Subtitle 25 – Water Supply and Distribution
Published by the Baltimore City Department of Legislative Reference.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-1 (2026)
§ 25-1 General authority.LinkCopy Citation
The Mayor and City Council of Baltimore is hereby authorized and empowered
to convert the entire valley or basin of the Gunpowder River, in Baltimore County, and its dependencies, or so much thereof as may be necessary for the purposes of this subheading, from the present dam, at the lower end of Loch Raven, in said county, to the upper end of the village of Phoenix, in said county, or to such point above said village as may be necessary or proper for the purposes of this subheading, into a reservoir or basin for augmenting and improving the municipal water supply of the City of Baltimore;
to create, establish and maintain said reservoir or lake and its appurtenances, and to conduct the waters of said reservoir or lake, along such route, or routes, and in such manner, and by such instrumentalities and means, as may be necessary or proper for the purposes of this subheading, including such works, and their appurtenances at Lake Roland, and at or near Baltimore City, as may be necessary or proper for the purposes of this subheading, to the City of Baltimore and its environs for the use of said City, and of its inhabitants, and of such other persons as may now or hereafter be lawfully furnished with water by said City
to utilize, appropriate, divert, deflect, straighten, riprap, or otherwise modify or control, for the purposes of this subheading, all springs, brooks, creeks, rivulets, rivers or other water courses, tributary (or capable of being rendered tributary) to, or obstructive of, the purposes of this subheading;
to create, establish, set apart and maintain, regulate and protect, afforest or otherwise improve water sheds and reservations along, and to such full extent of adjacency as may be necessary for the purposes of this subheading, adjacent to the waters of said reservoir or lake, for securing a pure, copious and constant flow of water into said reservoir or lake
to create, establish and maintain, construct, erect, lay, lay out and employ all such dams, walls, bulkheads, dykes, inlets, waste ways, water gates, bridges, tunnels, aqueducts, waterways, conduits, culverts, drains, mains, pipes, settling or other reservoirs, lakes, basins or ponds, power houses, pump houses or other buildings, structures or erections, roads, ways, approaches, appurtenances, agencies, instrumentalities or means, as may be necessary or proper, for the purposes of this subheading, including all instrumentalities or means for diverting, deflecting, disposing of, controlling, collecting, confining, impounding, storing, protecting, clarifying, purifying, transmitting or distributing, or otherwise handling, water that may be necessary or proper for the purpose of promoting or securing the full working efficiency and utility of said reservoir, or lake for the objects for which it is intended by this subheading;
to incorporate with said reservoir or lake and its appurtenances, for the purposes of this subheading, all, or any part, or parts of Loch Raven and its appurtenances or environs, or all or any part, or parts, of Lake Roland and its appurtenances or environs
to utilize, extend, enlarge, reinforce, adapt, reconstruct, alter, re-equip or repair, for the purposes of this subheading, or for other purposes affecting the municipal water supply of Baltimore City, all, or any part, or parts, of the present water system of Baltimore City and its appurtenances;
to appoint or employ such professional or technical advisers and experts and such agents, assistants, clerks, employees, including all members of the police service hereinafter mentioned, and laborers, skilled or unskilled, of all kinds, as it may deem requisite for the due and proper execution of this subheading, and to fix their respective compensations, and to remove and discharge them at its pleasure (except such highly trained, experienced or skilled individuals as it may appoint or employ upon special terms for definite and fixed periods of time) and to exact from them such indemnity bonds for the proper performance of their respective duties as it may deem proper;
to purchase, hire or otherwise lawfully obtain the use of all such machinery, apparatus, tools, implements, appliances, supplies, materials and working agencies as it may need for the purposes of this subheading;
to make and enter into any and all contracts, agreements or stipulations germane to the scope of its powers under this subheading;
to make all such preliminary surveys and investigations, and to do all such preliminary work under this subheading as it may be advised shall be necessary or proper for the purposes of this subheading;
to acquire by gift, purchase, arbitration, exchange, lease, whatever the duration of the lease, or other like methods of acquisition, or by condemnation, any land or property, public, quasi-public, or private, situated wholly or partly in Baltimore County or in Baltimore City, or situated wholly or partly in Anne Arundel County or in any other county of this State, or any interest, franchise, easement, right of privilege therein, which may be required for any of the purposes of this subheading, including springs, brooks, creeks, rivulets, rivers or other water courses, mills, factories, and industrial plants of every description and their appurtenances, workshops, stores, farm buildings, structures, and erections, churches, graveyards, schoolhouses, or other school property, dwelling houses, outhouses, bridges, streets, alleys, roads and ways, and all other buildings, structures, erections, or improvements of every description, on, over, or under, land, or other property, or any interest, franchise, easement, right or privilege therein, and in like manner to acquire any corporate franchises or any other thing including earth, timber, stone, or other materials, or places of temporary or permanent deposit for excavated material or other like facilities for effectuating the objects of this subheading, of any sort that may be required for the purposes of this subheading; and
generally to do and perform all and every such acts or things which, by anything short of a palpably forced construction, could be held to be auxiliary or conducive to the proper exercise of any, or all, of the powers by this subheading conferred upon the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, or to the effective accomplishment of the leading purpose of this subheading, namely, the collection, accumulation and maintenance of an ample supply of water in said main reservoir or lake, and its transmission and distribution in as abundant, clear, pure, healthful, convenient and satisfactory a character as possible to the City of Baltimore, and its inhabitants, and such other persons as may now or hereafter be lawfully supplied with water by the City of Baltimore for its and their uses.
The title acquired by condemnation, or otherwise, by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, under this subheading, for the purposes thereof, shall, as to land, or other property, or things required for said main reservoir or lake, or for subsidiary reservoirs, lakes, ponds or basins, or for said watersheds or reserves, or for surface buildings, erections, structures, works or things of a permanent character, involving the idea of exclusive use and occupation by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, be in fee simple but may, as to land, or other property, or things, required for other purposes under this subheading, be in fee simple, or limited to some lesser quantum of interest, in point of estate, or duration, accordingly as the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore may determine.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-2 (2026)
§ 25-2 County powers.LinkCopy Citation
The County Commissioners of Baltimore County or of any other county, whose interests in any respect may become involved in the execution of this subheading, or any part or parts thereof, or any body politic, quasi-public corporation, turnpike company, or private corporation, whose interest in any respect may become involved in the execution of this subheading, or any part, or parts, thereof, shall be, and is, or are hereby authorized and empowered, anything in the terms of their or its chartered existence or powers, to the contrary notwithstanding, to enter into all such contracts, agreements, stipulations or arrangements, deeds, conveyances or transfers with the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore as may be necessary or proper for the purposes of this subheading, or any of them.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-3 (2026)
§ 25-3 Condemnation.LinkCopy Citation
When resort shall be had to condemnation proceedings under this subheading,
the procedure, so far as the acquisition by condemnation of any land or property or thing situated within the City of Baltimore, or any interest, franchise, easement, right or privilege therein is concerned, may, in any case, or cases, at the option of the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, be such as may now, or at any time hereafter, be provided for by any lawful general ordinance, or ordinances of the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, adopted pursuant to the powers conferred upon it by <cite data-doc="City of Baltimore, Md., Charter">the Charter of Baltimore City</cite>, 1964 Revision, Article 2 “General Powers” Section 2 “Condemnation” for the condemnation of land or property or interest therein for the municipal needs of the City of Baltimore, or such as may be provided for the very purpose by any lawful special ordinance or ordinances of the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore; which said lawful special ordinance or ordinances, the said Mayor and City Council of Baltimore is hereby duly authorized to adopt;
provided, that, in every such special ordinance, provision is made for reasonable notice to the owner or owners, and for appeals to the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, including the right of appeal to the Court of Special Appeals by any person interested, including the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, from the decision of the commissioners or other persons appointed to value any such land, property thing, or interest, franchise, easement, right or privilege therein;
but so far as the acquisition by condemnation of any land, or property, or thing situated within Baltimore County, or within any other county of this State, or of any interest, franchise, easement, right, or privilege therein is concerned the procedure shall be that marked out by <cite data-doc="City of Baltimore, Md., Charter">the Charter of Baltimore City</cite>, 1964 Revision, Article 2 Section 45 “Water”.
Nothing in this subheading is to be taken as depriving the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, of any powers of condemnation now vested in it by law not inconsistent with the provisions of <cite data-path="25|§25-3">this section</cite>.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-4 (2026)
§ 25-4 Purchases.LinkCopy Citation
Except as hereinafter provided, all work done or supplies or materials purchased, in carrying out the purposes of this subheading, when involving an expenditure of five hundred dollars or more shall be contract, awarded to the lowest responsible bidder, in accordance with the provisions of Sections 14 and 15 of <cite>this article</cite> <em>{cf. <cite data-doc="City of Baltimore, Md., Charter" data-path="VI|§11">Article VI, § 11 of the City Charter</cite> (1996 Edition)}</em>, or any amendment or amendments, thereof, or supplement, or supplements, thereto.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-5 (2026)
§ 25-5 Powers are supplemental.LinkCopy Citation
The powers of this subheading conferred upon the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore. are intended to be in addition to, and not to be in substitution for, any power heretofore conferred by law upon it, in relation to the municipal water supply of Baltimore City, except where inconsistent therewith.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-6 (2026)
§ 25-6 Police powers.LinkCopy Citation
The Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, shall at all times during the progress of work related to the municipal water supply, maintain an efficient police service at its own expense for the purpose of preserving the public peace, protecting property and preventing crime within the territory occupied or used by it or its employees in the performance of such work, or by the employees of contractors or subcontractors engaged in such work.
The officers so employed by Baltimore City shall have the power to make arrests of persons who commit offenses within such territory anywhere in the State; such offenders shall be tried in Baltimore County, and in the event of conviction and imposition of a jail sentence, whether by the Circuit Court, or by the District Court having jurisdiction, shall be committed to the Baltimore City Jail instead of to the Baltimore County Jail; and, in all such cases, the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall reimburse Baltimore County for all costs and expenses actually incurred by it, including the sum of thirty cents per day for every person committed for trial to Baltimore County Jail, in proceedings against and the trial and commitment of, such offenders, court costs are to be prorated by the Clerk of the Circuit Court for Baltimore County, upon the basis of time actually spent in such trials or other proceedings; all such costs to be adjusted and paid semiannually.
