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The state of Maryland is enacting more than 400 new laws, dramatically affecting how much speeding drivers will pay for exceeding road limits. On October 1, 430 new laws go into effect, including the speeding ticket updates as well as making it easier to have residents’ criminal records expunged. Why It Matters While drivers may have to adjust their expectations around the consequences for speeding on the road, those who have been convicted of a crime will also experience major updates. Other states may follow Maryland’s lead as they make their own legislative changes in the coming year. A speed camera is shown on August 1, 2022, in New York City. (Photo by John Smith/VIEWpress) What To Know Under Maryland’s new law in October, speed camera fines are shifting from a $40 flat fee to a sliding scale based on the speed you drove. Tickets will range from $50 (for 12-15 mph over the limit) to $425 (for 40 mph or more over the limit). Other legislative updates include the Expungement Reform Act of 2025, which allows people an easier path to expungement of criminal records after completing their sentence and fulfilling certain rehabilitation requirements. Maryland residents will also now have the Second Look Act, enabling the right to petition for a sentence reconsideration hearing before a judge if they’ve been imprisoned for at least 20 years and were age 18 to 24 during the crime. For those charged with the use, possession, delivery or sale of drug paraphernalia, the penalty has now been reduced from up to two years’ imprisonment and a $2,000 fine to one year in jail and a $1,000 fine. Maryland also passed another drug-related law, requiring the HIV Prevention Syringe Services Program in Baltimore to distribute clean syringes and dispose of used needles given by drug users. October also means Eric’s ID Law will go into effect, allowing people with intellectual or development disabilities to have a butterfly symbol voluntarily added to their IDs. The Sgt. Patrick Kepp Act will also increase reckless driving penalties to 60 days in jail and a maximum fine of $1,000. Driving 30 mph over the speed limit will also count as reckless or negligent driving. What People Are Saying Webster University adjunct professor William Hall told Newsweek: “Since the traffic enforcement cameras (red light and speed cameras) first started being used, generally, attorneys have contested the constitutionality of their use. So, there have been lots of court decisions and many statutes relating to how, when, and where automated cameras can be used to catch traffic violators. The courts in some jurisdictions, like Missouri, have found automated citations to be unconstitutional. However, most courts, including courts in Maryland, that have addressed challenges to red light and speed cameras have found they did not violate the constitutional rights of drivers.” Alex Beene, financial literacy instructor for the University of Tennessee at Martin, told Newsweek: “Some states like Maryland have historically imposed speeding fines obtained by camera that are capped at a certain amount, with Maryland’s being a flat fee of $40. The transition to a sliding scale that could go upwards of $425 for someone speeding 40 miles per hour or more above the speed limit may be seen as a preventative measure by officials to make residents think more carefully about speeding if they’ve grown complacent with paying a $40 fine and moving on. “However, given the other inflationary pressures of the moment, it’s easy to see why some would be angered. Increasing speeding fines at a time when many Americans are struggling in virtually all other areas financially presents yet another obstacle.” What Happens Next Residents likely will question the new laws, especially pertaining to speeding tickets, Hall said: “It has also been a well established and long held belief among residents in many states, that very often laws specifically enacted related to speeding violations and enforcement, unfortunately, too often appear to have revenue generation for its jurisdictions as its prime motivator, rather than concerns over safety.”
