This Act removes the requirement for a lifeguard at a pool exclusively serving a residential or apartment community not accessible to the general public. Under existing law, a lifeguard is not required at a hotel, motel, or campground. A lifeguard is not required in a family community when the pool is or will ultimately be owned by residents. Requiring a lifeguard at a pool that is not accessible to the public increases the cost for private communities which must be passed on to tenants in the form of higher rent. This legislation aligns the statutory and regulatory requirements so that the lifeguard requirement in a rental community is the same as for a single family residential community, hotel, motel, and campground.
This Act is a substitute for Senate Bill No. 2. Like Senate Bill No. 2 this Act does all of the following: (1) Creates an application process to obtain a handgun qualified purchaser permit to authorize the purchase of a handgun. While an applicant will incur costs related to fingerprinting and required training, a fee will not be charged to obtain the permit. A holder of a valid concealed carry permit, a qualified law-enforcement officer, and a qualified retired law-enforcement officer are not required to obtain or present a handgun qualified purchaser permit. (2) Prohibits a licensed importer, manufacturer, or dealer, as well as unlicensed persons, from selling or transferring a handgun to an individual unless the individual has a handgun qualified purchaser permit. (3) Requires that an applicant complete a firearms training course within 5 years before the date of application, similar to what is required by Delaware’s concealed carry permit law. (4) Makes clear that § 904A of Title 24 is not intended to prohibit law-enforcement officials from keeping records. (5) Requires the Department of Safety and Homeland Security to develop and administer a firearms training voucher program for low-income residents to provide low-income residents with a voucher to cover the costs of the firearms training course required under Section 1 of this Act. (6) Makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. This Act differs from Senate Bill No. 2 as follows: (1) By increasing the time a handgun qualified purchaser permit is valid from 180 days to 1 year. (2) By requiring the Superior Court to schedule the de novo hearing within 15 days of the filing of the appeal rather than to hold the hearing within 21 days of the filing of the appeal. (3) By extending the implementation timeline of Sections 1 and 5 of this Act from a maximum of 6 months from the date of the Act’s enactment to a maximum of 18 months from the date of the Act’s enactment.
This Act removes membership with the Blood Bank of Delaware as a recognized benefit by the State due to changes in policies in how hospitals and insurance companies bill for blood replacement and blood replacement procedures.
House Bill 162 authorizes the process of natural organic reduction to be used in this State. Natural organic reduction is the gentle, respectful process that accelerates the decomposition of human remains to soil. This process uses large vessels to hold human remains together with straw, wood chips, or other natural materials for about 30 days. The human remains and organic materials, mixed together with warm air, are periodically turned and the process eventually results in reduction of the human remains to a soil material that can then be provided to the deceased individual's family. Natural organic reduction is considered a more eco-friendly cremation alternative, forgoing the usage of formaldehyde and the release of carbon dioxide and mercury into the atmosphere. The process also uses 1/8 the energy of cremation. Section 3 removes "and by the Attorney General or a deputy attorney general" from § 3163 of Title 16, which was overlooked when Chapter 164 of Volume 68 of the Laws of Delaware was enacted, removing similar language in § 3159 of Title 16. Section 12 of this Act replaces the citation to § 3162 of Title 16 with a citation to § 3159. Section 3162 was transferred to § 3159 when Chapter 31 was reenacted by Chapter 274 of Volume 68 of the Laws of Delaware, but this citation was overlooked. This Act takes effect the earlier of 1 year from the date of the Act's enactment or notice in the Register of Regulations that final regulations to implement this Act have been adopted. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. 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. This Substitute No. 1 to HB 162 adds requirements to those already set forth in HB 162 for natural organic reduction facilities and changes the permissible chemical limits for final remains after natural organic reduction. This Substitute also sets forth circumstances that preclude remains from being admitted to a natural organic reduction facility. This Substitute defines “final remains” and “last remains” identically in Title 12 of the Delaware Code to allow for the use of either phrase throughout that Title. This Substitute also makes typographical and technical corrections to conform existing and drafted law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
This bill names the Newark Regional Transportation Center after United States Senator Thomas R. Carper.
