Cyber Maryland Program - Revisions
HB82 revises the Cyber Maryland Program and moves it from the Maryland Technology Development Corporation (TEDCO) to the Maryland Department of Labor. The bill keeps the program focused on cybersecurity workforce development, but updates its statutory home, expands and clarifies its duties, and revises the Cyber Maryland Fund and Board to match the new administrative structure. It also updates the program’s purposes to emphasize building a statewide cyber talent pipeline, serving as a one-stop shop for employers, supporting cybersecurity research and innovation, and helping improve the cybersecurity posture of state and local government and critical infrastructure.
The bill broadens the kinds of entities that may receive grants from the Cyber Maryland Fund to include employers, registered apprenticeship sponsors, local workforce boards, industry associations, labor unions, local governments, and economic development entities, in addition to schools, colleges, and nonprofits. It removes prior, specific annual funding requirements tied to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Talent Pipeline Management Approach and instead requires the Governor to include an appropriation sufficient for the program in the annual budget. It also updates board membership to add the Secretary of Higher Education, the State Superintendent of Schools, and TEDCO’s CEO or designee, while revising appointment terms and diversity language for the board.
HB82 would amend and relocate provisions in the Labor and Employment Article, creating a dedicated “Cyber Maryland Program” subtitle and transferring the existing statutory framework from the Economic Development Article. The Department of Labor would become the administrator of the program and fund, and the bill requires annual reporting to the Governor and General Assembly beginning in 2026. The act takes effect October 1, 2025.
Because there are no committee transcripts or recorded votes provided, the bill’s overall sentiment cannot be measured from debate or roll call history. Based on the bill text, the measure appears to be a technical and policy update intended to strengthen cybersecurity workforce development and align administration with the Department of Labor. The main policy changes are structural rather than controversial on their face, though the expanded grant eligibility and shift in administrative authority could affect how workforce and economic development stakeholders interact with the program.
HB82 would recodify the Cyber Maryland Program in the Labor and Employment Article and transfer administrative responsibility from TEDCO to the Maryland Department of Labor. It would also revise the Cyber Maryland Fund’s permitted uses, broaden eligible grant recipients, eliminate prior statutory funding set-asides, and update the composition and terms of the Cyber Maryland Board. These changes would affect state workforce development, cybersecurity education and training providers, employers, apprenticeship sponsors, local governments, and related partner organizations.
No committee discussion or vote history was provided, so there is no recorded legislative sentiment to summarize from debate or roll call. From the bill text alone, the measure appears generally supportive of cybersecurity workforce development and state coordination, with an emphasis on expanding partnerships and improving program administration. The bill’s framing suggests a constructive, program-reorganization approach rather than a contested policy shift.
No specific points of contention are documented in the provided materials. Potential areas of interest, based on the text, include the transfer of authority from TEDCO to the Department of Labor, the removal of prior funding requirements, and the expansion of grant eligibility to employers, labor organizations, local governments, and other entities. Those changes could draw differing views from workforce, education, economic development, and technology stakeholders, but no opposition or support is recorded in the supplied context.