Regulation

5 Bills Signed by Wes Moore That Will Impact Housing and AI Development in Maryland

Couched with good intentions, new laws aimed at housing and artificial intelligence development will add more layers of red tape to Maryland’s growing bureaucracy.

Tosin Akintola | 5.27.2026 12:20 PM

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On Tuesday, Maryland Democratic Gov. Wes Moore signed over 270 bills into law. With public scrutiny focused on bills related to crime and immigration, several bills that expand government to address housing shortages and integrate AI into public education have flown under the radar. Here are five examples.

1. The Maryland Housing Certainty Act

Maryland faces a housing shortage of about 100,000 units. To keep pace with its growing population, the state would need an additional 590,186 units by 2045, according to the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development. At first glance, the Maryland Housing Certainty Act appears to be a fix to the issue by targeting one of the main barriers to housing construction: ever-changing regulations that increase uncertainty for developers.

It's a high bar, considering Maryland is the sixth most regulated state for housing development, with construction costs 27 percent higher than the national average. Previously, housing projects were subject to changes in local regulations, even with prior approval. 

The act freezes local zoning laws and land use policies for housing developments, allowing only regulations applicable "at the time of submission" to be considered for project approval. The law also prohibits the collection of development impact fees and excise taxes until after a........

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