This police service shall be subject to the supervision and direction of the Chief of Police of Baltimore County.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-7 (2026)
§ 25-7 Payment in lieu of county taxes.LinkCopy Citation
Immediately upon the approval of the loan of $5,000,000, hereinafter mentioned, by the legal voters of Baltimore City, but not otherwise, the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall pay to the treasurer of Baltimore County, out of the proceeds of said loan, the sum of thirty-five thousand dollars, in lieu, and release of, and, as full compensation for, all county taxes due, or to become due, on any and all land, property, or things, acquired or held, or thereafter to be acquired or held, by said Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, under the loan hereinafter provided for and under the provisions of this subheading, or in connection with the work herein contemplated, and thereafter such land, property, or things, when so held or acquired by said City, shall be exempt from taxation for county purposes; all laws, or parts of laws, inconsistent herewith being hereby repealed to the extent of such inconsistency.
The object of <cite data-path="25|§25-7">this section</cite> is to indemnify Baltimore County against all loss in taxes, immediate or prospective, that may be entailed upon it by the appropriation for public use, by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, of any and all such land, property or things.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-8 (2026)
§ 25-8 City title to stone.LinkCopy Citation
The Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, in building its proposed conduit from the storage lake herein contemplated to the City of Baltimore, or elsewhere, shall retain title to, and control of, all stone, suitable for said purposes, brought to the surface, from the line of such conduit, where the same is situate in Baltimore County, and shall give the proper authorities of Baltimore County having charge of the roads therein, the option of purchasing so much of said stone as they may require at any time during the progress of such work, and for a period of five years thereafter, at a price not exceeding two cents per cubic yard in the “dump”; such right being subject, however, to the City’s prior right to use all of said stone that it may need in the construction of roads, or other works, herein provided for, as contemplated.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-9 (2026)
§ 25-9 Damage to roads and bridges — in general.LinkCopy Citation
Whenever any public road, or bridge, of Baltimore County shall be destroyed, or rendered impassable, in whole or in part, by the City of Baltimore, in connection with the work herein contemplated, it shall be the duty of said City to replace the same, at its own expense, as nearly as possible, with a suitable and convenient road or bridge in lieu thereof, and, if any such existing public road or bridge, or any bridge or road, so built in lieu of one so destroyed, be on, or through, property acquired by said City for the purposes contemplated by this subheading, it shall be the duty of said City thereafter, at all times to maintain the same in good order and repair for the free use of the public, so far as the same may be on or through such property, subject to such provisions and conditions, looking to maintain the purity of said City’s water supply, as the said Mayor and City Council of Baltimore may by ordinance impose; and provided further, that the said Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall not have the power, anything in this subheading, or in any other act or law to the contrary notwithstanding, to condemn any such public road or bridge of Baltimore County, but shall have the right to divert, alter, close or destroy any public road or bridge of Baltimore County, when necessary in the course of such work, only by agreement with the Highways Commission of said county, or other proper authorities, having the charge and control thereof, on such terms as to replacing the same for the convenience of the public as may by said Highways Commission, or other proper authorities, be required; in the event that said City and county authorities may not be able to agree upon the terms under which said road or bridge is to be altered, diverted, closed, or destroyed, or upon the location or character of the highway, or bridge to replace the same, or upon any other terms as to the replacing of the same, the matter shall be referred to the Roads Engineer of Baltimore County, for the time being, and the City Engineer of Baltimore City, for the time being, who shall have plenary power to consider and decide all questions in connection with such diversions, alteration, closure, or destruction of such highway or bridge, and to determine where, how, and in what manner, and within what time, the same shall be replaced by the said City, including the right to require that said City shall build bridges over and across the lake contemplated to be formed under this subheading; it being in the contemplation of this subheading that, under <cite data-path="25|§25-9">§25-9</cite> and 25-11 at least two such bridges shall be built, at locations determined by such engineers to be the most feasible and convenient for the use of the public, injuriously affected by the destruction or alteration of existing bridges and roads.
No road or bridge shall be closed or altered, in whole or in part, under the provisions of this subheading, until another shall have been constructed and opened to the public in lieu thereof as herein provided, said engineers shall have full power and authority to summon, and require the attendance of, all witnesses in connection with their inquiries under <cite data-path="25|§25-9">this section</cite>, and to require that their testimony shall be taken under the oath required by law; the same to be administered by the Clerk of the Circuit Court for Baltimore County, or by the District Court in and for Baltimore County.
The said engineers and the third person hereinafter, if there be such, shall each receive a per diem of $10 while actually engaged in work imposed or authorized by <cite data-path="25|§25-9">this section</cite>, the same and all other reasonable expenses of said engineers, including compensation to witnesses, at the regular rates, and the employment of a secretary, if such employment be deemed necessary by said engineers, to be paid by the City of Baltimore.
The decision of said engineers in all matters between the City and Baltimore County that may devolve upon them under <cite data-path="25|§25-9">this section</cite> shall be final and conclusive unless impeached for fraud in appropriate proceedings, instituted in the Circuit Court for Baltimore County in equity, to set aside their findings on such ground.
Whenever said engineers may require and determine that the City of Baltimore shall construct a road to replace any road diverted, altered, closed or destroyed, or to be diverted, altered, closed or destroyed, in the course of the work contemplated by this subheading, said City shall have power to agree with the owners of land, property, or things, to be taken or injuriously affected in the construction thereof, and, in default of agreement, to condemn the right-of-way under the provisions of Sections <cite data-path="25|§25-1">25-1</cite> and <cite data-path="25|§25-3">25-3</cite>, authorizing the condemnation of property, land or things for the purposes of this subheading, or may, at its election, make application to the Highways Commission of Baltimore County, or other proper authorities for the opening or alteration of such road, in which latter event the proceedings upon application shall be those prescribed by law for the opening or alteration of roads in Baltimore County, except that no landowner shall be assessed for any part of the cost thereof, the whole of such cost to be borne by the City of Baltimore.
In the event of disagreement between the said engineers, as to any matter devolved upon them by the terms of <cite data-path="25|§25-9">this section</cite>, they shall call in a third arbiter, a nonresident engineer, skilled in the construction, or maintenance of highways, and bridges, to be selected by the Governor of Maryland, on the application of either of said engineers, in the event of them being unable to agree on such third person, the decision of any two of the board thus selected to be binding on the parties, and to be final and conclusive, unless impeached for fraud as aforesaid.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-10 (2026)
§ 25-10 Damage to roads and bridges — inspections.LinkCopy Citation
So soon as the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall be ready to begin work under this subheading, the Roads Engineer of Baltimore County, for the time being, and the City Engineer of Baltimore City, for the time being, shall, together, make a careful inspection of all public roads, and portions of public roads, and of all bridges, of Baltimore County, certain or likely, in the opinion of said Roads Engineer, to be used by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, or its agents, or contractors, for teaming, or hauling, in connection with said work, and shall thereupon draw up a memorandum, in writing, one duplicate whereof shall be filed and kept in the office of the County Commissioners of Baltimore County, and the other duplicate whereof shall be filed and kept in the office of the Comptroller of Baltimore City, certifying to the precise condition, at that time, in point of repair in their opinion, of all such roads, and portions of roads, and of all such bridges, and thereafter, at regular intervals of six months, there shall be a similar inspection by said officers of all such roads, and portions of roads, and of all such bridges, and immediately after such inspection, said engineers shall, in like manner, draw up a similar memorandum in writing, duplicates whereof shall be filed and kept in like manner as aforesaid, certifying in precise terms to the physical and pecuniary extent, to which, in their opinion, such roads and portions of roads, and such bridges shall have been injured by reason of the extra wear and tear imposed upon them since the next preceding inspection, by such teaming or hauling, and, in said memorandum, the pecuniary extent of said injury shall be computed and set forth in dollars and cents, and, so soon as said memorandum shall be signed by said engineers, and filed in duplicate as aforesaid, the amount of the pecuniary injury, so certified, shall at once become due and payable by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore out of the proceeds of the loan hereinafter mentioned to the treasurer of Baltimore County, as a fund for the repair of such injury.
In the event of disagreement between said engineers as to any matter devolved upon them by the terms of <cite data-path="25|§25-10">this section</cite> of this subheading, all the provisions of the next preceding section of this subheading, relative to disagreement between said officers as to the diversion, alteration, closure or destruction of highways or bridges of said county, shall likewise be applicable to said disagreement under <cite data-path="25|§25-10">this section</cite>.
Said engineers shall have plenary power to consider and decide all questions arising in the discharge of their duties under <cite data-path="25|§25-10">this section</cite>, and shall have the same power to summon and require the attendance of the witnesses, in connection with their inquiries under <cite data-path="25|§25-10">this section</cite>, and to have them sworn, as is provided for in Section 25~9 of this subheading, and they shall be allowed the same per diem, and other reasonable expenses, including the same compensation to witnesses; all to be paid by the City of Baltimore.
The powers and duties of the City Engineer under <cite data-path="25|§25-10">this section</cite> may, at any time, with the consent of the Mayor of Baltimore City, be delegated by him to one of his assistant engineers, or to some engineer, named by the persons hereinafter charged with the duty of carrying the work under this subheading into execution.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-11 (2026)
§ 25-11 Damage to roads and bridges — powers.LinkCopy Citation
All powers of acquiring land, property or things, for the purposes of this subheading, with or without the consent of the owner, or owners, hereinbefore conferred upon the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, shall include the power to acquire land, property, or things, including corporate franchises of every sort, rights, privileges, or easements, of any turnpike company, or companies, proprietor or proprietors, but whenever any turnpike, or toll road or bridge, the use of which is now enjoyed by the people of Baltimore County, shall be destroyed, or rendered impassable in whole or in part, by the City of Baltimore, in connection with the work herein contemplated, it shall be the duty of said City to replace the same, at its own expense, as nearly as possible with a suitable and convenient public road or bridge, in lieu thereof, and if any such existing road, or part thereof, or bridge or any road, or part thereof, or bridge, so built in lieu of one so destroyed, be on, or through, property acquired by said City for purposes contemplated by this subheading, it shall be the duty of said City thereafter, at all times, to maintain the same in good order and repair for the free use of the public, so far as the same may be on, or through, said property, subject to such provisions and conditions looking to maintaining the purity of said City’s water supply as the said Mayor and City Council of Baltimore may by ordinance impose.
Such replacement shall be effected for the convenience of the public upon such terms as may be agreed upon between the Highways Commission of Baltimore County or other proper authorities and the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore.
