Maryland House Approves Marijuana Expungement Bill, Already Passed Senate
A marijuana expungement bill has been passed by Maryland’s full House of Representatives.
Senate Bill 949 was given approval by the House today with a 94 to 43 vote; the measure has already passed the Senate with a unanimous 47 to 0 vote. Given it was amended in the House, it will need to go back to the Senate to receive one final vote before being sent to Governor Larry Hogan for final consideration.
According to official language, Senate Bill 949 would allow for the expungement (removal) of a marijuana charge if “the person was convicted of possession of marijuana under §5–601 of the Criminal Law Article”. The measure initially required “that filing fees for petitions for expungement collected by the District Court be remitted to the Administrative Office of the Court be used only for a specified purpose”, but that was amended out in the House.
October 1, 2014 marked the start of a statewide policy in Maryland that decriminalized the possession of up to 10 grams of cannabis, which was previously an arrestable misdemeanor.
Click here for more information on Senate Bill 949.
