Proposed Legislation Closes Record Denial Loophole in Maryland Public Information Act, but Excludes SDAT from Requirements

Proposed legislation moving through the Maryland House of Delegates aims to clarify what constitutes a “new” public record when responding to requests under the state’s Public Information Act. Delegate Robin Grammer has introduced House Bill 304, which establishes that certain data manipulations performed by a custodian in response to a request do not create a new public record, but specifically excludes State Department of Assessments and Taxation from these requirements if specific requirements are met. This bill, which had its first reading on January 15, 2026, and is assigned to the Government, Labor, and Elections Committee, is scheduled for a hearing on January 27 at 2:00 p.m. If enacted, the changes would take effect on October 1, 2026.

This article was updated 1/25/2026 to include comments submitted by Adam Greivell.

The core of the proposed legislation centers on the interpretation of data manipulation in the context of public record requests. Currently, Section 4–205(c) of the Maryland Annotated Code addresses the provision of public records in searchable and analyzable electronic formats. The bill seeks to amend this section to specify conditions under which data handling is considered part of fulfilling an existing request rather than generating a new record. This includes actions such as data compilation, data extraction, data querying, and statistical aggregation, provided these are within the capabilities of the existing records database program.

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The bill’s provisions would amend Article – General Provisions, Section 4–205(c). This existing section outlines requirements for custodians to provide public records in a searchable and analyzable electronic format under certain conditions. These conditions include the record already existing in such a format, the applicant requesting it in that format, and the custodian being able to provide it without disclosing confidential or protected information. The legislation specifically addresses situations where a custodian might need to perform certain data operations to fulfill a request.

A key aspect of the amendment is to ensure that performing data compilation, extraction, querying, statistical aggregation, or other data manipulation—as long as the records database program can handle it—does not inherently create a new public record. This clarification is intended to streamline the process for both requesters and custodians of public information, preventing disputes over whether a modified dataset constitutes a newly generated record.

The bill also reiterates existing allowances and limitations related to electronic records. For instance, it maintains that custodians are not required to reconstruct a public record in an electronic format if it is no longer available in that form. It also does not mandate that custodians make records available solely in an electronic format or require them to create, compile, or program a new public record. Furthermore, custodians are not compelled to release electronic records in a format that could compromise the security or integrity of the original record or proprietary software.

Additionally, the proposed legislation includes a provision that, if a public record already exists in a searchable and analyzable electronic format, providing a portion of that record in such a format does not constitute the creation of a new public record. This applies specifically when the request involves data compilation, extraction, querying, or other data manipulation capabilities inherent to the records database program.

The bill appears designed to increase government transparency by modernizing how “public records” are defined in the context of electronic databases. It prevents government custodians from denying information requests by claiming that sorting or filtering data constitutes “creating a new record” (which they are generally not required to do under current law).

Existing law does not require a custodian to “create, compile, or program a new public record” to fulfill a request. However, this bill adds a crucial exception. It states that providing a portion of a record does not constitute creating a new record if the request involves data compilation, extraction, querying, statistical aggregation, or any other data manipulation that the records database program is capable of performing. If the agency’s existing software is capable of performing these functions to produce the requested record, the custodian must do so. They cannot deny the request on the grounds that a specific report with those exact parameters does not currently exist.

Before this bill, an agency might arguably reject a complex request (e.g., “provide a spreadsheet of all expenses over $500 from 2024”) by claiming that such a specific list does not exist and generating it would require creating a “new” record. House Bill 304 explicitly closes this loophole. It ensures that if the database software can run the query or extract the data, the agency must provide the information in a searchable and analyzable electronic format.

“I am looking forward to HB304 being the new law of the land, so that overgrown man-children [in government offices] can no longer throw temper tantrums over people that are smarter than them sending clear instructions for recovering electronic records,” said Frederick County resident Eric Beasley, who has been involved in numerous PIA requests and disputes. “Sadly, most PIA custodians could not script their way out of a wet paper bag. As an IT professional, I would rather just send them the query that I want to run, which would save government time and resources. The most significant benefit would not be having to wait for over 3 years to get all the PIA records that I need to prove that [multiple government officials, including Christopher Sandmann, Richard Gibson, Charlie Smith, and Beverly Shoemaker, have not been performing their duties in the best interest of the people.]”

