{"data":{"id":"us-md/md.-code-natural-resources-8-1806","jurisdiction":"us-md","citation":"Md. Code, Natural Resources § 8–1806","heading":"","body":"(a) The Commission has all powers necessary for carrying out the purposes of this subtitle, including the following:\n(1) In accordance with Title 2, Subtitle 5 (Joint Committee on Administrative, Executive and Legislative Review) and Title 10, Subtitle 1 (Administrative Procedure Act) of the State Government Article, to adopt and amend regulations as authorized under this subtitle for the administration and enforcement of the State and local programs;\n(2) To conduct hearings in connection with policies, proposed programs, and proposed regulations or amendments to regulations; and\n(3) To contract for consultant or other services.\n(b) Regulations adopted or amended under subsection (a)(1) of this section shall:\n(1) Establish comprehensive standards and procedures for:\n(i) Buffer establishment, maintenance, measurement, mitigation, and enforcement;\n(ii) Modified buffer areas;\n(iii) Impacts of shoreline stabilization activities on the buffer;\n(iv) Community piers;\n(v) Commercial marinas;\n(vi) Water dependent facilities;\n(vii) Public water access;\n(viii) The protection and conservation of the buffer as a State water quality and habitat resource essential to the restoration of the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays;\n(ix) Mapping the critical area, with respect to revision of the 1,000–foot boundary and voluntary additions of property to the critical area;\n(x) Development in the critical area, with respect to:\n1. Clearing, grading, and construction activity;\n2. Clustering to promote conservation of natural site features;\n3. The transfer of development rights;\n4. Flexibility for redevelopment;\n5. Stormwater management;\n6. Application of the 10% pollutant reduction rule;\n7. Forest and developed woodlands protections;\n8. Clearing of natural vegetation;\n9. Lot coverage standards;\n10. Commission review of local provisions for lot consolidation; and\n11. The exclusion of State tidal wetlands from calculations of density, forest and developed woodlands protections, limitations on clearing natural vegetation, and lot coverage standards;\n(xi) Consistent enforcement of State and local critical area law, with respect to the establishment of minimum penalties and mitigation requirements;\n(xii) Growth allocation applications, with respect to:\n1. The deduction of growth allocation acreage;\n2. Commission review and determinations;\n3. Accommodation of variations among local jurisdictions concerning land uses in the resource conservation area that do not require growth allocation;\n4. The location of septic systems;\n5. Golf courses; and\n6. The Commission’s evaluation of a local jurisdiction’s use of cluster development under § 8–1808.1 of this subtitle;\n(xiii) In consultation with appropriate State and federal agencies, the conservation and protection of:\n1. Habitat protection areas;\n2. Threatened and endangered species;\n3. Species in need of conservation;\n4. Forest interior dwelling birds;\n5. Anadromous fish propagation waters; and\n6. Plant and wildlife habitat;\n(xiv) Directives for local program development and implementation, with respect to:\n1. Notification of project applications;\n2. The 6–year comprehensive review of a local critical area program;\n3. For a State or local government development activity:\nA. Public notice, including notice to be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the area where the proposed development activity would occur; and\nB. An opportunity for public comment in the local jurisdiction in which the proposed development activity would be located;\n4. Reporting requirements, including accounting of fee in lieu funds;\n5. The submission and processing of a proposed program amendment or refinement; and\n6. Provisions applicable to areas requested for exclusion from the critical area;\n(xv) In consultation with the Department of the Environment, surface mining in the critical area;\n(xvi) The application for and processing of a variance, with respect to:\n1. Amending a variance application;\n2. Advance notice to the Commission;\n3. The contents of a complete variance application;\n4. Ensuring that Commission recommendations are made part of the variance record;\n5. The use of variance standards; and\n6. Notice of a variance decision;\n(xvii) Assessing and adapting the critical area for climate resiliency;\n(xviii) Enhancing the resilience of the critical area by protecting, creating, and restoring natural and nature–based features; and\n(xix) Environmental justice and equity initiatives that:\n1. Address disparate impacts of development; and\n2. Ensure the benefits of development, restoration, mitigation, and conservation are shared equitably; and\n(2) Provide flexibility wherever possible in order to accommodate variations among local programs.","path":["Article - Natural Resources"],"source_url":"https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Laws/StatuteText?article=gnr\u0026section=8-1806","current_through":"2026-01-01","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T20:00:08Z","sha256":"f1bc07d8b93f67bdf18079b710d8960dd6384eb9ce0d03c53e1cbf30ab76251f","source_id":"us-md","stale":false,"prev":"us-md/md.-code-natural-resources-8-1805","next":"us-md/md.-code-natural-resources-8-1807"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}