By Capital News Service staff
Gov. Wes Moore signed 146 bills into law after Maryland legislators rushed Monday to pass legislation before the midnight deadline.
Lawmakers rallied to address affordability and accountability as the state reacted to the Trump-Vance administration’s agenda, legislative leaders said Tuesday.
“What we are watching just South of us is for the past 90 days, we watched chaos unfold,” Moore, a Democrat, said at Tuesday’s bill signing. “But why I am so proud of Maryland is that in this moment we did not just push back, we pushed forward.”
Dozens of spectators filed into the governor’s reception room to see legislation they had supported signed into law. Moore was joined by Senate President Bill Ferguson and House Speaker Joseline Peña-Melnyk, also Democrats.
Many of the bills addressed public health issues, including requiring health insurance coverage for vaccines and mandating providers offer certain benefits for mental health and substance-use disorders.
The bills approved ranged from the Utility RELIEF Act to reduce energy costs to making Jan. 13 Korean American Day. One bill signed into law Tuesday addressed concerns about the growing population of invasive blue catfish in the Chesapeake Bay.
Tuesday’s bill signings followed a long end-of-session day marked by contentious debates in the House and Senate chambers as lawmakers hurried to pass legislation.
With less than an hour until the end of the session, Ferguson picked up the pace in the Senate. There was little time between discussions about a bill and a vote on it.
Tensions ran high throughout the night — eye rolls, glances to the ceiling and groans came from the gallery when some lawmakers stood to debate or comment on bills.
House Speaker Joseline Peña-Melnyk, D-Anne Arundel and Prince George’s, talks about the legislation the House passed at a press conference with the chairs of the House standing committees after the end of the 2026 session on April 14. (Alexander Taylor/Capital News Service)
Red, black and gold balloons and confetti rained down on the Senate floor as the clock struck midnight, marking the end of the legislative session.
Ferguson smacked a special, supersized gavel to signal the end of proceedings that began at 10 a.m. Lawmakers whooped, hugged and shook hands. Many wished each other a “Happy Sine Die.”
“It was a very interesting last day,” Senate Minority Leader Stephen Hershey, R-Caroline, Cecil, Kent and Queen Anne’s, told Capital News Service. “The Senate Democrats left a lot of important bills to the last minute. A lot of them we were able to defeat.”
Several bills made it through both chambers, including one aimed at providing some relief with rising utility bills. Another, the Local Newspapers for Maryland Communities Act of 2026, introduced by Sen. Jim Rosapepe, D-Prince George’s and Anne Arundel, mandates increased advertising revenue from the state to local publications.
“We just did a lot of really good stuff this session,” Sen. William Smith, D-Montgomery, told Capital News Service. “I call it the ‘Sneaky Big Deal Year’ because a lot of the stuff didn’t garner a lot of the press attention, but its fundamental reforms that usually would be the marquee bill for a session.”
‘Fireworks conclusion’
Over in the House chamber, some lawmakers stood up and shouted during the final hour. Some called for Peña-Melnyk to call the roll for a vote, while others asked to explain their vote.
With only four minutes left, tensions flared as lawmakers considered the Maryland’s Voting Rights Act of 2026. Republicans were shouted down when they wanted to speak.
“Madam Speaker this is not humility or kindness,” House Minority Leader Jason Buckel, R–Allegany, said. “This is not how you act, Madam Speaker.”
The bill, which would allow the Maryland attorney general to sue counties and municipalities that impose for minority voters, passed 91-19 with less than a minute to spare.
“It was a fireworks conclusion,’’ Del. Karen Toles, D-Prince George’s, said. “What a way to end the session.”
Peña-Melnyk said all the bills that came across her desk Monday had gone through a long legislative process.
“Look at the last bill that we did, it was a colorful way to end, but you know what? It’s part of the process. It’s Sine Die. You have until midnight,” she told reporters after the session.
Even with the chaotic end, Peña-Melnyk, who is new to the role of speaker, said she was proud of the work she and her colleagues were able to do for Marylanders.
“You know, I don’t know if there’s anything I would’ve done differently because I didn’t know what to expect,” she said. “But I can tell you what I have done. And what I’ve done, honest to God, is given it my absolute best.”
Contributing to this report Aline Behar Kado, Rhiannon Evans, Andrew Mollenauer, Nolan Rogalski, Irit Skulnik, Alexander Taylor, Sam Gauntt and Ian Ferris.
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