Maryland SB 107: Evidence - Interception of Oral Communications - Fair Housing Testing

Bill Text

EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MATTER ADDED TO EXISTING LAW. 
        [Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law. 
         Underlining indicates amendments to bill. 
         Strike out indicates matter stricken from the bill by amendment or deleted from the law by 
amendment. 
           *sb0107*   
  
SENATE BILL 107 
D1, C9   5lr1275 
SB 57/24 – JPR (PRE–FILED) CF HB 392 
By: Senator Sydnor 
Requested: October 18, 2024 
Introduced and read first time: January 8, 2025 
Assigned to: Judicial Proceedings 
Committee Report: Favorable 
Senate action: Adopted 
Read second time: February 23, 2025 
 
CHAPTER ______ 
 
AN ACT concerning 1 
 
Evidence – Interception of Oral Communications – Fair Housing Testing 2 
 
FOR  the  purpose of  providing  that  it  is  lawful  for  a  person  to  intercept  an  oral 3 
communication  if  the  person  is  working  as  a  fair  housing  tester  for  a  certain  fair 4 
housing  testing  program  under  certain  circumstances;  and  generally  relating  to 5 
electronic surveillance. 6 
 
BY adding to 7 
 Article – Courts and Judicial Proceedings 8 
Section 10–401(13) and 10–402(c)(12) 9 
 Annotated Code of Maryland 10 
 (2020 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 11 
 
BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 12 
 Article – Courts and Judicial Proceedings 13 
Section 10–401(13) through (18) 14 
 Annotated Code of Maryland 15 
 (2020 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 16 
 
 SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 17 
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 18 
 
Article – Courts and Judicial Proceedings 19 
 

2 SENATE BILL 107  
 
 
10–401. 1 
 
 As used in this subtitle the following terms have the meanings indicated: 2 
 
  (13) “NONPROFIT CIVIL RIGHTS ORGANIZATION” MEANS: 3 
 
   (I) A QUALIFIED FAIR HOUSING ENFORCEMENT 4 
ORGANIZATION OR A FAIR HOUSING ORGANIZATION AS DEFINED UNDER 24 C.F.R. § 5 
125.103; OR 6 
 
   (II) AN   ORGANIZATION   INCORPORATED   UNDER MARYLAND 7 
LAW AS A PRIVATE, TAX–EXEMPT CIVIL RIGHTS ORGANIZATION THAT HAS AT LEAST 8 
2 YEARS’ EXPERIENCE IN: 9 
 
    1. COMPLAINT INTAKE; 10 
 
    2. COMPLAINT INVESTIGATION; AND 11 
 
    3. TESTING    FOR FAIR    HOUSING    VIOLATIONS    OR 12 
ENFORCEMENT OF MERITORIOUS CLAIMS. 13 
 
  [(13)] (14) (i) “Oral communication” means any conversation or words 14 
spoken to or by any person in private conversation. 15 
 
   (ii) “Oral  communication”  does  not  include  any  electronic 16 
communication. 17 
 
  [(14)] (15) “Person” means any employee or agent of this State or a political 18 
subdivision  thereof,  and  any  individual,  partnership,  association,  joint  stock  company, 19 
trust, or corporation. 20 
 
  [(15)] (16) “Readily accessible to the general public” means, with respect to 21 
a radio communication, that the communication is not: 22 
 
   (i) Scrambled or encrypted; 23 
 
   (ii) Transmitted    using    modulation    techniques    the    essential 24 
parameters of which have been withheld from the public with the intention of preserving 25 
the privacy of the communication; or 26 
 
   (iii) Except for tone–only paging device communications, transmitted 27 
over frequencies reserved for private use and licensed for private use under federal or State 28 
law. 29 
 
  [(16)] (17) “Telephone solicitation theft” means conduct of a person that: 30 
 

 SENATE BILL 107 3 
 
 
   (i) Constitutes the offense of theft or attempted theft; and 1 
 
   (ii) Involves the use of a telephone to solicit the payment of money. 2 
 
  [(17)] (18) “User” means any person or entity that: 3 
 
   (i) Uses an electronic communication service; and 4 
 
   (ii) Is duly authorized by the provider of the service to engage in that 5 
use. 6 
 
  [(18)] (19) “Wire communication” means any aural transfer made in whole 7 
or in part through the use of facilities for the transmission of communications by the aid of 8 
wire, cable, or other like connection between the point of origin and the point of reception 9 
(including  the  use  of  a  connection  in  a  switching  station)  furnished  or  operated  by  any 10 
person licensed to engage in providing or operating such facilities for the transmission of 11 
communications. 12 
 
10–402. 13 
 
 (c) (12) (I) IT  IS  LAWFUL  UNDER  THIS  SUBTITLE  FOR  A  PERSON  TO 14 
INTERCEPT AN ORAL COMMUNICATION IF: 15 
 
    1. THE PERSON IS WORKING AS A FAIR HOUSING TESTER 16 
FOR A FAIR HOUSING TESTING PROGRAM OPERATED BY: 17 
 
    A. THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT; 18 
 
    B. THE STATE;  19 
 
    C. A LOCAL GOVERNMENT; OR 20 
 
    D. A NONPROFIT CIVIL RIGHTS ORGANIZATION; 21 
 
    2. THE  PERSON  IS  A  PARTY TO  THE  COMMUNICATION; 22 
AND 23 
 
    3. THE    INTERCEPTION    IS    BEING    MADE    FOR    THE 24 
PURPOSE   OF   OBTAINING EVIDENCE   OF   A   FAIR   HOUSING   VIOLATION   UNDER 25 
FEDERAL, STATE, OR LOCAL LAW. 26 
 
   (II) EXCEPT  AS  PROVIDED  IN SUBPARAGRAPH (III) OF  THIS 27 
PARAGRAPH, NO PART OF THE CONTE