Following the enacting clause of a bill drafted to the Annotated Code (or to a public local law), the full name of the article of the Code (or the article number and name in the case of the remaining unrevised article of the Code or a public local law) affected by the bill is inserted preceding the actual Code (or public local law) text. For an uncodified bill, the text of the law follows directly after the enacting clause. (See p. 89, “Enacting Clauses – In General” and discussion at p. 107,
“Drafting Uncodified Acts.”) In the case of a bill amending an uncodified Act, see discussion at p. 84, “Amending an Uncodified Act or Provision,” second example on p. 85, and discussion and examples beginning at p. 107, “Amending Previously Enacted Uncodified Provisions.”
If a bill is drafted to more than one article of the Code, a separate article heading is inserted before the text drafted to each article. Unless the meaning or continuity of a bill requires otherwise, in a bill that is drafted to more than one article, the material should be arranged so that provisions drafted to the remaining unrevised (numbered) article appear before provisions drafted to revised (named) articles and provisions drafted to revised articles appear alphabetically (e.g., provisions drafted to the Agriculture Article should be arranged before material drafted to the Education Article). If a bill is drafted to both the Code and a public local law, the drafter may place either the Code or the public local law material first, unless the meaning or continuity of the bill requires a particular order. This rule also applies to a bill drafted to the Code or a public local law and the Charter of Baltimore City.
After the article heading, designate the section number but do not include the symbol for a section (§). In addition, if using the “cut and paste” drafting method (see p. 18, “Cut and Paste: Drafting the ‘Old-fashioned Way’”) and photocopied Code or public local law text, delete catchlines, captions, and annotations since they are not part of the law. Note that if a title, subtitle, subheading, or part designation also is being added or amended, it should be shown before the section number, centered directly under the article heading. A new title, subtitle, subheading, or
part designation, or a change to a current title, subtitle, subheading, or part designation, should be shown in BOLD, SMALL CAPS font (or CAPITAL LETTERS if using the “cut and paste” drafting method).
If a subtitle being added contains parts, or if parts are being added to an existing subtitle, the drafter should reserve two section numbers between each part for future use. For example, in adding a new Subtitle 5 with three parts to Title 8 of an article, the numbering sequence would be as follows:
SUBTITLE 5.(NAME).
PART I.(NAME).
8–501. (TEXT).
8–502. (TEXT).
8–503. RESERVED. 8–504. RESERVED.
PART II.(NAME).
8–505. (TEXT).
8–506. RESERVED. 8–507. RESERVED.
PART III.(NAME).
8–508. (TEXT).
8–509. (TEXT).
Note that if a new Part IV were to be added at some future date, the drafter should reserve two sections at the end of Part III and use the number following the reserved sections as the first section in Part IV. For example, assume that § 8–511 is the last numbered section in Part III at the time a new Part IV is to be added.
The numbering sequence would be as follows:
8–512. RESERVED. 8–513. RESERVED.
PART IV.(NAME).
8–514. (TEXT).
Note that the function paragraph will indicate only the addition of the new
§ 8-514 (and the new part number and name), and not §§ 8-512 and 8-513 since these section numbers are merely “place holders.” For an example of a bill adding reserved sections and a new part, see Chapter 474 of the Acts of 2007 (H.B. 1344).
In drafting the text of a bill, use [brackets] to delete existing language from the Code or public local laws, and BOLD, SMALL CAPS font (or CAPITAL LETTERS if using the “cut and paste” drafting method) to indicate any new language, including subsection designations, i.e., “(A),” “(B),” “(C),” Arabic numerals used to designate paragraphs (or items), i.e., “(1),” “(2),” “(3),” and Roman numerals used to designate subparagraphs (or items), i.e., “(I),” “(II),” “(III).” (For a further discussion of drafting using the “cut and paste” method, see p. 18, “Cut and Paste:
Drafting the ‘Old-fashioned Way.’” See also p. 246, “Sample Bill Draft (Cut and Paste).”
Do not amend existing catchlines or captions and, as a general rule, do not draft new catchlines or captions. Section 1–208 of the General Provisions Article provides that the catchlines and captions that appear in the Code preceding the various sections and subsections, whether in bold print, italics, or otherwise, are not law, but rather are intended to be mere catchwords to indicate the contents of the sections or subsections. Unless otherwise provided by law, they may not be considered as a title of the section or subsection or as a title if the section, subsection, caption, or catchline is amended or reenacted. (See, e.g., § 1-107 of the Commercial Law Article, which provides that “[s]ection captions are part of the Maryland Uniform Commercial Code.”)
On occasion, however, a large piece of legislation, such as a new revised article, will have catchlines supplied by the drafter. When captions or catchlines are part of the original enactment of the General Assembly, and not merely inserted later by the publishers of the Code, they are part of the law (Smelser v. Criterion Insurance Co., 293 Md. 384 (1982)). However, in almost every other instance, catchlines should be omitted by drafting staff. Note that legislation containing catchlines and headings supplied by the drafter must include an uncodified “special section” declaring that the catchlines are not part of the law. For an example of the
“special section” language to be used, see p. 140, “Catchline Not Part of Law.”
Code revisors in the Office of Policy Analysis insert “Revisor’s Notes” in new revised articles to aid the reader in using and interpreting the revised statutes.
Revisor’s Notes are an extrinsic aid designed to explain changes in the law that result from the revision process. While Revisor’s Notes are never amended, they can be of value to drafting staff in the preparation and research of legislation.
Revisor’s Notes also have been used by courts to determine the intent of the General Assembly and the legislative history of statutory provisions. (See, e.g., Sanchez v.
Potomac Abatement, 198 Md. App. 436 (2011).)