SB 722

Department of the Environment - Definition of Ecological Restoration

Sponsor: Shaneka Henson (District 30)Committee: Education, Energy, and the EnvironmentSubject: EnvironmentStatus: Approved by the Governor - Chapter 329 (as of Dec 1, 2025)

What this bill does

Official synopsis

Defining the term 'ecological restoration' as an activity undertaken with the goal of recovering, re-establishing, or enhancing a degraded, damaged, or destroyed ecosystem through improvements to physical, chemical, or biological characteristics or processes, returning natural or historical functions or services, or protecting or improving resiliency.

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Testimony (0)

MGA witness list

FAV 37FavorableFWA 5Favorable with amendmentsUNF 11Unfavorable

Position	Witness	Organization	Testimony
FAV	Bassett, Elle	Arundel Rivers Federation	Written (PDF)
FAV	Bassett, Elle	Arundel Rivers Federation	Written (PDF)
FAV	Swanson, Taylor	Assateague Coastal Trust	Oral + Written (PDF)
FAV	Brown, Jim	Audubon Mid-Atlantic	Oral + Written (PDF)
FAV	Brown, Jim	Audubon Mid-Atlantic	Written (PDF)
FAV	Dunlap, Julie	Audubon Society of Central Maryland	Written (PDF)
FAV	Dunlap, Julie	Audubon Society of Central Maryland	Written (PDF)
FAV	Rogers, Thomas	Audubon Society of Central Maryland	Written (PDF)
FAV	Stegman, Matt	Chesapeake Bay Foundation	Written (PDF)
FAV	Stegman, Matt	Chesapeake Bay Foundation	Written (PDF)
FAV	Conway, Mark	Chesapeake Conservancy	Written (PDF)
FAV	Demiray, Sonia	Climate Communications Coalition	Position only
FAV	Hudson, Lee	Delaware-Maryland Synod, ELCA	Written (PDF)
FAV	Hudson, Lee	Delaware-Maryland Synod, ELCA	Written (PDF)
FAV	Bean, Carol	Eastern Shore Land Conservancy	Oral + Written (PDF)
FAV	Lawrence, Julia	Indivisible HoCoMD	Written (PDF)
FAV	Smith, Kevin	Maryland Coastal Bays Program	Oral + Written (PDF)
FAV	Baker, Jeremy D	Maryland Department of the Environment	Written (PDF)
FAV	Olszewski, Marisa	Maryland League of Conservation Voters	Written (PDF)
FAV	Olszewski, Marisa	Maryland League of Conservation Voters	Written (PDF)
FAV	Ostdahl, Maggielobbyist	National Aquarium	Written (PDF)
FAV	Ostdahl, Maggielobbyist	National Aquarium	Written (PDF)
FAV	Southerland, Mark	Safe Skies Maryland	Written (PDF)
FAV	Southerland, Mark	Safe Skies Maryland	Written (PDF)
FAV	Cornish, Elizabeth	South Baltimore Gateway Partnership	Written (PDF)
FAV	de Regt, Jan	Southern Maryland Audubon	Written (PDF)
FAV	Moore, Molly	Southern Maryland Audubon Society	Written (PDF)
FAV	Hametz, Isaac	The Nature Conservancy	Oral
FAV	Sharif, Humnalobbyist	The Nature Conservancy	Written (PDF)
FAV	Sharif, Humnalobbyist	The Nature Conservancy	Written (PDF)
FAV	Stegman, Charles	Wicomico Environmental Trust	Written (PDF)
FAV	Bierer-Garrett, Lisa	Individual	Written (PDF)
FAV	Glassman, Barrylobbyist	Individual	Written (PDF)
FAV	Hanifin Bonner, Linda	Individual	Written (PDF)
FAV	Murray, Rorylobbyist	Individual	Oral
FAV	Senator Henson, Senator Hensonlegislator	Individual	Oral
FAV	Senator Henson, Senator Hensonlegislator	Individual	Oral + Written (PDF)
UNF	Cangelosi, Allegra	Citizen	Written (PDF)
UNF	Kellett, Sarah	Columbia Watershed Alliance	Written (PDF)
UNF	Walker, Chris	N/A	Written (PDF)
UNF	sarabia, deborah	Seneca Creek Watershed Partners	Written (PDF)
UNF	Boies, Sharon	Sierra Club	Written (PDF)
UNF	davis, roger	saveplumtreebranch.org	Written (PDF)
UNF	Davis, Wayne	Individual	Written (PDF)
UNF	Dover, Robert	Individual	Written (PDF)
UNF	Edey, Marion	Individual	Written (PDF)
UNF	Jacobs-Swearingen, Benjamin	Individual	Written (PDF)
UNF	Tevelow, Carla	Individual	Written (PDF)
FWA	Bawer, Kenneth	Coalition to Stop Stream Destruction	Written (PDF)
FWA	Dunmire, David	Eyes of Paint Branch	Written (PDF)
FWA	Baker, Jeremy D	Maryland Department of the Environment	Written (PDF)
FWA	Fulton, Judith	Sierra Club	Written (PDF)
FWA	Wray, Amanda	Wild Ones Greater Baltimore	Written (PDF)

Organizations on record

Arundel Rivers FederationFAV 2

Assateague Coastal TrustFAV 1

Audubon Mid-AtlanticFAV 2

Audubon Society of Central MarylandFAV 3

Chesapeake Bay FoundationFAV 2

Chesapeake ConservancyFAV 1

CitizenUNF 1

Climate Communications CoalitionFAV 1

Coalition to Stop Stream DestructionFWA 1

Columbia Watershed AllianceUNF 1

Delaware-Maryland Synod, ELCAFAV 2

Eastern Shore Land ConservancyFAV 1

Eyes of Paint BranchFWA 1

Indivisible HoCoMDFAV 1

Maryland Coastal Bays ProgramFAV 1

Maryland Department of the EnvironmentFAV 1FWA 1

Maryland League of Conservation VotersFAV 2

N/AUNF 1

National AquariumFAV 2

Safe Skies MarylandFAV 2

saveplumtreebranch.orgUNF 1

Seneca Creek Watershed PartnersUNF 1

Sierra ClubFWA 1UNF 1

South Baltimore Gateway PartnershipFAV 1

Southern Maryland AudubonFAV 1

Southern Maryland Audubon SocietyFAV 1

The Nature ConservancyFAV 3

Wicomico Environmental TrustFAV 1

Wild Ones Greater BaltimoreFWA 1

Registered lobbyists who testified

FAVOstdahl, MaggieNational AquariumRegistered for: National Aquarium

FAVSharif, HumnaThe Nature ConservancyRegistered for: Nature Conservancy, The

FAVGlassman, BarryRegistered for: AFT Maryland; Aligned Data Centers; Associated Builders & Contractors; Baltimore Industrial Group; Center for Ecosystem Recovery; Earth Funeral Group, Inc.…

FAVMurray, RoryRegistered for: Alliance to Prevent Legionnaire's Disease; American Council of Engineering Companies/MD; Association of Independent Maryland and D.C. Schools; Chesapeake Watershed Restoration Professionals; Kaiser Permanente; Lightstar Renewables…