This Act requires each public school district to equip the schools within their respective jurisdictions with an adequate number of panic buttons that may be used to immediately alert local law enforcement authorities of a security threat at a school. Once activated, the required silent alarm system will immediately alert authorities without simultaneously activating an audible alarm within the school building.
As a public school safety measure, this bill requires that any door to a classroom will be equipped with a lock that can be locked from either side of the door. Many doors are currently not capable of locking from the inside. Locking the door(s) to a classroom from inside the classroom would enable precluding a school intruder from entering that classroom. The Act permits schools 5 years from the date of enactment to bring existing structures into compliance with this requirement. New construction and major renovations must comply with the requirement immediately upon enactment.
This Act requires insurers to check if an individual owes child support arrears before making a payment to the individual and permits the Division of Child Support Services to attach a lien to an insurance payment awarded pursuant to a settlement or award. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
Every year, over 100 million animals are used as subjects of scientific and medical research, as well as for educational purposes. As recently as 2015, over 19,000 cats and over 61,000 dogs were used in research. In Delaware in 2015, 82 cats and 85 dogs were used in research. While some dogs and cats are still obtained from Class B dealers, most dogs used in research today are bred either in laboratories or by private companies that sell strictly to labs. After these animals are used, they may be euthanized even though they may still be healthy and suited for adoption. This Act requires research facilities that receive public funding to offer their cats and dogs for adoption instead of euthanizing them when they are no longer needed. Permitting private placement adoptions allows students or staff members of the institution to adopt these animals directly without waiting for a formal adoption process through the rescue organization or shelter. For dogs and cats not adopted by students or staff, this Act creates a clear path to transition cats and dogs from the laboratory or testing facility to an adoption center by requiring the research institution to enter into a contract with an animal rescue group or shelter that can offer these animals the possibility of living out the rest of their lives in a loving home.
This Act updates the membership of the Telecommunications Relay Service Advisory Committee to include the groups currently engaged in ensuring telecommunications relay services are provided to Delawareans who need relay services. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
This Act amends Section 3-304 of the City of Wilmington’s Home Rule Charter to allow the City of Wilmington to determine whether and to what extent its employees are required to be City residents. This Act does not affect residency requirements that exist elsewhere in the City of Wilmington’s Home Rule Charter, such as the residency requirement for City Council members under Section 2-103. This Act is subject to the requirements of § 841 of Title 22, prohibiting a residency requirement for an individual employed by the City for 5 years or more.
This Act addresses the serious problem of individuals dumping large quantities of trash on public and private property, by: • Defining a “substantial quantity” of litter as being more than an amount contained in a standard garbage can. • Providing enhanced penalties for the unlawful dumping of a substantial quantity of litter. • Creating the Litter Investigation and Enforcement Fund, funded through restitution paid by offenders of this chapter, to support investigations to identify those who violate this chapter. This Act clarifies that a public authority or agency is not required to provide litter receptacles in a park or recreation area that is designated as a carry-in and carry-out facility. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
This bill removes two out-of-date sections of the Division of Motor Vehicles' code. The first section to be deleted relates to a prohibition against a person displaying any card, sign, insignia, etc. of the Delaware Automobile Association unless they are a member of that Association. DMV believes the Association no longer exists as a separate entity. The second section relates to requirements for any vehicle provided by a railroad company that is used to transport railroad employees. DMV advises this section has never been enforced to anyone's knowledge.
This bill changes the program for distributing payments to cities with tax-exempt properties owned by the State. Instead of directing payments only to county seats (Wilmington, Dover, and Georgetown), the bill will authorize payments as well to any city with a population over 25,000 and more than 20% tax exempt property. It also raises the annual cap on the amount distributed by $500,000 and adjusts the formula under which these distributions are made. This bill improves the formulas to enable the elimination of specific dollar earmarks, and to enable all of our state higher education institutions to be treated equally in this section. The bill is designed to ensure a slight dollar increase to each of the three county seats, while initially adding Newark to the program, at a much lower benefit level than the other three cities.
This Act adopts the Uniform Law Commission’s Revised Uniform Athlete Agents Act (“Revised Act”), revising Chapter 54, Title 24 of the Delaware Code, which is based on the Uniform Law Commission’s Uniform Athlete Agents Act (“Uniform Act”). In the early 2000s, Delaware and 42 other states adopted the Uniform Act. Delaware’s version of the Uniform Act included a Board of Athlete Agents Examiners (“Board”), which was sunsetted by the Joint Legislative Oversight and Sunset Committee in 2012 and removed from the Delaware Code by Senate Bill 184 of the 146th General Assembly (78 Del. Laws, c. 376). In addition to removing provisions related to the Board, Senate Bill 184 also removed provisions requiring athlete agents doing business in Delaware to be registered and subject to administrative oversight. In 2015, the Uniform Law Commission adopted the Revised Act to enhance protections for student athletes and educational institutions, create a uniform body of athlete agent registration information, and simplify the registration process. The changes made to the Uniform Act by the Revised Act became necessary as athlete agent tactics have become more advanced and the industry has become more sophisticated. The need for the Revised Act is highlighted by a recent FBI investigation into athlete agent activities related to the college basketball programs at a number of Division I schools. The Revised Act provides additional safeguards for student athletes by requiring that athlete agents be licensed and that agency contracts contain specific notice provisions. The Revised Act has been enacted by 11 states, with 3 of those enactments occurring this year, passed both chambers of the Minnesota legislature, and is currently being considered in the North Carolina legislature.
Section 1 of this Act allows those licensed as importers to pay tax upon the sale of alcoholic beverages to customers, instead of the tax being due when the alcoholic beverages come to rest in the State of Delaware. Section 2 of this Act provides that if any of the provisions are found to be unconstitutional, the remaining provisions will stand. Section 3 of this Act provides that the legislation will be effective as of August 1, 2018.
This House Concurrent Resolution urges the President and Congress to enact legislation that would reinstate the separation of commercial and investment banking functions that were in effect under the Glass-Steagall Act.
