Maryland Administrative Code

.01 Scope. These regulations apply to controversies and hearings arising under the Maryland Charitable Solicitations Act, Business Regulation Article, Title 6, Annotated Code of Maryland.

.02 Definitions. A. “Act” means the Maryland Solicitations Act, Business Regulation Article, Title 6, Annotated Code of Maryland. B. “Day” means calendar day. C. “Party” means any person requesting a hearing and any person or agency having an interest in the outcome of a hearing.…

.03 Petition for Adoption of Regulations. A. Who May File. Any interested person may file with the Secretary a petition requesting the promulgation, amendment, or repeal of any regulation. B. Form. The petition shall be in writing and shall contain the name, address, and telephon…

.04 Petition for Declaratory Ruling. A. Who May File. Any interested person may file with the Secretary a petition for a declaratory ruling with respect to the applicability of the Act or any regulation pertaining to the Act, to any person, property, or state of facts. B. Form. T…

.05 Right to a Hearing. A. Who May Request a Hearing. Any person adversely affected by any action taken by the Secretary as a result of an investigation pursuant to Business Regulation Article, §6-205, Annotated Code of Maryland, is entitled to a hearing before the Secretary. B. …

.06 Requests for Hearings. Any person entitled to a hearing may file with the Secretary a petition requesting a hearing. The petition shall be filed within 30 days of the date of the Secretary's decision, failure to act, or other action. The Secretary shall mail promptly to each …

.07 Date of Hearing — Timing. A. Within 30 days after a request is submitted by a respondent, the Secretary of State shall hold a hearing in accordance with State Government Article, Title 10, Subtitle 2, Annotated Code of Maryland. B. For all other hearing requests, the Secretar…

.08 Right to Counsel. Any party may appear in person or may be represented by counsel.

.09 Consolidation of Requests for Hearings. The Secretary may consolidate requests for hearings, when the sole issue involved is one of policy, and hold a group hearing. In all group hearings, the procedures contained in these regulations shall be followed.

.10 Prehearing Procedure. A. Notice of Hearings. The Secretary shall provide reasonable notice to a party of the date, time and place of a hearing. If the petitioner notifies the Secretary that the date designated is not convenient, the Secretary may designate another date which …

.11 Hearing Procedure. A. Administrative Procedure Act. All hearings held pursuant to Business Regulation Article, Title 6, Annotated Code of Maryland, or these regulations shall be subject to the provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act. B. Parties. The Secretary, or the d…

.12 Withdrawn or Abandoned Requests for Hearings. A. Withdrawn Requests for Hearings. A request for a hearing may be withdrawn in writing by the petitioner or their counsel at any time. B. Abandoned Requests for Hearings. The Secretary shall consider a request for a hearing aband…

.13 Records. A. Preparation. The Secretary shall prepare an official stenographic record of the proceedings in accordance with State Government Article, Title 10, Subtitle 2, Annotated Code of Maryland. The record shall include all pleadings, testimony, exhibits, and other memora…

.14 Decisions. A. Content and Distribution. (1) Every final decision rendered by the Secretary shall be in writing and shall be accompanied by findings of fact and conclusions of law. (2) The findings of fact shall consist of a concise statement of the conclusions upon each conte…

.01 Definitions. A. Terms defined in Business Regulation Article, §6-101, Annotated Code of Maryland, shall have the same meaning for the purposes of these regulations as they do in the Act. B. Terms defined in these regulations shall have the same meaning for the purposes of the…

.02 Responsibilities of Persons Regulated. A. Notice of Tax Deductibility. (1) An organization shall advise its members of the amount, if any, of the membership fees, dues, fines, or assessments which the Internal Revenue Service does not consider tax deductible as a contribution…

.03 Responsibilities of the Secretary. A. Notification to Persons Not Registered. The Secretary shall: (1) Identify to the extent possible persons who have not registered and are subject to the provisions of the Act; (2) Send to those identified the necessary forms and instructio…

.04 Allocation of Expenses. A. Program Services Expenses. (1) Program services expenses are activities which the organization was created to conduct and which form the basis for the organization's tax-exempt status. Each major program service shall be distinguishable from all oth…

.05 Repealed.

.06 Payments for Property Sold or Services Rendered. If an organization implies or states that payments for property sold or services rendered by the organization will be used in whole or in part for charitable purposes, the act of selling property or rendering services shall be …

.07 Declaratory Rulings as to Status. An organization uncertain of its status under that Act may request a declaratory ruling from the Secretary in accordance with COMAR 01.02.03.

.08 Repealed.

