Tree Removal Permits in Glen Burnie, MD

Verified against Glen Burnie city sources · last checked 2026-08-06

Do you need a permit?

It depends on the tree

Glen Burnie is unincorporated Anne Arundel County, so county law governs, and the answer turns entirely on where your tree stands. Outside the Chesapeake Bay Critical Area the county code expressly excepts clearing that disturbs "less than 5,000 square feet of land," so an ordinary removal needs no county permit and there is no diameter threshold at all. Inside the Critical Area buffer it inverts completely: any tree, any size, dead ones included, needs an approved Vegetation Management Plan first. Glen Burnie straddles both. County GIS shows 86 Critical Area polygons inside the community boundary, on the tidal reaches of Marley, Furnace, Curtis and Sawmill Creeks, but none within 8,000 feet of the town centre. A ZIP code proves nothing here; check the parcel.

Size threshold

There is no trunk-diameter threshold in Anne Arundel County, and the county spends a FAQ answer knocking down the myth that there is: "My realtor told me that I could cut any trees on my waterfront lot that are less than 4 inches in diameter, and I don't need a permit. Is this true? No, this is NOT true! We hear this question at least several times a week. All trees of any size, as well as shrubs and vines, are considered habitat in the Critical Area and are subject to the Critical Area law requirements." The thresholds are AREA. Outside the protected overlays, County Code section 16-3-201(b)(5) excepts clearing or grading "disturbing less than 5,000 square feet of land." Inside the Critical Area buffer, expanded buffer or Buffer Modification Area, the county's Grading and Pruning Activity chart says of clearing: "Any area requires approval." The one diameter figure in the code is a penalty multiplier, not a permit trigger: section 17-1-101(102) defines a "tree of significant size" as one with "a diameter measured at 4.5 feet above the ground of 30 inches or more or that is 75% or more of the diameter of the current State champion tree of that species," and section 16-5-105(b)(4) makes clearing one "a Class A civil offense."

What's protected in Glen Burnie

Everything growing in the Critical Area Buffer. Section 18-13-104(a): "There shall be a minimum 100-foot buffer landward from the mean high-water line of tidal waters, tributary streams, and tidal wetlands." COMAR 27.01.09.01-7A(1) is categorical: "Except as authorized under section A(2) of this regulation, a person may not cut or clear trees within the buffer."
The Expanded Buffer. Section 18-13-104(b): "the 100-foot buffer shall be expanded beyond 100 feet to include slopes of 15% or greater, nontidal wetlands, nontidal wetlands of special State concern, and hydric soils or highly erodible soils ... If there are contiguous slopes of 15% or greater, the buffer shall be expanded by the greater of four feet for every 1% of slope or to the top of the slope and shall include all land within 50 feet of the top of the slopes."
Buffer Modification Areas. Section 18-13-104(c) establishes them "with respect to all or part of a lot created before December 1, 1985 on which the existing pattern of development prevents the 100-foot buffer from performing its protective functions. In buffer modification areas, the buffer is not expanded, and specific development criteria apply as set forth in Article 17 of this Code and COMAR."
Steep slopes of 15 percent or more inside the Critical Area but outside the buffer — added to section 16-3-201(a)(2) by Bill 67-25 in 2025.
Recorded Forest Conservation Easements and Bog Protection Areas, anywhere in the county, inside or outside the Critical Area. A Vegetation Management Plan is required for cutting in either.
Understory and even invasive vines inside the Critical Area: "Understory vegetation, including invasive vines, is considered habitat. Replacement with native vegetation on an equal area basis will be necessary."
Forest in the wider Critical Area outside the buffer. In Limited Development and Resource Conservation Areas, "Forest clearing is limited and must be replaced when removed."
Street trees in county-maintained rights-of-way, which are state "street trees" under the Maryland Roadside Tree Law.
NOT protected, by express carve-out: section 17-1-101(16) provides that clearing "does not include gardening or maintenance of an existing grass lawn or removal of hazardous trees." The county adds that once lawn in the buffer "naturally regenerates into forest or woody vegetation, it will require review and approval to clear or mow."

