As the Maryland state legislative session approached its Crossover Day, bills moved quickly through both chambers. Crossover is the final day that bills passed in one chamber are guaranteed a hearing in the opposite chamber. If a bill does not crossover, it is not dead, but requires that it go through the Rules Committee to be given a hearing.
Here is the status on some of our priority bills after the March 18th crossover day:
- AFT Maryland successfully advocated for language to be included in the budget to establish a Workgroup on Noncertificated Education Support Professionals. This workgroup will address pay equity issues among professional school personnel across different local school districts. Having passed in the Senate, the budget now moves to the House for further consideration.
- MPEC teacher members, who were left out of previous legislation to increase forensic pay for workers in the state mental hospitals: their bill to fix this wrong has crossed over and is expected to pass.
- MCEA threw its weight behind bills focused on collective bargaining rights for state employee supervisors, and extending bereavement leave for the loss of a child. Both of these bills have successfully crossed over, reflecting the growing momentum behind these important measures.
- BTU lent its support to bills mandating Active Shooter Safety Drills or Trainings and ensuring the transferability of English as a Second Language (ESL) or English language learner courses from public community colleges to state colleges or universities. These bills have also crossed over, signaling progress in addressing critical issues in education and safety.
- The Blueprint Coalition's bills that expand the eligibility for Teacher Development and Retention Program stipends successfully crossed over, underscoring the commitment to supporting and retaining quality educators.
- CUB continues to work on the bill to establish the Baltimore Regional Water Authority Governance Workgroup. CUB’s focus is to ensure union representation on the newly formed board and to prevent the privatization of the public water system. The bill was passed with amendments out of the Baltimore City Delegation. It has not crossed over, but is expected to.
- Collective bargaining for the University of Maryland system did not cross over, however we will continue to fight for its passage this session.
- AFT Maryland led an effort with other unions to kill a bill that would have taken certain supervisors and department chairs out of collective bargaining units in the state community colleges.
As crossover day came to a close, these developments underscored the importance of AFT Maryland and our affiliates to advocate in shaping policies that reflect the needs and priorities of union members. We will continue to work until the bills are signed by the Governor.
Article by AFT Maryland staff.
Photo by John Nupp on Unsplash