Odhh Lad And Session Wrap up

Thank you to all those who attended a our Fourth Annual Legislative Awareness Day on february 18th! Over 60 people traveled to Annapolis for the Day's events, which started with an advocacy training presentation to help familiarize participants with the legislative process. The training was then followed by guided tours of the Maryland State House The highlight of the event was the Welcome Ceremony and Awards Presentation with keynote remarks by Lieutenant Governor Anthony Brown. During the Awards Presentation, ODHH recognized Delegate Eric Luedtke and Senator Karen Montgomery both who have contributed to and supported the deaf, hard of hearing, and deafblind communities here in the state of Maryland. Also, Ann Black received the Third Annual Kelby Brick Community Leadership Award on behalf of the deafblind community here in Maryland. After that presentation, the constituents in attendance were provided the opportunity to meet individually with their Legislators. The Day concluded with the House General Session. During this Session the deaf, hard of hearing, and deafblind communities were formally recognized! We wish to thank all of the volunteers, Legislators, and participants who made the success of this event possible! We look forward to seeing you next year an our Fifth Annual Legislative Awareness Day! As we carefully monitor new legislation, our goal is to keep you informed of the bills that may impact the deaf, hard of hearing, and deafblind communities. The first bill we monitored was the Primary and Secondary Education - Online Courses and Services - Accessibility Bill. The label for this bill is HB1176 and SB461 This bill requires the development, review, and approval of online courses and services to include an assessment regarding the accessibility of the online course or service to individuals with disabilities. The bill had a hearing in the House Ways and Means Committee on March 6th. The Senate Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs Committee had a hearing on February 28th. The second bill was the Public Safety - Fire Protection and Prevention - Residential Smoke Alarms bill. labeled HB1413 and SB 969. This bill clarifies that the installation of specific smoke alarms is required in specified areas for specific buildings, including visual smoke alarms. The bill had hearings in the House Environmental Matters committee on March 14th.