---
type: "Bill"
title: "Declaration of Rights - Right to Reproductive Freedom"
description: "Declaration of Rights - Right to Reproductive Freedom"
jurisdiction: "us/states/md"
legislature: "Maryland General Assembly"
session: "2023"
identifier: "SB 798"
citation: "Maryland SB 798 (2023)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: []
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Beidle", "Carter", "Elfreth", "Feldman", "Ferguson", "Gile", "Guzzone", "Hester", "Hettleman", "James", "Kagan", "King", "Kramer", "Lam", "Lewis Young", "M. Washington", "Smith", "Waldstreicher", "Watson", "Zucker"]
version_count: 3
action_count: 25
vote_count: 0
first_action: "2023-02-06"
last_action: "2023-05-03"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/5afd8675-04dc-4f62-81d3-e3d72e5e764d"
source_url: "http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/sb0798?ys=2023RS&search=True"
source_hash: "d38316d957049e591d91792d71d22d24fe09b018f484b4023a08de973ca08dea"
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 SB 798 (2023) — Declaration of Rights - Right to Reproductive Freedom

## Version chain

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

1. **Chapter - Declaration of Rights - Right to Reproductive Freedom** (committee substitute) — [source](http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2023RS/Chapters_noln/CH_244_sb0798t.pdf)
2. **First - Declaration of Rights - Right to Reproductive Freedom** (committee substitute) — [source](http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2023RS/bills/sb/sb0798f.pdf)
3. **Third - Declaration of Rights - Right to Reproductive Freedom** (committee substitute) — [source](http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2023RS/bills/sb/sb0798t.pdf)

## Sponsors

- Beidle — primary (person)
- Carter — primary (person)
- Elfreth — primary (person)
- Feldman — primary (person)
- Ferguson — primary (person)
- Gile — primary (person)
- Guzzone — primary (person)
- Hester — primary (person)
- Hettleman — primary (person)
- James — primary (person)
- Kagan — primary (person)
- King — primary (person)
- Kramer — primary (person)
- Lam — primary (person)
- Lewis Young — primary (person)
- M. Washington — primary (person)
- Smith — primary (person)
- Waldstreicher — primary (person)
- Watson — primary (person)
- Zucker — primary (person)

## Timeline

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

- **2023-02-06** First Reading Finance `referral-committee`
- **2023-02-07** Hearing 3/01 at 1:00 p.m.
- **2023-03-08** Favorable Report by Finance `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2023-03-08** Favorable `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2023-03-08** Motion Special Order until 3/9 (Senator Hershey) Adopted
- **2023-03-09** Favorable Adopted `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2023-03-09** Floor Amendment {
- **2023-03-09** Motion Laid Over (Senator Hershey) Adopted
- **2023-03-10** Floor Amendment {
- **2023-03-10** Floor Amendment {
- **2023-03-10** Floor Amendment {
- **2023-03-10** Floor Amendment {
- **2023-03-10** Floor Amendment {
- **2023-03-10** Floor Amendment {
- **2023-03-10** Floor Amendment {
- **2023-03-10** Second Reading Passed
- **2023-03-14** Third Reading Passed `passage`
- **2023-03-16** Referred Health and Government Operations `referral-committee`
- **2023-03-22** Hearing 3/28 at 1:00 p.m.
- **2023-03-29** Favorable Report by Health and Government Operations `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2023-03-29** Favorable Adopted `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2023-03-29** Second Reading Passed
- **2023-03-30** Third Reading Passed `passage`
- **2023-03-31** Returned Passed
- **2023-05-03** Approved by the Governor, assigned a chapter number, enactment subject to constitutional referendum - Chapter 244 `executive-signature`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/5afd8675-04dc-4f62-81d3-e3d72e5e764d`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Maryland legislature records).