About

From the Annapolis City Council to the Maryland House of Delegates and now the Maryland Senate, Shaneka Henson has led 41 ordinances, charter amendments and bills that have been passed and enacted into law. Her record reflects a simple belief: everyone deserves the opportunity to live well.

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Affordability & Economic Opportunity

For Shaneka, affordability means addressing the everyday costs that determine whether families can get ahead, build wealth and stay in the communities they call home.

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She expanded small-business property tax relief through HB 268 (2022) and reduced costs for qualifying medical devices through HB 364 (2022). HB 541 (2024) created Anne Arundel County's Student Loan Assistance Repayment Program for Educators, helping reduce student debt while recruiting and retaining educators.

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Her 2026 affordability agenda included SB 939, protecting more of a homeowner's equity during bankruptcy; SB 130, establishing protections around water submetering and fees; and SB 851, providing property-tax relief connected to Anne Arundel County's Rural Legacy Program. Through SB 651, she also brought transfer-on-death deeds to Maryland, giving families a more accessible tool to pass homes and build generational wealth.

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Shaneka has also worked to expand economic opportunity, supporting urban farmers through HB 540 (2022), creating new pathways into the real estate appraisal profession through SB 657 (2026), and opening new opportunities for local entrepreneurs through SB 852 (2026).

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Housing & the Right to Live Well

Housing has been a cornerstone of Shaneka's work from the beginning. On the Annapolis City Council, she passed O-45-18 (2018) to prohibit housing discrimination based on source of income and O-21-19 (2019) to extend affordability protections for Moderately Priced Dwelling Units.

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In the General Assembly, HB 544 (2020) strengthened accountability for the Housing Authority of the City of Annapolis. HB 976 (2023) established Maryland's Workgroup on Mold Standards and Remediation, laying the groundwork for SB 856 (2025), the Maryland Tenant Mold Protection Act.

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In 2026, she continued that work with SB 937, the Maryland Fair Chance Housing Act; SB 941, the Safe and Healthy Housing for All Act; and SB 729, expanding access to counsel for mobile home tenants.

Education & Working People

Shaneka established the Legal Education Success Collaborative through HB 1268 (2021) to expand pathways from HBCUs to Maryland law schools. She provided bonuses for education support professionals through HB 1349 (2022), protected students facing extraordinary circumstances through HB 539, the Cameron Carden Act (2024), and passed SB 511 (2025) to support pregnant and parenting college students.

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Her commitment to working people is also reflected in HB 90 (2022), extending collective bargaining rights to employees of Maryland's Office of the Public Defender, and SB 858 (2025), strengthening protections against assaults and violence for the transit workers and riders who rely on Maryland's public transportation system.

Fairness, Families & Opportunity

Shaneka passed HB 234 (2020) to reform child-support obligations during incarceration and SB 721 (2025) to strengthen Maryland's permanent protective-order framework.

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She has worked to preserve and elevate African American history through HB 1048 (2022), the Senator Verda Welcome Act, and HB 390 (2024), which renamed the State's African American history museum the Banneker-Douglass-Tubman Museum. SB 513 (2025) addressed the legacy of discriminatory restrictive covenants, while SB 656 (2026), the Crown and Care Act, advanced safety and transparency for hair-care products.

Safer, Healthier Communities

Shaneka's public-safety work includes SB 581 (2025), Buddy's Law, as well as SB 487 (2026) on speed enforcement in safety corridors, SB 298 (2026) expanding Maryland Capitol Police jurisdiction, SB 359 (2026) strengthening criminal-history checks in child care facilities, and SB 360 (2026) protecting police K-9s and other emergency response animals.

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Her environmental work includes SB 722 (2025) on ecological restoration and SB 940 (2026) addressing secondary drinking-water quality—continuing her focus on the connection between environmental conditions and healthy communities.

Delivering for the Communities She Represents

Some of Shaneka's legislation responds to highly specific local needs. In Annapolis, she passed O-24-18 governing City fee refunds and waivers, O-47-18 addressing City-sponsored events, and CA-1-19 providing for continuity in City leadership. In Anne Arundel County, SB 888 (2025) modernized alcoholic-beverage licensing requirements.

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Whether the issue is making life more affordable, helping a family keep or pass down its home, giving workers a voice, helping a student finish college, protecting a renter, or creating opportunities for a small business to grow, Shaneka approaches legislating the same way: listen, do the work and deliver results.