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SB0031 • 2026

School Construction and Housing - School Zones and Adequate Public Facilities Ordinances

School Construction and Housing - School Zones and Adequate Public Facilities Ordinances

Education Housing
Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
Senator Lam
Last action
2026-03-26
Official status
In the House - Hearing 4/08 at 1:00 p.m.
Effective date
2026-06-01

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

School Construction and Housing - School Zones and Adequate Public Facilities Ordinances

Requiring each county board of education to submit a student residency and school zones report to the Department of Planning and the Interagency Commission on School Construction by July 1 each year, beginning on July 1, 2026; requiring a county board to consult with certain municipalities and incorporate certain data when developing an education facilities master plan; providing that adequate public facilities ordinances may not delay the processing and completion of site development plans, but may delay construction starts; etc.

What This Bill Does

  • Requiring each county board of education to submit a student residency and school zones report to the Department of Planning and the Interagency Commission on School Construction by July 1 each year, beginning on July 1, 2026; requiring a county board to consult with certain municipalities and incorporate certain data when developing an education facilities master plan; providing that adequate public facilities ordinances may not delay the processing and completion of site development plans, but may delay construction starts; etc.

Limits and Unknowns

  • This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

313426/1

None

Favorable with Amendments { 313426/1 Adopted

Plain English: AMENDMENTS TO SENATE BILL 31 (First Reading File Bill) AMENDMENT NO.

  • AMENDMENTS TO SENATE BILL 31 (First Reading File Bill) AMENDMENT NO.
  • 1 On page 1, in line 6, after “year;” insert “requiring a county board to consult with certain municipalities and incorporate certain data when developing a local educational facilities master plan; ”; strike beginning with “issuance” in line 8 down through “permits” in line 9 and substitute “ initiation of construction”; and in line 13, after “4 – 148” insert “and 4–149”.
  • AMENDMENT NO.
  • 2 On page 2, in line 8, after “ MAP;” insert “ AND”; strike beginning with “LOCATIONS” in line 9 down through “ COUNTY” in line 11 and substitute “CENSUS TRACT AND BLOCK DATA REPORTED TO THE DEPARTMENT IN ACCORDANCE WITH § 4–113.1 OF THIS SUBTITLE”; and after line 16, insert: “4–149.

Bill History

  1. 2026-03-26 House

    Hearing 4/08 at 1:00 p.m.

  2. 2026-03-16 Senate

    Favorable with Amendments Report by Education, Energy, and the Environment

  3. 2026-03-07 House

    Referred Appropriations

  4. 2026-03-03 Senate

    Third Reading Passed (33-12)

  5. 2026-03-02 Senate

    Favorable with Amendments { 313426/1 Adopted

  6. 2026-03-02 Senate

    Second Reading Passed with Amendments

  7. 2026-01-23 Senate

    Hearing 2/17 at 1:00 p.m.

  8. 2026-01-14 Senate

    First Reading Education, Energy, and the Environment

  9. 2025-09-05 Senate

    Pre-filed

  10. Maryland General Assembly

    Text - First - School Construction and Housing – School Zones and Adequate Public Facilities Ordinances

  11. Maryland General Assembly

    Vote - Senate - Committee - Education, Energy, and the Environment

  12. Maryland General Assembly

    Text - Third - School Construction and Housing - School Zones and Adequate Public Facilities Ordinances

Official Summary Text

Requiring each county board of education to submit a student residency and school zones report to the Department of Planning and the Interagency Commission on School Construction by July 1 each year, beginning on July 1, 2026; requiring a county board to consult with certain municipalities and incorporate certain data when developing an education facilities master plan; providing that adequate public facilities ordinances may not delay the processing and completion of site development plans, but may delay construction starts; etc.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MATTER ADDED TO EXISTING 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.
*sb0031*

SENATE BILL 31
C9, F1 6lr0781
(PRE–FILED) CF HB 337
By: Senator Lam
Requested: September 5, 2025
Introduced and read first time: January 14, 2026
Assigned to: Education, Energy, and the Environment
Committee Report: Favorable with amendments
Senate action: Adopted
Read second time: March 2, 2026

CHAPTER ______

AN ACT concerning 1

School Construction and Housing – School Zones and Adequate Public Facilities 2
Ordinances 3

