Just before midnight last night, Monday, April 8th, the 2024 Maryland Legislative Session adjourned, sine die. This means the legislative session is completed for the year.
We followed several pro- and anti-sportsmen bills this year.
As previously reported, the pro-sportsman bills failed to pass its house of origin before crossover. The good news is that the two anti-sportsman bills failed to make it through the legislative process before the legislature adjourned.
Senate Bill 488 would have instituted new vague laws and restrictions on the heavily regulated firearms industry. It also would have authorized the Attorney General to sue a member of the firearm industry by alleging violations and even potential violations of these laws and may seek equitable relief from a court.
Senate Bill 784, the falsely named Comprehensive Community Safety Funding Act, would have imposed an 11% excise tax or “sin” tax on sportsmen to recuperate monies from the law-abiding to pay for the criminal acts caused by others. The monies from the sin tax go towards funding programs whose sole purpose is to pay for gun violence prevention, research, healing, and recovery programs.
Even though the 2024 legislative session is over, the Sportsmen’s Alliance will continue to monitor activities in Maryland. You never know when issues that sportsmen need to be aware of may arise.
You can view the bills the Sportsmen’s Alliance monitored during the legislative session on our interactive legislative map. Please share this message with your family and friends, as sportsmen throughout the Old Line State must continue to stay actively involved in defending our hunting, fishing, and trapping heritage for present and future generations to enjoy.
About the Sportsmen’s Alliance: The Sportsmen’s Alliance protects and defends America’s wildlife conservation programs and the pursuits – hunting, fishing and trapping – that generate the money to pay for them. Sportsmen’s Alliance Foundation is responsible for public education, legal defense and research. Its mission is accomplished through several distinct programs coordinated to provide the most complete defense capability possible. Stay connected to Sportsmen’s Alliance: Online, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.