Treasurer ‘enthusiastically’ backs bill imposing limits on his fundraising

Maryland Treasurer Dereck Davis (D) told a House committee on Wednesday he “enthusiastically supports” a bill that would block him from raising campaign funds during the General Assembly session.

House Bill 1503 would add the treasurer to the list of elected officials prohibited from fundraising while the legislature is in session.

Del. Denise Roberts (D-Prince George’s). Photo by Bryan P. Sears.

Del. Denise Roberts (D-Prince George’s), a first term lawmaker from Davis’ old legislative district, called the legislation “a good government bill.”

“This bill is in no way meant to be an act against anyone,” Roberts said. “Rather, it is only meant to correct what appears to be an oversight in the Maryland campaign finance law.”

Maryland Matters first reported on Davis’ fundraising efforts in February. Roberts told the House Ways and Means Committee that she filed the bill after reading that article.

The committee wound up passing the bill unanimously on Wednesday evening. It should be debated on the House floor later this week.

Davis served in the House for 26 years, including 19 as chair of the Economic Matters Committee. He has not been on the ballot since the General Assembly elected him treasurer in December 2021.

He has, however, continued to legally solicit donations to his campaign account.

“There’s been the question of why does the state treasurer need to raise money?” Davis said in testimony before the House Ways and Means Committee. “Simple: the state treasurer does not need to raise money. Potentially, candidate Dereck Davis in this particular instance does.”

Davis, 56, is quite different from most who served as treasurer before him. The vast majority were former elected officials who were winding down careers in state government and eyeing retirement.

Davis raised nearly $44,000 in 2023, according to campaign finance reports filed in January.

The treasurer said he is merely staying prepared should a political opportunity arise.

“It’s a flawed theory or flawed thought that you’re raising money just for re-election,” Davis told the committee. “You’re raising money potentially for something that you may do in the future.”

Davis noted that his time as treasurer is reliant on the General Assembly re-electing him during the 2027 session.

“Three years from now, you may decide you want a different treasurer,” he said. “Three years from now, I may decide it’s time to move on. So, for me, it’s not about looking at the next job or the next position. It’s about preparation.”

Davis told the committee he supports Roberts’ bill and already abides by the prohibition on fundraising during session because he was prohibited from doing so as a state delegate.

Davis has not raised a penny during the 90-day legislative sessions since becoming treasurer, according to a review of his annual campaign filings by Maryland Matters.

Under state law, a candidate has eight years to close their state campaign account. That clock starts running on the day the candidate last appears on the ballot or when they leave office, whichever comes later.

For Davis, his eight years started on Dec. 17, 2021, when he left the House of Delegates and was sworn in as treasurer. He could reset that clock if he runs for office — even unsuccessfully — between now and the end of 2029.

This story has been updated to reflect that the House Ways and Means Committee voted in favor of the legislation on Wednesday evening, sending the measure to the House floor.

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