Enabling statute

Maryland

Maryland Land Use Article, Division I (Single-Jurisdiction Planning and Zoning), Title 4 - Zoning

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Summary

Maryland delegates zoning authority from the State to local governments through the Land Use Article of the Maryland Annotated Code. Title 4, Subtitle 1 (the grant-of-power sections, §§ 4-101 to 4-104) declares the State policy that "planning and zoning controls shall be implemented by local government" and authorizes a "legislative body" — defined as the elected body of a "local jurisdiction" (a county or municipal corporation) — to regulate building height, lot coverage, parking, open space, population density, and the location and use of buildings, signs, structures, and land (§ 4-102), and to divide the jurisdiction into districts (§ 4-201). Thus zoning power is held at the county and municipal level under a state delegation in the Standard State Zoning Enabling Act lineage; charter (home-rule) and code counties operate under modified provisions of the same Article (Title 1, Subtitle 4). Montgomery County and Prince George's County are largely carved out of Division I and instead operate under a separate regional scheme — the Maryland-Washington Regional District Act in Division III (Title 14, § 14-201), which applies only to those two counties.

The delegation

§4–101. (a) It is the policy of the State that: (1) the orderly development and use of land and structures requires comprehensive regulation through the implementation of planning and zoning controls; and (2) planning and zoning controls shall be implemented by local government. (b) To achieve the public purposes of this regulatory scheme, it is the policy of the General Assembly and the State that local government action will displace or limit economic competition by owners and users of property through the planning and zoning controls set forth in this division and elsewhere in the public general and public local laws. §4–102. To promote the health, safety, and general welfare of the community, a legislative body may regulate: (1) the height, number of stories, and size of buildings and other structures; (2) the percentage of a lot that may be occupied; (3) off–street parking; (4) the size of yards, courts, and other open spaces; (5) population density; and (6) the location and use of buildings, signs, structures, and land. §4–201. (a) A legislative body may divide the local jurisdiction into districts and zones of any number, shape, and area that the legislative body considers best suited to carry out the purposes of this division. (b) (1) Within the districts and zones, the legislative body may regulate the construction, alteration, repair, or use of buildings, structures, or land. (2) Except as otherwise provided in this division or authorized by law: (i) zoning regulations shall be uniform for each class or kind of development throughout each district or zone; but (ii) zoning regulations in one district or zone may differ from those in other districts or zones. [Defined terms — §1–101:] (g)(1) "Legislative body" means the elected body of a local jurisdiction. (i) "Local jurisdiction" means a county or municipal corporation and the territory within which its powers may be exercised.

Verification

A verification pass checked this record against the source and filed corrections; the citation above is shown as extracted.

Corrected citation

Md. Code Ann., Land Use §§ 4-101 to 4-104 (Div. I, Title 4, Zoning); see also § 1-101 (definitions) and § 4-201. Charter/code (home-rule) counties: Land Use Title 1, Subtitle 4 (§§ 1-401, 1-402) plus Local Gov't Art. §§ 10-305, 10-324 (Express Powers Act). Montgomery & Prince George's Counties: Land Use DIVISION II (Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission), Title 20 (Maryland-Washington Regional District) and Title 22 (Zoning); scope set by § 14-201 ("This division applies only in Montgomery County and Prince George's County").

Corrected authority model

county_and_municipal (state delegation; home_rule/charter and code counties under limited application of Division I plus the Express Powers Act; Montgomery & Prince George's Counties under the separate Maryland-Washington Regional District regime in DIVISION II, not "Division III")

Read the verification audit

Verified against official MGA statute text (mgaleg.maryland.gov) and the DLS "Regulation of Land Use in the State" fact sheet (Jan 2025). CORE CLAIM IS CORRECT but it contains one material factual error in the Montgomery/Prince George's carve-out, so I set verified=false. CONFIRMED CORRECT: - Md. Code Ann., Land Use is the current zoning enabling article; Title 4 = Zoning, within Division I (Single-Jurisdiction Planning and Zoning). Sections 4-101 to 4-104 are real, current provisions (not repealed/unrelated). - § 4-101 verbatim: State policy that "planning and zoning controls shall be implemented by local government." - § 4-102 verbatim (General Powers): a "legislative body may regulate" (1) height/number of stories/size of buildings & structures; (2) percentage of a lot that may be occupied; (3) off-street parking; (4) size of yards/courts/open spaces; (5) population density; (6) location and use of buildings, signs, structures, and land. - § 1-101 definitions confirmed: "Legislative body" = the elected body of a local jurisdiction (incl. board of county commissioners, county council, governing body of a municipal corporation); "Local jurisdiction" = a county or municipal corporation; charter/code county definitions present. - authority_model county_and_municipal (state delegation, SSZEA lineage) is accurate. Charter/code (home-rule) counties operate under limited application of Division I (Title 1, Subtitle 4; §§ 1-401/1-402) plus the Express Powers Act (Title 10, Local Government Article, §§ 10-324/10-305) — claim's Title 1 Subtitle 4 reference is correct. - Montgomery & Prince George's are carved out under the Maryland-Washington Regional District regime; § 14-201 verbatim: "This division applies only in Montgomery County and Prince George's County." ERROR (reason for verified=false): The claim places the Montgomery/PG regional regime in "Division III (Title 14, § 14-201)." There is NO Division III in the Land Use Article. The regional regime is in DIVISION II (Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission), which spans Titles 14-27. The Maryland-Washington Regional District Act proper is Title 20 (zoning for those counties is Title 22; Montgomery/PG-specific provisions are Titles 24/25). Title 14 is the "Definitions; General Provisions" title at the head of Division II, and § 14-201 is merely the scope/applicability section the claim quotes. So both the Division number (III, should be II) and the substantive title for the regional district (Title 14, should be Title 20) are wrong. This is a contextual error; it does not affect the primary enabling citation (Title 4) or the authority_model.