In the event of a disagreement between them as to the location or character of the substituted road or bridge, or as to any other terms of the replacement, the matter shall be referred to the Roads Engineer of Baltimore County, for the time being, and the City Engineer of Baltimore City, for the time being, who shall have plenary power to consider and decide all questions in connection with such replacement, and to determine where, how, and in what manner and within what time, said replacement shall be effected by said City.
No such road, or part thereof, or bridge of any such turnpike company or companies, proprietor or proprietors, shall be closed or altered, in whole or in part, under the provisions of this subheading, until another shall have been constructed and opened to the the public in lieu thereof as herein provided.
Said engineers shall have full power and authority to summons, and require the attendance of all witnesses in connection with their inquiries under <cite data-path="25|§25-11">this section</cite>, and to require that their testimony shall be taken under the oath required by law, the same to be administered by the Clerk of the Circuit Court for Baltimore County, or by a Judge of the District Court in Baltimore County.
The said engineers and the third person hereinafter mentioned if there be such, shall each receive a per diem of $10 while actually engaged in work imposed or authorized by <cite data-path="25|§25-11">this section</cite>, the same and all the other reasonable expenses of said engineers, including compensation to witnesses at the regular rates, and the employment of a secretary, if such employment be deemed necessary by said engineers, to be paid by the City of Baltimore.
The decision of said engineers in all matters between the City and Baltimore County, that may devolve upon them under <cite data-path="25|§25-11">this section</cite>, shall be final and conclusive unless impeached for fraud in appropriate proceedings instituted in the Circuit Court for Baltimore County, in equity, to set aside their findings on such ground.
Whenever said engineers may require and determine that the City of Baltimore shall construct a road by way of replacement as aforesaid said City shall have power to agree with the owners of land, property or things to be taken or injuriously affected in the construction thereof, and in default of agreement, to condemn the right of way under the provisions of Sections <cite data-path="25|§25-1">25-1</cite> and <cite data-path="25|§25-3">25-3</cite> authorizing the condemnation of property, land or things for the purposes of this subheading, or may at its election, make application to the Highways Commission of Baltimore County or other proper authorities for the opening or alteration of such road; in which latter event the proceedings under such application shall be those prescribed by law for the opening or alteration of roads in Baltimore County, except that no landowner shall be assessed for any part of the cost thereof, the whole of such cost to be borne by the City of Baltimore.
In the event of disagreement between the said engineers as to any matter devolved upon them by the terms of <cite data-path="25|§25-11">this section</cite>, they shall call in as a third arbiter a nonresident engineer skilled in the construction or maintenance of highways and bridges, to be selected by the Governor of Maryland, on the application of either of said engineers, in the event of their being unable to agree on such third person, the decision of any two of the board thus selected to be binding on the parties, and to be final and conclusive, unless impeached for fraud as aforesaid.
But nothing in this subheading shall be taken as obliging said City to replace any road or part of a road, or any bridge, or a turnpike company or turnpike companies, proprietor or proprietors, if in the opinion of said engineers, the purpose thereof will be reasonably answered, so far as the public convenience is concerned, by a road or bridge constructed, or required to be constructed by way of replacement by said City under the provisions of <cite data-path="25|§25-9">Section 25-9</cite> relating to the diversion, alteration, closure or destruction of public roads or bridges of Baltimore County, nor as obliging said City to replace any public road, or part of a road, or bridge of Baltimore County, under <cite data-path="25|§25-9">Section 25-9</cite>, if in the opinion of said engineers, the purpose thereof will be reasonably answered, so far as the public convenience is concerned by a road or bridge constructed, or required to be constructed by way of replacement by said City, under the provisions of <cite data-path="25|§25-11">this section</cite> of this subheading.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-12 (2026)
§ 25-12 County water rights.LinkCopy Citation
Upon the completion of the storage lake herein contemplated, and foreverthereafter until such time as Baltimore City’s population and needs require the entire water supply, which said City is entitled to draw from the Gunpowder River, the inhabitants of Baltimore County shall be entitled to use of not more then ten millions of gallons of water per day from such lake, this allotment to include all water supplied directly by said City to consumers or users in Baltimore County, now or hereafter, through the water mains of said City or through any mains or conduits which may be or become a part of, or be or become connected with, the reservoirs, pumping stations, or water distribution system of said City.
In case it shall be at any time conclusively demonstrated to the County Commissioners of Baltimore County that there is no other adequate and proper water supply for the residents of any portion of the county making application therefor, said commissioners shall have the right to adopt such measures as they may deem expedient to draw from said lake, and distribute any part or all, the remainder of said allotment of ten millions of gallons of water per day, the said County Commissioners to pay or cause to be paid to said Mayor and City Council of Baltimore such sums as may be agreed upon between them; the same not to exceed the rate of one-half cent per one thousand gallons actually withdrawn.
Said County Commissioners shall further have the right and power to use in perpetuity sufficient land near such lake or reservoir upon which to locate a pumping station or stations, together with conduit connections from said lake or reservoir to a well or wells, or suction well or wells, or reservoirs, on said property and other facilities, including rights-of-way for all necessary purposes to the nearest public highway or highways, upon paying or causing to be paid, therefor to Baltimore City a clear annual rental of five per centum of the gross cost to the City of the land so utilized, said connections and pumping stations shall be located at the most convenient and feasible point or points for the withdrawal of such water at the minimum cost to the authorities withdrawing the same, all water so withdrawn is to be taken from said lake or reservoir and transported therefrom without cost or expense to the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, the whole of such cost and expense to be borne by the authorities withdrawing the same.
The work of making such connections with such lake or reservoir, and laying the pipes through said City’s property, contiguous thereto, including the location of said pumping station and other matters in connection therewith shall be done under the joint supervision and control of an official of such county authorities, and the Water Engineer of the City of Baltimore, and in the event of a disagreement between them, they shall call in, as a third arbiter, a nonresident engineer, skilled in the construction or maintenance of water works, to be selected by the Governor of Maryland, on the application of either party; in the event of their being unable to agree on such third person, the decision of any two of the board then selected to be binding on the parties.
The cost of calling in such third party shall be borne equally by the parties, unless for special reasons said board shall otherwise apportion the same; provided, however, that in no event shall said County Commissioners of Baltimore County, or Baltimore County, acting through any agency whatever, farm out, assign, sublet or grant, in whole or in part, to any person, firm, joint stock company, corporation or association, except with the consent in writing of the Board of Estimates of Baltimore City, or its successors in function, the right to withdraw from said lake, use, sell, or in any way distribute or dispose of any of the water so allotted to the inhabitants of Baltimore County, it being the intent of this subheading that this right shall in the absence of said consent in writing, be exercisable solely and exclusively by Baltimore County and Baltimore City in the direct and immediate exercise of their respective municipal functions in the manner hereinbefore mentioned.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-13 (2026)
§ 25-13 Map of road changes.LinkCopy Citation
At least thirty days before proceeding under any other of the provisions of this subheading, after the popular approval of the loan hereinbefore mentioned, if so approved, said Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall file in the office of the County Commissioners of Baltimore County, one or more maps showing the existing roads and highways, traversing the property to be acquired under this subheading, both public and private, which are to be closed, altered, divided or relocated, in whole or in part, or the grades thereof changed; and also to show all roads or parts of roads which the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore propose to construct in substitution for, or to take the place of any such roads so closed, obstructed, altered or changed.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-14 (2026)
§ 25-14 City’s powers — in general.LinkCopy Citation
The Mayor and City Council of Baltimore is hereby authorized and empowered to pass any and all ordinances not inconsistent with the terms of this subheading, that it may deem advisable for the purpose of fully effectuating the objects of this subheading.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-15 (2026)
§ 25-15 City’s powers — continuing.LinkCopy Citation
All of the powers, including powers of condemnation, and duties hereinbefore conferred and imposed, and all the discretion hereinbefore lodged by this subheading upon and in the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, other than the powers of passing ordinances hereinbefore expressly conferred upon it, shall in the name and on behalf of the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore without the necessity for any further legislative action by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore be exercisable and exercised as one continuous, unbroken delegation of authority by the municipal officials or official who may for the time being have charge of the general municipal water supply of Baltimore City, except that in the event that the charge of said water supply shall at any time or times be confided by law to one municipal official, there shall be associated with him, until said main reservoir or lake and all of its working appurtenances and connections of every sort have been completed, in the exercise of all his powers and discretion, and in the discharge of all of his duties under this subheading by the appointment of the Mayor, subject to the provisions of Section 25 and other related sections of Article 4, of the Code of Public Local Laws of Maryland, and Baltimore City Charter, and any amendment or amendments thereof, two capable and upright citizens of the City of Baltimore, who shall serve without pay in the award of contracts for work under this subheading, the persons clothed with the power of doing the work contemplated by this subheading shall be authorized, if they see fit, to insert in the specifications for any such contract work reasonable and lawful conditions as to hours of labor, wages and the residence or character of workmen to be employed by the contractor, and especially so far as may be practicable in their judgment, such reasonable and lawful conditions as will tend to confine employment on such work, in whole or in part, to permanent and bona fide residents of the State of Maryland only, and said persons, clothed with the power to doing the work contemplated by this subheading may, with the consent of all of their number, themselves do any part or parts of any such work under such conditions, in every respect, as they may prescribe, by day labor, in which event, said persons, in addition to their other powers in the premises shall likewise be authorized to devise, and enforce such rules and regulations as will make merit and personal fitness, ascertained by some system of open competition or registration, or both the sole test of eligibility for all positions or employments under their control that they may see fit to embrace within the scope of said rules and regulations, which, however, may be limited to permanent and bona fide residents of this State in any particular;
provided, however, that neither any contractor or contractors, nor the persons clothed with the power of doing the work contemplated by this subheading as aforesaid, shall at any time during the progress of said work employ thereon, or permit or allow to be employed thereon, any person who is at the time of such employment, or who shall at any time thereafter and during the progress of such work, be or become a registered voter of Baltimore County, unless such person shall have been a registered voter of said county at the time of the passage of this subheading, or shall be a lineal descendant of some person who was at any time theretofore a registered voter of the State of Maryland; any such contractor, subcontractor superintendent, foreman or the person or persons clothed with the power of doing the work contemplated by this subheading or any part thereof, who shall employ any person in violation of the provisions of <cite data-path="25|§25-15">this section</cite> shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction shall be fined in a sum not less than fifty dofiars, nor more than one hundred dollars, or by imprisonment in jail for a term not exceeding sixty days for each day that such person shall have been so employed in contravention of the provisions of <cite data-path="25|§25-15">this section</cite>.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-16 (2026)
§ 25-16 Sale of stock; Gunpowder Reservoir Fund.LinkCopy Citation
In order to provide money to defray the cost of carrying all or any of the purposes of the provisions of this subheading into execution, the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore is hereby authorized to issue the stock of said corporation for a sum not exceeding Five Millions of Dollars; said stock to be issued from time to time as the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall by ordinance prescribe, and to be issued for such amounts, and to be payable at such time and to bear such rate of interest as the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall by ordinance provide; said stock shall be sold and issued by the Commissioners of Finance of the City of Baltimore at the best prices obtainable in their judgment therefor, and any premiums derived from the sale thereof shall remain in their hands as part of the sinking fund hereinafter mentioned for the redemption of said stock at maturity.