.09 Determination of Charitable Purpose. A. Charitable Purpose and Noncharitable Purposes. An organization's governing instrument, actions, deeds, oral statements and written materials shall be used to determine whether the organization has a charitable purpose. B. Solicitations.…

.10 Method of Delivery of Required Forms and Other Written Materials. A. Mailing Address. The official mailing address of the Secretary for delivery and receipt of any mail, information, filings, registrations, applications, or other material required by the Act or regulations pr…

.11 Consolidated Filings. An organization which files a consolidated registration statement on behalf of its Maryland chapters, branches, or affiliates, shall state separately the names and addresses of those organizations included in the consolidated filing.

.12 Federated Fund-Raising Organizations. A federated fund-raising organization shall state the names and addresses of its member agencies in its registration statement.

.13 Employee of a Charitable Organization. In determining whether an individual is an employee of an organization, a professional solicitor, or a fund-raising counsel, the payment of payroll taxes on behalf of the individual and reporting the payments, salaries, or fees as income…

.14 Repealed.

.15 Complaints. A. Complaints alleging a violation of the Act or these regulations may be filed with the Secretary. B. A complaint shall: (1) Be in writing; (2) State the name, address, and telephone number of the complainant; (3) State to the extent possible the nature of the al…

.16 Disclosure of Information. The Secretary may request additional information which relates to a true and full disclosure of facts affecting a person's past or impending solicitation or practices, to aid the Secretary in the administration of the Act.

.17 Repealed.

.18 Repealed.

.19 Prohibited Acts. A. Closely Related Names. A person may not use a name, symbol, or statement so closely related to that used by a charitable organization or governmental agency that the use would tend to confuse or mislead the public. B. Restrictions on Use of Name. A person …

.20 Professional Solicitors' and Fund-Raising Counsel's Contracts. A. The Secretary of State shall make a determination that a contract between a professional solicitor or fund-raising counsel and a charitable organization does or does not comply with Maryland law within 30 days …

.21 Penalties. A person who violates these regulations is subject to the penalties contained in Business Regulation Article, §6-619, Annotated Code of Maryland.

.22 Late Fee Waiver or Suspension. A. A charitable organization may request the Secretary of State to waive or suspend a late fee. B. A request to waive or suspend a late fee must: (1) Be in writing; (2) Explain the cause or causes of the charitable organization’s late filing; an…

.01 General. These regulations set out the procedures for the filing of requests with the Secretary of State for the inspection and copying of records under State Government Article, §§10-611—10-628, Annotated Code of Maryland. It is the policy of the Secretary to facilitate publ…

.02 Definitions. A. In this chapter, the following terms have the meanings indicated. B. Terms Defined. (1) “Act” means the provisions of State Government Article, §§10-611—10-628, Annotated Code of Maryland. (2) “Applicant” means a person or governmental unit that asks to inspec…

.03 Who May Request. A person or governmental unit may request to inspect or copy any public record that is in the custody and control of the Office.

.04 Necessity for Written Request. The custodian shall make public records available for inspection by an applicant without demanding a written request. However, a written request shall be required when the custodian reasonably believes that the Act or any other law may prevent t…

.05 Contents of Written Request. A written request shall contain the applicant's name and address, be signed and dated by the applicant, and shall reasonably identify by brief description the record sought.

.06 Filing the Request. A written request for a record in the custody and control of the Office shall be addressed to the custodian of the record. If the custodian of the record is unknown to the applicant, the request may be addressed to the Secretary.

.07 Response to Request. A. Within 10 working days of the receipt of the written request, the Office custodian shall respond to the written request for a record. This time period period may be extended for a period not to exceed an additional 20 working days if the custodian noti…

.08 Notification of Persons Who May Be Affected by Disclosure. Unless prohibited by law, the Office custodian may notify any person who could be adversely affected by disclosure of a record to the applicant, that a request for inspection or copying of a record has been made. The …

.09 Records Not in the Custody and Control of the Person Receiving the Request. If a requested public record is not in the custody or control of the person to whom written application is made, the person shall notify the applicant of this fact within 10 working days of the receip…

.10 Records Temporarily Unavailable. If the public record requested is in the custody and control of the person to whom written application is made, but is not immediately available for inspection or copying, the custodian shall notify the applicant of this fact within 10 working…

.11 Records Destroyed or Lost. If the requested record has been destroyed or lost, the custodian to whom the application is made shall notify the applicant of this fact within 10 working days of the request and shall explain in the response the reasons or circumstances which led …

.12 Review of the Denial. If the written request is denied by the custodian for a reason other than that the record is temporarily unavailable, the applicant may file an action for judicial enforcement under State Government Article, §10-623, Annotated Code of Maryland.

.13 Disclosure Against Public Interest. If, in the opinion of the official custodian, disclosure of any public record which is otherwise required to be disclosed under the Act would do substantial injury to the public interest, the official custodian may temporarily deny the requ…

.14 Fees. A. Fee Schedule. (1) The charge for each copy is 30 cents per page. However, when records are not susceptible to photocopying (for example, punch cards, magnetic tapes, blueprints, and microfilm), the charge for reproducing the record will be determined on a case-by-cas…