Driver learners’ permits and specialty license plates. Permissions to work as a barber, nail technician, plumber or engineer. Vehicle registration, handgun permits and cigarettes.
The cost for those and dozens of other types of licenses or activities regulated by the state of Maryland are ticking up, according to a review by The Baltimore Sun of Maryland regulations and laws passed in the last two years.
Critics are calling the move an overstep that puts a burden on workers and families, while others say is necessary to keep up with rising costs to provide government services.
The changes are often modest: $9.50 more to renew a license to work as an electrician or architect every few years; about $1 more for a gallon of paint.
While some lawmakers are considering broader tax hikes in order to fill multibillion-dollar deficits, the increases so far have rarely targeted consumers directly, and are chiefly focused on a range of professional licenses.
But deficits and tax shifts continue to dominate conversations in Annapolis — and Republicans, wary of where those debates will go, have taken aim at Gov. Wes Moore and his Democratic allies over the fees.