GENERAL ASSEMBLY

DEPARTMENT OF LEGISLATIVE SERVICES

ORIGIN & FUNCTIONS

Thurgood Marshall statue at Legislative Services Building entrance, Lawyers' Mall, Annapolis, Maryland, August 2010. Photo by Diane F. Evartt

The Department of Legislative Services operates under the policies and directives of the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Delegates, the Legislative Policy Committee, and the Joint Audit Committee. The Department provides staff services to the standing committees of the Legislature and to any commissions or committees that the General Assembly or the Legislative Policy Committee may appoint. The Department also provides accounting, printing, bill distribution, telecommunication, and supply services to the General Assembly. In addition, the Department administers programs for interns, pages, and public affairs. Publications available from the Department include the nine-volume Legislative Handbook series and Your Voice in Annapolis.

Historically, the Department has conducted research and drafted legislation for members of the General Assembly. The Department also has provided legislative bills, enactments, journals, documents, records, and the codifications of State and local laws.

With professional fiscal, legal and research staff, the Department supports legislative committees, subcommittees, task forces, and commissions. For the General Assembly, the Department provides statutory revision services; conducts legal and legislative research; provides fiscal analyses; and offers specialized information services. The Department also reviews and analyzes regulations proposed by Executive Branch agencies; provides legislative and general library resource materials and information services to the General Assembly and the public; and provides computerized services for legislative purposes, including the preparation of bills, laws, journals, and other documents, as well as automated searches of the law.

The work of the Department is organized into three main areas: Legislative Audits; Legislative Information Systems; and Policy Analysis.

OFFICE OF EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Within the Office of Executive Director are the Ethics Counsel, and four units: Administrative (SAP) Technical Services; Finance and Administrative Services; Human Resources; and Legislative Document Management.

Legislative Services Building, 90 State Circle (from Bladen St.), Annapolis, Maryland, November 1999. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.

ETHICS COUNSEL
The Ethics Counsel office was authorized in 1999 (Chapters 129 & 130, Acts of 1999). The Counsel acts as a confidential ethics advisor to the General Assembly, drafts opinions for the Joint Ethics Committee, and conducts education programs and seminars. At least once a year, each member of the General Assembly must meet individually with the Ethics Counsel.

ADMINISTRATIVE (SAP) TECHNICAL SERVICES
For the Office of Executive Director, Administrative Technical Services provides design, development, maintenence, training, and support of the SAP software system. SAP (systems applications and products) is an interactive software system for managing financial operations, human resources, and administrative operations.

FINANCE & ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES
Finance and Administrative Services is organized into seven functional teams: Distribution Services (mail, bill & bin services); Facilities and Inventory; Fiscal Operations; Procurement and Supply; and Telecommunications Operations.

LEGISLATIVE DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT
Within the Office of Executive Director, all preprinting functions were combined with the Legislative Print Shop into one unit, Legislative Document Management, in 1998.

For the Department of Legislative Services, the General Assembly, and other State agencies, Legislative Document Management prepares and publishes legislative materials, including bills, joint resolutions, amendments, reports, and books. It functions through five units: Document Design; Operations; the Print Shop; Production Coordination; and Proofreading and Editing.

PRINT SHOP
The Print Shop prints a variety of documents that are part of the legislative process. Included are legislative bills, joint resolutions, amendments, session laws, journals and rules of the Senate and House of Delegates, synopses of legislation, hearing schedules, fiscal notes, committee reports, staff studies, budget analyses, and other reports. The services of the Print Shop are available to legislators, legislative committees, and agencies.

OFFICE OF LEGISLATIVE AUDITS

Functions of the Office of Legislative Audits began when the office of the State Auditor was established in 1902 within the Treasury Department (Chapter 257, Acts of 1902). In 1929, the office was assigned to the Division of Financial Review and Control, headed by the Comptroller of the Treasury (Chapter 226, sec. 45, Acts of 1929). When the Department of Fiscal Services formed in 1968, the Division of Audits was created within the Department (Chapter 456, Acts of 1968). In 1992, the Division of Audits reformed as the Office of Legislative Audits, which became part of the Department of Legislative Services in 1997 (Chapter 598, Acts of 1992).

