Maryland 2026 Session Status: Introduced Bipartisan · 4 D · 1 R cosponsors

SB0299 — County Boards of Education - Therapy Dogs - Policy for Handling and Use in Schools

Last action — Hearing (Primary, House of Origin)

  1. 1
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House of Delegates
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill has been introduced in the Senate. Introduced January 21, 2026. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee referral and hearing.

Odds of enactment

Low chance

Based on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a low chance of becoming law.

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A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.

Prognosis

Stalled 32% · moderate confidence

  • Introduced

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 5 sponsors

    1 primary, 4 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Bipartisan support

    Sponsored across 2 parties (4 D · 1 R) — cross-party backing.

Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.

Summary

Requiring a county board of education to allow, subject to certain requirements and policies, the use of therapy dogs in public schools in the county.

Bill Text

We don't have the full text on file for this bill yet.

Read SB0299 on the official Maryland source →

Action History

  1. Hearing (Primary, House of Origin)

  2. First Reading (House of Origin)

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 4 co-sponsors · 183 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (4)

Not signed on (183)

183 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 183 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

public-safety labor education health-insurance
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does SB0299 do?
Requiring a county board of education to allow, subject to certain requirements and policies, the use of therapy dogs in public schools in the county.
Who sponsors SB0299?
SB0299 is sponsored by Senator Katie Fry Hester (Democrat), Senator Chris West (Republican), Senator Pamela Beidle (Democrat), Senator Cheryl C. Kagan (Democrat), and Senator Karen Lewis Young (Democrat).
What is the current status of SB0299?
This bill has been introduced in the Senate. Introduced January 21, 2026. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track SB0299?
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Last checked for changes 1 day ago · updated continuously

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