Editor’s note: Beasley’s comments have been edited with permission due to the abrasive nature of his original remarks.

One specific exception noted bill is for the State Department of Assessments and Taxation (SDAT). This department would not be required to provide public records in a searchable and analyzable electronic format if it has already contracted with a third party to provide the applicant with such a record for a reasonable cost.

Washington County resident Justin Holder, who has filed MPIA complaints in the past concerning SDAT records requests, stated the following regarding the proposed legislation. “Delegate Grammer’s legislation seemed reasonable in the past. I am concerned that he is being manipulated by the OAG in this instance. I hope my MPIA is informative for him.” Holder filed a MPIA with Delegate Grammer to inspect records related to the HB0304, such as communications related to the creation and presentation of that bill, testimony, or communications. Holder believes the bill may be measure to prevent a lawsuit related to the PIACB Opinion 25-76, involving Holder.

“Although communications regarding the crafting of this legislation are protected by legislative privilege, I am happy share the background of this issue,” said Delegate Grammer in an email response to Holder, with Radio Free Hub City copied on the communication.

Delegate Grammer provided us with a 2025 report from the State Public Information Act Compliance Board, which recommended the following:

[Recommendation] that the General Assembly amend GP § 4-205(c)(5) to add the following language (in italics), “If a public record exists in a searchable and analyzable electronic format, the action of a custodian providing a portion of the public record in a searchable and analyzable electronic format does not constitute creating a new public record, even if the request would require data compilation, extraction, querying, statistical aggregation, or any other form of data manipulation the database program is capable of performing to produce the record.”

State Public Information Act Compliance Board Tenth Annual Report, September 30, 2025.

The central conflict in Holder’s PIACB 25-76 complaint was SDAT’s failure to respond to specific parts of a request regarding property data and tax maps. HB0304 would have specifically addressed the “creation of records” defense often used in such cases. In this request, Holder asked for “the most recent Parcel tax map for Keedysville… and and/all notes and updates to that said tax map”. Under current law, an agency might argue that “notes and updates” do not exist as a single document, and compiling them would require creating a “new record.” HB0304 explicitly prevents this defense for all agencies except SDAT. It states that providing a record does not constitute creating a new record if the request requires “data compilation, data extraction, data querying… or any other data manipulation”. However, the bill states that SDAT is not required to provide a copy of a public record in a searchable and analyzable electronic format if SDAT has provided the public record to a contractor and that contractor will provide the applicant with the copy in a searchable and analyzable format for a reasonable cost.

Outside of SDAT concerns, how will this affect local MPIA request workload? City of Hagerstown was kind enough to share their perspective with us.

Regardless of any new legislation that might be passed relative to the Maryland Public Information Act, the City of Hagerstown’s goal will not change. I can assure you personally that as a municipality who values and prides ourselves on transparency that we will abide by whatever amendments or changes are approved and adapt to them accordingly. I am not familiar with what the catalyst may have been for HB0304, so all I can say is that the City of Hagerstown already strives to provide requestors with the most user-friendly version of the records they request. With the volume of requests increasing markedly each year, the challenge becomes greater, but so does our effort and it will remain so.

Wes Decker, Director of Communications, City of Hagerstown

However, the bill has also caught the attention of a Washington County State’s Attorney candidate, who submitted several suggested amendments for the bill, and encouraged the entire Washington County Delegation join Grammer to co-sponsor/cross-file in the Senate and collectively seek broad bipartisan legislative support. “As State’s Attorney (should I prevail), I intend to notoriously prioritize rigorous enforcement against criminal violations of the MPIA (and related sunshine laws) to send an unmistakably clear message that lawless hiding, cheating, denying and deleting of public records will not be tolerated,” said Adam Greivell. “Respect for the law and faith in government cannot exist without that. There are, of course, other compelling requisites, but Enforced Accountability (even from the government, itself) is indispensable.”

The bill’s effective date is set for October 1, 2026, allowing time for state agencies to prepare for the new guidelines. This legislative effort is positioned to influence how public data is accessed and managed under Maryland’s Public Information Act.

Article by Ken Buckler, based upon information from Maryland General Assembly House Bill 304 and associated documents.

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