The residue of the money received from the sale of said stock shall be turned over by them to the Comptroller to be by him deposited with the City Register, and to be placed to the credit of a fund to be known as the “Gunpowder Reservoir Fund,” which shall be exclusively applicable to the cost of carrying the purposes and provisions of this subheading into execution, and shall be chargeable with no other items of cost or expense whatsoever, and appropriation to defray said cost, based upon the estimate of the person charged with the duty of doing the work contemplated by this subheading shall be annually included by the Board of Estimates in the usual way in the Ordinance of Estimates, but said stock shall not be issued in whole or in part unless the ordinance of the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore providing for the issuance thereof, shall be submitted to the legal voters of the City of Baltimore at such time and place as may be fixed by said ordinance and approved by a majority of votes cast at such time and place as required by <cite data-doc="Md. Const." data-path="XI|§7">Section 7 of Article XI of the Constitution of Maryland</cite>; if issued pursuant to such approval, the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall levy in each and every year upon all property liable to taxation in the City of Baltimore, a sum sufficient to pay the interest accruing on said stock, and to create a sinking fund sufficient, with the aid of any premiums on the sale thereof to redeem said stock at its maturity.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-17 (2026)
§ 25-17 Pollution — in general.LinkCopy Citation
If any person shall wilfully pollute or tend to pollute the water in any lake, dam or reservoir, line of conduit, waterpipe, gatehouse or other work constructed or used for supplying the City of Baltimore with water, by swimming, bathing or washing therein, or by washing or causing to be washed therein, or so near thereto as to tend to pollute the water therein, any clothes, the skin of any dead animal or any impure, fetid or noxious animal or vegetable matter, or shall throw or cause to be thrown therein, or so near thereto as to tend to pollute the water therein, any impure, fetid or noxious animal or vegetable matter, the person so offending shall forfeit and pay a sum not less than five nor more than fifty dollars for each offense.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-18 (2026)
§ 25-18 Pollution — privies, etc.LinkCopy Citation
If any person shall erect or cause to be erected any privy, hogpen, bleaching or dyeing establishment, or other thing over any lake, dam, reservoir, line of conduit, waterpipe, gatehouse or other work constructed or used for supplying the City of Baltimore with water or so near thereto as to tend to pollute or discolor the water therein, the person so offending shall forfeit and pay a sum not exceeding fifty dollars, and the further sum of ten dollars for each and every day the same shall remain after notice to remove the same shall have been given.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-19 (2026)
§ 25-19 Injuring installations — penalties.LinkCopy Citation
If any person shall injure, or cause to be injured, defaced or destroyed, any dam, reservoir, line of conduit, waterpipe, gatehouse, stop-cock, or other thing used for supplying the City of Baltimore with water, the person so offending shall forfeit and pay a sum not less than five nor more than fifty dollars for each offense.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-20 (2026)
§ 25-20 Injuring installations — enforcement.LinkCopy Citation
All fines and forfeitures imposed by <cite data-path="25|§25-19">Section 25-19</cite> shall be recoverable by the City of Baltimore before the District Court in and for the City of Baltimore, or in and for Baltimore County, according to the respective jurisdiction under which any of the offenses herein set forth may be committed.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-21 (2026)
§ 25-21 Injuring installations — civil damages.LinkCopy Citation
Sections <cite data-path="25|§25-19">25-19</cite> and <cite data-path="25|§25-20">25-20</cite> shall not be construed to exempt any person who may have been fined for a violation thereof, or who may be charged with a violation thereof, from an action of damages for any injury or destruction of any part of the works used in supplying the City of Baltimore with water, in any suit for damages on account of said injury, brought by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-22 (2026)
§ 25-22 Supply for County — connections.LinkCopy Citation
The County Commissioners of Baltimore County, whenever they engage in the installation of a system of water mains for the use of said county and the inhabitants thereof, shall have the right to connect their said water mains with the water mains now or hereafter owned or controlled by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore at the most convenient point or points and to draw off from the water mains now or hereafter owned or controlled by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore a sufficient supply of water, equal in purity to the water served to the public in the City of Baltimore, for all public, private, domestic, manufacturing or other needs for which the system of water mains installed by said County Commissioners were designed or intended to supply.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-23 (2026)
§ 25-23 Supply for County — cost.LinkCopy Citation
Each and every connection of the water mains installed by said County Commissioners with said water mains of the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall be at the expense of said County Commissioners and under the supervision of the Water Engineer of Baltimore City or such other person or persons as the Water Engineer of Baltimore City, the Water Board of said City may appoint or such other body or officials as may for the time being have charge of the water system of said City, and said County Commissioners to bear the expense of said supervision.
Every connection shall include a meter of a make and design approved by the Water Engineer of said City, to the end that all water flowing into each and every water system constructed by said County Commissioners may be measured, and said County Commissioners shall pay the said Mayor and City Council the actual cost of delivering said water at the points of connection and meter, with five per cent added, and the actual cost of purifying said water, with five per cent added, the cost of delivering and of purification to be determined by the Public Service Commission of Maryland and to be subject to review and revision by the said Public Service Commission once only in every five years on application of the County Commissioners of Baltimore County or the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore.
In determining cost of delivering and of purification, the value or cost of impounding water at any source of supply and the value of cost of pipe lines and filtration plants shall be disregarded, it being the intention hereof that the sales price of water by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore to the County Commissioners of Baltimore County through the connections and meters aforesaid shall be the cost of pumping the water to the points of connection and meter, and the cost of purifying such water, and in addition, a sum equal to five per centum of said cost of pumping and purification, without any allowance for interest on investment or for amortization.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-24 (2026)
§ 25-24 Supply for County — potential uses.LinkCopy Citation
Said County Commissioners shall not lay any main as part of any water system to be supplied with water under Sections <cite data-path="25|§25-22">25-22</cite> to <cite data-path="25|§25-30">25-30</cite>, unless said main be of a size sufficient in the opinion of the Roads and Sanitary Engineer of Baltimore County to supply for the following forty years the territory into which said main and extension thereof may be projected.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-25 (2026)
§ 25-25 Supply for County — agreements with City.LinkCopy Citation
The Mayor and City Council of Baltimore and the County Commissioners of Baltimore County are hereby authorized to enter into an agreement containing such rules and regulations as they may think proper for the maintenance, repair and protection of said connections and meters and for the examination and inspection of said meters, but said agreement shall not relieve said County Commissioners of the obligation to pay for such connections and meters and for their repair or replacement.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-26 (2026)
§ 25-26 Supply for County — City’s duty to supply.LinkCopy Citation
The Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall at all times keep the water systems installed by the said County Commissioners and connected with said water mains of said City supplied with an adequate flow of water fit for human consumption and none the less pure than the water furnished by said Mayor and City Council of Baltimore to the inhabitants of Baltimore City, and there shall be no discrimination by said Mayor and City Council of Baltimore in distribution of water in favor of the inhabitants of the City of Baltimore and against the inhabitants of Baltimore County.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-27 (2026)
§ 25-27 Supply for County — rates.LinkCopy Citation
The distribution to consumers of water obtained under Sections <cite data-path="25|§25-22">25-22</cite> to <cite data-path="25|§25-30">25-30</cite> shall be by meters, and the rates said County Commissioners shall charge for such water shall be determined by the Public Service Commission of Maryland and said Public Service Commission is hereby vested with as full and complete jurisdiction to determine such rates as if said County Commissioners of Baltimore County were a “water company” as defined in Chapter 180 of the Acts of 1910.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-28 (2026)
§ 25-28 Supply for County — water from Gunpowder River.LinkCopy Citation
Sections <cite data-path="25|§25-22">25-22</cite> to <cite data-path="25|§25-30">25-30</cite> shall not be held or taken to repeal or modify Chapter 214 of the Acts of 1908 in any way; provided, however, that should the County Commissioners of Baltimore County avail themselves of the right to take ten million gallons of water from the Gunpowder River pursuant to the terms of said Chapter 214 of said Acts of 1908, then Sections <cite data-path="25|§25-22">25-22</cite> to <cite data-path="25|§25-30">25-30</cite> shall be void.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-29 (2026)
§ 25-29 Supply for County — definitions.LinkCopy Citation
The term “water main” and the term “system of water mains,” as used herein in connection with the County Commissioners of Baltimore County, shall mean any pipe or pipes intended by said County Commissioners to supply any of the inhabitants of Baltimore County with water for domestic or manufacturing purposes or to afford any of said inhabitants with protection against fire.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-30 (2026)
§ 25-30 Supply for County — right to amend.LinkCopy Citation
Sections <cite data-path="25|§25-22">25-22</cite> to <cite data-path="25|§25-30">25-30</cite> and each and every section thereof shall be subject to repeal or amendment at any session of the General Assembly of Maryland.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-31 (2026)
§ 25-31 General authority.LinkCopy Citation
The Mayor and City Council of Baltimore is hereby authorized and empowered
to convert the entire valley or basin of the Patapsco River in Baltimore County, Carroll County and Howard County, and its dependencies, and/or the entire valley or basin of the Little Gunpowder River in Baltimore County and Howard County, and its dependencies, or so much of each and all of said valleys or basins as may be necessary and proper for the purposes of this subheading, into reservoirs or lakes for augmenting, enlarging and improving the municipal water supply of the City of Baltimore;
to create, establish and maintain said reservoirs or lakes and their appurtenances, and to conduct the waters of said reservoirs or lakes along such route or routes and in such manner and by such instrumentalities and means as may be necessary or proper for the purposes of this subheading to the City of Baltimore and its environs, for the use of said City, and of its inhabitants, and of such other persons as may now or hereafter be lawfully furnished with water by said City;
to utilize, appropriate, divert, deflect, straighten, riprap or otherwise modify or control, for the purposes of this subheading, all springs, brooks, creeks, rivulets, rivers or other water courses, tributary (or capable of being rendered tributary) to, or obstructive of, the purposes of this subheading
to create, establish, set apart and maintain, regulate and protect, afforest or otherwise improve water sheds and reservations along, and to such full extent of adjacency as may be necessary for the purposes of this subheading, adjacent to the waters of said reservoirs or lakes, for securing a pure, copious and constant flow of water into said reservoirs or lakes;
