Today, 28 housing, social justice, labor, water, and low-income advocacy organizations are urging the House of Delegates to oppose HB 243 as amended, which is coming up on the House floor. These amendments threaten to leave low-income households and tenants at risk of foreclosure and eviction over water and sewer bills, and discriminate against residents who cannot afford to own or obtain the legal title to their homes.

The amendments to HB 243 would gut the Water Taxpayer Protection Act, which unanimously passed the General Assembly in 2019 and protects all households (including renters) and places of worship in Baltimore City from tax sale due to unpaid, incorrect, and unaffordable water bills. Tenants could lose their housing even if the bills were the responsibility of a landlord.

“Tax sale is a predatory system that harms Maryland residents and their communities,” said Shana Roth-Gormley, Staff Attorney with Community Law Center. “Not only does it put families at risk of losing their homes – and all their equity – for a few hundred dollars in unpaid taxes, it also causes property vacancy and abandonment and destroys the fabric of communities. HB 243 will remove long fought-for protections for Maryland residents in tax sale, particularly for ‘heirs properties’ where a family home is at risk because a loved one who passed away is still listed on the deed. When families lose their homes in tax sale, it is often because of difficulty paying lump sum bills due all at once rather than over time, and because the system is complex and exceptionally difficult to navigate. We continue to advocate for reform of tax sale to protect residents, both homeowners and renters, and to use tax sale as a tool to address vacant properties.”

HB 243 was intended to extend Baltimore City’s tax sale protections statewide, in line with Governor Moore’s housing policy agenda. The amendments in question come from a different bill (HB 777), sponsored by Delegate Regina Boyce. During a Baltimore City Delegation hearing, it was revealed that HB 777 was put forward at the behest of the tax sale industry. The Baltimore City Mayor’s office had testified in favor of narrowing its scope to just vacant and abandoned properties. 

“The Water Taxpayer Protection Act was a major victory for social and economic justice, protecting Baltimore City residents from losing their homes over a water bill,” said Food & Water Watch Southern Region Director Jorge Aguilar. “These amendments threaten to essentially undo that work and leave many city residents at the mercy of the tax sale industry. No one should lose their home or get evicted over a water bill. Lawmakers must remove these amendments immediately.”

Advocates warn that allowing tax sales of renter-occupied homes and homes with tangled title issues would disproportionately harm Black residents and low-income households.

“HB243 would take away vital protections that were put in place to help people facing tax sale,” said Margaret K. Henn, Deputy Director of Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service. “Thousands of tenants and people living in heirs properties would find their homes in the tax sale next year and their families at risk of displacement.”

A recent study by Baltimore Neighborhood Indicators Alliance (BNIA) found that there are over 3,000 tangled title properties in Baltimore alone. This is a problem throughout the state as well, particularly on the Eastern Shore. Based on tax sale prevention clinics hosted by Pro Bono Resource Center and MVLS, approximately 20% of those in tax sale are in tangled title properties.

“We have been helping homeowners apply for tax credits to avoid tax sale since 2015,” said Marcline White, the Executive Director at Economic Action Maryland. “These harmful amendments will roll back years of progress and increase housing insecurity for vulnerable tenants.”  

“The Jewish tradition teaches that water is life and that housing is crucial. Denying residents either is a denial of human rights. That’s why we and our partners worked so hard to put an end to the immoral practice of selling people’s homes and places of worship at tax sale for water bills,” said Matan Zeimer, Maryland Policy Director of Jews United for Justice. “We cannot roll back the progress of the Water Taxpayer Protection Act.” 

The groups opposing HB 243 as amended include: 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East; Baltimore Renters United; Campaign for Justice Safety and Jobs; CASH Campaign of Maryland; Chesapeake Physicians for Social Responsibility; Citizens Policing Project; Clean Water Action; Community Development Network of Maryland; Community Law Center; Disability Rights Maryland; Dr. Marvin J. Perry, Morgan State University; Economic Action Maryland; Fight Blight Bmore; Food & Water Watch; Jews United for Justice; Making Changes; Maryland Center on Economic Policy; Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service; Mothers On The Move; NAACP – Baltimore Branch; NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund (LDF); Organizing Black; Parity Baltimore; Pro Bono Resource Center of Maryland; Public Justice Center; South Baltimore Community Land Trust Inc; The SOS Fund; and University of Baltimore School of Law Community Development Clinic.