How to apply in Glen Burnie

1
Find out whether your parcel is in the Critical Area before anything else. A Glen Burnie ZIP code tells you nothing. Check the county Critical Area Index and Maps and the 100-foot Buffer and Critical Areas viewer; the adopted sheet covering Glen Burnie is Sheet No. 6, "Furnace Creek / Marley Creek," dated January 25, 2007.
2
Outside the Critical Area, outside any Forest Conservation Easement or Bog Protection Area, and not disturbing enough ground to need a grading permit: there is nothing to apply for.
3
Inside the Critical Area buffer or expanded buffer, in a recorded Forest Conservation Easement, or in a Bog Protection Area, complete the Standard Vegetation Management Plan and submit it to the Department of Inspections and Permits, Forestry Program, before starting work.
4
Include a sketch: "All requests for approval must include a property sketch or aerial photo ... indicating the on-site location of the vegetation or individual trees to be removed. Requests submitted without a sketch or aerial photo may be rejected."
5
Single trees can move faster: "Requests for the removal of individual trees (only) submitted with photographs and a narrative description detailing the need for removal may be processed expeditiously."
6
Mark the trees. "Individual trees proposed for removal must be marked with flagging, tape or paint for inspection purposes. Do not remove any trees or other vegetation until a signed/approved copy of the VMP is received."
7
Post the approval: "Post the approved VMP (or have a copy available on-site) when work is being performed. This is required for inspection purposes."
8
If you plan to pull stumps rather than grind them, file separately: "Extraction of root systems, other than grinding of stumps, constitutes grading and will require separate application and approval of a Grading Permit or Standard Grading Plan."
9
For a street tree, do not cut it. Report a suspected hazard through SeeClickFix or your Road District; the county responds within a week. To plant or replace one, "State law gives the adjacent property owner the right to apply for a Street Tree Project Permit," filed with Maryland DNR at 8023 Long Hill Road, Pasadena, MD 21122.

Fees, penalties, and the ordinance

Fee: No fee is charged to remove an ordinary tree on private property outside the Critical Area, because no permit exists. The county does not publish a settled figure for the Vegetation Management Plan itself and its own recent documents disagree, so no VMP amount is stated here — call the Forestry Program at (410) 222-7441. A Standard Grading Plan, which is separately required if you extract root systems rather than grinding stumps, is published at $75. A Maryland DNR Roadside Tree Project Permit is $25.00 where the applicant is not a public agency. Under COMAR 27.01.09.01-5B(2) a local jurisdiction shall "collect at least $1.50 per square foot of mitigation required" where mitigation is owed in lieu of planting.
Penalties: County first. Section 16-5-101(10) makes it a violation to "clear a developed woodland or forest in the critical area unless authorized under an issued grading permit, building permit, buffer or forest management plan, or standard grading plan." Section 16-5-105(b)(1) makes any Title 3 violation in the critical area "a Class A civil offense," and section 16-5-105(b)(4) does the same for clearing a tree of significant size. Section 9-2-101(f)(1) prices a Class A civil offense at "a fine not exceeding $10,000 for the first violation and any subsequent violation," and subsection (h) adds "Each day that a violation continues constitutes a separate civil offense." Liability is broad — section 9-2-101(j) reaches the person who does the work, the contractor or subcontractor, the property owner, the permit holder (who "shall be strictly liable"), and any architect or engineer who approved it. Then you replant at triple: section 16-5-106 requires a person who clears in violation to "plant at a ratio of three times the area cleared," and section 17-8-602(i) applies the same 3x rule to non-hazardous individual trees. There is a $150 investigation fee under section 16-5-102(e). State law adds a $10,000 ceiling of its own under Natural Resources Article section 8-1808(c)(1)(iii)14, doubles the assessment if you contest and lose (section 8-1808(d)(3)(iii)), freezes all other permits until you pay and restore (section 8-1808(c)(4)), and makes the violation a misdemeanour "subject to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or imprisonment not exceeding 90 days or both" under section 8-1815(a)(2)(i). COMAR 27.01.09.01-2H sets mitigation at 4:1 for a violation and 3:1 for a variance.
Ordinance: Anne Arundel County Code (2005, as amended), published by American Legal Publishing at codelibrary.amlegal.com — NOT Municode. Publisher currency statement: supplement "2026 S-92 (current)"; "County Code is current through January, 2026." Grading and clearing: Article 16 (Floodplain Management, Erosion and Sediment Control, and Stormwater Management), Title 3, Subtitle 2, sections 16-3-201 through 16-3-213, with definitions at section 16-1-101; enforcement at Article 16, Title 5. Critical Area overlay: Article 17 (Subdivision and Development), Title 8, sections 17-8-101 through 17-8-1002, including Subtitle 6 on clearing and reforestation (Bill Nos. 3-05; 93-12; 76-13). Forest conservation: Article 17, Title 6, Subtitle 3, sections 17-6-301 through 17-6-309. Critical Area zoning and the buffer definitions: Article 18 (Zoning), Title 13, sections 18-13-101 through 18-13-402, with the adopted map incorporated by section 18-13-103 (Bill No. 63-21). THE RECENT AMENDMENT: Bill No. 67-25, "Floodplain Management, Erosion and Sediment Control, and Stormwater Management - Clearing and Pruning," introduced July 21, 2025, "READ AND PASSED this 20th day of October, 2025," "APPROVED AND ENACTED this 28th day of October, 2025," with an effective date of "December 12, 2025* *Pending approval by the Critical Area Commission." State law above it: Maryland Natural Resources Article Title 8, Subtitle 18, with the planning area at section 8-1807, local penalty requirements at section 8-1808(c) and tree-clearing remedies at section 8-1815.1; COMAR Title 27, Subtitle 01, Chapter 09. Roadside trees: Natural Resources Article sections 5-401 through 5-411 and COMAR 08.07.02. The county Standard Vegetation Management Plan form is dated "Revised April 2023"; the Grading and Pruning Activity and Permitting/Approvals Chart is dated 7/2/2026. The adopted Critical Area map sheet covering Glen Burnie is dated January 25, 2007.

