Bill > SB49

This bill establishes rights for unhoused individuals in Maryland, defining terms like "unhoused individual" as someone lacking a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, and "life-sustaining activity" as basic actions like resting, sleeping, or protecting oneself from the elements, including storing personal property. It declares that punishing unhoused individuals for these activities in public places, when no adequate alternative indoor space is available, violates their right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment. The bill grants unhoused individuals the right to be in public places without discrimination based on housing status, to engage in life-sustaining activities unless they obstruct public or private entities or traffic (unless an adequate indoor space is offered), to privacy for stored property, to occupy or move vehicles used for shelter if not obstructing traffic, and to retrieve or reclaim towed vehicles with consideration for their ability to pay. It also prohibits imposing penalties on individuals for providing donations to unhoused people and allows for arrests or penalties only for criminal activity unrelated to these protected rights. Furthermore, the bill introduces an affirmative defense of necessity in prosecutions for criminal trespass or disturbing the peace, allowing defendants to argue they were engaged in life-sustaining activities and had no adequate alternative indoor space or storage for their belongings. This subtitle is intended to supersede conflicting local laws unless they offer greater protections, and it also removes the prohibition of "vagrancy" from municipal powers.

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https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/SB0049?ys=2026RS