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*sb0442*
SENATE BILL 442
A2 6lr3098
By: Anne Arundel County Senators
Introduced and read first time: January 30, 2026
Assigned to: Finance
Committee Report: Favorable
Senate action: Adopted
Read second time: February 20, 2026
CHAPTER ______
AN ACT concerning 1
Anne Arundel County – Population Ratio Quota for Class A (Off–Sale) and Class 2
D (Off–Sale) Licenses – Exemption 3
FOR the purpose of establishing an exemption to the population ratio quota for certain 4
Class A (off –sale) and Class D (off –sale) licenses in Anne Arundel County ; and 5
generally relating to alcoholic beverages licenses in Anne Arundel County. 6
BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 7
Article – Alcoholic Beverages and Cannabis 8
Section 11–102 9
Annotated Code of Maryland 10
(2024 Replacement Volume and 2025 Supplement) 11
BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 12
Article – Alcoholic Beverages and Cannabis 13
Section 11–1602 14
Annotated Code of Maryland 15
(2024 Replacement Volume and 2025 Supplement) 16
SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 17
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 18
Article – Alcoholic Beverages and Cannabis 19
11–102. 20
2 SENATE BILL 442
This title applies only in Anne Arundel County. 1
11–1602. 2
(a) In this section, “assessment district” means a tax assessment district: 3
(1) established by the county; and 4
(2) shown on the official map adopted by the County Council titled “Tax 5
Assessment Districts, 2005”. 6
(b) Subject to subsection (c) of this section, the Board may issue a Class A 7
(off–sale), Class B (off –sale), or Class D (off –sale) license based on its determination of 8
whether the license is necessary to accommodate the public. 9
(c) If the application is for a Class A (off –sale) or Class D (off –sale) license, the 10
Board may not issue the license if: 11
(1) the establishment for which the license would be issued is located in an 12
assessment district in which the ratio of off –sale licenses per i ndividual exceeds one for 13
every 3,500 individuals; or 14
(2) the issuance of the license would cause the ratio of off–sale licenses per 15
individual in an assessment district to exceed one for every 3,500 individuals. 16
(d) Subsection (c) of this section does not apply: 17
(1) to the transfer or renewal of a license that was issued on or before July 18
1, 2025; 19
(2) in the 6th tax assessment district; [or] 20
(3) to an application for an on –site consumption permit under § 2 –207 of 21
this article by an applicant that holds a Class 5 brewery license; OR 22
(4) TO AN APPLICATION FOR A LICENSE FILED ON OR AFTER JANUARY 23
1, 2023, AND APPROVED BY THE BOARD BEFORE JULY 1, 2025. 24
(e) The population of each assessment district is to be determined by: 25
(1) the latest federal census; or 26
(2) estimates prepared by the Anne Arundel County Office of Planning and 27
Zoning. 28
SENATE BILL 442 3
(f) The Board may not approve the transfer of a Class A (off–sale) license or Class 1
D (off–sale) license: 2
(1) to a location outside the assessment dist rict in which the license was 3
located on July 1, 2025; or 4
(2) if the license was not in existence as of July 1, 2025, to a location outside 5
the assessment district in which the license was originally issued. 6
SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect July 7
1, 2026. It shall remain effective until the taking effect of the termination provision 8
specified in Section 2 of Chapters 818 and 819 of the Acts of the General Assembly of 2025. 9
If that termination provision takes effect, this Act shall be abrogated and of no further force 10
and effect. This Act may not be interpreted to have any effect on that termination provision. 11
Approved:
________________________________________________________________________________
Governor.
________________________________________________________________________________
President of the Senate.
________________________________________________________________________________
Speaker of the House of Delegates.