Worth knowing

Glen Burnie is the split personality of this dataset: the same community name covers parcels with completely different rules. County GIS puts the nearest mapped Critical Area between 8,000 and 12,000 feet from the Glen Burnie centroid, while the tidal edges of Marley Creek, Furnace Creek, Curtis Creek and Sawmill Creek carry dozens of Critical Area polygons. Never generalise from a neighbour.
The county will not help you with a private tree and says so: "Anne Arundel County does not entertain requests for trimming or removal of trees from private property. Such work is the personal responsibility of each property owner."
The county will not remove a street tree for nuisance either: "The County will not remove street trees unless a hazard is present. Trees that drop berries or acorns onto parked cars, trees with nesting (or perched) birds and associated bird droppings, or trees with unappealing appearance or scent are not candidates for removal."
Anne Arundel County holds state authorisation for hazardous roadside work: "Anne Arundel County is authorized by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to remove or trim hazardous trees that occupy County-maintained roadside property."
Inside the Critical Area, who does the work is regulated: "Tree work in the Critical Area may only be performed by the homeowner or a State of Maryland Licensed Tree Expert. Work not performed to industry standards (ANSI A300) may be reported to the State Department of Natural Resources and/or any other licensing agencies." Statewide, Natural Resources Article section 5-417(a)(1) requires an LTE licence for any paid tree work.
Topping is a violation, not a permit category: "Topping of trees will not be approved and may be considered to be a violation."
You cannot clear for a water view. Maryland DNR: "Removal of healthy trees and natural vegetation in the Buffer is not permitted solely for the purpose of creating a view."
Dead trees in the Critical Area are NOT a free pass. Anne Arundel County: "I live in the Critical Area and I have a dead tree that I want to remove. Do I need a permit? Yes. All vegetation removal including dead or damaged trees requires an approved Vegetation Management Plan prior to removal." At state level DNR describes a lighter route — "a property owner can remove the tree by obtaining approval from the local jurisdiction of a Simplified Buffer Management Plan. Each tree removed must be replaced with a 3/4-inch caliper nursery stock tree ... Dead trees do not require replacement, but the area should be stabilized with native vegetation." Both are official. In Anne Arundel County you still file something first.
A genuine emergency lets you cut first and file after, but only in the buffer and only then. COMAR 27.01.09.01-3H(2): "If cutting a tree in the buffer is immediately necessary because of an emergency situation, the applicant shall submit a simplified buffer management plan to the local jurisdiction at the earliest possible time after the tree has been cut."
The whole grading and clearing chapter was amended in late 2025. Bill No. 67-25 was enacted October 28, 2025 and, for the first time, regulates PRUNING in the buffer, extends coverage to steep slopes of 15 percent or more inside the Critical Area, and creates a statutory framework for Vegetation Management Plans and Habitat Enhancement Plans at a new section 16-3-214. The county notes the change is genuinely new: "The addition of a 'pruning' category to the County Code is completely new under 67-25. Previously, this sort of vegetative maintenance activity was handled as 'clearing.'" The codified text on American Legal lags the bill, so read the bill PDF alongside the code.
Pruning has a safe harbour. DNR: "Mitigation is not required as long as the pruning and trimming does not remove more than 25 percent of the living canopy and limbing up of lower branches is limited to the lower one-third of the height of the tree."
An open building or grading permit can block your tree request: "If there are pending or open Building or Grading Permit(s), inclusive of Standard Grading Plans, the requested VMP may be rejected and the applicant instructed to revise open permit(s) for the proposed work."
Trees that fall into a county road get moved, not disposed of: "Resulting tree debris will be placed on the public or private property from which the tree originated. In the case of private property, the owner is responsible for proper disposal of the debris."

