Maryland lawmakers have been working over time to ensure that key bills receive a final vote in their respective chambers to keep them from falling to the wayside this session.

Monday’s deadline is known as “crossover day” in the General Assembly, meaning any bill that does not pass in its original chamber is either effectively dead or would have to go through the other chamber’s Rules Committee under a special procedure.

Almost all of the major anticipated bills passed the crossover hurdle, but some cross-filed bills — the same legislation filed concurrently in the House and Senate — were amended to create a version different than what was approved in the other chamber.

This is most notably the case for a bill in the Senate that would ban private prisons in Maryland.

The House passed its cross-filed version of the bill a month ago, but HB1017 would only prohibit state and local governments from approving the use of a building as a private immigration detention center, unless it is explicitly zoned for such a facility.

The Senate version of the bill, SB0984, started with the same language, but within the past few days, Sen. Will Smith (D-Montgomery County) amended the legislation to ban all private detention centers in the state, effective immediately.

The bill passed its first full vote on Friday and a final vote on Monday with no debate and only two Republicans in support.

If the House does not conform its version to also prohibit private prisons, a conference committee will be needed to work out the differences.

Another set of bills that may have to duel out their differences is the “Protection From Predatory Pricing Act,” a governor and legislative leadership-backed bill to ban dynamic pricing in grocery stores.

The new law would require grocery stores and third-party food delivery services — like Instacart — to keep their prices set for at least 24 hours, and it would prohibit the food retailers from using personal data to change prices.

Both chambers have given final approval to their respective versions of the bill, but the House version was amended to require non-food retailers to disclose if they are using dynamic or surveillance pricing tactics.

It’s now up to the Senate to decide if they want to adopt the same policy for the final bill that is sent to the governor for signature.

One high-profile bill that did not make the crossover cut is the Community Trust Act, which would further limit local jurisdictions’ and law enforcements’ ability to assist in federal immigration enforcement.

HB1517 and SB0791 would prohibit officers from asking about an individual’s citizenship or immigration status entirely, prevent the detainment of an individual for immigration enforcement purposes by local officers and restrict ICE agents’ access to local correction facilities.

Neither bill received a vote in its respective committee by Monday.

The House is expected to take up the massive state budget bill for next fiscal year on Wednesday.

The energy package omnibus that has already passed in the House will have its first committee hearing in the Senate on Wednesday.

Megalodon as the state shark

While high-profile policy changes continue to make their way through the legislative process, some lesser-known bills also made the cut on Monday.

Last week, Del. Todd Morgan (R-Calvert and St. Mary's Counties) made his pitch in the House Government, Labor and Elections Committee to make the prehistoric 80-foot Megalodon Maryland’s state shark.

“Megalodon roamed the Chesapeake Bay. Maybe he could have been a distant relative of Chessie, the famous monster of the Chesapeake,” Morgan said. “The legislation was introduced at the request of the [Calvert Marine] Museum, which houses more than 1,700 fossilized Megalodon teeth and conducts extensive research on the species and its role in Maryland's history.”

Morgan pointed out that eight states have designated a state marine animal, but Maryland would be the first to designate a state shark.

The bill passed with unanimous approval in the House on Monday, but it still needs a committee vote in the Senate.

Medicaid coverage of GLP-1s

The Senate gave initial bipartisan approval on Monday to legislation that would authorize Maryland’s Medicaid program to provide comprehensive treatment of obesity — it would be up to the Maryland Department of Health to decide to implement the coverage if the bill becomes a law.

Currently, Maryland Medicaid covers bariatric surgery and intensive behavioral therapy for patients who meet certain clinical criteria.

Anti-obesity medications, like Ozempic and Wegovy — also known as GLP-1s —, are limited to individuals with an obesity diagnosis and certain comorbidities.

If Maryland Medicaid were to elect to provide the comprehensive coverage, the legislative fiscal analysts project it could cost almost $450 million annually, about 40% of which the state would be responsible for, which sparked some floor debate.

The sponsor of the legislation, Senate Republican Leader Stephen Hershey (R-Caroline, Cecil, Kent and Queen Anne’s Counties), says the fiscal note assumes above-average utilization rates compared to other states and notes it does not factor in the potential cost-savings Medicaid could see due to better health outcomes of covering weight-loss drugs.

The House has already given final approval to its version of the bill.

High sugar and salt disclosures for chain restaurants

The House and Senate both gave final approval to legislation that would require chain restaurants to signify which food items have high added sugar or sodium content.

The written menu disclosure must be accompanied with an option for the customer to access the full item’s nutritional information through a QR code, online or by request.

The disclosure would apply to an item with more than 25 grams of added sugar per serving and more than 1,150 milligrams of sodium per serving.

Clean Slate Act

The Senate gave final approval on Monday to Maryland’s version of the “Clean Slate Act of 2026,” which would automate the process for sealing certain arrest and conviction records once individuals become eligible, provided they remain crime-free for a set period and meet other requirements.

It is estimated that more than 400,000 Marylanders would have fully sealed records if SB0483 becomes law, meaning older offenses that were already eligible for expungement would no longer appear on commercial background checks, which can impact an individuals’ access to employment, housing and education.

The House has not yet voted its version of the bill out of committee.

Maryland Phone-Free Schools Act

The legislature is also considering requiring each county board of education to implement a policy limiting the student cell phone use during the school day.

There would be exemptions for students who use phones within their individual education program, have health concerns and during an emergency event among others.

If signed into law, counties must implement the policy no later than the 2027-2028 school year.

Both chambers have given final approval to the legislation.

Phasing out lead ammunition for hunting

The House gave final approval to HB1076 on Monday, which would require the Department of Natural Resources to require the use of only non-lead ammunition for the hunting of all game species by July 1, 2029.

The only exception would be for firearms without commercially available non-lead ammunition.

During debate, Democratic lawmakers argued the bill is for safety purposes to reduce the potential for lead poisoning, but GOP legislators pushed back, calling it a “regulatory scheme” and raised constitutional concerns.

There is no cross-filed version of the bill in the Senate.