SB720 AI Ready Schools Act (Maryland)
Maryland Legislative Events
Summary
Maryland Senate Bill 720, the AI Ready Schools Act, passed the Senate 41-0 on March 20, 2026. The bill requires the State Department of Education to provide AI guidance to local school systems through an online platform and develop guidelines and best practices. Each local school system must designate an AI coordinator, and the legislation establishes the Maryland AI Education Collaborative on Artificial Intelligence in K-12 Education.
What changed
The AI Ready Schools Act creates new requirements for Maryland's K-12 education system regarding artificial intelligence. The State Department of Education would be required to provide AI guidance to local school systems, educators, parents, and students through an online platform, and develop guidelines and best practices for AI use.
For affected local school systems, the bill requires designation of an AI coordinator and establishes the Maryland AI Education Collaborative on Artificial Intelligence in K-12 Education. Schools and educators should monitor the bill's progress through the House and prepare for potential implementation requirements including coordinator designation and professional development on AI.
What to do next
- Monitor SB720 for House passage and governor action
- Prepare for designation of AI coordinator if bill enacted
- Review upcoming Department of Education AI guidance when published
Archived snapshot
Apr 12, 2026GovPing captured this document from the original source. If the source has since changed or been removed, this is the text as it existed at that time.
ChangeBridge / Maryland / SB720 Passed SB720 Senate Bill Passed 2026-03-20
Education - Artificial Intelligence - Guidelines, Professional Development, and Collaborative (Artificial Intelligence Ready Schools Act)
Requiring the State Department of Education to provide certain guidance on artificial intelligence to local school systems, educators, parents, and students through an online platform; requiring the Department to develop certain guidelines and best practices; requiring each local school system to designate a certain coordinator for the use of artificial intelligence; establishing the Maryland AI Education Collaborative on Artificial Intelligence in K-12 Education; etc.
Bill Details
State Maryland
Session 2026 Regular Session
Chamber Senate
Official Source mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation...
LegiScan View on LegiScan
Sponsors
Katie Hester (Sen - D) Dalya Attar (Sen - D) Benjamin Brooks (Sen - D) Brian Feldman (Sen - D) Kevin Harris (Sen - D) Ron Watson (Sen - D)
Action History
2026-04-11 H Second Reading Passed with Amendments 2026-04-11 H Favorable with Amendments {783421/1 Adopted 2026-04-11 H Favorable with Amendments Report by Ways and Means 2026-03-23 H Hearing 4/01 at 1:00 p.m. 2026-03-21 H Referred Ways and Means 2026-03-20 S Third Reading Passed (41-0) 2026-03-19 S Second Reading Passed with Amendments 2026-03-19 S Favorable with Amendments {983227/1 Adopted 2026-03-18 S Favorable with Amendments Report by Education, Energy, and the Environment 2026-02-16 S Hearing 2/26 at 1:00 p.m. 2026-02-16 S Hearing canceled 2026-02-10 S Hearing 3/04 at 1:00 p.m. 2026-02-06 S First Reading Education, Energy, and the Environment
Votes
2026-03-20 Third Reading Passed Yea: 41 Nay: 0
Committee Referrals
2026-02-06 S Education, Energy, and the Environment 2026-03-21 H Ways and Means
Amendments
2026-03-19 Favorable with Amendments 983227/1 Adopted Adopted 2026-04-11 Favorable with Amendments 783421/1 Adopted Adopted
Bill Text Versions
2026-02-10 Introduced 2026-03-19 Engrossed
Subjects
Primary and Secondary Education Information Technology - Generally Artificial Intelligence Certifications Committees and Commissions Continuing Education Counties Curriculum Disabilities Education, Boards of Education Education, State Department of Electronic Communication Electronic Government Ethics Evaluations and Reviews Information Technology Intergovernmental Cooperation Job Training Language Literacy Local Government Mandates Primary Schools Procurement Publications Public Information Reports Secondary Schools Standards and Best Practices State Universities and Colleges Students studies Teachers Time Work, Labor, and Employment Accessibility - see also- Blind; Deaf; Disabilities; etc Higher Education Parents and Guardians Privacy Safety School Administration Sunset Legislative data powered by LegiScan (CC BY 4.0)
Named provisions
Related changes
Get daily alerts for Maryland Legislative Events
Daily digest delivered to your inbox.
Free. Unsubscribe anytime.
About this page
Every important government, regulator, and court update from around the world. One place. Real-time. Free. Our mission
Source document text, dates, docket IDs, and authority are extracted directly from MDGA.
The summary, classification, recommended actions, deadlines, and penalty information are AI-generated from the original text and may contain errors. Always verify against the source document.
Classification
Who this affects
Taxonomy
Browse Categories
Get alerts for this source
We'll email you when Maryland Legislative Events publishes new changes.
Subscribed!
Optional. Filters your digest to exactly the updates that matter to you.