This bill changes the time of school board and school referendum election from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
This Act creates the Delaware Advance Scholarship Program (“Program”). The goal of this Act is to encourage Delaware students with intellectual disabilities to pursue studies for a comprehensive certificate or degree at a Delaware institution of higher education in order to promote economic self-sufficiency. This will result in an economic benefit to the State in the form of a more diverse, well-prepared workforce that is less reliant on government support. This Act follows the Higher Education Opportunities Act of 2008, which authorizes comprehensive transition and post-secondary programs as a pathway to higher education for students with intellectual disabilities. The Program will be effective beginning in the 2018 through 2019 academic year.
In 2006, Delaware enacted “Jessica’s Law,” which requires first time offenders convicted of a specified sexual offense against a child under 14 years of age and individuals previously convicted of a Class A or B sexual offense in Title 11 and subsequently convicted of a specified sexual offense sentences be sentenced to at least 25 years in prison, up to life. The specified sexual offenses in “Jessica’s Law” are Rape in the Third Degree (where the defendant engages in sexual penetration with the victim without the victim’s consent or with a victim who is under 16 years of age and causes physical injury or serious mental or emotional injury); Rape in the Second Degree; Rape in the First Degree; Dangerous Crime Against a Child; Sexual Offender Unlawful Sexual Conduct Against a Child; and Sexual Abuse of a Child by a Person in a Position of Trust, Authority, or Supervision in the First Degree (where the defendant engages in sexual penetration or sexual intercourse with a child under 16 years of age). Data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Nation Incident-Based Reporting System indicates that 1 of every 7 victims of sexual assaults is under the age of 6. This Act updates “Jessica’s Law,” enhancing penalties for especially vulnerable victims, as follows: (1) Requiring that an individual convicted of one of the specified offenses in “Jessica’s Law” be sentenced to an additional 5 years in prison if the victim is a child under the age of 7. (2) Requiring that an individual convicted of Unlawful Sexual Contact in the First Degree (involving a child under the age of 13) or Kidnapping in the Second Degree (for the purpose of violating or abusing the victim sexually) be sentenced to at least 5 years in jail if the victim is a child under the age of 7. (3) Requiring that an individual convicted of Kidnapping in the First Degree (for the purpose of violating or abusing the victim sexually) be sentenced to at least 10 years in jail if the victim is a child under the age of 7. Additionally, this Act requires the Superior Court to impose these sentences upon the application of the State.
This Act permits licensed child care providers, who successfully complete a State-approved medication training, to administer medication to children in their care, including by non-intravenous injection, if a child has a medical need during child care hours that requires it. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
Since its adoption in 2003, the Manufactured Home Owners and Community Owners Act ("MHOCOA"), Chapter 70 of Title 25, has proven to be an effective tool to protect the rights of tenants in manufactured home communities. During the years since its adoption, a number of issues and concerns have been identified by tenants, community owners, and the courts. This Resolution establishes the MHOCOA Task Force to review the MHOCOA in order to determine what changes, if any, are needed in order to improve this Act so that it supports a balance of protections and rights for all parties involved.
This legislation requires that all full-time employees of the State, including employees of school districts, continuously in the employ of the state for at least one year, shall be eligible for 12 weeks of paid leave upon the birth or adoption of a child 6 years of age or younger. Both parents would be eligible for such leave. Employees shall continue to have the right, as they do under current law, to use accrued sick leave for maternity and paternity purposes. This legislation leaves intact the rights of persons adopting a child over 6 years of age to take unpaid leave. Due to lack of adequate paid family leave policies, many parents must return to work sooner than is optimal for the health of mothers (in the case of biological birth) and children. Granting paid leave will contribute to the establishment of parent-child bonds, breastfeeding establishment, and allow infants to receive vaccines and develop stronger immune systems prior to entering daycare. Further, a more generous leave policy will increase the productivity of workers and reduce employee turnover. This Act takes effect January 1, 2019. The Office of Management and Budget is directed to establish guidelines for the implementation of this Act.
