MARVIN MANDEL, Governor                       3109

This bill purports to be for the purpose of ensuring
a prompt distribution of funds in decedents' estates, but
its only effect is to require a personal representative
to attach to his petition for probate the names and
addresses of "interested persons", as defined in Section
1—101(g) of the Estates and Trusts Article, and the names
and addresses of witnesses to the Will.

Section 7—104 of the Estates and Trusts Article,
enacted by the General Assembly and signed by me on
February 18, 1974, as Chapter 11 of the Laws of Maryland,
1974, already requires a personal representative to
deliver the names and addresses of the decedent's heirs
and legatees to the Register of Wills within twenty days
of his appointment. This list would appear to cover
everyone included under the definition of "interested
person". Section 5—201 (f) of said Article requires the
petition for probate to include the names and addresses
of the witnesses to the Will.

Thus, the principal requirements of House Bill 548
are already provided for in the law; and, in the opinion
of a number of attorneys specializing in estate and trust
law who have written to me, including the Chairman of the
Maryland State Bar Association Section of Estate and
Trust Law, House Bill 548 would merely establish an
unnecessary duplication, without in any way contributing
to a more prompt distribution of estate funds. The
provisions of House Bill 548 were included in the 1969
revision of the decedent's law; but the difficulty in
obtaining a list of "interested persons" prior to filing
a petition for probate, especially in light of the
requirement that such a list be filed within twenty days
after appointment of the personal representative, led the
General Assembly to repeal those provisions in 1971.

For these reasons, I have decided to veto House Bill
548.

Sincerely,

/s/ Marvin Mandel

Governor

House Bill No. 558 — Baltimore City Residential
Financing Bonds

AN ACT concerning

Baltimore City — Residential Financing Bond Issue
FOR the purpose of authorizing the Mayor and City Council