GOVERNOR HOGAN: Good afternoon, everybody. I want to thank the leaders of the General Assembly from both parties for joining us here today. Senate President Bill Ferguson, House Speaker Adrienne Jones, Senate Minority Leader Bryan Simonaire, House Majority Leader Eric Luedtke, House Minority Leader Nic Kipke, as well as Senate Budget and Taxation Committee Chairman Guy Guzzone.
In a few moments we will sign Senate Bill, the RELIEF Act of 2021, into law. This emergency legislation will immediately provide over a billion dollars in urgently needed stimulus and tax relief for Maryland families, small businesses, and those who have lost their jobs due to the global pandemic. As a result of this bipartisan legislation, people who have lost their jobs will not have to pay any state and local income taxes on their unemployment benefits, letting them keep more money in their pockets. Tax relief for small businesses will let them keep up to $9,000 in their pockets over the next 90 days so that they can keep their doors open and keep more people on the payroll. And small businesses will now be protected against any sudden or substantial increases in their unemployment taxes.
In addition, direct relief checks will go out to hundreds of thousands of Marylanders in need, and families will receive extended tax relief through the earned income tax credit. This legislation also provides more than $100 million in grants to small businesses and nonprofit organizations on top of the $700 million in state economic relief that we’ve already provided. The RELIEF Act offers a real lifeline to those hardest hit, people who are struggling to get by and small businesses desperately trying to stay afloat.
I introduced this emergency legislation at the start of the legislative session just a few weeks ago, and I said that there wasn’t anything that could possibly be more important for the legislature to pass, and I asked our legislative colleagues to work together with us in a bipartisan way to help those Marylanders who really needed our help. And today I want to sincerely thank the leaders on both sides of the aisle for coming together to pass this measure with near unanimous support. It’s almost unheard of for any major piece of legislation to pass in such a short period of time and with such universal bipartisan support. At a time when so many Americans have stopped believing that democracy can work for them, when Washington remains divided in gridlock, Maryland once again has shown the nation that both parties can still come together, that we can put the people’s priorities first, and that we can deliver real bipartisan common-sense solutions to the serious problems that face us.
We still face a long, difficult winter ahead, and many Marylanders are still in need. But our vaccination rate is rising every day, as we get more shots into the arms of our most vulnerable citizens, and all of our key health metrics are continuing to steadily decline. And now with this RELIEF Act being signed into law today, even more tax relief and economic stimulus help is on the way for our struggling families and small businesses.
So thank you.
Before we sign the bill into law, I’m going to ask Senate President and the speaker to say a few words. Mr. President?
PRESIDENT FERGUSON: Thank you.
Thank you, Governor Hogan, for your words and truly your leadership on this matter, and thank you as well to my partner in the General Assembly, Speaker Jones, for your ongoing partnership and strong leadership in the House of Delegates..
I also want to thank every member of the Maryland Senate, especially our Chair of our taxation committee, Guy Guzzone, and our minority leader, Bryan Simonaire, for their tireless efforts and for members on both sides of the aisle who were able to forge consensus in truly times of dire, dire need. This is an important day, a day when we get to show the people the best of our politics and what we have to offer when we focus on results. In less than 3 weeks this bill made its way through both chambers with a variety of improvements and back to the Governor’s desk for his signature. Its passage, unanimous in the Senate and nearly unanimous in the House demonstrates the importance and urgency of this issue. This is what the power of Maryland government can do when we focus on solving problems.
While it certainly was a rush to pass this bill, it was not a rush effort. Senators and members of the House as well have been working tirelessly since this pandemic began, speaking to their constituents, hearing their needs, their concerns, their fears, and hearing what needs they most needed met. There is not a single Marylander who will not be affected by this bill. It will directly affect millions of Marylanders, including especially those who have fallen through the cracks despite efforts at previous state and federal aid. For the struggling small business owner, they’ll find relief in both the sales tax credit and direct grants. For those struggling to make ends meet, a stimulus check. And the largest anti-poverty expansion in our state’s history. For those who need some help because this crisis has hit them particularly hard, we have utility relief for nearly 40 percent of Marylanders who are stuck, aid to food pantries, and so much more. We have direct dollars to increase tutoring to help schools prepare to reopen for parents who are struggling with learning for their children.
There is no doubt we have more to work on in the weeks and months ahead, but this is a good day. I am proud to be with the Governor as he sign there’s bill, to make sure that all Marylanders know that help is here and on the way. Let us together make 2021 the year of true rebuilding and recovery.
House Speaker?
SPEAKER JONES: Good afternoon, everyone. With me are two of our key leaders in the House of Delegates, majority leader Eric Luedtke and minority leader Nic Kipke. Majority and minority leader. I stress that because this bill is not a democrat bill. It’s not a republican bill. It’s a bill for the people that all of us here represent. This is the very key piece of legislation. We’ve gotten feedback from families who didn’t know how they were going to feed their children. They heard about this bill. They called in to us. And they are thanking us.
Not oftentimes as legislators do we get thanked. This is a big deal. This is of historic proportion. We have a Governor who sees — because we all represent the same people. And the fact that we were quickly able to do this says a lot. The key to that was communication. We talked to each other. Both sides. This is the legislation that will affect the least of us, who need the most from us. And for that, I am grateful and on behalf of all the citizens that are affected by this bill in our state, we thank you and we thank everyone here that made this possible. Thank you. Now to the bill signing.
