---
type: "Bill"
title: "Local Governments - Resilience Authorities - Authorization"
description: "Local Governments - Resilience Authorities - Authorization"
jurisdiction: "us/states/md"
legislature: "Maryland General Assembly"
session: "2020"
identifier: "HB 539"
citation: "Maryland HB 539 (2020)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: []
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["C. Watson", "Lierman"]
version_count: 3
action_count: 14
vote_count: 2
first_action: "2020-01-27"
last_action: "2020-05-08"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/5c0f50a3-89fb-48cb-a5d7-968b0d9fb029"
source_url: "http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/hb0539?ys=2020RS&search=True"
source_hash: "6a0c70f158925dfb334072e1b4ca14d5e17b79b9127013c5a394a587386805b4"
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 539 (2020) — Local Governments - Resilience Authorities - Authorization

## Version chain

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

1. **Chapter - Local Governments - Resilience Authorities - Authorization** (committee substitute) — [source](http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2020RS/Chapters_noln/CH_235_hb0539t.pdf)
2. **First - Local Governments - Resilience Authorities - Authorization** (committee substitute) — [source](http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2020RS/bills/hb/hb0539f.pdf)
3. **Third - Local Governments - Resilience Authorities - Authorization** (committee substitute) — [source](http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2020RS/bills/hb/hb0539t.pdf)

## Votes

- On Third Reading — **44–1** (pass) · upper
- On Third Reading — **110–20** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- C. Watson — primary (person)
- Lierman — primary (person)

## Timeline

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

- **2020-01-27** First Reading Environment and Transportation `referral-committee`
- **2020-01-28** Hearing 2/18 at 1:00 p.m.
- **2020-03-14** Favorable with Amendments Report by Environment and Transportation `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2020-03-14** Favorable with Amendments { `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2020-03-14** Second Reading Passed with Amendments
- **2020-03-15** Third Reading Passed `passage`
- **2020-03-16** Referred Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs `referral-committee`
- **2020-03-17** Favorable Report by Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2020-03-17** Favorable Adopted `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2020-03-17** Second Reading Passed
- **2020-03-17** Motion Rules Suspend Two Readings Same Day Const/Rule 24 (Senator King) Adopted
- **2020-03-17** Third Reading Passed `passage`
- **2020-03-18** Returned Passed
- **2020-05-08** Enacted under Article II, Section 17(c) of the Maryland Constitution - Chapter 235 `became-law`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/5c0f50a3-89fb-48cb-a5d7-968b0d9fb029`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Maryland legislature records).