Md. Code, State Government § 20-703
This is the official text of Md. Code, State Government § 20-703, part of Maryland’s Code, State Government — covers the structure and operation of Maryland state government.
Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.
§20–703.
Official statutory text
This subtitle does not:
(1) invalidate or limit any local law that requires dwellings to be designed and constructed in a manner that affords an individual with a disability greater access than is required by § 20–706(b) of this subtitle;
(2) limit the applicability of any reasonable local, State, or federal restrictions regarding the maximum number of occupants allowed to occupy a dwelling;
(3) prohibit the State or a local government from enacting standards that govern the location of group homes, as defined in § 4–601 of the Housing and Community Development Article;
(4) affect the powers of any local government to enact an ordinance on any subject covered by this subtitle, provided that the ordinance does not authorize any act that would be a discriminatory housing practice under this subtitle;
(5) require that a dwelling be made available to an individual whose tenancy would:
(i) constitute a direct threat to the health or safety of other individuals; or
(ii) result in substantial physical damage to the property of others;
(6) prohibit conduct against a person because the person has been convicted by a court of competent jurisdiction of the illegal manufacture or distribution of:
(i) a controlled dangerous substance, as defined in § 5–101 of the Criminal Law Article; or
(ii) a controlled substance, as defined in 21 U.S.C. § 802;
(7) unless membership in the religion is restricted on the basis of race, color, or national origin, prohibit a religious organization, association, or society or any nonprofit institution or organization operated, supervised, or controlled by or in conjunction with a religious organization, association, or society from giving preference or limiting the sale, rental, or occupancy of dwellings that it owns or operates for other than a commercial purpose to persons of the same religion; or
(8) prohibit a private club that is not open to the public and that, as an incident to its primary purpose or purposes, provides lodgings that it owns or operates for other than a commercial purpose, from limiting the rental or occupancy of the dwellings to its members or from giving preference to its members.
(1) invalidate or limit any local law that requires dwellings to be designed and constructed in a manner that affords an individual with a disability greater access than is required by § 20–706(b) of this subtitle;
(2) limit the applicability of any reasonable local, State, or federal restrictions regarding the maximum number of occupants allowed to occupy a dwelling;
(3) prohibit the State or a local government from enacting standards that govern the location of group homes, as defined in § 4–601 of the Housing and Community Development Article;
(4) affect the powers of any local government to enact an ordinance on any subject covered by this subtitle, provided that the ordinance does not authorize any act that would be a discriminatory housing practice under this subtitle;
(5) require that a dwelling be made available to an individual whose tenancy would:
(i) constitute a direct threat to the health or safety of other individuals; or
(ii) result in substantial physical damage to the property of others;
(6) prohibit conduct against a person because the person has been convicted by a court of competent jurisdiction of the illegal manufacture or distribution of:
(i) a controlled dangerous substance, as defined in § 5–101 of the Criminal Law Article; or
(ii) a controlled substance, as defined in 21 U.S.C. § 802;
(7) unless membership in the religion is restricted on the basis of race, color, or national origin, prohibit a religious organization, association, or society or any nonprofit institution or organization operated, supervised, or controlled by or in conjunction with a religious organization, association, or society from giving preference or limiting the sale, rental, or occupancy of dwellings that it owns or operates for other than a commercial purpose to persons of the same religion; or
(8) prohibit a private club that is not open to the public and that, as an incident to its primary purpose or purposes, provides lodgings that it owns or operates for other than a commercial purpose, from limiting the rental or occupancy of the dwellings to its members or from giving preference to its members.
Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site
Need a lawyer in Maryland?
Find a Maryland lawyer
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the
Open US Law dataset
(Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine
(Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.