Police Scanner Laws in Maryland (2026): Is It Legal?

The law in Maryland

There are no state statutes restricting the ownership, use, or mobile operation of a police scanner in Maryland. Scanners may be used in vehicles, in public, and in any legal context.

Enforcement reality

No enforcement history. Scanner use is fully protected.

What you can monitor in Maryland

With a police scanner in Maryland, you can legally listen to any unencrypted public safety channel, including:

• Fire department dispatch and operations
• EMS and ambulance communications
• NOAA weather alerts and emergency broadcasts
• Unencrypted police channels (where available)

The radio systems most often recorded in Maryland are First Responders Interoperable Radio System Team (FIRST), Montgomery County, MD.

Before buying a scanner, check whether your local agencies in Maryland have encrypted their communications. If they have, your scanner won't be able to receive their transmissions regardless of legal status.

What's already encrypted in Maryland

Scanner use being legal in Maryland does not mean everything is listenable. Our database currently tracks 15 agencies in Maryland that encrypt at least some radio traffic, across 5 counties. Of those, 5 encrypt all monitored channels rather than only a few.

The encryption most commonly recorded in Maryland is P25 AES-256 (14 agencies), and P25 AES (1 agency).

3 of these 15 records have been verified against RadioReference system data; the remainder are unverified and may be out of date. Encryption status changes without notice — confirm the current status of any specific agency on RadioReference before relying on it.

Frequently asked questions