Public Ethics Law - Participation Restrictions and Requirements for Local Governments and School Boards
Summary
HB1074 creates a new set of criminal offenses specifically targeting gift card misuse and fraud. The bill defines “gift card” separately from credit cards and other payment instruments, then prohibits taking a gift card from another person without consent when done with intent to defraud, receiving a gift card known to have been taken or lost/misdelivered and keeping it for use or resale, and buying or selling gift cards except through the issuer or an authorized seller. It also bars receiving a gift card known to have been taken in violation of these rules.
The bill further criminalizes counterfeiting-related conduct involving gift cards, including falsely making or embossing a gift card, possessing or transferring a falsely made or falsely embossed gift card with fraudulent intent, and signing a gift card by someone other than the intended recipient with intent to defraud. Penalties are graded by value: offenses involving balances under $100 carry up to 90 days in jail and/or a $500 fine, while offenses involving $100 or more carry up to 6 months for a first offense and up to 1 year for repeat offenses, plus the same fine cap. The act is set to take effect October 1, 2025.
Impact
The bill amends Maryland Criminal Law Subtitle 2, renaming it to include both credit card and gift card crimes, and adds new sections 8-204.1 and 8-205.1. It expands state criminal law to cover gift cards as a distinct category of property and payment instrument, creating new misdemeanor offenses and penalties for theft, possession, resale, and forgery-related conduct involving gift cards. The bill would affect consumers, retailers, gift card issuers, and law enforcement by giving prosecutors explicit statutory tools to address gift card fraud and secondary-market trafficking.
Sentiment
The available record shows a straightforward, punitive consumer-protection measure with no recorded votes or committee testimony indicating opposition or support beyond introduction and referral. The bill appears to be framed as an anti-fraud and anti-theft proposal, suggesting generally favorable policy intent toward protecting consumers and issuers from gift card scams. Because no committee discussion or vote history is provided, there is no documented public sentiment in the record beyond the bill’s apparent purpose.
Contention
The main policy issue embedded in the bill is how broadly to criminalize gift card possession and resale, especially in secondary markets, by limiting lawful sales and purchases to issuers or authorized sellers. Another potential point of contention is the bill’s treatment of low-value gift cards as criminal offenses, which could raise questions about proportionality and enforcement priorities. The bill also distinguishes gift cards from credit cards and electronic funds transfers, which may matter for how existing fraud statutes apply and whether the new provisions overlap with other theft or forgery laws.