---
type: "Bill"
title: "Unemployment Insurance - Work Search Requirement - Exemption for Federal Civilian Employees During a Federal Government Shutdown"
description: "Unemployment Insurance - Work Search Requirement - Exemption for Federal Civilian Employees During a Federal Government Shutdown"
jurisdiction: "us/states/md"
legislature: "Maryland General Assembly"
session: "2024"
identifier: "HB 197"
citation: "Maryland HB 197 (2024)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: []
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: []
version_count: 3
action_count: 13
vote_count: 2
first_action: "2023-09-28"
last_action: "2024-04-09"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/8bedada8-dc42-44bc-b130-8e88a43bc501"
source_url: "http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/hb0197?ys=2024RS&search=True"
source_hash: "72f0ce30c00172f4e2963a2ba2ae7328a69fee6ccd87bed68cee37e37363c94c"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-md"]
---

# Maryland HB 197 (2024) — Unemployment Insurance - Work Search Requirement - Exemption for Federal Civilian Employees During a Federal Government Shutdown

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **Chapter - Unemployment Insurance - Work Search Requirement - Exemption for Federal Civilian Employees During a Federal Government Shutdown** (committee substitute) — [source](http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2024RS/Chapters_noln/CH_102_hb0197t.pdf)
2. **First - Unemployment Insurance - Work Search Requirement - Exemption for Federal Civilian Employees During a Federal Government Shutdown** (committee substitute) — [source](http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2024RS/bills/hb/hb0197f.pdf)
3. **Third - Unemployment Insurance - Work Search Requirement - Exemption for Federal Civilian Employees During a Federal Government Shutdown** (committee substitute) — [source](http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2024RS/bills/hb/hb0197t.pdf)

## Votes

- On Third Reading — **104–32** (pass) · lower
- On Third Reading — **34–12** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Chair, Economic Matters Committee — primary (organization)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2023-09-28** Pre-filed `introduction`
- **2024-01-10** First Reading Economic Matters `referral-committee`
- **2024-01-31** Hearing 2/14 at 1:00 p.m.
- **2024-03-12** Favorable Report by Economic Matters `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2024-03-12** Favorable Adopted Second Reading Passed `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2024-03-13** Third Reading Passed `passage`
- **2024-03-14** Referred Finance `referral-committee`
- **2024-03-25** Favorable Report by Finance `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2024-03-26** Favorable Adopted `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2024-03-26** Second Reading Passed
- **2024-03-27** Third Reading Passed `passage`
- **2024-03-28** Returned Passed
- **2024-04-09** Approved by the Governor - Chapter 102 `executive-signature`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/8bedada8-dc42-44bc-b130-8e88a43bc501`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Maryland legislature records).