Public Institutions of Higher Education - Pregnant and Parenting Students - Plan and Reporting
HB0006 requires the State Department of Assessments and Taxation (SDAT) to expand the property appraisal aids it maintains for each county to include a statewide and local database of geographic images. Those images must include geographic information system (GIS) visualizations and oblique aerial photographic imagery. The bill also directs the Department of General Services to procure a uniform statewide system, including the tools and services needed to prepare, install, and maintain these appraisal aids, after consulting with SDAT and relevant state and local government units.
The bill also adds a privacy-related requirement: by June 30, 2025, SDAT must develop policies to protect the identity of any individual captured in oblique aerial imagery. SDAT must then report to the General Assembly by July 15, 2025 on the policies it adopted. The act takes effect June 1, 2025, and amends provisions of the Tax-Property Article governing assessment records and the costs of administering SDAT.
HB0006 changes Maryland property tax administration law by expanding the statutory appraisal-aid system and assigning new responsibilities to both SDAT and the Department of General Services. It also modifies the cost-sharing formula so counties and Baltimore City must reimburse the State for the geographic image database, with local governments paying 100% of the first $1 million in annual costs and 50% of costs above that amount. The bill further requires local cost allocation based on real property account counts, and it adds a reporting obligation to the General Assembly regarding privacy policies for aerial imagery.
The available legislative record suggests the bill moved forward without recorded opposition in the materials provided. The House Ways and Means Committee reported it favorably with amendments, and the House adopted those amendments. No committee transcript or vote tally is included here, so the overall sentiment can only be characterized as generally supportive and administrative in nature, with the bill framed as a modernization and implementation measure for assessment tools.
The main points of potential contention are likely the cost allocation and privacy provisions. Counties and Baltimore City are required to reimburse the State for the new geographic image database, which could raise concerns about local fiscal impact, especially because the bill shifts the first $1 million in annual costs entirely to local governments. Another possible issue is privacy: because the database includes oblique aerial imagery, the bill requires SDAT to create policies to protect the identity of individuals captured in those images, indicating sensitivity around surveillance, personal privacy, and the use of aerial photography in property assessment.