Ch. 292                                    2003 LAWS OF MARYLAND

County, being Article 19 of the Code of Public Local Laws of Maryland, published
under the direction of the Board of County Commissioners of St. Mary's County and
edited by the Municipal Code Corporation is legalized. Any pocket or loose-leaf
supplement to the 2002 edition of the Code of Public Local Laws of St. Mary's County
that may be published under the direction of the Board of County Commissioners of
St. Mary's County is legalized. The Code shall contain all public local laws relating to
St. Mary's County following the 2003 regular session of the General Assembly of
Maryland. The Code shall be deemed and taking in of taken in all the courts of the
State and by all public officials of the State and of its several political subdivisions to
be evidence of the public local laws of St. Mary's County in existence at the time of
compilation.

SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That the Board of County
Commissioners of St. Mary's County shall make an appropriation to provide for the
publication of this Code and the Board may provide for its sale and distribution.

SECTION 3. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect
July 1, 2003.

Approved May 13, 2003.

CHAPTER 292
(House Bill 371)

AN ACT concerning

Procurement - Security for Construction Contracts - Retainage

FOR the purpose of limiting the retainage that may be specified in a construction
contract awarded by a public body under certain circumstances; authorizing a
public body to withhold payments in addition to retainage under certain
circumstances; requiring a public body to release certain retainage to a
contractor within a certain number of days after either the completion of the
contract or the resolution of a certain dispute or contract claim; limiting the
amount that a contractor may withhold from a subcontractor or that a
subcontractor may withhold from a lower tier subcontractor under a
construction contract awarded by a public body under certain circumstances;
providing for certain exceptions to the limitations on withholding; providing for
the availability of escrow for retainage in construction contracts awarded by a
public body; requiring that interest on money placed in escrow be handled in a
certain manner; restricting the availability of escrow in certain circumstances;
requiring the escrow agent to follow the directions of the contractor in relation to
the investment of retainage being held by the escrow agent requiring a certain
construction contract to contain a certain clause concerning verification of
payment; providing for the application and construction of this Act; and
generally relating to construction contracts awarded by a public body.

BY renumbering

- 2260 -