Favorable
Committee: Judicial Proceedings
SB 0992
The Maryland Catholic Conference offers this testimony in support of Senate Bill 992. The Catholic Conference is the public policy representative of the three (arch)dioceses serving Maryland, which together encompass over one million Marylanders. Statewide, their parishes, schools, hospitals and numerous charities combine to form our state’s second largest social service provider network, behind only our state government.
Senate Bill 992 would require landlords to give evicted tenants a ten-day notice to retrieve their property. Tenants would also be provided with notice of the ten-day period, as well as instructions for how to retrieve their property. Lastly it would ensure reasonable storage and safeguarding of their property thereafter.
Senate Bill 992 would align Maryland with 46 states in allowing renting families a limited opportunity to collect their belongings after eviction. When tenants are evicted, they can lose important documentation such as passports or birth certificates, access to important medications, and family heirlooms and photos.
The ten-day period and related notices proposed by this law are reasonable steps to protect renters, who can often be some of the most vulnerable in society when it comes to housing insecurity. Catholic teaching supports the right to private property but recognizes that communities and government have an obligation to ensure that housing needs of all or met, especially the poor and vulnerable members of our communities. Access to safe and affordable housing is a fundamental human right and this legislation represents a positive step toward achieving this goal.
Accordingly, the Conference appreciates your consideration and, for these reasons, respectfully requests a favorable report on Senate Bill 992.