SB0475 — Criminal Procedure - Evidence - Protecting Artists' Creative Expression (PACE Act)
Last action — Committee Report (House of Origin) — Favorable
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✓Introduced
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✓In Committee
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✓Passed Senate
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✓Passed House of Delegates
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✓To Executive
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6Enacted
This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced February 02, 2026. Enacted.
Odds of enactment
High chanceBased on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a high chance of becoming law.
Upgrade to see the exact probability and what's driving it.
A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.
Prognosis
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Enacted
Current position in the legislative process.
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4 sponsors
1 primary, 3 co-sponsors signed on.
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Bipartisan support
Sponsored across 2 parties (2 R · 1 D) — cross-party backing.
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Cleared a recorded vote
Passed 3 recorded votes so far.
Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.
Summary
Providing that the creative expression of a criminal defendant or juvenile respondent is not admissible against the defendant or respondent unless the court makes certain findings, subject to a certain exception; and providing that the Act does not preclude the admission of a creative expression in juvenile cases for the purposes of evaluating, recommending, or ordering referral to mental health services or diversion programs.
Bill Text
We don't have the full text on file for this bill yet.
Read SB0475 on the official Maryland source →Action History
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Committee Report (House of Origin) — Favorable
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First Reading (Opposite House)
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Third Reading (House of Origin) — Passed
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Second Reading (House of Origin) — Passed
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Hearing (Primary, House of Origin)
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First Reading (House of Origin)
Sponsors
- Senator Sydnor · Primary
- Senator Nick Charles · Cosponsor
- Senator Chris West · Cosponsor
- Senator Johnny Mautz · Cosponsor
Sponsorship breakdown
Export CSV (upgrade) →1 sponsors · 3 co-sponsors · 184 not signed on · 41 voted No
Sponsors (1)
- Senator Sydnor
Co-sponsors (3)
- Senator Nick Charles Democrat
- Senator Chris West Republican
- Senator Johnny Mautz Republican
Not signed on (184)
184 members have not signed on to this bill.
Show all 184 →"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.
Votes
| Party | Yea | Nay | Present | Not Voting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unaffiliated | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 |
| Democrat | 89 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Republican | 3 | 30 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 99 | 35 | 0 | 7 |
| % of votes cast | 70% | 25% | 0% | 5% |
How each member voted (141)
| Party | Yea | Nay | Present | Not Voting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unaffiliated | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Democrat | 25 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Republican | 2 | 9 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 32 | 10 | 0 | 5 |
| % of votes cast | 68% | 21% | 0% | 11% |
How each member voted (47)
| Party | Yea | Nay | Present | Not Voting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unaffiliated | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Democrat | 26 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Republican | 2 | 9 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 33 | 10 | 0 | 4 |
| % of votes cast | 70% | 21% | 0% | 9% |
How each member voted (47)
Subjects
Frequently asked questions
- What does SB0475 do?
- Providing that the creative expression of a criminal defendant or juvenile respondent is not admissible against the defendant or respondent unless the court makes certain findings, subject to a certain exception; and providing that the Act does not preclude the admission of a creative expression in juvenile cases for the purposes of evaluating, recommending, or ordering referral to mental health services or diversion programs.
- Who sponsors SB0475?
- SB0475 is sponsored by Senator Sydnor, Senator Nick Charles (Democrat), Senator Chris West (Republican), and Senator Johnny Mautz (Republican).
- What is the current status of SB0475?
- This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced February 02, 2026. Enacted.
- Where can I track SB0475?
- Track SB0475 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.
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