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Read. Follow. Verify.Maryland Senate Bill 866 requires chain restaurants to display sodium and added sugars warning icons on menus
Last action · April 13, 2026: Senate Conference Committee Appointed (Senators A. Washington, Lam and Mautz)Sponsor: Alonzo Washington
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What This Bill Would Do
Maryland Senate Bill 866 requires s with 20 or more locations to display warning icons and specific explanatory text on menus and menu boards next to items containing high sodium or high added sugars beginning January 1, 2027. The Maryland Department of Health must adopt regulations, publish compliance guidance, and administer a continuing education campaign by 2027, followed by a formal impact report due by July 1, 2032. Violations of these menu labeling requirements are explicitly exempted from criminal misdemeanor penalties.
Consumers purchasing food at major s in Maryland will encounter standardized health warning icons and educational text regarding daily sodium and sugar limits on menus, while restaurant operators must adjust their physical or digital menu boards to incorporate the mandated disclosures.
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Chain restaurants
Must display mandated warning icons and explanatory text on menus and menu boards beginning January 1, 2027.
Maryland Department of Health
Must adopt regulations, publish online compliance guidance, administer an education campaign, and submit a 2032 legislative report.
Restaurant consumers
Will see standardized sodium and added sugars warning icons and health risk notices on chain restaurant menus.
Key Facts
- Chain restaurants defined as having 20 or more locations doing business under the same name and offering substantially similar menu items are subject to the requirements.
- High added sugars content is defined as 25 grams or more of added sugars per serving.
- High sodium content is defined as 1,150 milligrams or more of sodium per serving.
- Standard menu items that appear on a menu or menu board for less than 60 calendar days per year are excluded.
Show all 10 facts
- The Maryland Department of Health must adopt regulations establishing warning icons, accompanying text, and minimum sizing by January 1, 2027.
- The Department of Health must publish guidance on its website and administer a continuing education campaign during calendar year 2027.
- Chain restaurants must display the required warning icons and explanatory text on each menu or menu board beginning January 1, 2027.
- Prominent explanatory text regarding sodium and added sugar health risks must be displayed at least once on each menu or menu board at the point of selection.
- Violations of the new warning icon requirements are exempt from criminal misdemeanor penalties but remain subject to civil penalties up to $5,000.
- The Department of Health must submit a report reviewing the impact of the requirements to the General Assembly on or before July 1, 2032.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which restaurants must display the sodium and sugar warning icons?
What constitutes high sodium and high added sugars under the bill?
When do chain restaurants have to start displaying the warning icons?
Are restaurants subject to criminal penalties if they fail to display the icons?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently passed both. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Law.
Procedural history
25 actions- Apr 13, 2026SenateSenate Conference Committee Appointed (Senators A. Washington, Lam and Mautz)
- Apr 13, 2026SenateFloorSenate Refuses Concur House Amendments
- Apr 13, 2026SenateHouse Conference Committee Appointed (Delegates Woorman, Alston and Hutchinson)
- Apr 13, 2026SenateHouse Refuses Recede
- Apr 10, 2026HouseHouse Conference Committee Appointed (Delegates Woorman, Alston and Hutchinson)
- Apr 10, 2026HouseHouse Refuses Recede
Show 19 earlier actions
- Apr 10, 2026HouseSenate Requests House Recede
- Apr 10, 2026HouseFloorSenate Refuses Concur House Amendments
- Apr 9, 2026SenateSenate Requests House Recede
- Apr 9, 2026SenateFloorSenate Refuses Concur House Amendments
- Apr 8, 2026HouseFloorThird Reading Passed (96-35)
- Apr 3, 2026HouseFloorSecond Reading Passed with Amendments
- Apr 3, 2026HouseFavorable with Amendments { 633828/1 Adopted
- Apr 3, 2026HouseCommitteeFavorable with Amendments Report by Health
- Mar 24, 2026HouseHearing 3/31 at 1:00 p.m.
- Mar 24, 2026HouseCommitteeReferred Health
- Mar 23, 2026SenateFloorThird Reading Passed (31-12)
- Mar 20, 2026SenateFloorSecond Reading Passed with Amendments
- Mar 20, 2026SenateFloor Amendment { 163720/1 (Senator A. Washington) Adopted
- Mar 20, 2026SenateFavorable with Amendments { 643921/1 Adopted
- Mar 19, 2026SenateFloorMotion Laid Over (Senator Gallion) Adopted
- Mar 19, 2026SenateFavorable with Amendments { 643921/1
- Mar 19, 2026SenateCommitteeFavorable with Amendments Report by Finance
- Feb 11, 2026SenateHearing 2/25 at 1:00 p.m.
- Feb 6, 2026SenateIntroducedFirst Reading Finance
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
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Sources
mgaleg.maryland.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance75How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy45Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz30Current news / social attention level
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