On Sine Die, Immigrants and Working Families Celebrate Legislative Progress
Positive Steps Forward for Tenant and Immigrant Communities
ANNAPOLIS, MD – As the Maryland General Assembly session concludes, our thoughts are intertwined with both sorrow and hope. The recent tragedy on the Key Bridge has left us in mourning, but today, we pause to acknowledge the strides we’ve made in legislative reform that benefit immigrant and working-class communities across Maryland.
The legislative session marked a turning point for immigrant and working-class communities throughout Maryland. Key victories include the passage of the Access to Care Act, the Tenant Safety Act, and essential eviction prevention funds.
The Access to Care Act removes immigration status as an eligibility requirement for purchasing a health plan through the Maryland Health Benefit Exchange (MHBE), by requiring the state to seek federal approval of a state innovation waiver. This legislation will be the first step in ensuring that essential members of the community receive critical and often life-saving preventative care.
Equally important, the Tenant Safety Act levels the playing field for renters by making the “rent escrow” process more accessible to renters and groups of renters who seek to hold their landlords accountable for negligent conditions of disrepair that threaten life, health, or safety. This legislation is a bright light for many who have long suffered in silence, now offering them a path to justice and dignified living conditions. Furthermore, the legislature also prioritized keeping families housed by allocating $10,000,000 to fund eviction prevention programs through community schools.
In addition to the progress made on these reforms, CASA’s advocacy led to multiple other victories, including increased funding for language access, income tax preparation services, and access to counsel, protecting patients from exorbitant amounts of medical debt by requiring adequate data on care and claim denials from insurance companies, protecting families of essential transportation workers, standardizing renters’ rights statewide.
Although several legislative priorities did not make it to the Governor’s desk, advocates saw enormous forward motion on climate and environmental bills such as HB24 (2024), protections for renters HB477 (2024), and education equity for immigrant students HB473(2024), and that merit acknowledgment. HB24, a bill that would reign in pollution in underserved and overburdened communities passed out of the Economic Matters and Environment and Transportation Committees as well as the House of Delegates. After years of stagnant progress in the General Assembly, Good Cause, a bill that would protect renters from unfair and arbitrary evictions, also made it out of the House of Delegates and received a hearing and a workgroup discussion in the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee.
Immigrant youth were also present in Annapolis this year, advocating for education equity in the college process. HB473, which would have decreased the required number of years families need to prove residency in the state from three to two, received a speedy passage in the House of Delegates but was not voted on in the Senate committee.
“Year after year, session after session, we continue to make our voices heard and harness our people power for real, tangible change in our community. From healthcare access to housing reform, we are proud of the work accomplished in this session. The fight continues!” reflected Gustavo Torres, CASA’s Executive Director.
Over the past 90 days, 200+ CASA members hailing from across the state bravely shared their personal narratives, before House and Senate Committees or in publicly scheduled House and Senate hearings to private office conservations, shedding light on the formidable challenges they encountered and advocating for transformative reforms. CASA members represented the voices of U.S.-born Black and brown working families and immigrants hailing from Cameroon to Columbia. Through their concerted efforts, CASA members have initiated vital dialogues with their elected representatives, heightened public consciousness, and campaigned for substantive policy change across key sectors, including healthcare, housing justice, tenant rights, education, climate, and environmental justice.
“As a member of CASA, these legislative wins signify more than just policy changes; they embody hope and empowerment. Finally having access to healthcare by having the ability to purchase it—- it’s a new found sense of security and dignity. And knowing that we have the tools to hold slumlords accountable brings a profound sense of justice and agency to our communities.” said Rafael Lacayo, District 17, Montgomery County.
A series of rallies and gatherings, drawing hundreds of CASA members and allies, served to amplify and commemorate the voices of immigrants, working-class families, renters, and other marginalized groups, further the collective resolve of the CASA community.
“While these legislative milestones are cause for celebration, they also remind us of the persistent challenges that lie ahead. The catastrophic event at the Key Bridge highlights the critical necessity for ongoing advocacy and proactive measures to ensure the safety and well-being of all Marylanders,” closed Torres. “CASA remains committed to building on the momentum of this legislative session.”
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With over 155,000 lifetime members across 46 US states, CASA is a national powerhouse organization building power and improving the quality of life in working-class: Black, Latino/a/e, Afro-descendent, Indigenous, and Immigrant communities. CASA creates change with its power-building model blending human services, community organizing, and advocacy in order to serve the full spectrum of the needs, dreams, and aspirations of members. www.werecasa.org.