14                                Laws of Maryland                          Ch. 3

SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That if the provisions of
this Act or the application thereof to any person or circumstance
is held invalid for any reason, such invalidity shall not affect the
other provisions or any other application of this Act which can be
given effect without the invalid provisions or application, and to this
end, all the provisions of this Act are hereby declared to be severable.

Sec. 3. And be it further enacted, That this Act is hereby
declared to be an emergency measure and necessary for the immedi-
ate preservation of the public health and safety and having been
passed by a yea and nay vote supported by three-fifths of the mem-
bers elected to each of the two Houses of the General Assembly of
Maryland, the same shall take effect from the date of its passage.

Approved by the Governor, December 18, 1969.

CHAPTER 3
(Senate Bill 3)

AN ACT to add new Section 12 to Article 49 of the Annotated Code
of Maryland (1957 Edition, 1968 Replacement Volume, 1969 Sup-
plement), title "Interest and Usury," said section to follow im-
mediately after Section 11 thereof, exempting under certain cir-
cumstances, secured loans insured or guaranteed by the Federal
Housing Administration, Veterans Administration or any other
agency or instrumentality of the Federal Government, from certain
of the interest and usury provisions of the laws of Maryland;
defining the allowable rate of interest and other charges in con-
nection with such loans; and relating generally to mortgage loans
and real estate transactions in this State.

Whereas, There presently exists in Maryland and throughout the
entire United States a crisis relating to the financing of the pur-
chase of homes; and

Whereas, There presently exists a shortage of adequate housing
throughout the entire State of Maryland and especially in the more
populous areas of the State; and

Whereas, This housing shortage is compounded by the unavail-
ability of home mortgage funds; and

WHEREAS, That group of Maryland citizens most affected by this
problem are those people attempting to secure mortgages under the
mortgage guarantee and insurance programs authorized by the agen-
cies of the Federal Government; and

Whereas, The home building and related industries are a sub-
stantial part of the Maryland economy, and unless remedial action
is taken to relieve the present situation with respect to the avail-
ability of federally insured mortgages, there will be a significant
impact on the Maryland economy; and

Whereas, The General Assembly of Maryland deems it important
to alleviate this problem by revising certain provisions of the Mary-