[Applause]
SPEAKER: Can we get a thumbs up, please?
SPEAKER: Thank you.
In a few moments we will sign Senate Bill, the RELIEF Act of 2021, into law. This emergency legislation will immediately provide over a billion dollars in urgently needed stimulus and tax relief for Maryland families, small businesses, and those who have lost their jobs due to the global pandemic. As a result of this bipartisan legislation, people who have lost their jobs will not have to pay any state and local income taxes on their unemployment benefits, letting them keep more money in their pockets. Tax relief for small businesses will let them keep up to $9,000 in their pockets over the next 90 days so that they can keep their doors open and keep more people on the payroll. And small businesses will now be protected against any sudden or substantial increases in their unemployment taxes.
In addition, direct relief checks will go out to hundreds of thousands of Marylanders in need, and families will receive extended tax relief through the earned income tax credit. This legislation also provides more than $100 million in grants to small businesses and nonprofit organizations on top of the $700 million in state economic relief that we’ve already provided. The RELIEF Act offers a real lifeline to those hardest hit, people who are struggling to get by and small businesses desperately trying to stay afloat.
I introduced this emergency legislation at the start of the legislative session just a few weeks ago, and I said that there wasn’t anything that could possibly be more important for the legislature to pass, and I asked our legislative colleagues to work together with us in a bipartisan way to help those Marylanders who really needed our help. And today I want to sincerely thank the leaders on both sides of the aisle for coming together to pass this measure with near unanimous support. It’s almost unheard of for any major piece of legislation to pass in such a short period of time and with such universal bipartisan support. At a time when so many Americans have stopped believing that democracy can work for them, when Washington remains divided in gridlock, Maryland once again has shown the nation that both parties can still come together, that we can put the people’s priorities first, and that we can deliver real bipartisan common-sense solutions to the serious problems that face us.
We still face a long, difficult winter ahead, and many Marylanders are still in need. But our vaccination rate is rising every day, as we get more shots into the arms of our most vulnerable citizens, and all of our key health metrics are continuing to steadily decline. And now with this RELIEF Act being signed into law today, even more tax relief and economic stimulus help is on the way for our struggling families and small businesses.
So thank you.
Before we sign the bill into law, I’m going to ask Senate President and the speaker to say a few words. Mr. President?
PRESIDENT FERGUSON: Thank you.
Thank you, Governor Hogan, for your words and truly your leadership on this matter, and thank you as well to my partner in the General Assembly, Speaker Jones, for your ongoing partnership and strong leadership in the House of Delegates..
I also want to thank every member of the Maryland Senate, especially our Chair of our taxation committee, Guy Guzzone, and our minority leader, Bryan Simonaire, for their tireless efforts and for members on both sides of the aisle who were able to forge consensus in truly times of dire, dire need. This is an important day, a day when we get to show the people the best of our politics and what we have to offer when we focus on results. In less than 3 weeks this bill made its way through both chambers with a variety of improvements and back to the Governor’s desk for his signature. Its passage, unanimous in the Senate and nearly unanimous in the House demonstrates the importance and urgency of this issue. This is what the power of Maryland government can do when we focus on solving problems.
While it certainly was a rush to pass this bill, it was not a rush effort. Senators and members of the House as well have been working tirelessly since this pandemic began, speaking to their constituents, hearing their needs, their concerns, their fears, and hearing what needs they most needed met. There is not a single Marylander who will not be affected by this bill. It will directly affect millions of Marylanders, including especially those who have fallen through the cracks despite efforts at previous state and federal aid. For the struggling small business owner, they’ll find relief in both the sales tax credit and direct grants. For those struggling to make ends meet, a stimulus check. And the largest anti-poverty expansion in our state’s history. For those who need some help because this crisis has hit them particularly hard, we have utility relief for nearly 40 percent of Marylanders who are stuck, aid to food pantries, and so much more. We have direct dollars to increase tutoring to help schools prepare to reopen for parents who are struggling with learning for their children.
There is no doubt we have more to work on in the weeks and months ahead, but this is a good day. I am proud to be with the Governor as he sign there’s bill, to make sure that all Marylanders know that help is here and on the way. Let us together make 2021 the year of true rebuilding and recovery.
House Speaker?
SPEAKER JONES: Good afternoon, everyone. With me are two of our key leaders in the House of Delegates, majority leader Eric Luedtke and minority leader Nic Kipke. Majority and minority leader. I stress that because this bill is not a democrat bill. It’s not a republican bill. It’s a bill for the people that all of us here represent. This is the very key piece of legislation. We’ve gotten feedback from families who didn’t know how they were going to feed their children. They heard about this bill. They called in to us. And they are thanking us.
Not oftentimes as legislators do we get thanked. This is a big deal. This is of historic proportion. We have a Governor who sees — because we all represent the same people. And the fact that we were quickly able to do this says a lot. The key to that was communication. We talked to each other. Both sides. This is the legislation that will affect the least of us, who need the most from us. And for that, I am grateful and on behalf of all the citizens that are affected by this bill in our state, we thank you and we thank everyone here that made this possible. Thank you. Now to the bill signing.
[Applause]
SPEAKER: Can we get a thumbs up, please?
SPEAKER: Thank you.