The segments below provide a brief overview of MACo’s work on employee benefits and relations policy in the 2026 General Assembly session.
County governments are major public employers, responsible for managing a diverse workforce that delivers critical public services. To this extent, MACo advocates to ensure that state employment laws are fair, balanced, and workable for public sector employers, particularly when proposals uniquely or disproportionately affect government operations or essential personnel.
During Maryland’s 448th legislative session, employee benefits and labor policy centered around ongoing workforce challenges, evolving labor standards, and rising personnel costs. The General Assembly considered a range of proposals from collective bargaining, employee protections, and benefits expansion, many carrying significant operational and fiscal implications for county governments.
Follow these links for more coverage on our Conduit Street blog and Legislative Database.
MACo opposed HB 831/SB 922 – Collective Bargaining – Local Government Employees and Public Employee Relations Act. This bill would have mandated collective bargaining rights for local government employees statewide and significantly altered local government labor relations. MACo raised concerns about the sweeping, state-mandated collective bargaining framework that would apply uniformly to every county, regardless of size, structure, or existing labor agreements. This bill DID NOT pass the...
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