{"data":{"id":"us-md/md.-code-housing-and-community-development-4-903","jurisdiction":"us-md","citation":"Md. Code, Housing and Community Development § 4–903","heading":"","body":"The General Assembly finds that:\n(1) (i) many residents of the State live in dwellings that do not conform to building, health, safety, fire, occupancy, or other codes and standards applicable to housing;\n(ii) many communities or political subdivisions in the State do not have a minimum livability code; and\n(iii) these conditions impede the development and maintenance of healthy, safe, and viable communities;\n(2) private sector financing is often unavailable for rehabilitation because:\n(i) owner–occupants of housing in need of rehabilitation often have low incomes; and\n(ii) nonoccupant owners often incur high risks in owning and managing the housing;\n(3) rehabilitating suitable housing:\n(i) increases the economic life of the housing;\n(ii) is often more economical and less disruptive than replacing the housing and relocating its occupants;\n(iii) can better promote community development when it is done through organized housing rehabilitation programs;\n(iv) is essential for sound community development; and\n(v) can be helped by rehabilitating commercial buildings serving communities where housing rehabilitation is desirable;\n(4) it is a proper public purpose for which public money may be spent and property acquired to:\n(i) rehabilitate housing;\n(ii) develop healthful, safe, and viable communities;\n(iii) rehabilitate commercial buildings to help rehabilitate and develop housing; and\n(iv) provide healthful and safe housing for migratory workers to maintain and expand the agricultural activities that are dependent on the labor of these workers; and\n(5) it is a proper public purpose for which public money may be spent to:\n(i) improve, modify, and add to housing to increase the supply of special housing for special populations, such as elderly households, individuals with disabilities, and other disadvantaged residents of the State;\n(ii) prevent lead poisoning by modifying older housing to provide a lead–safe environment, as lead paint in older housing is a major source of lead poisoning in children;\n(iii) provide adequate indoor plumbing, water supply, and sewage disposal systems for dwellings; and\n(iv) reduce or eliminate radon and asbestos, which are major detriments to the health and safety of residents, on a pilot program basis.","path":["Article - Housing and Community Development"],"source_url":"https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Laws/StatuteText?article=ghs\u0026section=4-903","current_through":"2026-01-01","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T19:59:07Z","sha256":"45e41d624cd241caa1704085e71416997c740eccbb4105392b2f00687c3cca84","source_id":"us-md","stale":false,"prev":"us-md/md.-code-housing-and-community-development-4-902","next":"us-md/md.-code-housing-and-community-development-4-904"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}