Opinion ID: 1467068
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Process to Annex and Rezone

Text: Prior to 1971, Art. 23A, § 9(c) contained no restriction on a municipality's authority to annex and rezone adjacent territory. See Prince George's Co. v. Laurel, 262 Md. 171, 179, 277 A.2d 262 (1971). The General Assembly limited that power, however, by amending § 9(c) to prohibit a zoning classification that permits substantially different uses from the county's master or general plan for five years after annexation. Ch. 116, Acts of 1971. We upheld that restriction in Md.-Nat'l Cap. P. & P. v. Rockville, 272 Md. 550, 325 A.2d 748 (1974) ( Rockville II ). We noted that ch. 116's purpose was to preserve the integrity of the Master Plan adopted by the jurisdiction or commission having planning power immediately prior to annexation. In enacting Chapter 116, the General Assembly validly could have considered that the planning and zoning functions frequently involve large areas, and not merely the land being annexed; and, therefore, that a substantial change in the zoning of an annexed tract might well be disruptive to the planning for the surrounding areas. Id. at 561, 325 A.2d 748. Thus, under the 1971 amendment to § 9(c), a municipality, for a five year period, could only zone newly annexed territory for land uses similar to those permitted by the county prior to annexation. By ch. 613 of the Acts of 1975, the General Assembly again amended § 9(c) to allow substantially different rezoning of annexed land without regard to the five-year limitation, if the municipality obtained the express approval of the appropriate county. As amended, therefore, nothing in § 9(c) purports to preclude a municipality from rezoning annexed land when, as here, it obtains the county's express consent. And this is so without regard to whether the proposed zoning classification is for land uses similar or different from the use for the land specified in the county's master or general plan. [3] But nothing in § 9(c) eliminates the requirement that the municipality comply with the pertinent provisions of Art. 66B, and with its own charter, when it engages in the process of zoning newly annexed land. See R. Anderson, American Law of Zoning 3d § 5.27, at 430-31 (1986). We have consistently stated that Articles 23A and 66B must be read together. E.g., Rockville I, supra, 269 Md. at 247, 305 A.2d 122; Laurel, supra, 262 Md. at 183-84, 277 A.2d 262; City of Annapolis v. Kramer, 235 Md. 231, 234, 201 A.2d 333 (1964). We have also approved the combination of zoning and annexation in one resolution. Beshore v. Town of Bel Air, 237 Md. 398, 411, 206 A.2d 678 (1965). The legislature is presumed to know existing law when it enacts new legislation. Board of Educ., Garrett Co. v. Lendo, 295 Md. 55, 63, 453 A.2d 1185 (1982); Equitable Tr. Co. v. State Comm'n, 287 Md. 80, 88, 411 A.2d 86 (1980). Thus, if the General Assembly wanted to allow changes in zoning during annexation without regard to the provisions of Art. 66B, we think that it would have clearly so provided. Furthermore, the General Assembly expressed its concern for stability and continuity in land use by its 1971 amendment of § 9(c). Rockville II, supra, 272 Md. at 561, 325 A.2d 748. Because a blanket five-year ban on zoning changes may frustrate, not promote, appropriate land use, see id., the General Assembly by its 1975 amendment provided, in effect, that (1) if the annexing municipality could satisfy Art. 66B, § 4.05(a), and (2) obtain the approval of the appropriate county, it could zone the new territory for uses substantially different than those permitted prior to annexation. If Art. 23A, § 9(c) is read in this way, it protects adjacent property owners and the county's interest in stability and promotes the most appropriate land use. See generally Comment, Zoning Change: Flexibility vs. Stability, 26 Md.L.Rev. 48 (1966) (discussing Maryland's commitment to stability in land use).