Government Relations Committee THE MARYLAND HORSE COUNCIL


by Jane Seigler, MHC Government Relations Committee Co-Chair


Te 2023 Maryland Legislative session went out with a bang at mid- night on April 10. Fireworks erupted in the House over whether some legislators were using delay tactics to run out the clock and prevent cer- tain bills from getting a vote. Meanwhile in the Senate, just as the ad- journment gavel was falling, a breathless staffer rushed onto the floor with a sheaf of papers fresh from the House clerk’s office with one more bill that would get a vote. When the dust settled, it appeared that it was a pretty good session


for the horse industry. Below are the bills on which the Maryland Horse Council actively lobbied and that will become law.


Value-added agriculture specialist (SB 34/HB 389) - creates a position within the MD Department of Agriculture to provide support for value- added ag operations. We successfully lobbied to get Equine Activities specifically included. Under Maryland law, “Equine activities” includes teaching equestrian skills, participating in equestrian competitions, ex- hibitions or other displays of equestrian skills, and caring for, breeding, boarding, renting, riding, or training horses.


Terapy horse definition (SB 910) - removes the words “premier accred- ited” from the listing of Professional Association of Terapeutic Horseman- ship, International (PATH, Intl.) member centers as among the entities that qualify for participation in and to receive funding from the Maryland Vet- erans Service Animal Program within the MD Veterans Dept. Te sponsor (Sen. Simonaire R-AA) reached out to us for our support on the bill.


On farm composting (SB 262/HB 253) - creates a permit exemption for on farm composting facilities that use less than 10,000 square feet and compost only certain materials, including animal manure and bedding. We successfully requested an amendment that would make clear that the re- cord keeping requirements in the bill do not apply to farmers who compost only their own animal manure and bedding produced on the farm.


Hunting and outdoor recreation (SB 327/HB 983) - a very long bill that: establishes the Wildlife Conservation, Education, and Outreach Program to foster interest in outdoor recreation and stewardship, hunt- ing, and wildlife conservation; increases license and stamp fees for the first time in 30/40 years, which will increase federal matching funds; allows the Heritage Conservation Fund to acquire interests in land that can be used by the general public for hunting; authorizes a nonresident attending a college or university in the State to purchase a resident hunt- ing license; etc. BUT one line in the 13 page bill would have allowed statewide Sunday hunting of migratory game birds (shout-out to Del. Sara Love (D-MoCo), who alerted us to the Sunday hunting provision). Te bill was hotly contested, with intense and ultimately successful op- position to the Sunday hunting provision from many eastern shore wa- terfowl outfitter and guide interests, as well as from MHC. Te final bills no longer contained the provision to allow Sunday hunting of migratory waterfowl. Tey also added a provision that would allow a portion of any increased federal funding to be used for “sacrificial crops” planted by


farmers to reduce deer damage, and eliminated a proposal to study allow- ing Sunday hunting on state park lands.


We had significant success on the Sunday hunting issue. Bills that attempted to roll back the 10:30 am cutoff for Sunday hunting in some counties, which had been enacted last year, were defeated. (Calvert County – SB 323/HB 449 – Sunday hunting all species all Sundays; Mid-Shore Sunday hunting – SB 777/HB 1118 – repealing 10:30 re- striction for all species in Caroline, Dorchester; for all deer seasons in Talbot; for deer firearms in Wicomico; for Spring turkey in Talbot). A couple of bills that sought additional all day Sunday hunting were amended to add the 10:30 cutoff and passed. (Worcester – HB 466 - Sunday hunting of all species, all Sundays on public and private land; Wicomico – HB 1087 – Sunday hunting of all species, all Sundays on public and private land.) It appears that the legislators are just as tired as we are of dealing with the Sunday hunting bills year after year, and are trying to send a message to Sunday hunting proponents that if they come in asking for more, the most they will get is from dawn to 10:30 am. Te PG county Sunday hunting bill failed to move at all.


Tere were two bills on which we actively lobbied that did not turn as we had hoped – such is the nature of the law making process:


Pet eviction protections (SB 279/HB 102) - sets up a series of procedures to protect pets and the pet owners’ rights in the event of evictions. Limited to cats and dogs. We tried unsuccessfully to amend horses in. Next year!


Wildlife Advisory Commission membership (SB 320/HB 188) - the WAC is a stakeholder group within DNR’s Wildlife Heritage Service, to advise on wildlife issues. Currently, only farmers have a dedicated seat. Tis bill would add a mandated seat for a wildlife scientist, plus seats for hunters, the wildlife preservation community, and the passive wildlife recreation community. We tried unsuccessfully to get a seat specified for the mounted and unmounted chasing communities.


Other bills of interest that we tracked, and that passed:


SB 720 - Tis bill is the exception that proves the rule about how bills that fail to get passed by one chamber and sent over to the other chamber by “Crossover Day” (March 20 this year) are effectively dead. Tis bill was initially a short (two sentences) and relatively routine bill, extending the sunset date for the Maryland Horse Racing Act from 2024 to 2034. Our eyebrows were raised when Crossover Day came and went, and the bill failed to move. Ten, on April 5, 16 days after Crossover Day, the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee resurrected and heavily amended the bill. In less than a day, the bill was passed by the Senate, sent to the House of Delegates, referred to the House Ways and Means Committee, quickly made the subject of a hearing, voted out of committee and sent to the floor of the House unamended. Te bill creates a nine-member Maryland Tor-


Want to know how you can make an impact right now? Go to mdhorsecouncil.org, scroll down to the bottom left and click on the “Donate” to the PAC button. Your contribution in any amount helps us fuel our efforts in Annapolis!


www.equiery.com | 800-244-9580 THE EQUIERY YOUR MARYLAND HORSE COUNCIL PUBLICATION | MAY 2023 | 33


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