City of Gaithersburg v. Montgomery County

The only issue in this case concerns the validity, under Art. XI-E of the Maryland Constitution, of Chapter 116 of the Laws of Maryland 1971. That statute, which adds a clause to Maryland Code (1957, 1973 Repl. Yol.), Art. 23A, § 9 (c), provides that no municipality annexing land may, for five years following annexation, rezone the land so as to permit a use substantially different from the use specified in an adopted master plan of the county or agency having planning and zoning jurisdiction over the land prior to its annexation. Chapter 116, enacted as an emergency law, became effective on…