Delaware Bills

signed · Delaware · House Aug 1, 2023

HB 207: AN ACT TO AMEND THE CHARTER OF THE TOWN OF MILTON.

This Act amends the Charter of The Town of Milton. Specifically, Section 1 of the Act allows for an exception to the lengthy annexation process for a contiguous property owner seeking annexation if the property is two acres or less. Section 2 of the Act then sets up that less cumbersome annexation process for properties two acres or less. Section 3 of the Act replaces the list of exceptions to competitive bidding with incorporation by reference of the more detailed Town of Milton Procurement Policy. Section 4 of the Act reinstates a prior limit on real property taxes to a function of the total of assessed values within the Town. Specifically, the “cap” is 0.5% of that total. Currently, the cap is a fixed number, $1,750,000. However, the Town has annexed into its limits a number of parcels that will necessarily require additional expenditures of Town funds for services such as policing and, therefore, the Town will need to collect additional real property taxes.

signed · Delaware · House Aug 1, 2023

HB 114: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLES 16 AND 25 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO RECOVERY HOUSING.

Substance use disorder constitutes a severe threat to the health and welfare of the citizens of Delaware. Recovery residences address the needs of individuals in recovery from substance use disorder by providing a safe and healthy living environment and a community of supportive recovering peers to which residents are accountable. Recovery residences support the recovery of individuals with substance use disorder and help prevent relapse, criminal justice system involvement, and overdose. Ensuring the certification of recovery residences according to nationally recognized evidence-based standards protects residents and communities from the harm caused by poorly managed or fraudulent recovery residences. This Act institutes a voluntary certification process for recovery residences under standards and procedures that uphold evidence-based best practices and support a safe, healthy, and effective recovery environment. This Act establishes residents' rights of a recovery residence and protects residents against unreasonable and unfair practices in setting and collecting fees and other residence payments. This Act provides training and technical assistance for recovery residence operators and staff. This Act enables the data collection needed to study the effectiveness of Delaware’s recovery residences. This Act also excludes a certified recovery house admission agreement from the provisions of the Landlord-Tenant Code.

signed · Delaware · Senate Jul 31, 2023

SB 119: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 13 AND TITLE 31 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO GUARDIANSHIP OF A CHILD.

This Act amends Chapter 23, Title 13 relating to guardianship and permanent guardianship of a child. The Act does all of the following: 1. Repeals § 351, Title 31, and embeds the requirement for assessments of non-relative guardianship petitioners in Chapter 23, Title 13, the statute for guardianship of a child. 2. Revises the definition of relative for Chapter 23, Title 13, to include the relationships outlined in § 351, Title 31 for whom assessment is not required. This revision also expands eligibility for relative permanent guardianship petitioners. 3. Clarifies that when a parent consents to guardianship, a reason for establishing the guardianship is still required. 4. Moves the parental consent provision previously in § 2353(c) to § 2353(a)(1). 5. Creates separate grounds for granting guardianship when parental rights have been terminated and are vested in DSCYF or a licensed agency. 6. Requires parental consent or a Court order for a guardian or permanent guardian to relocate a child if it will materially affect a parent’s visitation. This provision mirrors the relocation provision in § 734, Title 13. 7. Adds an individual with whom a child in DSCYF custody is placed as a person eligible to serve as a permanent guardian. 8. Clarifies that either a TPR ground or a parent’s consent is required to grant a permanent guardianship. 9. Clarifies that a permanent guardianship petitioner must have the child placed with them for 6 months immediately preceding the filing of the petition. This requirement is also expanded to include relatives, unless the court finds just cause to waive the requirement for a relative petitioner. 10. Provides judicial discretion, where extraordinary circumstances are found, to grant permanent guardianship to a foster parent or individual with whom a child in DSCYF custody is placed when none of the other exceptions apply. 11. Makes minor technical changes to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual, including replacing "and/or" with the appropriate conjunction and using gender silent language.

signed · Delaware · Senate Jul 31, 2023

SB 124: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE REPORTING OF CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT.

This Act clarifies when reports of child abuse or neglect, including suspected human trafficking of a child, are required to be made orally to the Department’s report line and when they may be made via the Department’s online reporting portal. This Act also clarifies that licensed professionals who make reports may not remain anonymous.

signed · Delaware · House Jul 31, 2023

HB 183: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO ENDANGERING THE WELFARE OF A CHILD.

This Act revises the existing crime of endangering the welfare of a child by providing or permitting a child to consume or inhale unprescribed controlled substances in the following ways: 1. Prohibits a person from intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly making controlled substances or prescription drugs available to a child through exposure, consumption, or inhalation. 2. Creates new penalties for endangering the welfare of a child through exposure, consumption, or inhalation of drugs. This Act requires a greater than majority vote for passage because § 28 of Article IV of the Delaware Constitution requires the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each house of the General Assembly to expand the scope of an existing crime within the jurisdiction of the Court of Common Pleas, Family Court, or Justice of the Peace Court.

signed · Delaware · House Jul 31, 2023

HB 182: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11, TITLE 13, TITLE 16, AND TITLE 31 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO CHILD ABUSE.