FOR the purpose of requiring each county board of education to submit a certain report to 4
the Department of Planning and the Interagency Commission on School 5
Construction each year; requiring a county board to consult with certain 6
municipalities and incorporate certain data when developing a local educational 7
facilities master plan; prohibiting certain adequate public facilities ordinances from 8
delaying the processing and completion of subdivision or site development plans; 9
authorizing certain adequate public facilities ordinances to delay the issuance of 10
final permits initiation of construction; and generally relating to school zones, school 11
construction, and adequate public facilities ordinances. 12

BY adding to 13
Article – Education 14
Section 4–148 and 4–149 15
Annotated Code of Maryland 16
(2025 Replacement Volume and 2025 Supplement) 17

BY adding to 18
Article – Land Use 19
Section 7–106 20
Annotated Code of Maryland 21
(2012 Volume and 2025 Supplement) 22
2 SENATE BILL 31

SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 1
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 2

Article – Education 3

4–148. 4

(A) ON OR BEFORE JULY 1, 2026, AND EACH JULY 1 THEREAFTER, EACH 5
COUNTY BOARD SHALL SUBMIT A STUDENT RESIDENCY AND SCHOOL ZONES REPORT 6
TO THE DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING AND THE INTERAGENCY COMMISSION ON 7
SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION. 8

(B) (1) THE STUDENT RESIDENCY AND SCHOOL ZONES REP ORT SHALL 9
INCLUDE: 10

(I) THE SCHOOL ZONE BOUND ARIES AND ATTENDANCE AREA 11
MAP; AND 12

(II) THE LOCATIONS OF EACH STUDENT’S RESIDENCE; AND 13

(III) THE STATE–RATED CAPACITY, STUDENT POPULATION, AND 14
CAPACITY PERCENTAGE OF EACH SCHOOL IN TH E COUNTY CENSUS TRACT AND 15
BLOCK DATA REPORTED TO THE DEPARTMENT IN ACCORDANCE WITH § 4–113.1 OF 16
THIS SUBTITLE. 17

(2) THE REPORT MAY NOT IN CLUDE PERSONA L IDENTIFYING 18
INFORMATION OF A STUDENT. 19

(C) THE INTERAGENCY COMMISSION ON SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION SHALL 20
ADOPT REGULATIONS ES TABLISHING FORMATTIN G AND SUBMISSION 21
REQUIREMENTS FOR THE STUDENT RESIDENCY AND SCHOOL ZONES REPORT. 22

4–149. 23

(A) IN THIS SECTION , “LOCAL EDUCATIONAL FA CILITIES MASTER PLAN ” 24
MEANS THE ANNUAL PLA N REQUIRED TO BE SUB MITTED TO THE INTERAGENCY 25
COMMISSION ON SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION UNDER COMAR 14.39.02.03. 26

(B) IN DEVELOPING A LOCAL EDUCATIONAL FACILITIES MASTER PLAN , A 27
COUNTY BOARD SHALL: 28

(1) CONSULT WITH EACH MUN ICIPALITY LOCATED IN THE COUNTY 29
THAT EXERCISES PLANNING AND ZONING AUTHORITY; AND 30
SENATE BILL 31 3

(2) INCORPORATE DATA PROV IDED BY THE MUNICIPA LITIES INTO 1
THE PLAN ’S ENROLLMENT PROJECT IONS AND ANALYSIS OF FUTURE FACILITY 2
NEEDS. 3

Article – Land Use 4

7–106. 5

A COUNTY’S IF A COUNTY ENACTS AN ADEQUATE PUBLIC FACI LITIES 6
ORDINANCE THAT RESTRICTS HOUSING DE VELOPMENT ON THE BAS IS OF SCHOOL 7
CAPACITY INCLUDES A DEFINITE MAXIMUM LENGTH OF TIME TO RESTRICT OR LIMIT 8
HOUSING DEVELOPMENT ON THE BASIS OF SCHOOL CAPACITY, THE ORDINANCE: 9

(1) MAY NOT DELAY THE PR OCESSING AND COMPLET ION OF 10
SUBDIVISION OR SITE DEVELOPMENT PLANS; BUT 11

(2) MAY DELAY THE ISSUANCE OF FINAL PE RMITS INITIATION OF 12
CONSTRUCTION. 13

SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect June 14
1, 2026. 15

Approved:
________________________________________________________________________________
Governor.
________________________________________________________________________________
President of the Senate.
________________________________________________________________________________
Speaker of the House of Delegates.