A provision buried in the 2026 Maryland budget proposes funding the operations of the Maryland Archives by implementing a $0.20 per page fee to view or download public real estate documents, such as plats, deeds, mortgages, and liens on MDLANDREC.net.
NAIOP argued against the fee during the 2025 General Assembly session and has joined with seven other real estate trade associations to work toward a legislative review and alternative solutions.
The latest FAQ from the Archives sets a launch date of May 30th. Monthly subscriptions for Small Business Reserve members are set to range from $500 to $1,500, but most users will face higher costs. The fee applies to all pages in a document, even if not viewed, and access expires after 30 days, requiring repurchase. The fee structure is significantly higher than surrounding jurisdictions and could amount to $1,600 to $5,000 per month or as high as $10,000 per month, depending on a user’s needs.
Compounding the level of concern is that, since 1991, real estate industry groups have supported a surcharge on recorded instruments to create the Real Property Records Improvement Fund which provides dedicated funding to digitize and maintain the online property database. That surcharge, which started at $5, is currently $40. The Archives’ proposal would put the database of documents funded by those recordation surcharges behind a paywall.
The Real Property Records Improvement Fund surcharge already generates significant annual revenue and currently has a $73.9 million balance. Separate budget provisions transferred $20 million of that balance to the General Fund.
The Archives projects $12 million annual revenue from the new fee, far exceeding the $800,000 annual cost of maintaining the system and providing funding for other, unrelated operations.
Industry groups submitted a briefing and analysis to budget committees and the governor’s staff that recommended delaying implementation, analyzing current fund usage, and adopting unlimited access fee models to reduce financial unpredictability.