This Act makes technical corrections to remove racist language and provisions from the Delaware Code. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual and the current responsibilities of Delaware agencies.
This Act changes the name of the Division of Research to the "Division of Legislative Services" (Division) to more fully reflect the tasks that the Division performs. In addition to legislative research, the Division's tasks include drafting bills, editing the Delaware Code, staffing task forces, printing bills and other materials for the General Assembly, providing constituent and legislator services through the Legislative Information Office, and publishing the Register of Regulations and Administrative Code. This Act also gives the Director of the Division a consistent job title throughout the Code. Section 28 and Section 43 of this Act change "Legislative Council" to the Division to conform the law to current practice. For reports that must be submitted to the Division, this Act makes consistent that those reports must be submitted to the Librarian of the Division, in addition to the Director. Section 62 delays the effect of this Act until November 6, 2024, to coincide with the start of the 153rd General Assembly. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
Medicaid is generally the “payer of last resort,” meaning that Medicaid only pays claims for covered items and services if there are no other liable third-party payers for the same items and services. When Medicaid beneficiaries have one or more additional sources of coverage for health care services, third-party liability (TPL) rules govern the legal obligation of such third parties. Section 1902(a)(25)(A) of the Social Security Act defines third-party payers as health insurers, managed care organizations, and group health plans, among others. The federal Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022 (CAA 2022), enacted March 15, 2022, increased state flexibility with respect to TPL. Section 202 of the CAA, 2022 amended section 1902(a)(25)(I) of the Act to require a state plan for medical assistance to provide assurances satisfactory to the Secretary that the state has state laws in place that bar responsible third-party payers (other than Medicare plans) from refusing payment for an item or service solely on the basis that such item or service did not receive prior authorization under the third-party payer’s rules. Specifically, if the responsible third party requires prior authorization for an item or service furnished to a Medicaid-eligible individual, the responsible third party must accept the authorization provided by the state that the item or service is covered under the state plan (or waiver of such plan) for such individual, as if such authorization was made by the third party for such item or service. Authorization by the state means that the item or service an individual received (and for which third-party reimbursement is being sought) is a covered service or item under the Medicaid state plan (or waiver of such plan) for that individual. The effective date for this new federal provision is January 1, 2024, with an exception for states that first need to pass state legislation to comply with the change in law. This bill is intended to update the provisions of Title 18, § 4003 to make them consistent with federal law contained in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022.
This Act requires all individual, blanket, and group health insurance policies to cover annual ovarian cancer screening tests for women at risk for ovarian cancer. It further expands the scope of monitoring tests available to women subsequent to ovarian cancer treatment.
This Act codifies the Motorcycle Rider Education Advisory Committee (“Committee”). The Committee must meet at least quarterly to monitor the Motorcycle Rider Education Program and assess the future needs of and recommend improvements to the Program.
This bill expands the timeframe in which a candidate may withdraw from the presidential primary election, including the option of not holding such an election in the event of only one remaining candidate. The approximate cost of a Presidential Primary election for the State is $1.5 million. This Act expires on December 31, 2024.
This Act is a follow-up to House Bill No. 201, as amended by House Amendment No. 3 and Senate Amendment No. 3, which was passed in 2023. That bill originally repealed the offense of “Possession of a weapon in a Safe School and Recreation Zone,” which was not actually a separate crime but rather operated as an aggravator and sentence enhancement on certain underlying crimes, and replaced it with “Possession of a firearm in a Safe School and Recreation Zone” which is a separate and self-contained criminal offense. Subsequently Senate Amendment No. 3 was passed and attached to the bill. That amendment separated the “school zone” from the “recreation zone” offenses and was intended to reinstate the original sentence enhancement scheme for offenses in a “Safe Recreation Zone.” This Act reinstates references in the “Safe Recreation Zone” statute to weapons other than firearms and makes other minor technical corrections. This Act also adds a qualified retired law-enforcement officer who is employed or contracted by a school or district to assist with security or investigations to the list of persons exempt from the prohibition on the knowing possession of a firearm in or on a Safe School Zone. It also clarifies that constables employed by a school or a school district and acting in an official capacity are exempt.
