§ 1-205

(a) If a municipality, county, or other political subdivision of the State makes appointments to government positions under a civil service or merit system law or ordinance, the unit that provides eligibility lists for appointments shall adopt rules or regulations to grant special credit to honorably discharged veterans who have been residents of the State for at least 5 years immediately preceding the date on which the veteran takes a merit system examination.

(b) (1) The unit may determine the nature and extent of the special credit granted to veterans.

(2) The unit may grant a greater credit to veterans with a disability than to veterans who do not have a disability.

(c) The credit granted to a veteran under this section may be extended to:

(1) the spouse of a veteran if the veteran is unable to qualify for merit system appointment because of a disability; and

(2) the unmarried surviving spouse of a deceased veteran.

(d) (1) In this subsection, “health emergency” includes:

(i) a national emergency declared by the President of the United States under the National Emergencies Act;

(ii) an emergency or major disaster declared by the President of the United States under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act;

(iii) a public health emergency declared by the Secretary of Health and Human Services under 42 U.S.C. § 247d; and

(iv) a catastrophic health emergency declared by the Governor under § 14–3A–02 of the Public Safety Article.

(2) The unit may exempt war or health emergency veterans under the age of 55 years from any age limitation or requirement.