Sections 1 through 6 of this Act revise the State's existing child abuse laws as follows: (1) Revises Child Abuse in the Third Degree by removing extraneous language and redesignating it as Child Abuse in the Fourth Degree. (2) Revises Child Abuse in the Second Degree by redesignating it as Child Abuse in the Third Degree and making it a class D felony. (3) Revises Child Abuse in the First Degree by removing extraneous language, adding a sentence enhancement for certain aggravating factors, and redesignating it as Child Abuse in the Second Degree. (4) Creates a new crime of Child Abuse in the First Degree, a class A felony, when a person intentionally or recklessly causes serious physical injury to a child and that injury causes permanent disfigurement, permanent impairment of health, or permanent loss or impairment of a bodily organ. (5) Creates a new crime of Child Torture, a class B felony. (6) Creates a new crime of Continuous Child Abuse when a person intentionally or recklessly engages in 3 or more acts of child abuse or child torture over a period of time not less than 3 weeks in duration. Sections 7 through 9 and 11 through 14 of this Act make conforming amendments to the Delaware Code based on the revisions made by Sections 1 through 6 of this Act. Section 10 of this Act designates Child Abuse in the First Degree and Child Abuse in the Second Degree as violent felonies.

signed · Delaware · Senate Jul 27, 2023

SB 111: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 26 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO ELECTRIC UTILITY RESTRUCTURING.

This bill clarifies and confirms that utilities and farm customers may enter into contracts, such as power supply agreements, that specify how Excess kWh Credits will be applied at the end of an annual billing period.

signed · Delaware · Senate Jul 26, 2023

SB 61: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 14 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO ABSENCES OF SCHOOL EMPLOYEES.

Teachers and other school employees (school employees) do not accrue annual leave that can be used on a flexible basis. Under current law, school employees may only use 3 days of sick leave for personal reasons and may be absent for 5 days after the death of an immediate family member and for 1 day only, on the day of the funeral, after the death of a near relative. This Act makes the following changes to the days that school employees may be absent without loss of pay: 1. Allows a school employee to use the 1 day of leave provided for the funeral of a near relative on the day before or the day after the funeral. 2. Increases the number of days of sick leave that a school employee can use for personal reasons from 3 to 5. 3. Provides that a chief school officer may not ask a school employee the reason they are requesting to be absent for personal reasons and can only deny the school employee's request because of operational requirements. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual, including all of the following: 1. Clarifies the definition of “immediate family”. 2. Corrects an internal reference in subsection (j) that has been incorrect since 1971 when the language regarding excused absences by employees of special school districts, the City of Wilmington, and the State Board of Education in subsection (g) was repealed and the current requirements for the payment of unused sick leave were first enacted. Finally, Sections 2 through 4 of this Act provide that if House Bill No. 65 is enacted in 2023, school employees will receive the same bereavement leave as state employees after a pregnancy loss. If HB 65 is not enacted in 2023, these changes will not take effect.

signed · Delaware · Senate Jul 26, 2023

SB 55: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE ESTABLISHING THE DELAWARE RARE DISEASE ADVISORY COUNCIL.

This bill establishes the Delaware Rare Disease Advisory Council which, among other things, is intended to educate medical professionals, government agencies, legislators, and the public about rare diseases. There are about 7,000 known rare diseases, and they create major public health challenges. The Advisory Council is charged with engaging in activities intended to benefit rare disease patients in Delaware, including encouraging and securing funding for the development of new treatments for rare diseases.

signed · Delaware · House Jul 26, 2023

HB 60: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLES 18, 29, AND 31 RELATING TO BREAST CANCER SCREENING AND DIAGNOSTIC PROCEDURES.

To prevent Delawareans from facing exorbitant costs for potentially life-saving screenings and follow-up tests, and to allow providers to use clinical judgement in the use of breast cancer examination tools based on established national standards, this Act requires that all insurance policies issued or renewed in this State include coverage of supplemental and diagnostic breast examinations on terms that are at least as favorable as the coverage of annual screening mammograms. The Act covers all group, blanket, and individual health insurance policies (except specified accident, specified disease, hospital indemnity, Medicare supplement, long-term care or other limited benefit health insurance policies) as well as the State employee healthcare plan and Medicaid. This substitute bill differs from the original bill in that it makes technical corrections, excludes certain health, and adds to the definition of breast MRI.

signed · Delaware · Senate Jul 26, 2023

SB 102: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO PREVAILING WAGE.

This Act closes a loophole in the prevailing wage statute that was being used to pay workers below the prevailing wage by performing work offsite instead of onsite, regardless of whether it was necessary to do so. This bill also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.

signed · Delaware · House Jul 25, 2023

HB 107: AN ACT TO AMEND THE CHARTER OF THE CITY OF SEAFORD RELATING TO THE CITY'S ABILITY TO BORROW MONEY AND ISSUE BONDS.

This bill authorizes the City of Seaford to incur short or long-term debt for state or federal revolving loan funds for critical water, sewer, stormwater, or wastewater treatment facilities or projects from state or federal revolving loan funds without having to meet special election requirements otherwise required by the charter for incurring such debt.

Bill results