Texting laws · Maryland

Maryland texting laws for businesses

What Md. Code, Com. Law §§ 14-4501 to 14-4503 says about a business texting customers in Maryland, read from the statute.

Texting laws by stateStatute read October 29, 2026

The law


Law	Stop the Spam Calls Act of 2023
Citation	Md. Code, Com. Law §§ 14-4501 to 14-4503
In force	January 1, 2024
Covers texts?	Through its consent definition. § 14-4501(d) refers to placing 'a telephone solicitation by telephone call, text message, or voicemail'. The definition of 'telephone solicitation' itself, borrowed from Public Utilities § 8-205, speaks of communicating 'by telephone'.
Applies to	Telephone solicitation: 'an organized activity, program, or campaign to communicate by telephone with residents of Maryland' to sell, lease or rent goods or services, among other purposes (Pub. Util. § 8-205, adopted by § 14-4501(f)).

The rules

Rule	What the statute says	Section
Consent for automated solicitations	'Without the prior express written consent of the called party, a person may not make or cause to be made a telephone solicitation that involves' an automated system for selecting or dialing numbers, or a recorded message.	§ 14-4502(a)(3)
Hours	No telephone solicitation 'during the hours between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m. in the called party's time zone'.	§ 14-4502(c)(1)
Frequency	No more than 'three times to the same called party during a 24-hour period on the same subject matter or issue, regardless of the telephone numbers used'.	§ 14-4502(c)(2)
Caller ID	A person making a telephone solicitation must transmit caller ID and may not alter it to mislead.	§ 14-4502(b)

Texting a customer who contacted you first

The consent rule does not apply to 'a single telephone solicitation made to a customer or client in response to an inquiry or request from the customer or client' (§ 14-4502(a)(1)(v)).
Nor to 'a communication between a business and a customer that have an existing business contract or relationship with each other' if it was initially meant for informational purposes only and became a solicitation 'based on further inquiry from the customer' (§ 14-4502(a)(1)(vi)). It also exempts solicitations for the maintenance or repair of goods previously bought from the solicitor (§ 14-4502(a)(1)(iv)).
Those exemptions are written into subsection (a), the consent rule. The statute does not extend them to the hour, frequency and caller-ID rules in subsections (b) and (c).

This matters for missed-call text-back, which replies to someone who just called the business. Federal rules and the reply-versus-marketing line are covered in is missed-call text-back legal?

Penalties

A called party may sue under § 13-408 to stop violations and 'recover damages up to $500 or actual damages, whichever is greater', up to three times that for a willful or knowing violation (§ 14-4503(a)(2)). A violation is also an unfair, abusive or deceptive trade practice under Maryland's Consumer Protection Act (§ 14-4503(a)(1)).

What the statute does not settle

The statute does not say whether communicating 'by telephone' in the solicitation definition includes text messages; only the consent definition names them.

Questions

Does Maryland law cover text messages from businesses?

Through its consent definition. § 14-4501(d) refers to placing 'a telephone solicitation by telephone call, text message, or voicemail'. The definition of 'telephone solicitation' itself, borrowed from Public Utilities § 8-205, speaks of communicating 'by telephone'.

What happens if a business breaks Maryland's texting law?

Can a business text a customer who contacted it first in Maryland?

The consent rule does not apply to 'a single telephone solicitation made to a customer or client in response to an inquiry or request from the customer or client' (§ 14-4502(a)(1)(v)). Nor to 'a communication between a business and a customer that have an existing business contract or relationship with each other' if it was initially meant for informational purposes only and became a solicitation 'based on further inquiry from the customer' (§ 14-4502(a)(1)(vi)). It also exempts solicitations for the maintenance or repair of goods previously bought from the solicitor (§ 14-4502(a)(1)(iv)). Those exemptions are written into subsection (a), the consent rule. The statute does not extend them to the hour, frequency and caller-ID rules in subsections (b) and (c).

Sources

Read October 29, 2026. Federal law (the TCPA and FCC rules) applies on top of state law everywhere. This page describes what the statute says. It is general information, not legal advice, and it does not cover your message content or your industry. Talk to a lawyer before relying on it.