ANNAPOLIS, MD — Governor Wes Moore today announced legislative action to strengthen Maryland’s economic competitiveness—especially across Maryland’s lighthouse industries—through the Delivering Economic Competitiveness and Advancing Development Efforts (DECADE) Act of 2026. The legislation promotes the administration’s ongoing commitment to driving private investment in the state.
“You can’t have a competitive state without a growing economy, and you cannot have a growing economy without a clear economic strategy,” said Gov. Moore. “By making big bets on lighthouse industries and investing in Maryland businesses, we are positioning Maryland to lead the nation, drive innovation, and create new pathways to work, wages, and wealth for all Marylanders.”
The DECADE Act of 2026 focuses exclusively on enhancing programs administered by the Department of Commerce to increase their return on investment. The legislation also extends the duration of successful, high-impact programs—like the Build Our Future program—and strengthens Maryland’s capacity to move at the speed of business by promoting flexibility with economic development tools, strengthening effectiveness of tax credits across key sectors, and modernizing programs and processes to reflect today's rapidly changing global economy.
Key provisions of the DECADE Act include:
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Build Our Future Grant Program Extension and Modernization: Extends the Build Our Future Grant Program, which provides matching grants of up to $2 million to increase construction of innovative infrastructure for high-growth sectors, to 2030. The Act also moves the program's administration to the Maryland Economic Development Corporation (MEDCO) to streamline processing and expand opportunities for more Maryland businesses.
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RISE Zone Program Revitalization: Modernizes and strengthens the placemaking initiative by moving administration to MEDCO, extending zone certification and rental assistance eligibility, creating “RISE Zone Catchment Areas” to enhance community development, and removing restrictive eligibility requirements for start-up businesses. The program continues to leverage higher education and federal facility assets to attract businesses and create jobs, with a new option for quantum-focused zones.
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Strategic Fund Modernization: Moving administration of the Economic Development Opportunities Program Fund—which supports economic development opportunities that create and retain employment—to the Maryland Department of Commerce to increase flexibility to target incentives to major business attraction projects in target sectors.
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Encouraging Film Industry Growth: Eliminating the $10 million per-production cap for the Film Production Activity Tax Credit, allowing Maryland to secure larger productions—which will hire more Marylanders and engage more Maryland businesses, creating greater economic impact.
“I am enthusiastic to work with the governor and the administration on his roadmap to economic development and revitalization for the state of Maryland,” said Senate Finance Committee Vice Chair Antonio Hayes. “His effort to restructure and incentivize programs, like the Regional Institution Strategic Enterprise Zone (RISE) will help attract businesses and create jobs unlocking the potential of communities where they are located.”
“I am pleased to see the Governor's strong focus on growing Maryland's economy, which should be every elected leader's top priority,” said House of Delegates Economic Development Subcommittee Chair Lily Qi. “The past year’s federal actions reminded us of the risk of our super dependency on federal spending. This is the time to double down on our resolve to support strategic industries, remove barriers to doing business in Maryland, and expand opportunities for our communities.”
The governor’s economic growth agenda for the 2026 legislative session builds upon the strides that the Moore-Miller Administration made last year, attracting more than $10 billion in private investment in the state. In 2025, the Maryland Department of Commerce awarded nearly $174 million in funding to companies, helping to create and retain more than 4,800 jobs. The department also drove the administration’s work to promote lighthouse industry growth and investment during the governor’s first international trade and investment mission to Asia; attracting the first foreign quantum companies to Maryland through a Global Gateway partnership with UMD’s Quantum Foundry; and securing partnerships from Microsoft and DARPA to support the $1 billion Capital of Quantum Initiative.
Governor Moore and AstraZeneca last year announced a $2 billion investment—the largest private capital investment in the state in the last decade—to expand manufacturing in Frederick and build a new clinical facility in Gaithersburg, supporting 2,600 jobs. Most recently, the governor also welcomed Samsung Biologics to Rockville, where the company plans to retain more than 500 jobs while creating additional jobs and new opportunities for local suppliers.
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