At least once every three years, the Office conducts fiscal and compliance audits of each unit of State government, including the offices of clerks of court and registers of wills. Upon direction by the General Assembly or the Joint Audit Committee, the Legislative Auditor may undertake performance or financial audits, reviews, and investigations of a State agency or program, or of a private organization that receives State funds. The Office also conducts financial management audits of local school systems at least once every six years, and reviews the audit reports of all county and municipal governments and community colleges (Code State Government Article, secs. 2-1217 through 2-1222).

OFFICE OF LEGISLATIVE INFORMATION SYSTEMS

In 1981, the Office of Legislative Information Systems originated as the Office of Legislative Data Processing. It formed to coordinate computer services for the General Assembly. In 1997, the Office of Legislative Data Processing was abolished, and its functions assigned to the Office of Legislative Information Systems of the Department of Legislative Services (Chapters 635 and 636, Acts of 1997).

The Office develops and supports computer services, data processing, and information systems; operates the General Assembly's data center; and provides coordination and technical assistance to the General Assembly and the Department. The Office also provides custom legislative systems, including legislature bill drafting, bill status reports, and chamber automation for voting. Laptop computers and an integrated legislative office computing package are made available for use by members of the General Assembly in their Annapolis and district offices.

With approval of the Senate President and House Speaker, the Director of the Office is appointed by the Executive Director of the Department of Legislative Services (Code State Government Article, secs. 12-1228 through 12-1232).

MARYLAND LEGISLATIVE INFORMATION SYSTEM
Under the Office of Legislative Information Systems is the Maryland Legislative Information System (MLIS). The System provides information about past and present legislative actions, including status of legislation, text of bills and amendments, legislative histories of bills, bill synopses, fiscal notes, and hearing schedules updated daily.

Since the 2011 Legislative Session, users have been able to access more frequent updates and maintain profiles of bills of particular interest to them. The System also sorts bills by sponsor or subject. This service is available to the public free of charge on the General Assembly's website.

OFFICE OF POLICY ANALYSIS

The Office of Policy Analysis was created in 1997. It provides professional legal and fiscal staff to the major standing committees of the General Assembly, several joint statutory and special committees, several county delegations in the House of Delegates and, during the interim, several task forces and commissions. During and between sessions of the General Assembly, these staff members work directly for committee chairs while under general direction of the Office.

Legislative Services Building (from Lawyers Mall), Annapolis, Maryland, August 2010. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.

Within the Office are a technical support unit and three major components: Fiscal and Policy Analysis; Legislation and Committee Support; and Library and Information Services (Code State Government Article, secs. 2-1234, 2-1242).

FISCAL & POLICY ANALYSIS
Fiscal and Policy Analysis began as the Division of Budget Review and the Division of Fiscal Research under the Department of Fiscal Services. Both divisions merged in 1992 to form the Fiscal Services Unit. Under the Office of Policy Analysis, the Unit reorganized in 1997, first as Fiscal Policy Issues, and then as Fiscal and Policy Analysis.

This unit analyzes operating and capital budgets, processes budget bills, prepares fiscal notes, and provides staff support to the fiscal committees and various statutory and special committees of the General Assembly. It also collects and reports local government financial information; prepares forecasts of revenues and expenditures; undertakes management studies and program evaluations; researches and reports on fiscal policy issues, taxation, operation of governmental units and programs, and fiscal relationships of the State and local governments.

LEGISLATION & COMMITTEE SUPPORT
Legislation and Committee Support formed as Legal Policy Issues in 1997, when most functions from the Department of Legislative Reference were reassigned to it. Duties included legislative drafting, statutory revision, legal analysis and review, library and information services, and research. Legal Policy Issues was renamed Legal Matters in 1997 and adopted its present name in 1999.

