A wave of new state laws takes effect Thursday, Oct. 1. The changes will reach Southern Maryland shoppers, drivers, seniors and landlords, and they will change how some teens are charged in court.
Nearly 300 new laws passed during the 2026 General Assembly session take effect Oct. 1. Gov. Wes Moore signed many of them in May, including 275 bills at his final signing ceremony on May 26. Other laws from the session took effect earlier, in the Chronicle’s June 1 and July 1 roundups.
Here are 11 of the Oct. 1 laws most likely to affect you.
At the store
Cash must be accepted for everyday essentials. Under House Bill 191 (Chapter 714), in-person retailers can’t refuse cash, require a card, or charge more for paying in cash. The rule covers purchases under $300 of essential goods made between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. Essential goods include food and pet food, water and drinks, hygiene products, medicine and medical supplies, and fuel. The law doesn’t apply to online, phone or mail orders, vending machines, restaurants and bars, or membership-only fuel sellers.
Stores may decline bills larger than $20 if they have a working machine on site that converts cash to a prepaid card with no fee. The attorney general’s office must give a store two chances to comply before fining it. Fines are up to $500 for a first violation and up to $1,000 after that.
Grocers can’t use your data to set your price. Maryland is the first state to ban “surveillance pricing” at the grocery store. The Protection From Predatory Pricing Act, House Bill 895, bars food retailers with at least 15,000 square feet, and third-party delivery apps, from using a shopper’s personal data to charge that shopper a higher price for food. Loyalty discounts, coupons and programs customers voluntarily join are still allowed. The attorney general can seek up to $10,000 per violation, or $25,000 for repeat offenders. Individual shoppers can’t sue under the law.
On the road
Out-of-state plates now carry fines. Senate Bill 111 puts teeth behind the state’s registration requirement. Maryland residents driving on improperly registered out-of-state tags will get a warning from the Motor Vehicle Administration. They then have 60 days to register in Maryland or prove they’re exempt.
After that, the fine is $7 a day for up to 60 days, capped at $420 per vehicle. After 120 days, the county attorney can go to court to have the vehicle booted, towed or impounded. Students, active-duty military and temporary residents can get a nonresident permit instead. The MVA previewed the crackdown in July with its Plate Where You Live campaign, which the agency said targeted Southern Maryland commuters in particular. More information is at mva.maryland.gov/PlateWhereYouLive or 410-768-7000.
More speed cameras on dangerous state highways. The Vulnerable Road User Protection Act of 2026, Senate Bill 487 (Chapter 285), allows the State Highway Administration to put speed cameras in “safety corridors.” These are stretches of state highway found to be high-risk for pedestrians, cyclists and other people outside vehicles. Local governments can run the cameras with a state permit. Fines scale with speed: $40 for 12 to 15 mph over the limit, up to $425 for 40 mph or more over. The law doesn’t name specific roads, and cameras may not go up right away. State analysts said the program could begin as early as fiscal 2027.
Police and the courts
Police must show their faces and wear identification. Senate Bill 1 (Chapter 612) directs the Maryland Police Training and Standards Commission to create a uniform policy that bars officers from covering their faces on duty, with exceptions for health and weather. The policy also requires officers to wear visible identification. Violations carry a civil fine of up to $1,500. The bill was introduced amid debate over masked federal immigration agents, and supporters said it applies to all law enforcement, including ICE.
More teen gun cases will start in juvenile court. The Youth Charging Reform Act, Senate Bill 323, takes seven offenses off the list of crimes for which 16- and 17-year-olds are automatically charged as adults. The seven are:
- first-degree assault
- wearing or carrying a handgun
- illegal possession of a firearm
- selling or transferring a firearm
- selling or transferring a stolen firearm
- using a firearm in a drug crime
- possessing a firearm with a felony drug conviction
Those cases will now start in juvenile court. They can still be moved to adult court. The law also bars holding children in adult jails that lack separate, secure juvenile areas.
“Here in Maryland, we charge more children as adults than in every other state, other than Alabama,” Senate President Bill Ferguson said.
Tougher penalties for repeat stalkers. Under Senate Bill 512, stalking is a felony punishable by up to 10 years and a $10,000 fine when the offender violated a protective order, was under a court order against the conduct, or has a prior stalking conviction. Otherwise, stalking remains punishable by up to five years and a $5,000 fine.
Limits on using lyrics as evidence. The PACE Act, Senate Bill 475 (Chapter 517), limits when prosecutors can use a defendant’s song lyrics, music or other creative work against them. A judge must first find that the work was meant literally, refers to specific facts of the alleged crime, is closely connected to it in time and fact, and is more useful as evidence than it is prejudicial.
AI deepfakes become identity fraud. Senate Bill 8 (Chapter 445) makes it a crime to use someone’s personal information, or an AI-generated deepfake of them, to cause physical injury, serious emotional distress or financial harm. Penalties are up to five years and $10,000 for one victim, and up to 10 years and $15,000 for multiple victims.
Protecting seniors and renters
Banks can pause suspicious withdrawals. The Vulnerable Adult Banking Protection Act, House Bill 1008 (Chapter 510), lets banks and credit unions delay or deny a disbursement they suspect is financial exploitation of someone 65 or older or a vulnerable adult. Holds typically last up to 15 business days, and some can stretch to 25. Institutions can alert a trusted contact or law enforcement and share records with investigators. The bill passed both chambers unanimously.
Safety rules for short-term rentals. The Jillian and Lindsay Wiener Short-Term Rental Safety Act, Senate Bill 624, requires hosts to provide working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, a fire extinguisher, posted evacuation diagrams and emergency phone numbers. Booking platforms must tell hosts about the rules and collect proof that they comply. Counties that allow short-term rentals must inspect them and report to the State Fire Marshal by July 2028.
The law is named for two sisters from Potomac, Jillian, 21, and Lindsay, 19. They died in an August 2022 fire at a vacation rental on Long Island that their family said lacked adequate fire safety equipment.
“Nothing will change the outcome of that night,” their mother, Alisa Wiener, testified, “but I know this [law] will save lives.”
