Maryland House Bill to Protect Fire and Rescue Workers Over Medical Marijuana Use Scheduled for March 4 Hearing
- Maryland House Bill 797 aims to protect fire and rescue public safety employees from employment discrimination based on their lawful use of medical marijuana, with a public hearing scheduled for March 4.
- The bill prohibits employers from disciplining or discriminating against firefighters, EMTs, paramedics, and similar workers solely for possessing a valid medical cannabis certification or testing positive for cannabis components while certified.
- Employers cannot limit or segregate employees to block employment opportunities due to medical cannabis use but may still restrict cannabis use on duty and require reporting if an employee is impaired at work.
- If passed, the law would take effect on October 1, 2026, balancing protections for medical marijuana-using first responders with safeguards against on-duty impairment.
A Maryland House bill that would protect fire and rescue public safety employees from employment discrimination over their lawful use of medical marijuana has been scheduled for a public hearing. House Bill 797, filed February 4 by Delegate Adrian Boafo (D), is set to be heard by the House Economic Matters Committee on March 4 at 1pm. The measure is a companion to Senate Bill 439, introduced by Senator Carl Jackson (D), which is scheduled for a public hearing in the Senate Finance Committee on February 19 at 1pm.
HB 797 would prohibit an employer from disciplining, discharging, or otherwise discriminating against a fire and rescue public safety employee based solely on their possession of a valid written certification for medical cannabis or for testing positive for cannabis components or metabolites while holding such certification. The bill defines a “fire and rescue public safety employee” as a firefighter, emergency medical technician, cardiac rescue technician, or paramedic employed by a municipal corporation, county, the state, the State Airport Authority, or a fire control district.
Under the proposal, employers would also be barred from limiting, segregating, or classifying employees in a way that would deprive a covered worker of employment opportunities due to lawful medical cannabis use.
However, the legislation includes clear guardrails. It does not require an employer to violate federal law or risk losing federal monetary or licensing-related benefits. Employers would still be allowed to adopt policies prohibiting employees from performing their duties while impaired by cannabis and from using cannabis while on duty. If a fire or rescue public safety employee reports to work impaired by cannabis, the employer would be required to report the incident to the State Emergency Medical Services Board.
If approved by lawmakers and signed into law, the measure would take effect October 1, 2026.
With companion legislation advancing in both chambers, lawmakers will soon debate whether Maryland should extend explicit workplace protections to first responders who are lawful medical marijuana patients while maintaining safeguards against on-duty impairment.