What we could not confirm

We would rather tell you what we don't know than guess. Call the office below to confirm these before you cut.

— The application fee for a Vegetation Management Plan. Two recent county documents disagree — a February 2026 departmental notice indicates no fee, while Bill 67-25 as enacted in October 2025 appears to set $75 and $250 figures, and the bill PDF cannot be read reliably because struck-through text does not survive extraction. No amount is published here. Call the Forestry Program at (410) 222-7441 before assuming either way.
— Whether Anne Arundel County holds a delegated or blanket Maryland Roadside Tree Permit covering ordinary work. The county states it is "authorized by" DNR to remove or trim hazardous roadside trees, but the DNR Roadside Tree Program page names only Montgomery County as holding delegated permitting authority, and the county still directs residents to apply to DNR for a Street Tree Project Permit. The two statements are reported as they stand.
— Whether Bill 67-25 actually received Maryland Critical Area Commission approval and on what date it took effect. Its own effective-date line reads "December 12, 2025* *Pending approval by the Critical Area Commission," and section 3 provides that if disapproved "the Ordinance shall be null and void." A February 2026 county notice and a July 2026 county chart both describe it as operative, which strongly implies approval, but no notice of Commission approval was located.
— Whether any county page says in plain words that no permit is needed to remove a tree on private property outside the Critical Area. The conclusion above rests on the express exception in section 16-3-201(b)(5) read with the definitions of "grading" and "clearing" — which is a genuine statutory exemption, not mere silence. But the county's own guidance chart hedges the same square with "0 to 5,000 sf may require approval under a standard grading plan," and adds that the chart "is to be used for informational and guidance purposes only." Call Forestry at (410) 222-7441 if you are near water, on a slope, or pulling roots.
— Whether the County Code defines the term "vegetation management plan" anywhere. Section 16-3-201(a)(2) requires one and the new section 16-3-214 gives it content, but neither section 16-1-101 nor section 17-1-101 defines it. There is also an office mismatch: section 17-1-101(10) assigns approval of a "buffer management plan" to the Office of Planning and Zoning, while the county operationally routes Vegetation Management Plans to Inspections and Permits Forestry.
— Any Anne Arundel County Code provision governing tree removal in the county road right-of-way. Article 13, Title 3 covers utility occupancy and excavation and never mentions trees; Article 13, Title 6 covers only noxious weeds and rank vegetation. State law under Natural Resources Article Title 5, Subtitle 4 appears to govern by default.
— The current Critical Area boundary for any specific Glen Burnie address. The adopted county map sheets are dated January 25, 2007 and a statewide Commission map update project is under way, so the adopted sheets and the current state viewer may not agree. The state "Is My Property in the Critical Area?" tool blocked automated access.
— Which DPW road district serves Glen Burnie. The county lookup is an address-driven JavaScript widget and the only district information published is a map image, so use the online lookup rather than assuming.

