Maryland school drill law

What drills does Maryland require?

Maryland law requires the State Superintendent to have each county superintendent hold a fire drill in each public school, under the State Fire Prevention Code. A state board rule requires each local school system, and the SEED School, to set and carry out a yearly drill schedule for each school, with six other drills held every year in addition to fire drills.

The rules define a drill as a formal exercise in which school staff or students rehearse the emergency plan, or parts of it. MSDE's Emergency Planning Guidelines (December 2019) are incorporated by reference into these rules. The rule sets no reunification drill and no month or term for the six non-fire drills; it requires each of them once a year. The Guidelines recommend, but do not require, that schools practice each type of drill at least once a year and the most common drills once a semester.

What about school bus drills?

School vehicle evacuation drills must be held twice each school year. This rule is part of the school transportation rules, which apply to local school systems that provide transportation for public school students.

What does the fire code say about fire drills?

The State Fire Prevention Code has the force of law across Maryland, and it incorporates the 2024 edition of NFPA 101, the Life Safety Code. At least one fire emergency egress drill must be held every month the school is in session, unless the code's listed exceptions apply. Among those exceptions, the code allows monthly drills to be deferred in climates where the weather is severe. Where the exception applies, the State Fire Prevention Code requires a school building fully protected by sprinklers to hold five fire drills a year, with at least two in the first four months of the school year. Under the same code, a school building not fully protected by sprinklers must hold eight a year, with at least three in the first four months of the school year. One fire drill is required within the first 30 days of operation, except at schools open year-round. All occupants of the building must take part in the fire drill.

What records and reports are required?

Each public school must keep records of its fire drills and send a copy to the county superintendent. Each nonpublic (private) school must keep records of its fire drills and send a copy to the State Board of Education. By September 30 each year, each local superintendent must certify to the State Superintendent that the emergency-plan rules, including the drill schedule, are being carried out. By August 1 each year, each local school system must send the Maryland Center for School Safety a report on the previous school year. From July 1, 2026 (2026 Md. Laws Ch. 666), that report must include school hours spent in an emergency or an emergency drill. It must also include incidents in which a school's emergency plan failed, in part or in whole, to work as expected in an emergency or an emergency drill.

What limits apply to active shooter drills?

MSDE may adopt rules adding age-appropriate active shooter components to each system's drill schedule. This is allowed, not required, and they may take the form of a training instead of a drill. Active shooter drills or trainings added to the schedule must be developmentally and age-appropriate. The current drill schedule rule, COMAR 13A.02.02.04C, names no active shooter drill among its six annual drills. Except for a voluntary drill or training after school hours, active shooter drills or trainings may not include:

• loud sounds meant to imitate gunfire or explosions;
• live exercises with role-players acting as a shooter or a victim;
• similar activities that could make the drill traumatic for students or staff.

What must local school systems do around active shooter drills?

Local school systems must work with local law enforcement to set policies for responding to an emergency at each public school. They must give parents the yearly schedule of active shooter drills or trainings at the start of the school year. They must announce these drills or trainings in advance to students and staff, and notify parents afterward. They must provide a mental health follow-up for students and staff after each one. They must identify students and staff who may need extra support during and after a drill, including those with a disability or who have experienced trauma. They must collect data on how effective the drills are and their psychological impact, including feedback from staff, parents and students, and report it to the Maryland Center for School Safety. The Center had to identify best practices for active shooter drills or trainings by October 1, 2024. Before each school year, starting with 2025-2026, MSDE must review those best practices.

Who is covered?

The emergency-plan rules apply to Maryland's 24 local public school systems and the SEED School. The fire drill law applies to each public school. A separate law, Educ. § 7-408.1, requires each nonpublic (private) school in Maryland to hold fire drills under the State Fire Prevention Code. Maryland public charter schools must follow the laws and rules that govern other public schools. A charter school cannot be granted a waiver from laws or rules on the health or safety of its students or staff.

What has changed recently?

The active shooter drill law, HB 416, was enacted in 2024 as Chapter 182. HB 311 (2026), on disability access and emergency planning, was enacted as Chapter 666. Its Senate cross-file, SB 507, was also enacted, as Chapter 665, approved by the Governor on May 26, 2026. According to the bill's Fiscal and Policy Note, local school systems must add to their annual reports to the Center any case where a school became inaccessible to a student with a disability in a way that could slow evacuation. An earlier version, HB 694 (2025), was last referred to the Senate Education, Energy, and the Environment Committee on March 12, 2025, and was never enacted.