Rep. Frank Cooke

This Joint Resolution directs the Criminal Justice Council to establish and by November 2, 2021, publish integrity reports on the number of complaints made against police officers in each police agency in this State for the past 3 years, and at least once a year thereafter, and to create and publish a list of all decertified police officers in this State in the previous 10 years, which shall be updated upon notification of the decertification of any police officer.

This Act establishes a mental health services unit for Delaware elementary schools. The unit is at a ratio of 250 full-time equivalent students grades K-5 for a full-time school counselor, school social worker, or licensed clinical social worker. Additionally a unit ratio of 700 full time equivalent students for grades K-5 for employment of a full-time school psychologist. This Act defines “mental health services” as prevention, response, and coordination services delivered to students in elementary schools. Mental Health disorders are the most common health problem for school aged youth. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), one in five youth are affected by a mental health disorder. Additionally, 50% of lifetime mental illnesses begin by age 14. Untreated mental illness leads to negative outcomes including increased risk of dropout, homelessness, substance abuse, other chronic illnesses, incarceration, and possibly suicide. According to the National Alliance on Mental Health, ninety percent of people who have taken their own life have had an underlying mental health condition, and suicides are on the rise. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, suicides are now the second leading cause of death for youth ages 10-14. Delaware schools need trained and experienced mental health professionals to provide prevention and support programs and services to students. Currently, as reported by Delaware school districts, 86% of elementary schools do not employ a school social worker, and ratios of students to school counselors and school psychologists far exceed national best practices. This bill will lower ratios and increase access to mental health services for elementary school students.

Section 1 of this Act modifies Delaware’s Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) to allow recipients to choose the most beneficial credit to be applied against their Delaware Personal Income Taxes. Under this Act, recipients can choose between a non-refundable credit of up to 20% of the value of the corresponding federal EITC or a refundable EITC credit of up to 4.5% of the value of the corresponding federal EITC. Section 2 of this Act makes the change to Delaware’s EITC effective for the tax year in which the Secretary of Finance provides the Registrar of Regulations with notice that the personal income tax release of the Integrated Revenue Administration System is implemented. This delay in effective date is necessary to ensure that tax law changes can be properly and efficiently implemented in the Division of Revenue’s modernized Integrated Revenue Administration System, which is currently under development. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.

This Act updates the domestic violence first offender diversion program to allow the following offenses to be eligible for the program: assault third, terroristic threatening, and criminal contempt of a domestic violence protective order or lethal violence protective order. In addition, the Act makes these same offenses ineligible for probation before judgement in the Court of Common Pleas and Family Court.

This Act provides increased funding for kindergarten through third grade students identified as eligible for basic special education services. Currently, basic special education is provided for students in fourth through twelfth grade who are identified as eligible for basic special education and related services; there is no additional unit funding for students in kindergarten through third grade who may be eligible for basic special education services. The Act adds a designation of “K-3 Basic Special Education (basic)” and over three years reduces the number of students comprising a unit from the current 16.2 to 8.4. This Act will increase the unit count funding for K-3 Basic Special Education (basic) students by School Year 2023-2024, Fiscal Year 2024, to be consistent with the 8.4 unit of pupils currently available to students in grades 4 through 12. Sections 1 through 3 of this Act change the funding chart currently in the Code to subsections and provides for a decrease in the ratio between the number of students enrolled and the unit count for basic special education from 16.2 currently to 12.2 in Fiscal Year 2022, 10.2 in Fiscal Year 2023, and 8.4 in Fiscal Year 2024. Section 4 of this Act delays the effect of each Section until the start of each new fiscal year in the 3-year cycle over which this Act’s changes are intended to occur.

Many of the State’s waters do not meet water quality standards to support their designated uses, such as for drinking, swimming or supporting aquatic life. The Clean Water for Delaware Act establishes a framework for assessing needs and planning and implementing projects that support Delaware’s efforts to improve the quality of the State’s water supply and waterways. A Delaware Clean Water Trust account is created as a funding source for executing projects highlighted by this framework. The Trust account will have oversight from the Clean Water Trust Oversight Committee (the “Committee”). The Committee will draw upon recommendations from the Water Infrastructure Advisory Council, (WIAC), the county Conservation Districts’, experts in the effected Cabinet agencies and other public input with the goal of assisting municipal and county governments and others in implementing affordable water quality projects. The Committee is required to develop and publish an Annual Report and multi-year Strategic Plan for Clean Water with annual updates.

This Act requires certain police officers and some certain employees of the Department of Correction and Department of Services for Children, Youth, and Their Families to wear a body worn camera and to use the body worn camera to record interactions with a member of the public in accordance with the regulations to be established by the Council on Police Training. This Act requires state agencies to implement the statewide body worn camera program through the procurement of cameras, development of a central data storage program, and provision of necessary personnel as funding is available. This Act tasks the Council on Police Training with creating and promulgating regulations setting forth standards for body worn camera use by Delaware’s police officers and some certain employees of the Department of Correction and Department of Services for Children, Youth, and Their Families with the goal of ensuring widespread and consistent use of body worn cameras in 2022. This Act also makes changes to the membership of the Council on Police Training by adding the following members to the Council: the Chairs of the House and Senate Public Safety Committees, 2 public members unaffiliated with law enforcement appointed by the Governor each for a 3-year term. This bill also changes the membership of the Council by changing two positions to be permanently held by mayors from Kent or Sussex County. The bill also changes the quorum from 7 to 9 members. The bill requires the Council to hold a minimum of two public meetings to solicit public input into the development of the regulations.

This bill expands prison-based jobs to provide work experience and job skill training and will assist offenders with reentry, while also maintaining Department of Correction (“DOC”) facilities. DOC has not been able to increase the number of offender job opportunities at its facilities or increase inmate wages due to budget constraints; and allowing offenders to be either compensated or awarded additional good time credits will allow the Department to increase the number of offenders eligible to work and provide them with additional opportunities to earn good time credits. Increasing the number of good time credit days an offender may earn will enhance the incentive for inmates to participate in approved programs and productive work.

This bill provides for gradual increases in the Delaware minimum wage to $15 over a period of several years.

This Senate Concurrent Resolution continues the Motorcycle Rider Education Advisory Committee, which must meet at least quarterly to monitor the Motorcycle Rider Education Program, and assess the future needs of and recommend improvements to the Program.