Sources

Who to contact in Glen Burnie

Forestry Program, Anne Arundel County Department of Inspections and Permits

Forestry Program (410) 222-7441. Critical Area questions and Planner of the Day: (410) 222-7960; Office of Planning and Zoning main (410) 222-7450. Inspections and Permits main (410) 222-7730. County road right-of-way trees: DPW Bureau of Highways (410) 222-7321, after-hours emergencies (410) 222-8400. Maryland DNR Forest Service, Anne Arundel Project Office: (410) 360-8421; roadside tree program manager (410) 260-8510. forestry@aacounty.org (Forestry Program); ipmailbox@aacounty.org (Inspections and Permits); opzmaproom@aacounty.org (maps and GIS) Official page

Department of Inspections and Permits, Forestry Program, 2664 Riva Road, 4th floor, Annapolis, MD 21401; mail to PO Box 6675, MS 6201, Annapolis, MD 21401. Office of Planning and Zoning, Heritage Complex, 2664 Riva Road, Annapolis, MD 21401. Roadside tree permit applications go to Maryland DNR Forest Service, 8023 Long Hill Road, Pasadena, MD 21122.

Cost Calculators

Find Tree Services

Browse tree trimming and removal companies in Glen Burnie.

View tree services

Related Permits

Get weekly cost & permit updates

Join homeowners who get free insights on project costs, permit changes, and money-saving tips. No spam — unsubscribe anytime.

Free forever. No credit card. Unsubscribe in one click.

Size threshold

What's protected in Glen Burnie

Everything growing in the Critical Area Buffer. Section 18-13-104(a): "There shall be a minimum 100-foot buffer landward from the mean high-water line of tidal waters, tributary streams, and tidal wetlands." COMAR 27.01.09.01-7A(1) is categorical: "Except as authorized under section A(2) of this regulation, a person may not cut or clear trees within the buffer."

The Expanded Buffer. Section 18-13-104(b): "the 100-foot buffer shall be expanded beyond 100 feet to include slopes of 15% or greater, nontidal wetlands, nontidal wetlands of special State concern, and hydric soils or highly erodible soils ... If there are contiguous slopes of 15% or greater, the buffer shall be expanded by the greater of four feet for every 1% of slope or to the top of the slope and shall include all land within 50 feet of the top of the slopes."

Buffer Modification Areas. Section 18-13-104(c) establishes them "with respect to all or part of a lot created before December 1, 1985 on which the existing pattern of development prevents the 100-foot buffer from performing its protective functions. In buffer modification areas, the buffer is not expanded, and specific development criteria apply as set forth in Article 17 of this Code and COMAR."

Steep slopes of 15 percent or more inside the Critical Area but outside the buffer — added to section 16-3-201(a)(2) by Bill 67-25 in 2025.

Recorded Forest Conservation Easements and Bog Protection Areas, anywhere in the county, inside or outside the Critical Area. A Vegetation Management Plan is required for cutting in either.

Understory and even invasive vines inside the Critical Area: "Understory vegetation, including invasive vines, is considered habitat. Replacement with native vegetation on an equal area basis will be necessary."

Forest in the wider Critical Area outside the buffer. In Limited Development and Resource Conservation Areas, "Forest clearing is limited and must be replaced when removed."

Street trees in county-maintained rights-of-way, which are state "street trees" under the Maryland Roadside Tree Law.

NOT protected, by express carve-out: section 17-1-101(16) provides that clearing "does not include gardening or maintenance of an existing grass lawn or removal of hazardous trees." The county adds that once lawn in the buffer "naturally regenerates into forest or woody vegetation, it will require review and approval to clear or mow."

