Places of Public Accommodation - Open Movie Captioning

EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MATTER ADDED TO EXISTING LAW.
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
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SENATE BILL 259
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By: Senator Jackson
Introduced and read first time: January 19, 2026
Assigned to: Judicial Proceedings

A BILL ENTITLED

AN ACT concerning 1

Places of Public Accommodation – Open Movie Captioning 2

FOR the purpose of decreasing the number of screens in a motion picture house above which 3
the motion picture house is required to provide open movie captioning; and generally 4
relating to movie captioning in motion picture houses. 5

BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 6
Article – State Government 7
Section 20–306 8
Annotated Code of Maryland 9
(2021 Replacement Volume and 2025 Supplement) 10

SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 11
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 12

Article – State Government 13

20–306. 14

(a) (1) In this section the following words have the meanings indicated. 15

(2) “Closed captioning” means a transcript or dialog of the audio portion of 16
a television program that is displayed on a television receiver screen when the user 17
activates the feature. 18

(3) “Closed movie captioning” means the written display of the dialog and 19
certain nonspeech information of a motion picture that is generally delivered to individual 20
patrons on a captioning device in a motion picture house. 21

2 SENATE BILL 259

(4) “Closed–captioning television receiver” means a receiver of television 1
programming that has the ability to display closed captioning, including a television, digital 2
set top box, and any other technology capable of displaying closed captioning. 3

(5) “Open movie captioning” means a transcript or dialog of the audio 4
portion of a motion picture that is displayed on a motion picture screen that cannot be 5
turned off by a viewer. 6

(6) “Public area” means a part of a place of public accommodation that is 7
open to the general public. 8

(7) “Regular hours” means the hours of any day in which a place of public 9
accommodation is open to members of the general public. 10

(b) (1) On request, a place of public accommodation may not fail to keep closed 11
captioning activated on any closed –captioning television receiver that is in use during 12
regular hours in any public area. 13

(2) This subsection does not require a place of public accommodation to 14
make closed captioning available in a public area of the place of public accommodation if: 15

(i) no television receiver of any kind is available in the public area; 16
or 17

(ii) the only public television receiver available in the public area is 18
not a closed–captioning television receiver. 19

(c) (1) A place of public accommodation that is a motion picture house shall 20
provide access to fully operational and well–maintained closed movie captioning technology 21
for the general public for each screening of a motion picture that is produced and available 22
with closed movie captioning as required by Title III of the federal Americans with 23
Disabilities Act. 24

(2) (i) This paragraph does not apply to motion pictures screened fewer 25
than five t imes from Friday through Thursday in a 7 –day period in the motion picture 26
house. 27

(ii) This paragraph applies only to the first 3 weeks after a motion 28
picture premieres in the motion picture house. 29

(iii) If a motion picture is produced and available to motion picture 30
houses with open movie captioning, a place of public accommodation that controls, operates, 31
owns, or leases a motion picture house with [eight] FOUR or more screens in the State shall 32
provide open movie captioning for at least two screenings for each motion picture it screens 33
each week. 34

SENATE BILL 259 3

(iv) Beginning 3 weeks after a motion picture premieres, a place of 1
accommodation that controls, operates, owns, or leases a motion picture house with [eight] 2
FOUR or more screens in the State may prov ide open movie captioning with reasonable 3
notice. 4

SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect 5
October 1, 2026. 6