to create, establish and maintain, construct, erect, lay, lay out and employ all such dams, walls, bulkheads, dikes, inlets, waste ways, water gates, bridges, tunnels, aqueducts, waterways, conduits, culverts, drains, mains, pipes settling or other reservoirs, lakes, basins or ponds, power houses, pump houses or other buildings, structures or erections, roads, ways, approaches, appurtenances, agencies, instrumentalities or means as may be necessary or proper for the purposes of this subheading, including all instrumentalities or means for diverting, deflecting, disposing of, controlling, collecting, confining, impounding, storing, protecting, clarifying, purifying, transmitting or distributing, or otherwise handling water that may be necessary or proper for the purpose of promoting or securing the full working efficiency and utility of said reservoirs or lakes for the objects for which they are intended by this subheading;
to utilize, extend, enlarge, reinforce, adapt, reconstruct, alter, re-equip or repair, for the purposes of this subheading, or for other purposes affecting the municipal water supply of Baltimore City, all or any part or parts of the present water system of Baltimore City and its appurtenances;
to make and enter into any and all contracts, agreements or stipulations germane to the scope of its powers under this subheading;
to make all such preliminary surveys and investigations, and to do all such preliminary work under this subheading as it may be advised shall be necessary or proper for the purposes of this subheading;
to acquire by gift, purchase, arbitration, exchange, lease (whatever the duration of the lease), or by other similar methods of acquisition, or by condemnation, any land or property, public, quasi-public or private, situated wholly or partly in Baltimore City, Baltimore County, Howard County, Carroll County, Harford County, Anne Arundel County, and/or in any other county of this State, or any interest, franchise, easement, right or privilege therein, which may be required for any of the purposes of this subheading, including springs, brooks, creeks, rivulets, rivers or other water courses, mills, factories and industrial plants of every description and their appurtenances; workshops, stores, farm buildings, structures and erections, churches, graveyards, school houses or other school property, dwelling houses, outhouses, bridges, streets, alleys, roads and ways, and all other buildings, structures, erections or improvements of every description, on, over or under land or other property, or any interest, franchise, easement, right or privilege therein, and in like manner to acquire any corporate franchises or any other thing, including earth, timber, stone or other materials, or places of temporary or permanent deposit for excavated material or other like facilities for effectuating the objects of this subheading, of any sort that may be required for the purposes of this subheading; and
generally to do and perform all and every such acts or things which, by anything short of a palpably forced construction, could be held to be auxiliary or conducive to the proper exercise of any or all of the powers by this subheading conferred upon the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, or to the effective accomplishment of the leading purpose of this subheading namely, the collection, accumulation and maintenance of an ample supply of water in said reservoirs or lakes, and its transmission and distribution in as abundant, clear, pure, healthful, convenient and satisfactory a character as possible to the City of Baltimore, and its inhabitants, and such other persons as may now or hereafter be lawfully supplied with water by the City of Baltimore for its and their uses.
The title acquired by condemnation, or otherwise, by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, under this subheading, for the purposes thereof, shall, as to land or other property or things required for said reservoirs or lakes, or for said water sheds or reservoirs, or for surface buildings, erections, structures, works or things of a permanent character, involving the idea of exclusive use and occupation by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, be in fee simple, but may, as to land or other property or things, required for other purposes under this subheading, be in fee simple or limited to some lesser quantum of interest, in point of estate or duration, accordingly as the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore may determine.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-32 (2026)
§ 25-32 County powers.LinkCopy Citation
The County Commissioners of any county, whose interests in any respect may become involved in the execution of this subheading, or any part or parts thereof, or any body politic, quasi-public corporation, turnpike company or private corporation, whose interest in any respect may become involved in the execution of this subheading, or any part or parts thereof, shall be, and is, or are hereby authorized and empowered, anything in the terms of their or its chartered existence or powers to the contrary notwithstanding, to enter into all such contracts, agreements, stipulations or arrangements, deeds, conveyances or transfers with the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore as may be necessary or proper for the purposes of this subheading or any of them.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-33 (2026)
§ 25-33 Powers are supplemental.LinkCopy Citation
The powers by this subheading conferred upon the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore are intended to be in addition to, and not to be in substitution for, any power heretofore conferred by law upon it, in relation to the municipal water supply of Baltimore City, except where inconsistent therewith.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-34 (2026)
§ 25-34 Police powers.LinkCopy Citation
The said Mayor and City Council of Baltimore is hereby empowered at any and all times during the progress of the work herein authorized and any and all parts thereof, at its own expense, to maintain an efficient police service for the purpose of preserving the public peace, protecting property and preventing crime within the territory occupied or used by it or its employees in the prosecution of said work, or by the employees of contractors or subcontractors engaged on such work; the officers so employed by said City to have the power to make arrests of persons offending within such territory, wherever found within the State; such offenders shall be tried in the county in which the offense may be committed, and in the event of conviction and imposition of a jail sentence, whether by the Circuit Court for such county, or by the District Court thereof, shall be committed to the Baltimore City Jail instead of to the county jail; and, in all such cases, the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall reimburse the county in which such offense is committed for all costs and expenses actually incurred by it, including the sum of eighty-five cents per day for every person committed for trial to the jail of such county, in proceedings against, and the trial and commitment of, such offenders, court costs to be prorated by the Clerk of the Circuit Court for such county upon the basis of time actually consumed in such trials or other proceedings; all such costs to be adjusted and paid semi-annually.
Said police service as to any county affected by the provisions of this subheading shall be subject to the supervision and direction of the marshal or chief of the police force of such county.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-35 (2026)
§ 25-35 Damage to roads and bridges — in general.LinkCopy Citation
Whenever any public road or bridge of any of the counties affected by the provisions of this subheading shall be destroyed or rendered impassable, in whole or in part, by the City of Baltimore, in connection with the work herein contemplated, it shall be the duty of said City to replace the same, at its own expense, as nearly as possible, with a suitable and convenient road or bridge in lieu thereof; and if any such existing public road or bridge, or any bridge or road so built in lieu of one so destroyed, be on or through property acquired by said City for the purposes contemplated by this subheading, it shall be the duty of said City thereafter at all times to maintain the same in good order and repair for the free use of the public, so far as the same may be on or through such property, subject to such provisions and conditions, looking to maintain the purity of the City’s water supply, as the said Mayor and City Council of Baltimore may by ordinance impose; and providing further, that the said Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall not have the power, anything in this subheading or in any other Act to the contrary notwithstanding, to condemn any such public road or bridge of any of the counties affected by the provisions of this subheading, but shall have the right to divert, alter, close or destroy any public road or bridge of any of said counties, when necessary in the course of such work, only by agreement with the Highways Commission of the county affected or other proper authorities having charge and control thereof, on such terms as to replacing the same for the convenience of the public as may by said Highways Commission or other proper authorities be required.
In the event that said City and the authorities of any county affected may not be able to agree upon the terms under which said road or bridge is to be altered, diverted, closed or destroyed, or upon the location or character of the road or bridge to replace the same, or upon any other terms as to the replacing of the same, the matter shall be referred to the Roads Engineer of the county affected, for the time being, and the Chief Engineer of Baltimore City, for the time being, who shall have plenary power to consider and decide all questions in connection with such diversion, alteration, closure or destruction of such road or bridge, and to determine where, how and in what manner, and within what time, the same shall be replaced by said City.
No road or bridge shall be closed or altered in whole or in part under the provisions of this subheading until another shall have been constructed and opened to the public in lieu thereof as herein provided, and said Engineers shall have full power and authority to summon, and require the attendance of, all witnesses in connection with their inquiries under <cite data-path="25|§25-35">this section</cite>, and to require that their testimony shall be taken under oath, as required by law.
The said Engineers and the third person hereinafter mentioned, if there be such, shall each receive a per diem of ten dollars while actually engaged in work imposed or authorized by <cite data-path="25|§25-35">this section</cite>, the same and all other reasonable expenses of said Engineers, including the employment of a secretary, if such employment be deemed necessary by said Engineers, to be paid by the City of Baltimore.
The decision of said Engineers in all matters between the City and any county affected which may devolve upon them under <cite data-path="25|§25-35">this section</cite> shall be final and conclusive unless impeached for fraud in appropriate proceedings instituted in the Circuit Court for the county affected, to set aside their findings on such ground.
Whenever said Engineers may require and determine that the City of Baltimore shall construct a road to replace any road diverted, altered, closed or destroyed, or to be diverted, altered, closed or destroyed in the course of the work contemplated by this subheading, said City shall have power to agree with the owners of land, property or things to be taken or injuriously affected in the construction thereof, and, in default of agreement, to condemn the right of way under the provisions of this subheading, authorizing the condemnation of property, land or things for the purposes of this subheading, or may, at its election, make application to the Highways Commission or other proper authorities of the county affected, for the opening or alteration of such road, in which later event the proceedings shall be those prescribed by law for the opening or alteration of roads in such county, except that no landowner shall be assessed for any part of the cost thereof, the whole of such cost to be borne by the City of Baltimore.
In the event of disagreement between the said Engineers as to any matter devolved upon them by the terms of <cite data-path="25|§25-35">this section</cite>, they shall call in as a third arbiter, a nonresident Engineer, skilled in the construction or maintenance of highways and bridges, to be selected by the Governor of Maryland, on the application of either of said Engineers, in the event they are unable to agree on such third person, the decision of any two of the board thus selected to be binding on the parties, and to be final and conclusive, unless impeached for fraud as aforesaid.
The powers and duties of the Chief Engineer of Baltimore City under <cite data-path="25|§25-35">this section</cite> may, at any time, with the consent of the Mayor of Baltimore, be delegated by him to one of his assistant engineers, or such powers may be exercised and duties performed by some third party to be named by the municipal agency hereinafter charged with the duty of carrying the work under this subheading into execution.