How to apply in Glen Burnie

1
Find out whether your parcel is in the Critical Area before anything else. A Glen Burnie ZIP code tells you nothing. Check the county Critical Area Index and Maps and the 100-foot Buffer and Critical Areas viewer; the adopted sheet covering Glen Burnie is Sheet No. 6, "Furnace Creek / Marley Creek," dated January 25, 2007.
2
Outside the Critical Area, outside any Forest Conservation Easement or Bog Protection Area, and not disturbing enough ground to need a grading permit: there is nothing to apply for.
3
Inside the Critical Area buffer or expanded buffer, in a recorded Forest Conservation Easement, or in a Bog Protection Area, complete the Standard Vegetation Management Plan and submit it to the Department of Inspections and Permits, Forestry Program, before starting work.
4
Include a sketch: "All requests for approval must include a property sketch or aerial photo ... indicating the on-site location of the vegetation or individual trees to be removed. Requests submitted without a sketch or aerial photo may be rejected."
5
Single trees can move faster: "Requests for the removal of individual trees (only) submitted with photographs and a narrative description detailing the need for removal may be processed expeditiously."
6
Mark the trees. "Individual trees proposed for removal must be marked with flagging, tape or paint for inspection purposes. Do not remove any trees or other vegetation until a signed/approved copy of the VMP is received."
7
Post the approval: "Post the approved VMP (or have a copy available on-site) when work is being performed. This is required for inspection purposes."
8
If you plan to pull stumps rather than grind them, file separately: "Extraction of root systems, other than grinding of stumps, constitutes grading and will require separate application and approval of a Grading Permit or Standard Grading Plan."
9
For a street tree, do not cut it. Report a suspected hazard through SeeClickFix or your Road District; the county responds within a week. To plant or replace one, "State law gives the adjacent property owner the right to apply for a Street Tree Project Permit," filed with Maryland DNR at 8023 Long Hill Road, Pasadena, MD 21122.

Fees, penalties, and the ordinance

Fee

No fee is charged to remove an ordinary tree on private property outside the Critical Area, because no permit exists. The county does not publish a settled figure for the Vegetation Management Plan itself and its own recent documents disagree, so no VMP amount is stated here — call the Forestry Program at (410) 222-7441. A Standard Grading Plan, which is separately required if you extract root systems rather than grinding stumps, is published at $75. A Maryland DNR Roadside Tree Project Permit is $25.00 where the applicant is not a public agency. Under COMAR 27.01.09.01-5B(2) a local jurisdiction shall "collect at least $1.50 per square foot of mitigation required" where mitigation is owed in lieu of planting.

Penalties

County first. Section 16-5-101(10) makes it a violation to "clear a developed woodland or forest in the critical area unless authorized under an issued grading permit, building permit, buffer or forest management plan, or standard grading plan." Section 16-5-105(b)(1) makes any Title 3 violation in the critical area "a Class A civil offense," and section 16-5-105(b)(4) does the same for clearing a tree of significant size. Section 9-2-101(f)(1) prices a Class A civil offense at "a fine not exceeding $10,000 for the first violation and any subsequent violation," and subsection (h) adds "Each day that a violation continues constitutes a separate civil offense." Liability is broad — section 9-2-101(j) reaches the person who does the work, the contractor or subcontractor, the property owner, the permit holder (who "shall be strictly liable"), and any architect or engineer who approved it. Then you replant at triple: section 16-5-106 requires a person who clears in violation to "plant at a ratio of three times the area cleared," and section 17-8-602(i) applies the same 3x rule to non-hazardous individual trees. There is a $150 investigation fee under section 16-5-102(e). State law adds a $10,000 ceiling of its own under Natural Resources Article section 8-1808(c)(1)(iii)14, doubles the assessment if you contest and lose (section 8-1808(d)(3)(iii)), freezes all other permits until you pay and restore (section 8-1808(c)(4)), and makes the violation a misdemeanour "subject to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or imprisonment not exceeding 90 days or both" under section 8-1815(a)(2)(i). COMAR 27.01.09.01-2H sets mitigation at 4:1 for a violation and 3:1 for a variance.

