This Act implements a recommendation from the December 31, 2023, Report of the Retiree Healthcare Benefits Advisory Subcommittee. Under this Act, the state group health insurance program must include a pensioner coordination of benefits policy for eligible pensioners who were first employed by the State on or after January 1, 2015, and are eligible for health care coverage through their employer that is not through a plan under Chapter 52 of Title 29. The new pensioner coordination of benefits policy begins July 1, 2027, and must be comparable to the exiting coordination of benefits policy for the spouse of a state group health insurance program participant who is eligible for health care coverage through the spouse's own employer. This Act also codifies the existing spousal coordination of benefits policies for the state group health insurance program. The existing spousal coordination of benefits policies and the pensioner coordination of benefits policy created under this Act apply to all participants in the state group health insurance program, which includes regular officers or employees, eligible pensioners, and individuals eligible under § 5208 and § 5209 of Title 29. In addition, this Act makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
This Act increases the amount of the annual appropriation to prefund future State employee retiree health insurance as recommended by the Retiree Healthcare Benefits Advisory Subcommittee of the State Employee Benefits Committee. Like other required contributions to the Other Post-Employment Benefits Fund (OPEB) Fund, this appropriation must be included in the review of and plan for proposed expenditures that the Director of the Office of Management and Budget submits to the Governor and in the Governor's Budget Appropriation Bill. This Act also revises existing law to allow the current practice of making the annual payment to the OPEB Fund of 1% of the operating budget appropriations for the prior fiscal year in a Supplementary Appropriation Bill and makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
The governance of this State relies on the qualifications and performance of the members of the Governor’s cabinet. The General Assembly finds that the confirmation process is an important step to ensure the qualifications and performance of the Governor’s cabinet. This Act implements the process of aligning the end of the term of each of the members of the Governor’s cabinet with the end of the Governor’s term by designating the principal officer of each executive department who is subject to the amendments to § 10 of Article III of the Delaware Constitution proposed by Senate Bill No. 15. The General Assembly’s intent in making this change is to require each member of the Governor’s cabinet to be reconfirmed by the Senate at the beginning of each term of a Governor. This Act also makes the following consistent: (1) The method of determining the annual salary of members of the Governor’s cabinet, by providing that the General Assembly is to set the salary in the annual appropriations act, thereby conforming the Delaware Code to current practice. (2) The preference for members of the Governor’s cabinet being residents of this State on appointment, by removing from the Delaware Code the preference for residency for the Secretary of the Department of Safety and Homeland Security, the Secretary of the Department of Finance, the Secretary of the Department of Transportation, the Secretary of Labor, the Housing Director of the Delaware State Housing Authority, and the Secretary of the Department of State. Residency requirements for members of the Governor’s cabinet are being removed from the Delaware Code by this Act and replaced with a notation that residency requirements are as provided in the Delaware Constitution. Residency requirements for members of the Governor’s cabinet will now be consistent, requiring the members to be residents of this State within at most 1 year after appointment and to remain residents of this State or be deemed resigned from office. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. Because the next General Assembly must concur in the proposed amendment to the Delaware Constitution, this Act does not take effect until the passage of the second leg of the constitutional amendment in the 153rd General Assembly.
This Act implements a recommendation from the December 31, 2023, Report of the Retiree Healthcare Benefits Advisory Subcommittee. Under this Act, the amount of the premium for a health-care insurance plan that this State will pay on behalf of eligible pensioners who were first employed as a regular officer or employee on or after January 1, 2025, and who are not subject to mandatory retirement, is changed as follows: 1. For eligible pensioners employed by the State for at least 15 years but less than 20 years at the time of retirement, 50% of the of the premium. 2. For eligible pensioners employed by the State for at least 20 years but less than 25 years at the time of retirement, 75% of the of the premium. 3. For eligible pensioners employed by the State for 25 or more years at the time of retirement, 100% of the of the premium. All other revisions to current law under this Act are technical changes to improve clarity and conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. These technical changes include the addition of new defined terms and the reorganization of existing law. In § 5201 of Title 29, this Act makes the following technical changes: 1. Revises the definitions of “eligible pensioner”, “plan”, and “regular officer or employee” to remove inconsistent language and align with each other and current law. 2. To avoid repeating phrases in § 5202 of Title 29, clarifies that only for purposes of the amount of the premium paid by the State for health-care insurance plans, the term “eligible pensioner” includes the eligible pensioner’s eligible spouse and dependents and defines the following terms: • “First employed” means the date when the eligible pensioner began work as a regular officer or employee. • “Mandatory retirement” means mandatory retirement for members of the State Police under § 8361 of Title 11. • “Maximum state share" means the amount of the premium that the State pays for a plan before the proration ratio is applied. • “Premium” means the total premium or subscription charge for a health-care insurance plan provided under Chapter 52 of Title 29. In § 5202 of Title 29, this Act makes technical changes to clarify current law regarding the amount of the premium for a health-care insurance plan that this State will pay on behalf of a regular officer or employee or an eligible pensioner by doing the following: 1. Creates the following terms: • “Proration ratio”, which means the percentage applied to the maximum state share. For eligible pensioners, the “proration ratio” is based on when the eligible pensioner was first employed and the number of years the eligible pensioner had been employed as a regular officer or employee at the time of retirement. • “Prorated state share”, which means the dollar amount that the State pays for a plan on behalf of a regular officer or employee or an eligible pensioner. The “prorated state share” is the product of multiplying the proration ratio with the maximum state share. 2. Revises subsection (a) to use the new terms defined under this Act. 3. Transfers the current provisions in paragraphs (b)(1) and (b)(2) that provide the maximum state share for eligible pensioners to subsection (a), so they are with the maximum state share for regular officers and employees. 4. Revises subsection (b) so that the proration ratio and how it is used to determine the prorated state share is explained in paragraph (b)(1) and the proration ratios are provided in paragraphs (b)(2) and (b)(3). • Paragraph (b)(2) lists all groups for whom the proration ratio is 100% because there are no deductions to the maximum state share. • Paragraph (b)(3) provides the proration ratios for eligible pensioners based on the date the eligible pensioner was first employed and years of employment as a regular officer or employee. These ratios clarify that for eligible pensioners who worked for less than the minimum number of years for the 50% proration ratio, the State does not pay anything towards the maximum state share.