The powers conferred and the duties imposed by <cite data-path="25|§25-35">this section</cite> upon the Roads Engineer of any county affected by the provisions of <cite data-path="25|§25-35">this section</cite> may at any time, with the consent of the County Commissioners, of such county, be delegated by him to one of his assistant engineers, or, if there be no Roads Engineer of said county, it shall be the duty of the County Commissioners to said county to appoint some person, preferably an engineer resident in said county, to exercise such powers and to perform such duties.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-36 (2026)
§ 25-36 Damage to roads and bridges — State roads and bridges.LinkCopy Citation
Whenever any State road or bridge under the jurisdiction of the State Roads Commission shall be destroyed or rendered impassable, in whole or in part, by the City of Baltimore, in connection with the work herein contemplated, it shall be the duty of said City to replace the same, as nearly as possible, at its own expense, with a suitable and convenient road or bridge in lieu thereof; provided that the said Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall not have the power, anything in <cite data-path="25|§25-36">this section</cite> or in any other Act to the contrary notwithstanding, to condemn any such State road or bridge under the jurisdiction of the State Roads Commission, but shall have the right to divert, alter, close or destroy any State road or bridge under the jurisdiction of the State Roads Commission, when necessary in the course of such work, only by agreement with the State Roads Commission, on such terms as to replacing the same for the convenience of the public as may by said State Roads Commission be required.
In the event that said City and the State Roads Commission may not be able to agree upon the terms under which said State road or bridge is to be altered, diverted, closed or destroyed, or upon the location or character of the State road or bridge to replace the same, or upon any other terms as to the replacing of the same, the matter shall be referred to the Chief Engineer of the State Roads Commission, for the time being, and the Chief Engineer of Baltimore City, for the time being, who shall have plenary power to consider and decide all questions in connection with such diversion, alteration, closure or destruction of such State road or bridge, and to determine where, how and in what matter, and within what time, the same shall be replaced by said City.
No State road or bridge shall be closed or altered in whole or in part under the provisions of <cite data-path="25|§25-36">this section</cite> until another shall have been constructed and opened to the public in lieu thereof as herein provided, and said Engineers shall have full power and authority to summon, and require the attendance of, all witnesses in connection with their inquiries under <cite data-path="25|§25-36">this section</cite>, and to require that their testimony shall be taken under oath, as required by law.
The said Engineers and the third person hereinafter mentioned, if there be such, shall each receive a per diem of ten dollars while actually engaged in work imposed or authorized by <cite data-path="25|§25-36">this section</cite>, the same and all other reasonable expenses of said Engineers, including the employment of a secretary, if such employment be deemed necessary by said Engineers, to be paid by the City of Baltimore.
The decision of said Engineers in all matters between the City and the State Roads Commission which may devolve upon them under <cite data-path="25|§25-36">this section</cite> shall be final and conclusive unless impeached for fraud in appropriate proceedings instituted in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, to set aside their findings on such ground.
Whenever said Engineers may require and determine that the City of Baltimore shall construct a road to replace any State road diverted, altered, closed or destroyed, or to be diverted, altered, closed or destroyed in the course of the work contemplated by <cite data-path="25|§25-36">this section</cite>, said City shall have power to agree with the owners of land, property or things to be taken or injuriously affected in the construction thereof, and, in default of agreement, to condemn the right of way under the provisions of <cite data-path="25|§25-36">this section</cite>, authorizing the condemnation of property, land or things for the purposes of <cite data-path="25|§25-36">this section</cite>, or may, at its election, make application to the State Roads Commission for the opening or alteration of such State road, in which latter event the proceedings shall be those prescribed by law for the opening or alteration of State roads, except that no landowner shall be assessed for any part of the cost thereof, the whole of such cost to be borne by the City of Baltimore.
In the event of disagreement between the said Engineers as to any matter devolved upon them by the terms of <cite data-path="25|§25-36">this section</cite>, they shall call in as a third arbiter, an engineer skilled in the construction or maintenance of highways and bridges, to be selected by the Governor of Maryland, on the application of either of said Engineers, in the event they are unable to agree on such third person, the decision of any two of the board thus selected to be binding on the parties, and to be final and conclusive, unless impeached for fraud as aforesaid.
The powers and duties of the Chief Engineer of Baltimore City under <cite data-path="25|§25-36">this section</cite> may, at any time, with the consent of the Mayor of Baltimore, be delegated by him to one of his assistant engineers, or such powers may be exercised and duties performed by some third party to be named by the municipal agency hereinafter charged with the duty of carrying the work under <cite data-path="25|§25-36">this section</cite> into execution.
The powers conferred and the duties imposed by <cite data-path="25|§25-36">this section</cite> upon the Chief Engineer of the State Roads Commission may at any time, with the consent of the said State Roads Commission, be delegated by him to one of his assistant engineers.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-37 (2026)
§ 25-37 Damage to roads and bridges — inspections.LinkCopy Citation
So soon as the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall be ready to begin work under this subheading, the Roads Engineer of any county affected, and the Chief Engineer of Baltimore City, shall together make a careful inspection of all public roads, and portions of public roads, and of all bridges of such county, certain or likely, in the opinion of said Roads Engineer, to be used by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, or its agents, or contractors, for teaming or hauling, in connection with said work, and shall thereupon draw up a memorandum, in writing, one duplicate whereof shall be filed and kept in the office of the County Commissioners of such county, and the other duplicate whereof shall be filed and kept in the office of the Comptroller of Baltimore City, certifying to the precise condition, at that time, in point of repair in their opinion, of all such roads, and portions of roads, and of all such bridges, and thereafter, at regular intervals of six months, there shall be a similar inspection by said officers of all such roads, and portions of roads, and of all such bridges, and immediately after such inspection, said engineers shall, in like manner, draw up a similar memorandum, in writing, duplicates whereof shall be filed and kept in like manner as aforesaid, certifying in precise terms to the physical and pecuniary extent, to which, in their opinion, such roads and portions of roads, and such bridges shall have been injured by reason of the extra wear and tear imposed upon them since the next preceding inspection, by such teaming or hauling, and, in said memorandum, the pecuniary extent of said injury shall be computed and set forth in dollars and cents, and, so soon as said memorandum shall be signed by said engineers, and filed in duplicate as aforesaid, the amount of the pecuniary injury, so certified, shall at once become due and payable by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore out of the proceeds of the loan hereinafter mentioned to the treasurer of the county affected, as a fund for the repair of such injury.
In the event of disagreement between said engineers as to any matter devolved upon them by the terms of <cite data-path="25|§25-37">this section</cite> of this subheading, all of the provisions of the next preceding section of this subheading relative to disagreement between said officers as to the diversion alteration, closure or destruction of highways or bridges, shall likewise be applicable to said disagreement under <cite data-path="25|§25-37">this section</cite>. Said engineers shall have plenary power to consider and decide all questions arising in the discharge of their duties under <cite data-path="25|§25-37">this section</cite>, and shall have the same power to summon and require the attendance of witnesses, in connection with their inquiries under <cite data-path="25|§25-37">this section</cite>, and to have them sworn, as is provided for in <cite data-path="25|§25-35">section 25-35</cite> of this subheading, and they shall be allowed the same per diem and other reasonable expenses, all to be paid by the City of Baltimore.
The powers and duties of the Chief Engineer of Baltimore City under <cite data-path="25|§25-37">this section</cite> may, at any time, with the consent of the Mayor of Baltimore, be delegated by him to one of his assistant engineers, or such powers may be exercised and duties performed by some third party to be named by the municipal agency hereinafter charged with the duty of carrying the work under this subheading into execution.
The powers conferred and the duties imposed by <cite data-path="25|§25-37">this section</cite> upon the Roads Engineer of any county affected by the provisions of <cite data-path="25|§25-37">this section</cite> may at any time, with the consent of the County Commissioners of such county, be delegated by him to one of his assistant engineers, or, if there be no Roads Engineer of said county, it shall be the duty of the County Commissioners of said county to appoint some person, preferably an engineer resident in said county, to exercise such powers and to perform such duties.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-38 (2026)
§ 25-38 Roads to be closed.LinkCopy Citation
At least thirty days prior to the beginning of construction work in any county affected by the provisions of this subheading, the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall file in the office of the County Commissioners of such county one or more maps showing the existing public roads and highways traversing the property acquired or to be acquired under this subheading, which are to be closed, altered, diverted or relocated, in whole or in part, or the grades thereof changed; and also to show all roads or parts of roads which the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore proposes to construct in substitution for, or to take the place of, any such roads so closed, obstructed, altered or changed.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-39 (2026)
§ 25-39 City’s powers.LinkCopy Citation
The Mayor and City Council of Baltimore is hereby authorized and empowered to pass any and all ordinances not inconsistent with the terms of this subheading, that it may deem advisable for the purpose of fully effectuating the objects of this subheading.
