New Maryland Commercial Nondiscrimination Policy

On May 2, 2006, Governor Ehrlich signed a new law establishing a commercial nondiscrimination policy. In short, the law states that if a contractor is found to have discriminated against a vendor, supplier, subcontractor, or commercial customer, then the State can disqualify that contractor from participating in State-funded projects.

Interestingly, the law allows any "person" to claim that a contractor discriminated against him or her within the last four years. By so doing, the new law opens up a new avenue of redress for individuals claiming discrimination in Maryland.