Rep. Kim Williams

This bill adds glaucoma, chronic debilitating migraines, pediatric autism spectrum disorder, pediatric sensory processing disorder to the list of debilitating medical conditions which may qualify a person, upon certification by a physician, to be eligible for the use of medical marijuana in accordance with the terms of the Delaware Medical Marijuana Act.

This bill allows first-time home buyers to pay their portion of the realty transfer tax at the rate that was in effect prior to the increase that took effect on August 1, 2017. The credit is calculated as 0.5% of the first $400,000 in home value, with a maximum allowable credit of $2,000. This legislation is retroactive for any first-time home buyer who entered into a transaction for the transfer of real estate on or after August 1, 2017. The seller in any transaction with a first-time buyer will still pay the current tax rate. The bill also removes a provision that applied to contracts entered into prior to 1971, since such provision is no longer relevant. For ease of application, the new definition of "first-time home buyer" is cross-referenced in the already existing Code provision directing the counties to exempt such buyers from any county-imposed realty transfer tax. This reduction in the tax rate for first-time home buyers will be effective for transactions entered into on or after the effective date of this Act.

This Act establishes that a contract between a pharmacy benefits manager and a pharmacy may not prohibit a pharmacy or pharmacist from doing any of the following: (1) Providing an insured with information regarding the retail price of a prescription drug or the amount of the cost share for which the insured is responsible for a prescription drug. (2) Discussing with an insured information regarding the retail price of a prescription drug or the amount of the cost share for which the insured is responsible for a prescription drug. (3) If a more affordable, therapeutically equivalent prescription drug is available, selling the more affordable, therapeutically equivalent prescription drug to the insured. In some cases, contracts between pharmacy benefits managers and pharmacies have provisions that prohibit pharmacies or pharmacist from informing consumers that they have options related to a prescription drug they want to buy and that the prescription drug could be purchased at a lower cost if the consumer paid out of pocket rather than through their health insurance plan. These provisions are often known as “gag clauses.” At least 7 states have enacted laws prohibiting these “gag clauses.”

This Act requires that the Office of Child Care Licensing include application forms, the specific requirements to obtain a license, and due process provisions in regulations to ensure that child care providers have clear notice of what is required, the opportunity to comment on proposed changes, and an opportunity to correct minor deficiencies before they are posted on the Office of Child Care Licensing’s website as an instance of noncompliance. This Act also repeals language regarding implementation of the current section that is no longer necessary. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.

This Act creates Pay for Success contracts. A Pay for Success contract is an agreement between a State agency and either a program intermediary or an investor under which an investor will provide upfront capital to fund a service, program, or economic development initiative. The State agency agrees to repay the program intermediary or investor if the service, program, or economic development initiative meets the performance measures and outcomes agreed to in the contract. An independent evaluator will determine if the performance measures and outcomes are met. If the State agency contracts with a program intermediary, the program intermediary will manage all aspects of the project, including identifying the investor and the entity or entities that will provide the service, program, or economic development initiative. In other situations, a State agency will contract directly with the investor, who will contract directly with the entity or entities that will provide the service, program, or economic development initiative.

This Act exempts the transfer of real estate acquired by foreclosure or deed in lieu of foreclosure from nonresident income tax withholding requirements. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.

The Delaware Department of Transportation currently uses a system to repair subdivision roadways in which a unit is dispatched only when a complaint is lodged with the Transportation Management Center. In order to avoid piecemeal repairs that waste valuable resources, the Delaware Department of Transportation will be directed by the Secretary of Transportation to review each subdivision roadway on a consistent basis that is in any subdivision that is at least 10 years old.

This Act restores the Delaware Prescription Drug Payment Assistance Program (“Program”), which was eliminated in the Fiscal Year 2018 Annual Appropriations Act. This Act replaces Senate Bill 148 and makes the following additional changes: (1) Delays implementation of the Act until January 1, 2019, to coordinate with the Medicare Part D benefit year to enable the Department of Health and Social Services (“Department”) to make necessary system changes. (2) Makes changes to the defined term “prescription drugs.” (3) Removes provisions required to be included in rules and regulations promulgated by the Department. (4) Adds provisions that may be included in rules and regulations promulgated by the Department. (5) Makes technical corrections to conform the provisions of the restored Program to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.

This Act draws attention to the types of discipline used in schools by capturing data about out-of-school suspensions and publishing that data, in an effort to help schools identify areas where the data regarding out-of-school suspensions indicates there is room to reduce such suspensions. This Act is meant to increase transparency, improve overall school climate, resulting in improved student outcomes. The collection and publication of this data will also help the Department of Education and community partners identify opportunities to provide greater supports to schools, students, and their families. According to data provided by the Delaware Department of Education (“DOE”), thousands of Delaware students receive out-of-school suspensions each year for minor infractions, such as being unprepared or late for class, dress code violations, and disrespectful behavior. In 2013, only 2% of out-of-school suspensions were for serious offenses such as weapons, drugs, or serious violence. Out-of-school suspensions do not address the root causes for the misbehavior, and only serve to put the students further behind in class. Furthermore, DOE data shows that, in 2013, African-American students made up only 32% of the student body, but accounted for 62% of out-of-school suspension, and students with disabilities made up 13% of the student body, but accounted for 24% of out-of-school suspensions. Federal discipline guidance, developed jointly by the U.S. Departments of Education and Justice, instructs schools to commit to regular evaluation of school discipline policies and practices, and monitor progress toward the schools’ climate and discipline goals. The federal process requires schools to collect and publicly report disaggregated student discipline data and solicit feedback from students, staff, families, and community representatives. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the guidelines of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. This Substitute Bill makes the following changes to Senate Bill No. 85: 1. References the existing definition of "disruptive behavior" in Title 14. 2. Includes "disability" as a category for data collection. 3. Extends by 1 year the years stated in the requirements to retain the same time frames. This is necessary because this Act will be enacted in 2018, not 2017 when it was drafted. 4. Clarifies what information is required for reports and provides deadlines for the required plans and reports. 5. Clarifies that schools must develop plans and strategies with stakeholder input. 6. Clarifies content for professional development.

This Act redefines “resident” to mean one who is legally domiciled in the State for 10 years immediately preceding October of the pretax year. This change means that one must be domiciled in the State for 10 years before one who is over the age of 65 can receive the exemption from real estate taxes provided by Subchapter II, Chapter 81, Title 9 of the Delaware Code. This change is consistent with a similar change made to the residency requirements of those who are over the age of 65 and claiming a tax credit against school taxes (See House Bill No. 99, as amended, from the 149th General Assembly; Chapter 71, Volume 81 of the Laws of Delaware). This Act also corrects language in the definition of “income.” This language operates to reference income information that is a year old at the time provided. Removing this language will mean income information for the most recent federal and state income tax years is provided. Finally, this Act makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.