The USGS has fully funded the collection of LiDAR data for Ellicott City (42 sq mi, QL1) and Howard County (QL2).  The Ellicott City acquisition is scheduled to be complete by December 31; Howard County acquisition by Fall 2019.  Data will be collected at USGS specifications:  Quality Level 1: 8 points/sq meter or more; NPS .35m or better; vertical resolution of 10cm in areas of clear or short vegetation. QL2: 2 points/sq meter, NPS .7m, same vertical resolution as QL1.  Deliverables for both acquisitions include: Classified .laz files, 1-meter DEM, breaklines, intensity return image, metadata, acquisition report.  Data will be available on the USGS National Map and MD iMAP.  Howard County data (2011, QL2 ) is currently the oldest in the state.  Ellicott City has been the site of devastating flooding in recent years and this improved data will facilitate flood modeling and mitigation strategies.