Ordinance

Anne Arundel County Code (2005, as amended), published by American Legal Publishing at codelibrary.amlegal.com — NOT Municode. Publisher currency statement: supplement "2026 S-92 (current)"; "County Code is current through January, 2026." Grading and clearing: Article 16 (Floodplain Management, Erosion and Sediment Control, and Stormwater Management), Title 3, Subtitle 2, sections 16-3-201 through 16-3-213, with definitions at section 16-1-101; enforcement at Article 16, Title 5. Critical Area overlay: Article 17 (Subdivision and Development), Title 8, sections 17-8-101 through 17-8-1002, including Subtitle 6 on clearing and reforestation (Bill Nos. 3-05; 93-12; 76-13). Forest conservation: Article 17, Title 6, Subtitle 3, sections 17-6-301 through 17-6-309. Critical Area zoning and the buffer definitions: Article 18 (Zoning), Title 13, sections 18-13-101 through 18-13-402, with the adopted map incorporated by section 18-13-103 (Bill No. 63-21). THE RECENT AMENDMENT: Bill No. 67-25, "Floodplain Management, Erosion and Sediment Control, and Stormwater Management - Clearing and Pruning," introduced July 21, 2025, "READ AND PASSED this 20th day of October, 2025," "APPROVED AND ENACTED this 28th day of October, 2025," with an effective date of "December 12, 2025* *Pending approval by the Critical Area Commission." State law above it: Maryland Natural Resources Article Title 8, Subtitle 18, with the planning area at section 8-1807, local penalty requirements at section 8-1808(c) and tree-clearing remedies at section 8-1815.1; COMAR Title 27, Subtitle 01, Chapter 09. Roadside trees: Natural Resources Article sections 5-401 through 5-411 and COMAR 08.07.02. The county Standard Vegetation Management Plan form is dated "Revised April 2023"; the Grading and Pruning Activity and Permitting/Approvals Chart is dated 7/2/2026. The adopted Critical Area map sheet covering Glen Burnie is dated January 25, 2007.

Worth knowing

Glen Burnie is the split personality of this dataset: the same community name covers parcels with completely different rules. County GIS puts the nearest mapped Critical Area between 8,000 and 12,000 feet from the Glen Burnie centroid, while the tidal edges of Marley Creek, Furnace Creek, Curtis Creek and Sawmill Creek carry dozens of Critical Area polygons. Never generalise from a neighbour.
The county will not help you with a private tree and says so: "Anne Arundel County does not entertain requests for trimming or removal of trees from private property. Such work is the personal responsibility of each property owner."
The county will not remove a street tree for nuisance either: "The County will not remove street trees unless a hazard is present. Trees that drop berries or acorns onto parked cars, trees with nesting (or perched) birds and associated bird droppings, or trees with unappealing appearance or scent are not candidates for removal."
Anne Arundel County holds state authorisation for hazardous roadside work: "Anne Arundel County is authorized by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to remove or trim hazardous trees that occupy County-maintained roadside property."
Inside the Critical Area, who does the work is regulated: "Tree work in the Critical Area may only be performed by the homeowner or a State of Maryland Licensed Tree Expert. Work not performed to industry standards (ANSI A300) may be reported to the State Department of Natural Resources and/or any other licensing agencies." Statewide, Natural Resources Article section 5-417(a)(1) requires an LTE licence for any paid tree work.
Topping is a violation, not a permit category: "Topping of trees will not be approved and may be considered to be a violation."
You cannot clear for a water view. Maryland DNR: "Removal of healthy trees and natural vegetation in the Buffer is not permitted solely for the purpose of creating a view."
Dead trees in the Critical Area are NOT a free pass. Anne Arundel County: "I live in the Critical Area and I have a dead tree that I want to remove. Do I need a permit? Yes. All vegetation removal including dead or damaged trees requires an approved Vegetation Management Plan prior to removal." At state level DNR describes a lighter route — "a property owner can remove the tree by obtaining approval from the local jurisdiction of a Simplified Buffer Management Plan. Each tree removed must be replaced with a 3/4-inch caliper nursery stock tree ... Dead trees do not require replacement, but the area should be stabilized with native vegetation." Both are official. In Anne Arundel County you still file something first.
A genuine emergency lets you cut first and file after, but only in the buffer and only then. COMAR 27.01.09.01-3H(2): "If cutting a tree in the buffer is immediately necessary because of an emergency situation, the applicant shall submit a simplified buffer management plan to the local jurisdiction at the earliest possible time after the tree has been cut."
The whole grading and clearing chapter was amended in late 2025. Bill No. 67-25 was enacted October 28, 2025 and, for the first time, regulates PRUNING in the buffer, extends coverage to steep slopes of 15 percent or more inside the Critical Area, and creates a statutory framework for Vegetation Management Plans and Habitat Enhancement Plans at a new section 16-3-214. The county notes the change is genuinely new: "The addition of a 'pruning' category to the County Code is completely new under 67-25. Previously, this sort of vegetative maintenance activity was handled as 'clearing.'" The codified text on American Legal lags the bill, so read the bill PDF alongside the code.
Pruning has a safe harbour. DNR: "Mitigation is not required as long as the pruning and trimming does not remove more than 25 percent of the living canopy and limbing up of lower branches is limited to the lower one-third of the height of the tree."
An open building or grading permit can block your tree request: "If there are pending or open Building or Grading Permit(s), inclusive of Standard Grading Plans, the requested VMP may be rejected and the applicant instructed to revise open permit(s) for the proposed work."
Trees that fall into a county road get moved, not disposed of: "Resulting tree debris will be placed on the public or private property from which the tree originated. In the case of private property, the owner is responsible for proper disposal of the debris."

