By Greg Ellison

(Dec. 3, 2020) Delegate Wayne Hartman (R-38C) and Sen. Mary Beth Carozza (R-38) detailed challenges and priorities for the 2021 Maryland Legislative session during a Zoom meeting hosted by the Ocean Pines Area Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday.

Carozza said since the Maryland Senate adjourned its last session on March 18, just as coronavirus began altering life in the U.S. and worldwide, her focus has been on constituent service.

Carozza said the pandemic-related financial challenges have reached the critical level for many small businesses on the Eastern Shore, especially those in the restaurant and tourism industries.

In preparation for the 90-day session that opens on Jan. 13, small business representatives from the Maryland Chamber of Commerce, the Maryland Retailers Association and the Maryland Restaurant Association have identified financial priorities tied to covid recovery.

Carozza said the goal is to provide immediate assistance while addressing long-term challenges for job creators.

That would include civil immunity protection for small businesses related to covid-19, as well as the unemployment ratings for our business operators, she said.

“Making sure they’re not penalized through no fault of their own for having to use those funds.”

In much the same vein, Hartman is hoping to push legislation to lower fees on small businesses during the 2021 session.

“The liability exemption for businesses is going to be a huge priority,” he said.

In answer to a question about federal funding for small business requiring covid relief, Carozza and Hartman expressed confidence.

“Knowing the way that Congress operates after having being part of it at the senior staff level for a few years … although the process is a frustrating one, I will remain optimistic that we will see the additional covid-19 federal assistance,” she said.

Hartman said in light of Gov. Larry Hogan tapping $500 million from the state’s rainy day fund for small business relief so far this year, the potential exists for related tax increases on industry to replenish the unemployment fund.

“The businesses have already had a challenging year and the last thing we need is that tax to increase,” he said. “Part of that CARES Act funding has to be relief to the states to replenish the unemployment funds.”

Carozza said the number of constituents filing for unemployment benefits in her district, and elsewhere, have hit unprecedented levels during the pandemic.

Since March, Carozza’s staff has assisted nearly 1,000 people to navigate the often challenging claims process.

“We still have people that are following up and still have not received their benefits,” she said.

In early November, covid-19 health safety protocols for the 2021 Maryland General Assembly session were announced.

“The new 2021 session is unprecedented,” Carozza said.

The Maryland Senate will operate under a three-stage plan contingent on coronavirus infections rates.

The Senate would follow “Stage 3” rules, the least restrictive, when infection activity in the State House is minimal or nonexistent.

Carozza said stage 3 rules include daily heath checks for members and twice weekly covid testing.

“We would be limited to meetings with two people at a time [and] hearings will be virtual,” she said.

Stage 3 allows for two hours per session of debate and voting on the Senate floor, with the option for elected officials to view proceedings from a committee room.

“On the Republican side, they have insisted that any voting in committee or on the floor is done in person,” she said. “That’s often where, if there’s issues going back and forth, that [we’re] trying to resolve you have to be able to do that in person as opposed to Zoom.”

The Senate would adopt slightly more restrictive Stage 2 rules if there are documented cases of covid-19 that require quarantine.

Under Stage 2 all floor debate and voting would be conducted in committee rooms and held virtually to permit increased social distancing.

State House access would be restricted to elected officials, staff members and media, with visitors not permitted.

The most restrictive level, Stage 1, would be enacted if multiple instances of covid-19 infections are noted in the State House, with all hearings held virtually and voting as deemed necessary.

Hartman said questions abound as to how the 2021 legislative session would transpire.

“The House will have us in multiple rooms as opposed to on the floor together and we will be united through technology,” he said.

Hartman harbors fears the safety-conscious approach could limit traditional vetting of proposed legislation. “Unfortunately, a lot of times when we’re trying to make bad things better, we utilize each other as far as debate on the floor,” he said.