Legal Basis for Planning

Maryland’s municipalities and counties use three basic powers to control land use within their boundaries. These are the power to prepare a comprehensive or master plan, a zoning ordinance, and subdivision regulations. Together these documents direct how land will be developed. Article 66B, of the Annotated Code of Maryland, is the major State law that governs the administration of these three important land use powers.

Entitled Land Use, this article was added to the Maryland Code in 1927. The article delegates these three basic planning and land use regulatory powers to the State’s municipalities, Baltimore City and non-charter counties.

Article 66B allows but does not require jurisdictions to exercise the powers delegated. If these powers are exercised, however, they must be exercised in accordance with the provisions of this statute.

Jurisdictions Empowered Under Article 66B

  1. All non-charter (including code home-rule*) counties

    Allegany*, Calvert, Caroline*, Carroll, Cecil, Charles*, Frederick, Garrett, Kent* , Queen Anne’s*, St. Mary’s, Somerset, Washington, Worchester*

  2. Baltimore City. The City receives its zoning powers from Article 66B; its planning powers are derived from its charter.
  3. All incorporated municipalities lying outside Montgomery and Prince George’s counties.
  4. The incorporated municipalities of Barnesville, Brookeville, Gaithersburg, Laytonsville, Poolesville, Rockville and Washington Grove in Montgomery County, and the City of Laurel in Prince George’s County.

Planning and Zoning in other parts of Maryland

Planning and zoning powers in the balance of the State are delegated by Article 25A, which gives powers to seven charter counties (Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Dorchester, Harford, Howard, Talbot and Wicomico), and by Article 28, which applies to Montgomery and Prince George’s counties and incorporated municipalities within those two counties and not listed in (4) above.

Some sections of Article 66B apply to all jurisdictions.

The following provisions apply to charter counties as well as to the “Article 66B” jurisdictions.

  • 1.00(j)-Definition of the term “sensitive areas”
  • 1.01-the eight Visions that must be implemented in all comprehensive plans
  • 1.03-governing charter county comprehensive plans. It lists those elements that charter counties’ comprehensive plans must contain (these are much the same as those in Section 3.05 which pertain to the municipalities and non-charter counties)
  • 4.01(b)(2)-regulation of bicycle parking
  • 5.03(d)-easements for burial sites
  • (7.02)-civil penalties for zoning violations
  • 10.01-adequate public facilities ordinances and other measures
  • 11.01-Transfer of Development Rights
  • 12.01-inclusionary zoning
  • 13.01-development rights and responsibilities agreements(does not apply to Montgomery or Prince George’s counties)
  • 14.02-to Baltimore County only