266 LAWS OF MARYLAND [CH. 84

SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of
Maryland, That Section 27 of Article 64A of the Anno-
tated Code of Maryland (1951 Edition), title "Merit Sys-
tem", be and it is hereby repealed and re-enacted, with
amendments, to read as follows:

27. (a) The State Employees' Standard Salary Board
shall formulate rules and regulations for the administra-
tion of Sections 24-27, which shall include provisions for
automatic increases, from minimum to maximum, of the
rates established by the schedule, except that said Board
shall have the power to establish flat or fixed salaries and
wage rates for special classifications or cases, (for a per-
iod not to exceed two years) where, upon the recommenda-
tion of the State Employment Commissioner and in the
discretion of said Board, provision for automatic increases
are deemed inadvisable; and such rules shall, after ap-
proval by the Governor, have the force of law in the same
manner as other conditions herein prescribed. Said Board
shall have the power and authority at any time to increase
or decrease any rates of pay for all employees in the
Classified and in the Unclassified Service, and said in-
creased or decreased rates of pay shall, after approval by
the Governor, apply to all employees in the classification
or classifications so affected, including incumbent employ-
ees and new employees.

(b) The automatic increases in salary rates provided
for hereinabove in this section shall not apply in the in-
stances specified in this sub-section, and no such increase
or increases over an existing salary shall be paid to any
person if:

(1) The probation period for such person shall have been
extended for a longer period than six months, pursuant to
the provisions of Section 29 of this Article, during the per-
iod of the extended probation; or

(2) The person has been suspended for disciplinary pur-
poses, pursuant to the provisions of Section 31 of this Ar-
ticle, during the period of one year from the time of sus-
pension; or

(3) The appointing authority for the position involved
has recommended, and the Commissioner has approved,
that the person not receive the automatic increase in any
year because of his unusual or excessive rate of absen-
teeism, inefficiency, or other substantial reason affecting
adversely his value as an employee. An appointing author-
ity who exercises the power conferred by this paragraph