For members of the General Assembly, Legislation and Committee Support gives legal opinions and advice pertinent to legislation. To inform members of the General Assembly of legal issues that may affect legislation, it periodically analyzes decisions of the Court of Appeals and the Court of Special Appeals, and opinions of the Attorney General. On behalf of the Joint Committee on Administrative, Executive and Legislative Review, Legislation and Committee Support also reviews and analyzes regulations proposed by executive branch agencies. This review helps ensure agency compliance with statutory authority, legislative intent, and public notice requirements.

Legislation and Committee Support is responsible for Bill Drafting and Amendments; Code Revision; and Committee Staffing.

BILL DRAFTING & AMENDMENTS

• Origins of Legislative Drafting in Maryland

Under Legislation and Committee Support, Bill Drafting and Amendments originated as Amendments and Legal Analysis, and reformed as Amendments and Regulatory Review in 2007. It reorganized under its present name in 2010.

Bill Drafting and Amendments provides nonpartisan professional staff to research, draft, and prepare legislative bills at the request of members of the State Senate and House of Delegates. Each year, more than 3,500 bills and joint resolutions and over 2,000 amendments are drafted by Office policy analysts who follow guidelines set forth in the Legislative Drafting Manual published by the Department.

After bills are introduced by members of the General Assembly, the unit prepares, reviews, coordinates, and processes amendments to bills. Amendments are formal changes that can alter significantly the content of a bill.

CODE REVISION
The statutory revision function of the Office of Policy Analysis originated as the Division of Statutory Revision in 1972 within the Department of Legislative Reference (Chapter 182, Acts of 1972). That division, also known as the Code Revision Division, was incorporated into the Legislative Division in 1990 and became a part of the Office of Policy Analysis in 1997 as Legal Support and Statutory Revision. It was renamed Bill Drafting and Code Revision in 1999, and later Code Revision and Drafting. It reformed as Bill Drafting and Code Revision in 2007, and received its present name in 2010.

Code Revision develops and prepares the comprehensive revision and restatement of the Annotated Code of Maryland, i.e., the statutory body of the laws of Maryland (Code State Government Article, sec. 2-1238).

The first reorganization and recodification of the Annotated Code since 1888 was begun in 1970 by the Commission to Revise the Annotated Code of Maryland. The Commission was charged to study and revise the Annotated Code in order to improve the organization, accessibility, utility, and clarity of law and to eliminate unconstitutional, obsolete, inconsistent or conflicting statutes. Until 1985, the Division of Statutory Revision worked under Commission supervision.

In 1985, the Legislative Policy Committee began to oversee Code revision under a reorganized structure of small committees with continuing review by the General Assembly.

LIBRARY & INFORMATION SERVICES
Within the Office of Policy Analysis, Library and Information Services provides legislative information to the public; and reference and research services to committees, members, and staff of the General Assembly.

Library. The Library collection of over 125,000 volumes consists of Maryland laws and related legislative and legal materials; laws and publications of other states; federal documents; and general reference materials. The Library serves as an official depository for the publications of Maryland State agencies and for all local codes published by county and municipal governments (Code 1957, Art. 25, sec. 32A; Art. 25A, sec. 7; Art. 25B, secs. 7, 12; Education Article, sec. 23-301; State Government Article, sec. 2-1241). Maryland Documents, a list of State agency publications, is issued monthly. Library materials circulate to General Assembly members, their staff, and State agencies.

Information Services. Bill status and other legislative information are provided to the public through the General Assembly website, toll-free telephone numbers, and information desks in the State House and the Legislative Services Building. Speakers, tours, and materials on the legislative process are available for constituents, visitors, and school groups.

Information Services also coordinates the Department's publication program and is responsible for publication of Committee Meetings and Hearing Schedule; Daily Synopsis; Maryland Clipper; indexes to bills, laws, and journals; as well as various rosters, flyers, videos, and brochures about the General Assembly and the Department.

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