SB 650

Family Law - Child Abuse and Neglect Investigations ('Know Before They Knock' Family Right to Notice Act)

Sponsor: Shaneka Henson (District 30)Committee: Judicial ProceedingsSubject: Family LawStatus: Hearing 2/26 at 1:00 p.m. (as of Sep 4, 2026)

What this bill does

Official synopsis

Requiring a certain on-site interview following a report of suspected child abuse to be with the child's parent or guardian rather than the child's caretaker; requiring a local department of social services or a law enforcement agency to provide a certain notice to a parent or legal guardian of a child at a certain time during an investigation of suspected child abuse or neglect; requiring the Department to develop a system to document proof of notice; etc.

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Analysis reads the bill text, the fiscal note, and the witness list. It is generated by Claude and reviewed by nobody, so check the source documents before you rely on it.

Testimony (36)

MGA witness list

FAV 20FavorableUNF 15UnfavorableINFO 1Information only

Position	Witness	Organization	Testimony
FAV	Spaccasi, Olivia	ACLU-MD	Written (PDF)
FAV	DeMinco, Lynne	BCRW	Position only
FAV	Glaberson, Stephanie	Georgetown University Law Center Civil Litigation Clinic	Written (PDF)
FAV	Agarin, Ufuoma	Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland	Written (PDF)
FAV	Vora, Amee	Maryland Legal Aid	Oral + Written (PDF)
FAV	Hawkins, Christina	Maryland Office of the Public Defender	Oral + Written (PDF)
FAV	Lichterman, Hayley	Maryland Office of the Public Defender	Oral
FAV	Villamar, Maria Nenutzka	Office of the Public Defender	Oral
FAV	Khalfani, Natasha	Office of the Public Defender Maryland	Written (PDF)
FAV	Dortch, Amber	Office of the Public Defender's Better Together Program	Written (PDF)
FAV	Franklin, Stephanie	The Franklin Law Group, P.C.	Written (PDF)
FAV	Warnken, Heather	University of Baltimore School of Law Center for Criminal Justice Reform	Position only
FAV	Trivedi, Shanta	University of Baltimore, Sayra & Neil Meyerhoff Center for Families, Children & The Courts	Oral + Written (PDF)
FAV	Amanuel, Yanetlobbyist	Individual	Oral
FAV	Ferrell, Valerie	Individual	Position only
FAV	Henson, Senator Shaneka	Individual	Written (PDF)
FAV	Maranto, Jessica	Individual	Oral
FAV	Meyerovich, Mark	Individual	Position only
FAV	Rossi, Elizabeth	Individual	Written (PDF)
FAV	Senator Henson, Senator Hensonlegislator	Individual	Oral
UNF	Shellenberger, Scott	Baltimore County State's Attorney's Office	Written (PDF)
UNF	Stine, Jennifer	CASA of Baltimore County, Inc.	Oral + Written (PDF)
UNF	D'Alessandro, Alison	Center for Hope	Oral + Written (PDF)
UNF	Philip, Diana	Coalition to Protect Maryland's Children	Oral + Written (PDF)
UNF	Carpenter, Lindsey	Frederick County State's Attorney's Office	Oral
UNF	Wakefield, Esq., Darlene	Law Offices Darlene A. Wakefield, P.A.	Oral + Written (PDF)
UNF	Jackson, Samiralobbyist	MD Police Chiefs Assoc. and MD Sheriffs Assoc.	Written (PDF)
UNF	DuBosq, Jenifer	Maryland Association of Social Services Directors	Written (PDF)
UNF	Lane, Wendy	Maryland State Council on Child Abuse and Neglect (SCCAN)	Oral + Written (PDF)
UNF	Goldstein, Laura	Montgomery County Counseling Center	Position only
UNF	Feinstein, Debbie	Montgomery County State's Attorney's Office	Written (PDF)
UNF	Proctor, Karessa	NASW Maryland	Written (PDF)
UNF	Gallo, Edward	State Council on Child Abuse and Neglect	Oral
UNF	Emfinger, Susan	Individual	Oral + Written (PDF)
UNF	Galloway, Vanessa	Individual	Oral
INFO	Brown-Burnett, Gloria	Department of Human Services	Written (PDF)

Organizations on record

ACLU-MDFAV 1

Baltimore County State's Attorney's OfficeUNF 1

BCRWFAV 1

CASA of Baltimore County, Inc.UNF 1

Center for HopeUNF 1

Coalition to Protect Maryland's ChildrenUNF 1

Department of Human ServicesINFO 1

Frederick County State's Attorney's OfficeUNF 1

Georgetown University Law Center Civil Litigation ClinicFAV 1

Law Offices Darlene A. Wakefield, P.A.UNF 1

Legislative Black Caucus of MarylandFAV 1

Maryland Association of Social Services DirectorsUNF 1

Maryland Legal AidFAV 1

Maryland Office of the Public DefenderFAV 2

Maryland State Council on Child Abuse and Neglect (SCCAN)UNF 1

MD Police Chiefs Assoc. and MD Sheriffs Assoc.UNF 1

Montgomery County Counseling CenterUNF 1

Montgomery County State's Attorney's OfficeUNF 1

NASW MarylandUNF 1

Office of the Public DefenderFAV 1

Office of the Public Defender MarylandFAV 1

Office of the Public Defender's Better Together ProgramFAV 1

State Council on Child Abuse and NeglectUNF 1

The Franklin Law Group, P.C.FAV 1

University of Baltimore School of Law Center for Criminal Justice ReformFAV 1

University of Baltimore, Sayra & Neil Meyerhoff Center for Families, Children & The CourtsFAV 1

Registered lobbyists who testified

FAVAmanuel, YanetRegistered for: ACLU of Maryland

UNFJackson, SamiraMD Police Chiefs Assoc. and MD Sheriffs Assoc.Registered for: Critical Response Group; Dell Technologies Inc.; Empower; Forward Financing; HDR Engineering, Inc.; Maryland Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs…