Maryland added nearly 18,000 jobs during 2026, according to late-July reporting, offering evidence that the state has begun to recover from substantial federal workforce losses. The improvement remains partial and uneven: federal employment and several private-sector industries were still weaker through June, while education, health services, and state and local government posted gains.

The latest figures matter in a state unusually exposed to federal employment. Changes in federal hiring affect household income, private businesses, state revenues and demand for public services. The available data do not show that Maryland’s economy has fully recovered.

Federal employment remains the largest weakness

A June employment update reported that federal government employment was down 20,000 jobs from a year earlier. Trade, transportation and utilities also declined, falling by 15,000 jobs over the same period.

Maryland’s private-sector employment fell by 400 jobs in June and was down 6,400 jobs over the previous 12 months, according to the Joint Economic Committee’s Maryland update. Those figures show that the reported 2026 job gains have not been spread evenly across the state’s economy.

The federal losses followed a difficult period for Maryland’s broader labor market. The Maryland Comptroller’s first-quarter 2026 economic snapshot reported that the state lost 49,900 jobs year over year between March 2025 and March 2026. The Comptroller also reported that Maryland’s labor-force participation rate fell from 64.8% in the first quarter of 2025 to 64.0% in the first quarter of 2026.

Education, health and government added jobs

Some sectors moved in the opposite direction during June. Private education and health services gained 1,700 jobs, while state and local government gained 1,000.

Those increases are important because they point to areas that helped offset losses in federal employment and other industries. They also connect the employment report to services Maryland residents use, including education and health care. The approved data do not establish how the gains were distributed among regions, occupations or demographic groups.

The state and local government increase may also affect the public-sector workforce and the operation of government services, but the available sources do not identify specific agencies, programs or changes in service levels.

Different reporting periods explain the mixed picture

The nearly 18,000 jobs added in 2026 is a year-to-date figure cited in separate late-July reporting. The other figures cover different periods: the Comptroller’s 49,900-job decline compares March 2025 with March 2026, while the Joint Economic Committee’s sector figures compare June with the previous year or, for private employment, with the prior month.

Because the reference periods differ, the numbers should not be treated as one single employment series. Together, however, they describe a state beginning to regain jobs while still carrying significant losses tied to federal employment and weakness in parts of the private economy.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics identified June 2026 as the latest fully documented month in the available Maryland employment data as of Aug. 6. Its Maryland labor-market and sector estimates, like other employment estimates, are preliminary and subject to revision.

What comes next

The next major monthly Maryland employment release was not yet available on Aug. 6. The next update will provide a clearer test of whether the reported recovery continued beyond June and whether federal employment and trade, transportation and utilities remained under pressure.

For Maryland workers, households and state policymakers, the central question is not only how many jobs were added, but where those jobs are being created and whether the gains can offset the continuing federal losses. The current data support a more limited conclusion: Maryland’s labor market is recovering from part of the damage, but the recovery is not complete.

What DOJ issued on July 23, 2026

In a DOJ Office of Public Affairs announcement, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the department released updated guidance to strengthen federal protections for religious liberty. DOJ characterized the update as the first revision since 2017, made to reflect significant Supreme Court decisions issued over roughly the past nine years.

DOJ’s guidance is directed at “executive departments and agencies.” It directs agencies to ensure federal programs, employment practices, contracting, rulemaking, and enforcement actions comply with the Constitution, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) of 1993, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, and other applicable federal laws.

What changed from the 2017 guidance

DOJ says the 2017 framework is being revised and expanded. In its summary of the update, DOJ highlights several practical changes agencies are expected to incorporate:

• Integration of recent Supreme Court precedent that DOJ says clarifies the scope of the First Amendment, RFRA’s broad protection of religious liberty, and the requirement of equal treatment toward religious organizations in government programs.
• Protection of parental rights, emphasizing constitutional protections for parents’ ability to direct the religious upbringing of their children.
• Reaffirmation of church autonomy, including constitutional protections DOJ says bar government interference in internal religious governance, including employment.
• Expanded direction for federal agencies, including proactively considering religious-liberty impacts when developing rules and policies, designating officers to review regulatory proposals for compliance, and considering religious-liberty concerns raised during notice-and-comment.
• Clarified protections in federal employment, including DOJ’s instruction that agencies follow recent Office of Legal Counsel opinions when accommodating religious expression and practice in the workplace (including scheduling accommodations and workplace religious expression).
• Safeguards for religious organizations in federal contracting and grant programs, including a directive that agencies may not condition participation on relinquishing religious character or hiring rights—and must permit religious organizations to compete on equal footing with secular organizations.

Where agencies are told to apply religious-liberty review

DOJ’s announcement lays out five operational areas where executive agencies are expected to build religious-liberty considerations into decision-making:

• Programs and day-to-day operations, so agencies treat religious exercise as including religious conduct in daily life—not just belief and worship.
• Employment practices and accommodations, including workplace scheduling and religious expression accommodations.
• Contracting and grant administration, including rules for federal program participation and contracting/grant competition.
• Rulemaking, including internal compliance review and attention to notice-and-comment input.
• Enforcement, including expectations that enforcement actions respect RFRA and other legal protections.

The legal anchors DOJ emphasizes: RFRA and Title VII

DOJ’s announcement repeatedly ties the guidance to compliance with statutory and constitutional requirements. It specifically directs agencies to comply with RFRA (1993) and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, while emphasizing that religious exercise includes religious conduct in daily life and should be reasonably accommodated whenever practicable and permitted by law.

Parental rights and “church autonomy” in federal administration

Two parts of DOJ’s summary are likely to matter to families and to religious organizations that interact with the federal government.

First, DOJ says the update emphasizes Supreme Court precedents recognizing constitutional protections for parents’ ability to direct their children’s religious upbringing. Second, DOJ says the guidance reaffirms protections against government interference in internal church governance, including employment.

For readers, the practical point is process: DOJ is telling agencies to build these considerations into how they evaluate rules, employment policies, program participation questions, and enforcement decisions—not to guarantee a particular result in every individual dispute.

What to watch next (and how readers may feel the change)

Because this is agency guidance, the effects will typically show up through implementation rather than immediate nationwide outcomes. DOJ says agencies are being directed to take steps such as updating internal review processes, compliance tools, and regulatory review procedures—along with attention to public input during notice-and-comment.

For readers who interact with federal programs—through employment, federal grants, government contracting, or regulatory participation—the “watch next” items are:

• Agency rollout documents that translate DOJ’s memorandum into internal checklists or training.
• New or revised agency policy language for religious accommodations in hiring and workplace settings.
• Contract and grant administration updates reflecting DOJ’s stated approach to religious character and hiring-related protections.
• Rulemaking references to religious-liberty impact review steps during rule development and notice-and-comment.

If you work for a federal contractor or a religious organization competing for federal assistance—or you’re seeking a religious accommodation in a federal workplace context—the most useful near-term question is how the specific agency is applying DOJ’s stated RFRA/Title VII framework in its current decision process.

Sources

• DOJ Office of Public Affairs press release (July 23, 2026): Acting Attorney General Blanche issues updated guidance to strengthen federal religious liberty

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is taking effect a final update to 5 CFR part 731 on July 30, 2026. OPM says the rule improves how OPM and agencies vet suitability and fitness risks—and it formalizes that employees can face suitability procedures and actions based on post-appointment conduct.

What “post-appointment conduct” means in practice

In OPM’s framing, the rule connects conduct that happens after someone is hired/appointed into Federal service to the same suitability process that has long been used for applicants. Importantly, OPM also stresses that this is about character and conduct, not performance issues.

Where the authority shifts: agencies flag; OPM decides the Part 731 outcome

A key change is how the regulation separates roles when an issue involves an employee’s post-appointment conduct in the competitive service or career Senior Executive Service (SES).

• Agencies: If an agency has information suggesting an employee’s post-appointment conduct may implicate one or more suitability factors, the agency head or designee decides whether a proper and sufficient referral should be sent to OPM.
• OPM: Under Part 731, only OPM may take a suitability action against the covered employee when the basis is post-appointment conduct—and OPM reviews the referral to decide whether an action is warranted.

OPM also cautions that a referral must be supported by substantiated conduct (not just continuous vetting alerts, unverified allegations, or anonymous complaints).

What changes inside the suitability “factor” system

OPM says the final rule updates the suitability factors used in Part 731 decisions, including expanding the set from nine to ten. OPM also says the rule makes clear that the ten factors may be considered in assessing an individual’s suitability or fitness regardless of whether the person is an applicant, appointee, or employee—closing a gap that previously limited which factors could support OPM action against employees.

Training requirements are embedded in the regulation

OPM says the final rule incorporates expectations that people responsible for suitability screening, review, or determinations be trained to the National Training Standards (NTS) for Suitability Adjudicators. OPM also notes that it published the June 30, 2026 final rule and that relevant training content “reflects” the final rule changes that will not be effective until July 30, 2026.

What federal employees and HR teams should do next

• Check internal post-appointment conduct pathways: make sure your agency knows when issues may implicate one or more of the suitability factors and how to prepare a referral package.
• Strengthen documentation: OPm emphasizes that “proper and sufficient” referrals must be complete and supported by credible, verifiable evidence that the conduct occurred.
• Confirm training compliance: suitability adjudicators and HR personnel who handle adjudication-related responsibilities should ensure they are meeting the NTS training expectations tied to the July 30 rollout.
• Remember the limits: this rule is an additional suitability pathway; it does not automatically replace other authorities like Chapter 75 adverse actions.

What to watch next

Between now and July 30, 2026, agencies are expected to transition to the updated Part 731 framework. After the effective date, the practical “watch” will be how agencies document evidence and how OPM applies the updated suitability factors and referral standard in employee post-appointment conduct cases.

Sources

• OPM Suitability Executive Agent (SuitEA) — OPM overview/implementation information
• Federal Register (via GovInfo) — OPM final rule revising 5 CFR part 731 (PDF)

What this means for readers: the practical effects are most direct when your job, your workplace policies, or your organization’s obligations involve the federal government—such as federal employment, federal contracting, or federal grants/program requirements. This update is guidance on interpretation and implementation, not a brand-new statute.

What DOJ updated on July 7, 2026

On its Civil Rights Division publications page, DOJ listed two documents under “Other materials,” each tied to federal religious-liberty protections and each linked from the page labeled “Updated July 7, 2026.”

• Attorney General’s memorandum: “Federal Law Protections for Religious Liberty” (dated October 6, 2017), setting out principles for how federal law protections should be interpreted and applied.
• DOJ implementation memo: “Implementation Memo for Attorney General’s Memorandum on Federal Law Protections for Religious Liberty” (also dated October 6, 2017), instructing DOJ lawyers and components how to operationalize the framework.

Core message in the Attorney General’s memo

The Attorney General’s memorandum directs agencies to approach religious liberty as a legal protection under federal law and says religious observance and practice should be reasonably accommodated in all government activity—including employment, contracting, and programming.

In other words, the memo frames accommodation as something federal decision-makers should integrate into how they execute federal responsibilities, rather than treat as an exception handled inconsistently.

What the DOJ implementation memo tells DOJ to do

The companion DOJ memo is the more operational “how.” It directs DOJ attorneys and offices to incorporate the interpretive guidance into:

• Litigation strategy and arguments
• Operations
• Grant administration and other DOJ work

It also instructs DOJ to:

• Have Litigating Divisions and U.S. Attorney’s Offices consider—after consultation—whether to implement the guidance for arguments already made in pending cases that could be inconsistent with the memo.
• Use the interpretive guidance when drafting opinions and advice for other Executive Branch agencies, and alert officials if agency policies may conflict.
• Have the Office of Legal Policy coordinate with the Civil Rights Division to review rulemaking and agency actions submitted for DOJ review for consistency with the interpretive guidance, including whether rules might impose a substantial burden on religious exercise and whether that burden is consistent with RFRA.
• Not concur in rules that appear to conflict with the religious-liberty protections as set out in the interpretive guidance.

Who may feel the impact

• People dealing with federal employment/workplace issues, including requests for religious accommodation in settings governed by federal personnel rules or federal workplace policies.
• Federal contractors and grant recipients—where contracting and grant administration can shape how accommodation-related requests are reviewed.
• Organizations participating in federal programs that are administered through federal grant or compliance requirements.
• Anyone involved in DOJ enforcement or DOJ litigation tied to religious liberty, since the implementation memo directly addresses how DOJ lawyers are expected to argue and coordinate.

What this does—and does not—change

• It does: signals how DOJ and federal agency decision-makers are being directed to interpret and operationalize federal religious-liberty protections when the situation involves federal activity.
• It does not: automatically create a new, immediate private-sector rule for every employer, school, or program in the country. Courts still have final say in disputes.
• Practical bottom line: the guidance is most likely to matter when there’s a clear federal nexus—federal funding, federal contracting, federal employment/workplace rules, or DOJ litigation posture.

What to watch next

• Agency-by-agency internal updates to accommodation review procedures for requests connected to federal programs and federal activity.
• Grant and contract administration guidance that may reflect the new emphasis on the interpretive framework.
• DOJ litigation filings over the coming weeks and months that reflect the implementation memo’s instruction to incorporate the interpretive approach into litigation strategy and to assess consistency in pending matters.

Sources

• Attorney General memo: Federal Law Protections for Religious Liberty (PDF)