Annapolis, MD – Ahead of Wednesday’s start to the next state legislative session, water, housing and legal advocates from the Baltimore Right to Water Coalition and the Tax Sale Work Group cheered the Moore administration today for filing new legislation that will protect all Marylanders from evictions, foreclosure, and unjust fees over unpaid water bills.

“This legislation reflects our commitment to protecting Maryland’s most vulnerable homeowners,” said Jake Day, Secretary of the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development. “No one should lose their home over unpaid water bills. This legislation offers homeowners the time, options, and support they need to prevent foreclosure and stay in their homes, allowing them to build generational wealth, and strengthening communities across Maryland.”

The consequential legislation would extend provisions in state law against water related-tax sale, currently only protecting Baltimore residents, to all Maryland residents. In 2019, the Maryland General Assembly unanimously passed the Water Taxpayer Protection Act to protect households in Baltimore City, including renters, from tax sales for unpaid, incorrect, or unaffordable water bills. This practice, which was common in the city, often led to foreclosures and evictions.

“We applaud Governor Moore and Housing Secretary Day on their commitment to ensure that no Marylander will lose their home over unpaid water bills,” said Jorge Aguilar, southern region director at Food & Water Watch. “This legislation will protect many of the most vulnerable families across Maryland from the aggressive collection practice of tax-sale foreclosures. We welcome the opportunity to work together with the administration to ensure the General Assembly passes this historic legislation – possibly the nation’s first statewide ban on tax sales of homes over water bills.”

“As we know, poor Marylanders are often forced to face tax sale without an advocate. This imbalance of power makes it more likely that our clients will continue to struggle to avoid tax sale,” said Courtland Merkel, Consumer and Housing Staff Attorney with Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service. ”That’s why the Moore administration’s legislation is vital in rejecting a tax sale process that benefits a few to abuse Maryland’s tax sale practices for their profit, while preying on low-income families who are struggling to pay their water bills and save their family home.” 

At the annual tax sale, Marylanders, whose past-due water debt is sold to investors, must reclaim their property at a steep price.  In order to avoid foreclosure, owners must pay investors the liens, plus interest, court costs, legal fees, and postage. The tax sale system disproportionately impacts single older women making less than $40,000 per year. Many also have chronic health conditions, are disabled, and live on social security income. Most own their homes outright but have low annual incomes, making them more susceptible to losing their homes.

“The tax sale system is where vacancy and blight begin in most communities throughout the state,” said Claudia Wilson Randall, Executive Director of the Community Development Network of Maryland. “Tax sale industry contributes to vacant and abandoned properties. The more that vulnerable residents are exposed to the risk of losing their homes in tax sale, the more vacant properties will result, and the harder it will be to restore the homes and reinvigorate neighborhoods. We are excited to see the administration help people hold on to their homes during the affordable housing crisis at a time when there are few places to go.”

“The key to this legislation is that it protects all residential properties in Maryland from facing tax sale due to water bills, not just those classified as owner occupied, “ noted Allison Harris, Home Preservation Project Director at the Pro Bono Resource Center of Maryland. “We know that many homes in Maryland are not properly classified as owner occupied in the state’s database, and homes that have passed down through families are particularly likely to be improperly classified.  Protecting those legacy homeowners should be a priority.”

“We know that Black homeowners in Maryland disproportionately lose their homes to tax foreclosure, and the delinquent property tax enforcement systems unfairly burden communities of color,” said David Wheaton, Assistant Policy Counsel at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. “This legislation will ensure that there are critical safeguards for all residential properties from tax sale foreclosures for unpaid water debt along with other important protections. We are hopeful that the legislation will positively impact low-income families and give Black families increased housing stability.”