The Mayor and City Council of Baltimore is hereby authorized to use any funds appropriated for extending, enlarging, developing and improving the municipal water system of Baltimore City to exercise the powers granted by this subheading.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-40 (2026)
§ 25-40 General authority.LinkCopy Citation
The Mayor and City Council of Baltimore be and it is hereby authorized and empowered
to enter into, and take water from, the Susquehanna River at any point in the State of Maryland above the Conowingo Dam and its hydro-electric generating plant at a point which will not materially interfere with the operation of said dam and its hydro-electric generating plant, in order to add to, augment, enlarge and improve the municipal water supply of the City of Baltimore;
to conduct the water taken from the Susquehanna River along such route or routes and in such manner and by such instrumentalities and means as may be necessary or proper for the purposes of this subheading to the City of Baltimore and its environs, for the use of said City and of its inhabitants, and of such other persons or other legal entities as may now or hereafter be lawfully furnished water by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore;
to utilize, appropriate, divert, deflect, straighten, riprap or otherwise modify or control, for the purposes of this subheading, all springs, brooks, creeks, rivulets, rivers or other water courses, tributary (or capable of being rendered tributary) to, or obstructive of, the purposes of this subheading;
to create, establish, construct, erect, maintain, protect, lay, lay out, use or employ any and all such dams, walls, bulkheads, dikes, inlets, waste ways, water gates, bridges, tunnels, underground structures or facilities, aqueducts, waterways, conduits, culverts, drains, mains, pipes, settling or other reservoirs, lakes, basins or ponds, power houses, pump houses or other buildings, structures or erections, roads, ways, approaches, appurtenances, agencies, instrumentalities or means as may be necessary or proper for the purposes of this subheading, including, but not limited to, all instrumentalities or means for diverting, deflecting, disposing of, controlling, collecting, confining, impounding, storing, protecting, clarifying, purifying, filtering, transmitting or distributing, or otherwise handling water that may be necessary or proper for the purpose of promoting or securing a pure, copious and constant flow of water from the Susquehanna River to the municipal water supply system of Baltimore City as contemplated by this subheading;
to utilize, extend, enlarge, improve, reinforce, adopt, reconstruct, alter, re-equip or repair, for the purpose of this subheading, or for other purposes affecting the municipal water supply of Baltimore City, all or any part or parts of the present water system of Baltimore City and its appurtenances;
to make and enter into any and all contracts, agreements or stipulations germane to the scope of its powers under this subheading; to make all such preliminary surveys and investigations, and to do all such preliminary work under this subheading as it may be advised shall be necessary or proper for the purposes of this subheading;
to acquire by gift, purchase, arbitration, exchange, lease (whatever the duration of the lease), or by condemnation, or by any other legal means, any land or property of any kind regardless of whether it is public, quasi-public, or privately owned, situated wholly or partly in Baltimore City, Baltimore County, Harford County, or in any other county of this State, or any interest, franchise, easement, right or privilege therein, which may be required for any of the purposes of this subheading, including, but not limited to, springs, brooks, creeks, rivulets, rivers, or other water courses, mills, factories, public utilities, and industrial plants of every description and their appurtenances; workshops, stores, farm buildings, structures and erections, churches, graveyards, schoolhouses and other school property, dwelling houses, outhouses, bridges, streets, alleys, roads and ways of all kind, and all other buildings, structures, erections or improvements of every kind and description, on, in, over or under any land or water or other property, or any interest, franchise, easement, right or privilege therein, and in like manner to acquire any corporate franchises or any other thing, including, but not limited to, earth, timber, stone or other materials, or places of temporary or permanent deposit for excavated material or other like facilities for effectuating the objects of this subheading, of any sort that may be required for the purposes of this subheading; and
generally to do and perform all and every such acts or things which, by anything short of a palpably forced construction, could be held to be auxiliary or conducive to the proper exercise of any or all of the powers by this subheading conferred upon the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, or to the effective accomplishment of the leading purpose of this subheading, namely, the taking of water from the Susquehanna River in such amount as may be necessary and the transmission and distribution thereof in as abundant, clear, pure, healthful, convenient and satisfactory a character as possible to the City of Baltimore, and its inhabitants, and such other persons or other legal entities as may now or hereafter be lawfully supplied with water by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore for its and their uses.
The title acquired by condemnation, or otherwise, by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, under this subheading, for the purposes thereof, shall, as to any land or other property or things of a permanent nature or character needed or required in connection with the operations of the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore under this subheading, involving the idea of exclusive use and occupation by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, be in fee simple, but may, as to land or other property or things, required for other purposes under this subheading, be in fee simple or limited to some lesser quantum of interest, in point of estate or duration, accordingly as the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore may determine.
To the end that the necessary water for the City of Baltimore and adjoining counties can be secured with a minimum loss or damage to the parties interested in the Conowingo hydro-electric project, and at the minimum cost to the City, the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall, so far as possible, use or divert water from the surplus only after providing for the maximum requirements of the operations of the said project.
The right is hereby reserved, to all parties interested in said Conowingo hydro-electric project, to proper compensation for all loss or damage resulting to them or any of them by reason of any diversion of water from the pool which forms a part of the said project.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-41 (2026)
§ 25-41 County powers.LinkCopy Citation
The County Commissioners of any county, whose interests in any respect may become involved in the execution of this subheading, or any part or parts thereof, or any body politic, quasi-public corporation, turnpike company, private corporation, or other legal entity, whose interest in any respect may become involved in the execution of this subheading, or any part or parts thereof, shall be, and is, or are hereby authorized and empowered, anything in the terms of their or its chartered existence or powers to the contrary notwithstanding, to enter into all such contracts, agreements, stipulations or arrangements, deeds, conveyances or transfers with the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore as may be necessary or proper for the purposes of this subheading or any of them.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-42 (2026)
§ 25-42 Powers are supplemental.LinkCopy Citation
The powers by this subheading conferred upon the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore are intended to be in addition to, and not to be in substitution for, any power heretofore conferred by law upon it, in relation to the municipal water supply of Baltimore City, except where inconsistent therewith.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-43 (2026)
§ 25-43 Police powers.LinkCopy Citation
The Mayor and City Council of Baltimore is hereby empowered at any and all times during the progress of the work herein authorized and any and all parts thereof, at its own expense, to maintain an efficient police service for the purpose of preserving the public peace, protecting property and preventing crime within the territory occupied or used by it or its employees in the prosecution of said work, or by the employees of contractors or subcontractors engaged on such work; the officers so employed by said City to have the power to make arrests of persons offending within such territory, wherever found within the State; such offenders shall be tried in the county in which the offense may be committed, and in the event of conviction and imposition of a jail sentence, whether by the Circuit Court for such county, or the District Court thereof, shall be committed to the Baltimore City Jail instead of to the county jail; and, in all such cases, the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall reimburse the county in which such offense is committed for all costs and expenses actually incurred by it, including the sum of eighty-five cents per day for every person committed for trial to the jail of such county, in proceedings against, and the trial and commitment of, such offenders, court costs to be prorated by the Clerk of the Circuit Court for such county upon the basis of time actually consumed in such trials or other proceedings; all such costs to be adjusted and paid semiannually.
Said police service as to any county affected by the provisions of this subheading shall be subject to the supervision and direction of the sheriff or chief of the police force of such county.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-44 (2026)
§ 25-44 Damage to roads and bridges — in general.LinkCopy Citation
Whenever any public road or bridge of any of the counties affected by the provisions of this subheading shall be destroyed or rendered impassable, in whole or in part, by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, in connection with the work herein contemplated, it shall be the duty of said City to replace the same, at its own expense, as nearly as possible, with a suitable and convenient road or bridge in lieu thereof; and if any such existing public road or bridge, or any bridge or road so built in lieu of one so destroyed, be on or through property acquired by said City for the purposes contemplated by this subheading, it shall be the duty of said City thereafter at all times to maintain the same in good order and repair for the free use of the public, so far as the same may be on or through such property, subject to such provisions and conditions, looking to maintain the purity of the City’s water supply, as the said Mayor and City Council of Baltimore may by ordinance impose; and providing further, that the said Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall not have the power, anything in this subheading or in any other Act to the contrary notwithstanding, to condemn any such public road or bridge of any of the counties affected by the provisions of this subheading, but shall have the right to divert, alter, close or destroy any public road or bridge of any of said counties, when necessary in the course of such work, only by agreement with the Highways Commission of the county affected or other proper authorities having charge and control thereof, on such terms as to replacing the same for the convenience of the public as may by said Highways Commission or other proper authorities be required.
In the event that said City and the authorities of any county affected may not be able to agree upon the terms under which said road or bridge is to be altered, diverted, closed or destroyed, or upon the location or character of the road or bridge to replace the same, or upon any other terms as to the replacing of the same, the matter shall be referred to the Roads Engineer of the county affected, for the time being, and the Director of Public Works of Baltimore City, for the time being, who shall have plenary power to consider and decide all questions in connection with such diversion, alteration, closure or destruction of such road or bridge, and to determine where, how and in what manner, and within what time, the same shall be replaced by said City.
No road or bridge shall be closed or altered in whole or in part under the provisions of this subheading until another shall have been constructed and opened to the public in lieu thereof as herein provided, and said Engineers shall have full power and authority to summon, require the attendance of, all witnesses in connection with their inquiries under <cite data-path="25|§25-44">this section</cite>, and to require that their testimony shall be taken under oath, as required by law.
The decision of said Engineers in all matters between the City and any county affected which may devolve upon them under <cite data-path="25|§25-44">this section</cite> shall be final and conclusive unless impeached for fraud in appropriate proceedings instituted in the Circuit Court for the county affected, to set aside their findings on such ground.
Whenever said Engineers may require and determine that the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall construct a road to replace any road diverted, altered, closed or destroyed, or to be diverted, altered, closed or destroyed in the course of the work contemplated by this subheading, said City shall have power to agree with the owners of land, property or things to be taken or injuriously affected in the construction thereof, and, in default of agreement, to condemn the right of way under the provisions of this subheading, authorizing the condemnation of property, land or things for the purposes of this subheading, or may, at its election, make application to the Highways Commission or other proper authorities of the county affected, for the opening or alteration of such road, in which latter event the proceedings shall be those prescribed by law for the opening or alteration of roads in such county, except that no land owner shall be assessed for any part of the cost thereof, the whole of such cost to be borne by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore.
In the event of disagreement between the said Engineers as to any matter devolved upon them by the terms of <cite data-path="25|§25-44">this section</cite>, they shall call in as a third arbiter, a nonresident Engineer, skilled in the construction or maintenance of highways and bridges, to be selected by the Governor of Maryland, on the application of either of said Engineers, in the event they are unable to agree on such third person, the decision of any two of the board thus selected to be binding on the parties, and to be final and conclusive, unless impeached for fraud as aforesaid.
All costs and expenses incurred in connection with any such arbitration proceedings shall be paid by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore.
The powers and duties of the Director of Public Works of Baltimore City under <cite data-path="25|§25-44">this section</cite> may, at any time, with the consent of the Mayor of Baltimore, be delegated by him to one of his assistant engineers, or such powers may be exercised and duties performed by some third party to be named by the municipal agency charged with the duty of carrying the work under this subheading into execution.
The powers conferred and the duties imposed by <cite data-path="25|§25-44">this section</cite> upon the Roads Engineer of any county affected by the provisions of <cite data-path="25|§25-44">this section</cite> may at any time, with the consent of the County Commissioners of such county, be delegated by him to one of his assistant engineers, or, if there be no Roads Engineer of said county, it shall be the duty of the County Commissioners of said county to appoint some person, preferably an engineer resident in said county, to exercise such powers and to perform such duties.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-45 (2026)
§ 25-45 Damage to roads and bridges — State roads and bridges.LinkCopy Citation
Whenever any State road or bridge under the jurisdiction of the State Highway Administration shall be destroyed or rendered impassable, in whole or in part, by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, in connection with the work herein contemplated, it shall be the duty of Baltimore City to replace the road or bridge, as nearly as possible, at the City’s expense, with a suitable and convenient road or bridge in lieu thereof; provided that the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall not have the power, anything in this subheading or in any other Act to the contrary notwithstanding, to condemn any such State road or bridge under the jurisdiction of the State Highway Administration, but shall have the right to divert, alter, close or destroy any State road or bridge under the jurisdiction of the State Highway Administration when necessary in the course of such work, only by agreement with the State Highway Administration, on such terms as replacing the road or bridge for the convenience of the public as may be required by the State Highway Administration.
