Delaware Bills

signed · Delaware · House Oct 21, 2022

HB 206: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO BACKGROUND CHECKS FOR EMPLOYEES, CONTRACTORS, AND VOLUNTEERS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES.

This bill requires criminal background checks for any current or prospective employee, contractor, and volunteer of the Division of Health and Social Services (DHSS) who visits children in their homes and in the community and has regular, direct access to children or adolescents under the age of 18. The background check includes fingerprinting for Delaware and national background checks as well as a check of the Child Protection Registry. An individual who has a disqualifying criminal conviction or is on the Child Protection Registry at Level III or IV may not be an employee, contractor, or volunteer in any capacity that involves visiting children in their homes or the community or having regular, direct access to children. DHSS, if it chooses, may use its Background Check Center, which processes background checks for individuals working in home-care and long-term care facilities. It differs from the original bill in that it permits DHSS to use its Background Check Center to accomplish these additional background checks, specifies Child Protection Registry status that is disqualifying, and makes other minor technical changes.

signed · Delaware · Senate Oct 21, 2022

SB 144: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO OFFENSES AGAINST PUBLIC HEALTH, ORDER, AND DECENCY.

This Act modernizes the hate crime statute and consolidates related offenses together with the hate crime statute in the Criminal Code. Changes to the hate crime statute include: (1) That the hate crime be motivated, in whole or in part, on a bias. This reflects instances where a hate crime is committed but is only motivated in part by hate in addition to another component. (2) That the focus be on the defendant’s belief or perception. Currently our law focuses on the victim’s actual race, gender, religion, or other immutable characteristic, rather than focusing on the state of mind of the defendant. This change refocuses the inquiry on the defendant’s state of mind, and specifically, what the defendant believes to be true at the time the act was committed. (3) Prohibiting any crime committed in whole or in part on a belief or perception of an immutable characteristic of a group. This Act adds “group” to make clear that a hate crime can be committed because of the hate towards a group at large. In addition, this Act does the following: (1) Combines and updates the existing desecration and desecration of a burial place sections maintaining the existing penalties. (2) Establishes a right of civil remedies to allow individuals to seek relief from hate crime, desecration, and religious symbol burning related injury. (3) Requires law enforcement to report violations and investigations of violations of hate crimes to the Division of Civil Rights and Public Trust. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.

signed · Delaware · House Oct 21, 2022

HB 313: AN ACT TO AMEND THE CHARTER OF THE TOWN OF MILLSBORO RELATING TO THE POWER TO BORROW MONEY AND ISSUE BONDS, AND ANNUAL AUDIT.

This Act amends the Millsboro Charter to require the town auditor to make and deliver the annual audit report to the Town Council by the date of the Council's regular meeting in January after the end of the fiscal year. If the Town receives 100% principal loan forgiveness from a federal, state, or local government, a special election is not required for the project. Additionally any portion of principal forgiveness value granted shall not count toward the Town's aggregate limit of any borrowing authorization previously approved by a special election vote for the proposed loan.

signed · Delaware · House Oct 21, 2022

HB 279: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO CERTIFICATION OF CENTRAL SERVICE TECHNICIANS.

This Act establishes certification and continuing education requirements for central service technicians working in hospitals and freestanding surgical centers. Central service technicians are an important part of the healthcare team responsible for decontaminating, inspecting, assembling, disassembling, packaging, and sterilizing reusable surgical instruments and equipment. This Act requires individuals who perform the tasks of a central service technician to pass a nationally accredited examination and to hold either a certified registered central service technician credential or certified sterile processing and distribution technician credential within 18 months of hire. This Act grandfathers anyone working as a central service technician in a health care facility on or before January 1, 2023.

signed · Delaware · House Oct 21, 2022

HB 425: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE LYME DISEASE OVERSIGHT BOARD.

This bill makes needed changes to the Lyme Disease Oversight Board by adding 2 members including an infectious disease epidemiologist and a licensed veterinarian or entomology specialist.

signed · Delaware · Senate Oct 21, 2022

SB 268: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 10 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE ESTABLISHMENT OF UNITS WITHIN THE ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE OF THE COURTS.

This Act reflects the Administrative Office of the Courts’ current managerial authority and budgetary control over the Judicial Information Center, the Office of State Court Collections Enforcement, and the law libraries. Title 10 § 1941 is repealed in its entirety as the use of the law libraries is no longer limited solely to judges. Spaces have been modernized to accommodate use by lawyers, self-represented litigants, and members of the public to conduct legal research and access other legal resources.

signed · Delaware · House Oct 21, 2022

HB 329: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE STATE BUREAU OF IDENTIFICATION.

