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SB0696 • 2026

Financial Institutions - Complaint Database and Analysis - Required

Financial Institutions - Complaint Database and Analysis - Required

Passed Legislature

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

Sponsor
Senator Jackson
Last action
2026-02-11
Official status
In the Senate - Hearing 2/26 at 1:00 p.m.
Effective date
2026-10-01

Plain English Breakdown

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

Financial Institutions - Complaint Database and Analysis - Required

Requiring the Office of Financial Regulation to establish and maintain a certain database for complaints filed against financial institutions for unfair, deceptive, or abusive practices; and requiring the Office to publish a certain analysis of complaints quarterly on the Office's website.

What This Bill Does

  • Requiring the Office of Financial Regulation to establish and maintain a certain database for complaints filed against financial institutions for unfair, deceptive, or abusive practices; and requiring the Office to publish a certain analysis of complaints quarterly on the Office's website.

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.

Bill History

  1. 2026-02-11 Senate

    Hearing 2/26 at 1:00 p.m.

  2. 2026-02-06 Senate

    First Reading Finance

  3. Maryland General Assembly

    Text - First - Financial Institutions - Complaint Database and Analysis - Required

Official Summary Text

Requiring the Office of Financial Regulation to establish and maintain a certain database for complaints filed against financial institutions for unfair, deceptive, or abusive practices; and requiring the Office to publish a certain analysis of complaints quarterly on the Office's website.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MATTER ADDED TO EXISTING LAW.
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
*sb0696*

SENATE BILL 696
I1 6lr3555

By: Senator Jackson
Introduced and read first time: February 6, 2026
Assigned to: Finance

A BILL ENTITLED

AN ACT concerning 1

Financial Institutions – Complaint Database and Analysis – Required 2

FOR the purpose of requiring the Office of Financial Regulation to establish and maintain 3
a certain database for complaints filed against financial institutions for unfair, 4
abusive, or deceptive trade practices; requiring the Office to publish quarterly a 5
certain analysis; and generally relating to complaints against financial institutions. 6

BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 7
Article – Financial Institutions 8
Section 2–101 9
Annotated Code of Maryland 10
(2020 Replacement Volume and 2025 Supplement) 11

BY adding to 12
Article – Financial Institutions 13
Section 2–123 14
Annotated Code of Maryland 15
(2020 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 – Financial Institutions 19

2–101. 20

(a) There is a Commissioner of Financial Regulation in the Maryland Department 21
of Labor. 22

(b) There is an Office of Financial Regulation under the Commissioner in the 23
Maryland Department of Labor. 24
2 SENATE BILL 696

(c) The Commissioner is the head of the Office of Financial Regulation. 1

2–123. 2

(A) THE OFFICE OF FINANCIAL REGULATION SHALL: 3

(1) ESTABLISH AND MAINTAI N A DATABASE ON THE OFFICE’S 4
WEBSITE FOR COMPLAINTS FILED BY STATE RESIDENTS AGAIN ST FINANCIAL 5
INSTITUTIONS FOR UNFAIR, ABUSIVE, OR DECEPTIVE TRADE PRACTICES; AND 6

(2) PUBLISH A QUARTERLY ANALYSIS OF THE TRENDS IN AND 7
RESOLUTIONS TO THE COMPLAINTS LISTED ON THE OFFICE’S WEBSITE. 8

(B) (1) THE PURPOSE OF THE DATABASE IS TO PROVIDE TRANSPARENCY 9
TO CONSUMER S ABOUT PRODUCTS , ISSUES, OR COMPANIES ABOUT W HICH A 10
CONSUMER HAS FILED A COMPLAINT. 11

(2) EACH COMPLAINT SHALL BE IN NARRATIVE FORM WRITTEN BY 12
THE CONSUMER DESCRIB ING THE CONSUMER ’S EXPERIENCES THAT LED TO THE 13
FILING OF THE COMPLAINT. 14

(3) THE COMMISSIONER SHALL EN SURE THAT PERSONALLY 15
IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION IS REDACTED FROM THE NARRATIVE. 16

(C) THE DATABASE SHALL: 17

(1) BE REGULARLY UPDATED; 18

(2) BE S EARCHABLE BY METRICS DETERMINED BY THE 19
COMMISSIONER THAT WILL INCREASE T HE TRANSPARENCY FOR CONSUMERS AND 20
THE OFFICE’S ABILITY TO ANALYZE THE COMPLAINTS; AND 21

(3) BE DOWNLOADABLE. 22

SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect 23
October 1, 2026. 24