Senate Panel Advances SB 439 Protecting Firefighters, Rescue Workers Using Medical Cannabis

The Senate Finance Committee moved SB 439 forward on a 6–4 roll call, clearing the Baltimore County-sponsored bill that would bar employers from disciplining firefighters and rescue personnel solely for being registered medical cannabis patients or for testing positive for cannabis metabolites while certified. Sen. Carl Jackson, a Baltimore County Democrat, is the bill’s sponsor.

The bill’s text would prohibit employers from "disciplining, terminating, or otherwise discriminating against" firefighters and rescue public-safety employees solely because they possess a valid written certification for medical marijuana or test positive for cannabis components or metabolites while holding that certification. The measure also says employers would be barred from "limiting, segregating or classifying employees in a way that reduces employment opportunities due to lawful medical marijuana use outside of work" and that it "does not require employers to violate federal law or risk losing federal funding or licensing-related benefits."

SB 439 specifically covers firefighters, emergency medical technicians, cardiac rescue technicians and paramedics employed by municipal governments, counties, the state, the State Airport Authority or a fire control district. The bill preserves employers’ ability to maintain workplace safety rules: it protects lawful off-duty medical cannabis use while still allowing employers to prohibit on-duty impairment and to enforce zero-tolerance on-duty policies.

Supporters framed the measure as a medical access and workforce issue tied to on-the-job injuries and trauma. Sen. Carl Jackson said the workers affected "deserve access to physician-approved treatment options without fear of employment repercussions." Advocates argued the bill "would allow firefighters to manage their symptoms while maintaining their ability to perform at the highest level," citing chronic pain, sleep disruption and trauma-related symptoms faced by first responders.

Opponents raised safety concerns focused on the absence of a validated impairment test for cannabis. One critic warned that "for fire and rescue personnel, who operate emergency vehicles, respond to life‑threatening situations, and make split‑second decisions affecting public safety, any ambiguity surrounding impairment standards poses a substantial risk," Sample added.

The measure follows local policy shifts in Maryland: Howard County voted to allow fire and rescue personnel to use cannabis off-duty with a valid medical authorization, a change that became effective Jan. 31. A similar version of this proposal passed the State Senate in the prior legislative session but stalled in the Maryland House of Delegates.

If the Senate gives SB 439 final approval on third reading, the bill would move to the Maryland House of Delegates for consideration. Passage in Annapolis would create a statewide standard for off-duty medical cannabis protections for specified fire and rescue employees while leaving on-duty impairment rules with employers and local jurisdictions.