This bill updates the State Bureau of Identification’s definition of “criminal justice agency” in two ways. First, by adding the Division of Management Support Services in the Department of Services for Children, Youth & Their Families to reflect the shift in some criminal justice functions to that Division from the Division of Family Services. Second, by clarifying that the Office of the Child Advocate is a criminal justice agency. The Office of the Child Advocate provides legal representation to children in foster care, and the Investigation Coordinator, located within the Office of the Child Advocate, is a member of the criminal multidisciplinary response to child abuse and neglect.

signed · Delaware · House Oct 21, 2022

HB 368: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO FIREWORKS.

This Act deletes from the Delaware Code a derogatory and highly offensive term for Italian-, Spanish-, and Portuguese-American immigrants.

signed · Delaware · House Oct 21, 2022

HB 334: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 24 RELATING TO PRACTICE BY TELEHEALTH AND TELEMEDICINE.

This bill permits health-care providers who are licensed in a state other than Delaware to deliver health-care services by telehealth and telemedicine only if a health-care provider-patient relationship has been established in accordance with § 6003 of Title 24.

signed · Delaware · House Oct 14, 2022

HB 381: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 13 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE FAMILY LAW COMMISSION.

Delaware’s modern-day, statewide Family Court was established in 1971, unifying what had been multiple family law-related court systems throughout the state. In 1984, the Family Law Commission (“FLC”) was created to study and evaluate Delaware’s domestic relations, or family, laws and the Family Court’s rules and procedures; review legislation relating to family law and the Family Court; disseminate family law-related information to Delawareans; and engage in other related activities that it deemed appropriate. From its inception, FLC’s mandate and authority has been focused, limited to conducting public hearings, inviting written comments from the public, reviewing and commenting on family law-related legislation, and publishing information for the public. For many years, FLC served an important role in the progress and improvement of Family Court. Thirty-eight years after its creation, however, FLC is no longer serving a public need. Family Court celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2021; countless changes and improvements have been made to Family Court’s rules and procedures, as well as Delaware’s domestic relations laws. FLC, however, remains tasked with the same, limited duties as it first was tasked in 1984. This Act fulfills the Joint Legislative Oversight and Sunset Committee’s conclusion after a thorough review that FLC should be terminated. FLC’s role in the progress of the modern-day Family Court cannot be diminished, and it is a testament to its previous success that it is no longer needed to ensure a working Family Court in the State of Delaware.

signed · Delaware · House Oct 14, 2022

HB 412: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 9 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTIONS IN NEW CASTLE COUNTY.

This Act revises the property tax exemption process for New Castle County by updating the application process to reflect the current organization of New Castle County government and by doing all of the following: 1. Repealing the existing deadline to file an application for an exemption. 2. Establishing an effective date for approved exemptions that is the later of the date the property owner met the criteria for the exemption or 3 years before the date of the application. 3. Establishing how New Castle County determines and processes property tax refunds, including proration for situations when the property was owned by a nonexempt transferor for part of a tax year and clarifying that school taxes cannot be refunded through this process. 4. Requires New Castle County to review all applications for exemption from taxation that were decided on or after January 1, 2017, under the law as revised by this Act, and process any refunds. Owners of real property that are entitled to exemptions include religious, educational, or charitable entities often have limited resources and limited knowledge of the laws regarding exemption from property taxation. Missing the deadline to submit an application for exemption from property taxes causes serious economic harm to these entities. Repealing the application deadline has minimal impact on certainty for New Castle County’s budget, particularly in contrast to the heavy strain that an unanticipated tax bill places on these entities whose services are beneficial to the residents in New Castle County. In addition, limiting the effective date for exemptions to 3 years before the date an application was submitted further minimizes the potential impact on certainty for New Castle County’s budget.

signed · Delaware · Senate Oct 14, 2022

SJR 7: VACATING THE PARKLAND DEDICATION OF APPROXIMATELY .204 ACRES OF NEW CASTLE COUNTY TAX PARCEL NO. 10-023.00-001.

This Act vacates the parkland dedication for approximately .204 acres of Tax Parcel No. 10-023.00-001 (Parkland Property). The removal of the parkland dedication allows for New Castle County to transfer that portion of the Parkland Property under § 1521(e) of Title 9 and as set forth in the Settlement Agreement between the Department of Transportation (DelDOT) and a private property owner, Dash In, to resolve a condemnation action filed by DelDOT. Due to the Property’s unique location, there are no known current or future public needs or benefits in continuing to restrict the use of the .204 acre portion of the Parkland Property as parkland and under the Settlement Agreement, New Castle County will receive approximately .204 acres of land in close proximity to the Parkland Property.

Bill results