In the event that Baltimore City and the State Highway Administration may not be able to agree upon the terms under which the State road or bridge is to be altered, diverted, closed or destroyed, or upon the location or character of the State road or bridge to replace the same, or upon any other terms concerning the replacement of the road or bridge, the matter shall be referred to the Chief Engineer of the State Highway Administration and the Director of Public Works of Baltimore City, for the time being, who shall have complete power in every respect to consider and decide all questions in connection with such diversion, alteration, closure or destruction of such State road or bridge, and to determine where, how and in what manner, and within what time, the road or bridge shall be replaced by Baltimore City.
No State road or bridge shall be closed or altered in whole or in part under the provisions of this subheading until another is constructed and opened to the public in lieu thereof as herein provided, and these Engineers shall have full power and authority to summon, and require the attendance of, all witnesses in connection with their inquiries under <cite data-path="25|§25-45">this section</cite>, and to require that their testimony shall be taken under oath, as required by law.
The decision of these Engineers in all matters between Baltimore City and the State Highway Administration which may pass by transfer or succession upon them under <cite data-path="25|§25-45">this section</cite> shall be final and conclusive unless impeached for fraud in appropriate proceedings instituted in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, to set aside their findings on such ground.
Whenever these Engineers may require and determine that the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall construct a road to replace any State road diverted, altered, closed or destroyed, or to be diverted, altered, closed or destroyed in the course of the work contemplated by this subheading, Baltimore City shall have the power to agree with the owners of land, property or things to be taken or injuriously affected in the construction thereof, and, in default of agreement, to condemn the right of way under the provisions of this subheading, authorizing the condemnation of property, land or things for the purposes of this subheading, or may, at its election, make application to the State Highway Administration for the opening or alteration of such State road, in which latter event the proceedings shall be those prescribed by law for the opening or alteration of State roads, except that no land owner shall be assessed for any part of the cost thereof, the whole of such cost to be paid by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore.
In the event of disagreement between the said Engineers as to any matter handed down to them by the terms of <cite data-path="25|§25-45">this section</cite>, they shall call in as a third arbiter, an engineer skilled in the construction or maintenance of highways and bridges, to be selected by the Governor of Maryland, on the application of either of these Engineers, in the event that they are unable to agree on such third person, the decision of any two of the board thus selected to be binding on the parties, and to be final and conclusive, unless impeached for fraud as aforesaid.
All costs and expenses incurred in connection with any such arbitration proceedings shall be paid by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore.
The powers and duties of the Director of Public Works of Baltimore City under <cite data-path="25|§25-45">this section</cite> may, at any time, with the consent of the Mayor of Baltimore, be delegated by the Director to one of the Director’s assistant engineers, or such powers may be exercised and duties performed by some third party to be named by the municipal agency charged with the duty of carrying the work under this subheading into execution.
The powers conferred and the duties imposed by <cite data-path="25|§25-45">this section</cite> upon the Chief Engineer of the State Highway Administration may at any time, with the consent of the State Highway Administration, be delegated by the Chief Engineer to any assistant engineer.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-46 (2026)
§ 25-46 Damage to roads and bridges — inspections.LinkCopy Citation
As soon as the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall be ready to begin work under this subheading, the Road Engineers of any county affected, and the Director of Public Works of Baltimore City, shall together make a careful inspection of all public roads, and portions of public roads, and of all bridges of such county, certain or likely, in the opinion of said Roads Engineer, to be used by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, or its agents, or contractors, for teaming or hauling, in connection with said work, and shall thereupon draw up a memorandum, in writing, one duplicate whereof shall be filed and kept in the office of the County Commissioners of such county, and the other duplicate whereof shall be filed and kept in the office of the Comptroller of Baltimore City, certifying to the precise condition, at that time, in point of repair in their opinion, of all such roads, and portions of roads, and of all such bridges, and thereafter, at regular intervals of six months, there shall be a similar inspection by said officers of all such roads, and portions of roads, and of all such bridges, and immediately after such inspection, said engineers shall, in like manner, draw up a similar memorandum, in writing, duplicates whereof shall be filed and kept in like manner as aforesaid, certifying in precise terms to the physical and pecuniary extent, to which, in their opinion, such roads and portions of roads, and such bridges shall have been injured by reason of the extra wear and tear imposed upon them since the next preceding inspection, by such teaming or hauling, and, in said memorandum, the pecuniary extent of said injury shall be computed and set forth in dollars and cents, and, as soon as said memorandum shall be signed by said engineers, and filed in duplicate as aforesaid, the amount of the pecuniary injury, so certified, shall at once become due and payable by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore out of any funds which may be available to said City for said purpose to the treasurer of the county affected, as a fund for the repair of such injury.
In the event of disagreement between said engineers as to any matter devolved upon them by the terms of <cite data-path="25|§25-46">this section</cite> of this subheading, all the provisions of <cite data-path="25|§25-45">Section 25-45</cite> of this subheading, relative to disagreement between said officers as to the diversion, alteration, closure or destruction of highways or bridges, shall likewise be applicable to said disagreement under <cite data-path="25|§25-46">this section</cite>.
Said engineers shall have plenary power to consider and decide all questions arising in the discharge of their duties under <cite data-path="25|§25-46">this section</cite>, and shall have the same power to summon and require the attendance of witnesses, in connection with their inquiries under <cite data-path="25|§25-46">this section</cite>, and to have them sworn, as is provided for in <cite data-path="25|§25-45">Section 25-45</cite> of this subheading.
In the event of any arbitration proceedings under <cite data-path="25|§25-46">this section</cite>, all costs and expenses incurred in connection therewith shall be paid by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore.
The powers and duties of the Director of Public Works of Baltimore City under <cite data-path="25|§25-46">this section</cite> may, at any time, with the consent of the Mayor of Baltimore, be delegated by him to one of his assistant engineers, or such powers may be exercised and duties performed by some third party to be named by the municipal agency charged with the duty of carrying the work under this subheading into execution.
The powers conferred and the duties imposed by <cite data-path="25|§25-46">this section</cite> upon the Roads Engineer of any county affected by the provisions of <cite data-path="25|§25-46">this section</cite> may at any time, with the consent of the County Commissioners of such county, be delegated by him to one of his assistant engineers, or, if there be no Roads Engineer of said county, it shall be the duty of the County Commissioners of said county to appoint some person, preferably an engineer resident in said county, to exercise such powers and to perform such duties.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-47 (2026)
§ 25-47 Map of road changes.LinkCopy Citation
At least thirty days prior to the beginning of construction work in any county affected by the provisions of this subheading, the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall file in the office of the county Commissioners of such county one or more maps showing the exisitng public roads and highways traversing the property acquired or to be acquired under this subheading, which are to be closed, altered, diverted or relocated, in whole or in part, or the grades thereof changed; and also to show all roads or pads of roads which the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore proposes to construct in substitution for, or to take the place of, any such roads so closed, obstructed, altered or changed.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-48 (2026)
§ 25-48 City’s powers.LinkCopy Citation
The Mayor and City Council of Baltimore is hereby authorized and empowered to pass any and all ordinances not inconsistent with the terms of this subheading, that it may deem advisable for the purpose of fully effectuating the objects of this subheading. The Mayor and City Council of Baltimore is hereby authorized to use any funds appropriated for extending, enlarging, developing and improving the municipal water supply or the water system of Baltimore City to exercise the powers granted by this subheading.
Balt., Md., Pub. Local Laws § 25-49 (2026)
§ 25-49 Harford County restrictions.LinkCopy Citation
The powers vested in the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore by this subheading when exercised in Harford County shall be limited and defined as follows:
(1)
Upon the completion of a line or lines conveying water from the Susquehanna River to Baltimore under the provisions of the subheading, the City of Baltimore shall make available to the municipalities (including sanitary districts) of Harford County a maximum total of ten million (10,000,000) gallons daily at at least four convenient tapping points in Harford County, the cost of the construction of lines, pumping stations, and pipe connections to and with Baltimore City’s line or lines shall be borne by the municipality in Harford County and the cost of the water to said Harford County municipalities shall be fixed by mutual agreement.
In the event of a disagreement in the selection of tapping points or in fixing the rates to be charged for the water furnished to said municipalities, the question shall be referred to the Public Service Commission of Maryland, or its successor, and the decision of said commission shall be binding upon both Baltimore City and the municipalities of Harford County.
In the event that the ten million (10,000,000) gallons daily guaranteed to the municipalities of Harford County do not supply their full needs and Baltimore City is unable to increase this allotment without substantially improving its own water supply system, the division of said allotment among said municipalities shall be made by the Public Service Commission of Maryland or its successor.
(2)
No permanent dams of streams, creeks, or watercourses shall be constructed in Harford County nor shall the courses of streams, creeks, or watercourses be permanently and substantially altered except as hereinafter provided.
(3)
For the purposes of regularizing the taking of water from the Susquehanna River, the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore is hereby authorized to construct, maintain and operate a dam or reservoir on Bucks Branch or Elbow Branch, which are tributaries of Deer Creek.
(4)
The powers of condemnation granted under this subheading shall not be exercised to take any existing public graveyard in Harford County. The strip of land acquired for the construction of the line or lines from the pumping station shall not exceed sixty (60) feet in width, together with an additional twenty-five (25) feet on each side of said strip as a temporary easement during the period of construction.
(5)
Nothing herein shall be construed to impair or limit the right of any municipality in Harford County to take water from the Susquehanna River by independent means under proper legal authority.
(6)
That in the event it can be scientifically demonstrated that the taking of water from the pool by the City of Baltimore would substantially increase the salinity of the water at the Havre de Grace intake to the point where the water would be unpalatable, then the City would cease taking the water during that period.
(7)
That the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore and its representatives shall consult with the County Commissioners of Harford County, and the Harford County Planning and Zoning Commission, as to the route or routes to be followed by the water pipeline across Harford County, and the location of other appurtenant facilities in Harford County in connection with the water supply system.
(8)
The route of the line or lines to be constructed shall follow generally those described as route No. 1 and No. 2 in a report to the City of Baltimore on future sources of water supply and appurtenant problems by the Board of Advisory Engineers on future water supply dated December 15, 1953.