Gov. Robert Ehrlich signed a measure Tuesday that allows adults who live together, including same-sex couples, to make health care decisions for their partners.
Ehrlich sponsored the measure after he had vetoed a similar bill last year that he thought moved the state toward approving same-sex marriages.
The legislation was among 200 bills Ehrlich signed into law Tuesday. Among them was a bill that will double the penalties for underage drivers who have been drinking. They are currently treated the same as adults, even though their drinking itself is also illegal. The new law provides for a one-year suspension of the driver?s license of someone younger than 21 caught driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and a two-year suspension for the second offense.
Another piece of legislation increases the funding formula for community colleges by as much as 20 percent. The schools, which educate a majority of Maryland undergraduates in their first two years, will now get as much as 30 percent of what the state spends on students at four-year colleges and universities.
Armed service veterans were on hand to see the governor sign a bill exempting the first $5,000 of their military pensions from state and local income taxes.
Three other bills signed are designed to help small, minority and start-up businesses. One creates another method to get bonding so theycan qualify to bid for state contracts. A second makes it easier for businesses to get information about state contracts through the Internet, and a third extends the State?s Minority Business Enterprise Program for five years.