What we could not confirm

We would rather tell you what we don't know than guess. Call the office below to confirm these before you cut.

— The application fee for a Vegetation Management Plan. Two recent county documents disagree — a February 2026 departmental notice indicates no fee, while Bill 67-25 as enacted in October 2025 appears to set $75 and $250 figures, and the bill PDF cannot be read reliably because struck-through text does not survive extraction. No amount is published here. Call the Forestry Program at (410) 222-7441 before assuming either way.
— Whether Anne Arundel County holds a delegated or blanket Maryland Roadside Tree Permit covering ordinary work. The county states it is "authorized by" DNR to remove or trim hazardous roadside trees, but the DNR Roadside Tree Program page names only Montgomery County as holding delegated permitting authority, and the county still directs residents to apply to DNR for a Street Tree Project Permit. The two statements are reported as they stand.
— Whether Bill 67-25 actually received Maryland Critical Area Commission approval and on what date it took effect. Its own effective-date line reads "December 12, 2025* *Pending approval by the Critical Area Commission," and section 3 provides that if disapproved "the Ordinance shall be null and void." A February 2026 county notice and a July 2026 county chart both describe it as operative, which strongly implies approval, but no notice of Commission approval was located.
— Whether any county page says in plain words that no permit is needed to remove a tree on private property outside the Critical Area. The conclusion above rests on the express exception in section 16-3-201(b)(5) read with the definitions of "grading" and "clearing" — which is a genuine statutory exemption, not mere silence. But the county's own guidance chart hedges the same square with "0 to 5,000 sf may require approval under a standard grading plan," and adds that the chart "is to be used for informational and guidance purposes only." Call Forestry at (410) 222-7441 if you are near water, on a slope, or pulling roots.
— Whether the County Code defines the term "vegetation management plan" anywhere. Section 16-3-201(a)(2) requires one and the new section 16-3-214 gives it content, but neither section 16-1-101 nor section 17-1-101 defines it. There is also an office mismatch: section 17-1-101(10) assigns approval of a "buffer management plan" to the Office of Planning and Zoning, while the county operationally routes Vegetation Management Plans to Inspections and Permits Forestry.
— Any Anne Arundel County Code provision governing tree removal in the county road right-of-way. Article 13, Title 3 covers utility occupancy and excavation and never mentions trees; Article 13, Title 6 covers only noxious weeds and rank vegetation. State law under Natural Resources Article Title 5, Subtitle 4 appears to govern by default.
— The current Critical Area boundary for any specific Glen Burnie address. The adopted county map sheets are dated January 25, 2007 and a statewide Commission map update project is under way, so the adopted sheets and the current state viewer may not agree. The state "Is My Property in the Critical Area?" tool blocked automated access.
— Which DPW road district serves Glen Burnie. The county lookup is an address-driven JavaScript widget and the only district information published is a map image, so use the online lookup rather than assuming.