Delaware law prohibits discrimination on the basis of protected characteristics in employment and professional activities. This Act would add "housing status" as a protected characteristic.
Delaware law prohibits discrimination on the basis of protected characteristics in housing and property transactions. This Act would add "housing status" as a protected characteristic.
This Act acknowledges the importance of diversity and inclusivity in education by requiring the Department of Education to update content standards and regulations using a non-exhaustive list of racial, ethnic, and cultural groups.
This Act requires crisis pregnancy centers in this state to provide notice if the center is not licensed by this state as a medical facility and does not have a licensed medical provider who provides or directly supervises, in person, the provision of services. A violation of this Act is an unlawful practice under § 2513 of Title 6 and a violation of Subchapter II, Chapter 25 of Title 6.
This Act eliminates the death penalty in Delaware. As such, the penalty for a person who is convicted of first-degree murder for an offense that was committed after the person’s 18th birthday is imprisonment for the remainder of the person’s natural life without benefit of probation or parole or any other reduction.
This bill enables the Delaware Nutrient Management Commission to regulate the application of nutrients to turf by commercial nutrient handlers. The law excludes athletic fields, golf courses, and land used in the production for sale of sod or seed and only applies to commercial nutrient handlers who are paid to apply such nutrients. This bill decreases the threshold of serviced acreage for which commercial nutrient handlers would need a certification to apply nutrients to turf. Allowing the Commission to oversee such conduct will further ensure that Delaware’s waterways are continually improved and maintained to meet or exceed federally mandated water quality standards, in the interest of the overall public welfare. Section 1 of the bill grants the Commission the authority to regulate the application of nutrients to turf and defines turf. Section 2 of the bill broadens the Commission’s pool of potential officers to any appointed member not just the five appointed by the Governor. Section 3 of the bill provides greater detail as to whom the Commission regulates regarding turf and when, as well as setting forth constraints as to when and how certain nutrients can be applied. The commission will reduce the threshold for regulated commercial nutrient handlers from 10 acres of service area to ¼ acre (10,890 sq ft). The definition of commercial nutrient handler is expanded. The requirement of a nutrient management plan is eliminated for areas falling within these newly established constraints. This bill also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
Like Senate Bill No. 301, this Act, Senate Substitute No. 1 for Senate Bill No. 301 requires public universities in this state to provide access to medication for the termination of pregnancy and emergency contraception. The medication and contraception must be provided on-site, but consultation to provide them may be performed by a provider at the student health center or by a provider who is associated with a university-contracted external agency. This Act takes effect on July 1, 2025. Senate Substitute No. 1 for Senate Bill No. 301 differs from SB 301 as follows: - Defines the term "student." - Provides an exception for a university that does not have a student health center, including requirements that the university provide information and referral services to students and ensure that the university's health services website provides specified information relating to reproductive services. - Adds a requirement that universities maintain confidentiality of information a student provides relating to a request for a referral. - Removes references to private institutions of postsecondary education.
The Delaware Medical Orders for Scope of Treatment “DMOST” was enacted in 2016 under HB 64 (148th). The DMOST form allows Delawareans to plan ahead for health-care decisions, express their wishes in writing, and both enable and obligate health care professionals to act in accordance with a patient’s expressed preferences. A DMOST form is different than an Advance Health-Care Directive because a DMOST form contains portable medical orders that respect the patient’s goals for care in regard to the use of CPR and other medical interventions. Currently, DMOST is being underutilized, despite efforts by advocates and the creation of a statewide, electronic registry for DMOST forms hosted by the Delaware Health Information Network (DHIN). This Act will improve the utilization of DMOST forms by health-care practitioners, health-care providers, emergency-care providers, and patients and their families by creating a DMOST Program at the Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS). This Act expands upon DHSS’ current responsibilities under DMOST by doing all of the following: 1. Providing ongoing education and training for health-care practitioners, health-care providers, emergency-care providers, and patients and their families. 2. Maintaining a website for information and education about DMOST. 3. Working with the DHIN to maintain the electronic registry. 4. Coordinating with the National POLST Collaborative regarding current best practices and research. (POLST, which stands for Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment, was the name given to the first tool developed for honoring patients' wishes for end of life treatment in 1991.) 5. Creating a DMOST Steering Committee, consisting of a broad group of stakeholders, to evaluate and improve the DMOST Program and the use of DMOST forms. The DMOST Steering Committee must produce an annual report containing data about the use of DMOST forms, trainings, public education and outreach, and current challenges and recommendations to improve the DMOST Program. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