This Act requires that health insurance offered in this State provide coverage for fertility care services, including in vitro fertilization ("IVF") procedures, for individuals who suffer from a disease or condition that results in the inability to procreate or to carry a pregnancy to a live birth. This Act also requires that health insurance offered in this State provide coverage for fertility preservation for individuals diagnosed with cancer and other diseases, when medically necessary treatment could adversely affect their fertility. Like all other diseases, infertility should be covered by insurance. According to the National Infertility Association, RESOLVE, infertility affects 1 in 8 couples and 3 in 4 never obtain needed treatment, often because they cannot afford it. Everyone deserves the right to procreate and to try to build a family. Right now, many Delaware families diagnosed with infertility fall into a “coverage gap” and pay out-of-pocket for fertility care services. Only certain employers provide any fertility care coverage in Delaware and what they do provide is often very limited. Families generally must pay high co-pays or adhere to service restrictions and lifetime dollar caps that strictly limit their treatment options, and thus make it unaffordable for many of them to proceed without risking their financial security or without achieving a successful pregnancy. For example, 1 IVF cycle can cost between $15,000 and $25,000 and, on average, it takes 2 to 3 cycles to achieve pregnancy. Additionally, highly inflated managed care pharmacy prices for IVF medications, where families with coverage can pay as much as 100% more for medications compared to prices charged to self-pay families, often contribute to 25-50% or more of total IVF costs, which can quickly drain lifetime caps and severely limit overall IVF care options. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, 15 states currently have laws regarding insurance coverage for infertility diagnosis or treatment, including 2 states that border Delaware, New Jersey and Maryland. This puts the State at a significant competitive disadvantage, as many reproductive age residents intentionally change employers and leave Delaware to gain more attractive fertility care benefits. It is also well-documented that individuals who self-pay for an IVF procedure, or have limited benefits, often demand that 2 or more embryos be transferred to their uterus. This greatly increases the risk of multiple births and is a dangerous and costly approach for heavily burdened health care resources, and can be completely avoided with greater access to covered fertility care services. Studies show that states with insurance coverage have a lower rate of multiple births because fewer embryos are transferred. This Act requires insurers to cover fertility care services based on the current standard of care for IVF treatments to achieve pregnancy success rates for singleton births at the lowest possible costs. This will greatly reduce the risk of multiple births and greatly reduce hospital and health care costs, thus saving employers money. Several recent studies have found that the cost of perinatal and neonatal care for twins is about $100,000, whereas singleton pregnancies cost about $13,000. Triplet pregnancies can cost $400,000 or more. For every 100 pregnancies from IVF that are singletons but could have been twins, about $8.7 million dollars is saved, on top of reduced pain and suffering for parents and premature babies. This Act would significantly reduce this high financial and societal burden by promoting IVF technologies that use single-embryo transfers. This Act could increase the number of persons treated for infertility, but also increase the number of babies born in Delaware by 2-300 per year, thus increasing the state’s birth rate by 1-2% and providing a boost to the local economy, while also decreasing health care costs.
This Act permits private sector labor organizations and employers to enter into union security agreements to the full extent allowed under federal law.
This Act expands the pathways to entering an alternative routes for teacher licensure and certification program (“ARTC”) casting a wider net in order to attract a diverse pool of qualified candidates into the field of education as the need for teachers, particularly in critical needs areas, has increased. It also clarifies district and charter school responsibilities and ARTC program provider responsibilities, to assure proper supports are in place. Under this Act, attainment of final licensure and certification is contingent on meeting all ARTC program requirements, demonstrating effective teaching based on a state-approved evaluation system, and attaining passing scores on applicable and available approved content readiness exams and a performance assessment. These exit requirements hold ARTC participants to the same high standards for final licensure and certification as those entering the field from a typical teacher pre-service program. This Act also makes technical corrections to confirm existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
This Act makes a technical correction to § 7021 of Title 25 so that it is consistent with § 7043 of Title 25. Section 7021 is the original rent increase section. It requires a landlord to provide a minimum 60 days notice of a rent increase and was not revised when § 7043, which requires a minimum of 90 days notice of a rent increase, was enacted in 2013.
