Article – Natural Resources 9
28	28	Section 5–1012(g) 10
29	29	Annotated Code of Maryland 11
30	30	(2023 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 12
31	31
32	32	BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 13
33	33	Chapter 39 of the Acts of the General Assembly of 2022, as amended by Chapter 602 14
34	34	of the Acts of the General Assembly of 2023 15
35	35	Section 5 16
36	36
37	37	BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 17
38	38	Chapter 602 of the Acts of the General Assembly of 2023 18
39	39	Section 2 19
40	40
41	41	SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 20
42	42	That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 21
43	43
44	44	Article – Natural Resources 22
45	45
46	46	5–1012. 23
47	47	2 SENATE BILL 477
48	48
49	49
50	50	(g) (1) (i) The Department shall establish the Port of Deposit State 1
51	51	Historical Park as a partnership park that seeks to educate the public about and preserve 2
52	52	and interpret the lives and experiences of Black Americans both before and after the 3
53	53	abolition of slavery. 4
54	54
55	55	(ii) Port of Deposit State Historical Park shall be held by the State 5
56	56	as a State park under the protection and administration of the Department. 6
57	57
58	58	(2) Port of Deposit State Historical Park shall consist of a portion of the 7
59	59	Bainbridge Naval Training Center site, measuring not less than [120] 12 acres and not 8
60	60	more than [150] 19 acres, that the Bainbridge Development Corporation transfers to the 9
61	61	Department, including: 10
62	62
63	63	(i) [The historic Tome School; 11
64	64
65	65	(ii)] The Snow Hill archaeological site; and 12
66	66
67	67	[(iii)] (II) The adjacent wooded conservation area. 13
68	68
69	69	(3) (i) The Department shall establish a stakeholder advisory 14
70	70	committee to advise the Department on the scope and management of Port of Deposit State 15
71	71	Historical Park. 16
72	72
73	73	(ii) The stakeholder advisory committee shall consist of the following 17
74	74	members: 18
75	75
76	76	1. One member designated by the Mayor and Town Council 19
77	77	of Port Deposit; 20
78	78
79	79	2. Two members of the House of Delegates and one member 21
80	80	of the Senate of Maryland representing Cecil County, designated by the Cecil County 22
81	81	Delegation of the General Assembly; 23
82	82
83	83	3. The County Executive of Cecil County, or the County 24
84	84	Executive’s designee; 25
85	85
86	86	4. The President of the Cecil County Council, or the 26
87	87	President’s designee; 27
88	88
89	89	5. The President of the Cecil County branch of the NAACP, 28
90	90	or the President’s designee; 29
91	91
92	92	6. The President of the Historical Society of Cecil County, or 30
93	93	the President’s designee; 31
94	94
95	95	7. The Director of the Cecil County Department of Parks and 32
96	96	Recreation; 33 SENATE BILL 477 3
97	97
98	98
99	99
100	100	8. The Chair of the Bainbridge Development Corporation, or 1
101	101	the Chair’s designee; 2
102	102
103	103	9. The Chief Archaeologist of the Maryland Department of 3
104	104	Transportation, State Highway Administration, or the Chief Archaeologist’s designee; and 4
105	105
106	106	10. The following nonvoting ex officio members: 5
107	107
108	108	A. The Secretary, or the Secretary’s designee; 6
109	109
110	110	B. The Secretary of Commerce, or the Secretary’s designee; 7
111	111
112	112	C. The Secretary of the Environment, or the Secretary’s 8
113	113	designee; 9
114	114
115	115	D. The Secretary of Planning, or the Secretary’s designee; 10
116	116
117	117	E. The Director of the Maryland Historical Trust, or the 11
118	118	Director’s designee; 12
119	119
120	120	F. The President of the Lower Susquehanna Heritage 13
121	121	Greenway, or the President’s designee; 14
122	122
123	123	G. The Superintendent of Cecil County Public Schools; 15
124	124
125	125	H. The Executive Director of the Cecil County Public Library; 16
126	126	and 17
127	127
128	128	I. The President of Cecil College. 18
129	129
130	130	(iii) To the extent practicable, the stakeholder advisory committee 19
131	131	shall reflect the diversity of Cecil County. 20
132	132
133	133	(4) On or before September 1, 2024, the Department shall submit a report 21
134	134	to the General Assembly, in accordance with § 2–1257 of the State Government Article on: 22
135	135
136	136	(i) Property that is suitable for inclusion in Port of Deposit State 23
137	137	Historical Park; 24
138	138
139	139	(ii) The funding needed to establish and promote Port of Deposit 25
140	140	State Historical Park; and 26
141	141
142	142	(iii) The appropriate manner of preserving property that is not 27
143	143	identified for inclusion in Port of Deposit State Historical Park in perpetuity for its 28
144	144	archaeological, historical, and cultural significance. 29
145	145	4 SENATE BILL 477
146	146
147	147
148	148	Chapter 39 of the Acts of 2022, as amended by Chapter 602 of the Acts of 2023 1
149	149
150	150	SECTION 5. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That: 2
151	151
152	152	(a) On or before June 1, [2025] 2026, the Bainbridge Development Corporation 3
153	153	shall transfer to the Department of Natural Resources a portion of the Bainbridge Naval 4
154	154	Training Center site consisting of not less than [120] 12 acres and not more than [150] 19 5
155	155	acres, including: 6
156	156
157	157	(1) [the historic Tome School; 7
158	158
159	159	(2)] the Snow Hill archaeological site; and 8
160	160
161	161	[(3)] (2) the adjacent wooded conservation area. 9
162	162
163	163	(b) Any property transferred to the Department of Natural Resources under this 10
164	164	section that is not included in Port of Deposit State Historical Park shall be preserved in 11
165	165	perpetuity for its archaeological, historical, and cultural significance, in accordance with 12
166	166	the recommendations of the stakeholder advisory committee established under § 5–1012(g) 13
167	167	of the Natural Resources Article. 14
168	168
169	169	Chapter 602 of the Acts of 2023 15
170	170
171	171	SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That for fiscal year 202 5, the 16
172	172	Governor may include in the annual State budget an appropriation of at least $400,000 to 17
173	173	the Department of Natural Resources to conduct a Phase 1 Archaeological Survey and Soil 18
174	174	Study for the [Tome School and] Snow Hill [sites] SITE. 19
175	175
176	176	SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act is an emergency 20
177	177	measure, is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public health or safety, has 21
178	178	been passed by a yea and nay vote supported by three–fifths of all the members elected to 22
179	179	each of the two Houses of the General Assembly, and shall take effect from the date it is 23
180	180	enacted. 24