Rep. Pete Schwartzkopf

This Concurrent Resolution commends the 2023 Delaware Behavioral Health Professional of the Year, Dana Carey, and all of the District/Charter Network Behavioral Health Professionals of the Year.

In Chiafalo v. Washington, 140 S.Ct. 2316 (2020), the United States Supreme Court made clear that states have the authority to remove or punish presidential electors who do not adhere to their obligation to vote faithfully for their parties’ candidates. This Act provides Delawareans with confidence that the votes they have cast will be honored when the Electoral College meets to decide the outcome of presidential elections by providing for the orderly operation of Delaware’s Electoral College voting process. This Act adopts the Uniform Faithful Presidential Electors Act, which was approved by the Uniform Law Commission. The Uniform Law Commission “provides states with non-partisan, well-conceived and well-drafted legislation that brings clarity and stability to critical areas of state statutory law.” This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.

This bill grants authority to the Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) to adopt regulations related to the operation of temporary nurse staffing agencies that staff temporary nurses in long-term care facilities in the State and assigns oversight within DHSS to the Division of Health Care Quality. The bill requires temporary nurse staffing agencies to (1) register annually with the Division of Health Care Quality; (2) validate the qualifications of all provided nurses provided; (3) maintain records of all provided nurses' credentials, job requirements, and required immunizations; and (4) provide all such records upon request to DHSS and to the long-term care facility where the employee is placed. The bill also requires temporary nurse staffing agencies to report annually to DHSS regarding various factors, including its employee placements, costs charged to long-term care facilities, and wages paid to temporary nurses.

This Act amends the requirements necessary for a premises to sell alcoholic liquors for off-premise consumption by removing the requirements for the alcoholic liquor to be sold with a purchase of food that costs at least ten dollars, or to be in ice cream containing up to 10% alcohol by volume. This Act also removes the requirements that restaurants and brewery-pubs continue to sell full meals to patrons after 9 p.m.

This bill adopts a key recommendation of the Child Protection Accountability Commission Caseloads and Workloads final report approved on November 20, 2019, that Division of Family Services (DFS) caseload standards be reduced from 18 to 12 families per worker. Due to the volume of work generated by a caseload of 18 families, workers are significantly restricted in the time they can spend on critical case activities such as family engagement, assessment of safety, and face-to-face contact with children and families.

This Senate Concurrent Resolution recognizes November 2023 as "Autoimmune Disease Awareness Month" in the State of Delaware.

This bill permits political committees to make donations to any religious, charitable, educations or scientific organization exempt from Delaware income tax under Delaware tax laws or to any volunteer fire company.

This Act adds provisions to Title 21 defining accessible parking spaces, incorporating federal standards for accessible parking spaces found in the Americans with Disabilities Act and applicable regulations. The Act also provides additional requirements that enhance these standards and better reflect the needs of persons with disabilities in Delaware. The Act increases the penalty associated with violating the statute that prohibits individuals who do not possess a parking placard or special license plate from parking in accessible parking spaces, or in the access aisles located next to accessible parking spaces. This Act adds provisions in Titles 9 and 22 to require county and municipal governments to adopt regulations and ordinances incorporating these requirements for accessible parking spaces, including the requirement that property owners have a permit and process to ensure compliance for new or modified accessible parking spaces, in order to increase compliance and uniformity statewide.

This Resolution requires the Department of Health and Social Services to submit a report no later than April 1, 2024 detailing recommendations for the revision of the Delaware Code and the Delaware Administrative Code related to long-term care. The report is also required to outline an implementation plan for a person-centered acuity model of long-term care staffing.

This resolution proclaims the first full week of June as the "Delaware Gun Violence Prevention Week" in the State of Delaware, in which we remember and honor all survivors of gun violence and ask that all Delawareans consider ways that we as a community can reduce gun violence - including storing all firearms securely.