Rep. Paul Baumbach

This Act provides legal protections for financial institutions and other entities that provide financial or accounting services to cannabis-related businesses that are licensed or registered under Delaware law. Specifically, it clarifies that banks, credit unions, armored car services, and providers of accounting services are not subject to prosecution under Delaware law merely by providing lawful services to licensed businesses engaged in the production, distribution and sale of cannabis in Delaware. This Act aims to facilitate the operation of cannabis-related businesses by helping to ensure that such businesses have access to necessary financial and accounting services.

This Act requires a landlord who provides a dwelling place to a person as part of their employment compensation to provide them with a disclosure form advising them of the conditions and requirements for occupancy and vacancy of the premises once they are no longer employed for the landlord. The disclosure must inform the tenant employee that the landlord must offer the tenant, within 5 business days of termination by the employer, the opportunity to enter into a written rental agreement, if no rental agreement is in effect already. No offer for a rental agreement is necessary if the tenant employee is terminated for cause. The landlord may condition the rental agreement on the person financially qualifying as a tenant and meeting the landlord’s income, credit, or other financial requirements for renting the unit. This Act also lengthens the time period the landlord must wait before bringing a summary possession action against a formerly employed tenant from 15 days to 30 days unless the termination is for cause.

Like House Bill No. 286, House Substitute No. 1 for House Bill No. 286 prohibits discrimination in life insurance based on genetic characteristics, genetic information, or the result of any genetic test. House Substitute No. 1 for House Bill No. 286 differs from House Bill No. 286 as follows: 1. Provides a definition of “direct-to-consumer genetic testing”. 2. Allows the use of any genetic information that is in an individual's medical record or application for life insurance. 3. Allows a person engaged in the business of life insurance to request that an individual share genetic information from a direct-to-consumer genetic testing or to request that an individual provide written consent for entity to provide that information. 4. Allows an entity that provides direct-to-consumer genetic testing to share information with a person engaged in the business of life insurance but only with the written consent of the individual. 5. Clarifies that a person engaged in the business of life insurance may not do any of the following: a. Require that an individual take a genetic test. b. Require that an individual provide genetic information received from an entity providing direct-to-consumer genetic testing or provide written consent for the entity to provide that information. c. Take into consideration the refusal by an individual to take a genetic test, provide genetic information received from direct-to-consumer genetic testing, or provide written consent to share information from direct-to-consumer genetic testing. Like HB 286, HS 1 for HB 286 also does all of the following: 1. Makes corresponding corrections to § 2317 of Title 18 by revising the heading for clarity and the definition of "insurance" to conform with the terms and definitions used in Title 18. 2. Is known as "The Ericka Byler Act”.

This Act creates a new elections crime: “use of deep fake technology to influence an election.” Under this statute it would be a crime to distribute within 90 days of an election a “deep fake” – that is an audio or visual depiction that has been manipulated or created with generative adversarial network techniques, with the intent of harming a party or candidate or otherwise deceiving voters. It is not a crime, nor is there a penalty, if the altered media contains a disclaimer stating “This audio/video/image has been altered or artificially generated.” There is also provision for civil injunctive relief for a candidate depicted in a deep fake. There are various exceptions to protect speech, expression, and media rights. A violation of this statute is a class B misdemeanor unless the deepfake is intended to cause violence or bodily harm, in which case it is a class A misdemeanor, or if it is a repeat offense within 5 years, in which case it is a class E felony. Pursuant to § 5101 of Title 15, all offenses under this section are heard in Superior Court. This Substitute bill differs from original House Bill No. 316 in that it adds the caveat “if no visual disclosure is feasible” in relation to disclosures for audio-only media. It adds mobile applications, Internet websites, and streaming platforms to the exceptions under (d)(1) and (d)(2). It explicitly adds a carveout related to the liability shield of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. It states that the Act is not intended to restrict the ability of a person to detect, prevent, respond to, or protect against security incidents, identity theft, fraud, harassment, malicious or deceptive activities or any illegal activity, preserve the integrity or security of systems or investigate, report, or prosecute those responsible for any such action.

This Joint Resolution directs the Division of Motor Vehicles to opt into the FMCSA’s federal exemption that allows for first time CDL applicants seeking a school bus only endorsement on their driver’s license. An applicant’s school bus only endorsement would only apply to intrastate operation of a school bus. The Division of Motor Vehicles is directed to implement this policy by May 1, 2024.

Healthcare facility assessments are currently the second largest source of funding for states’ shares of Medicaid costs, behind general funds. Today, 49 states have at least one facility assessment in place, including Delaware, while 34 states and Washington D.C. have 3 or more provider taxes. Delaware is one of only 6 states without a facility assessment on hospitals, causing the state to miss out on critical Medicaid funding that most states are already able to access. This Act is a substitute for Senate Bill No. 13. Like Senate Bill No. 13, this Act creates the Hospital Quality Assessment, which places a 3.58% assessment on Delaware hospitals’ net patient revenues. Funds generated by the Hospital Quality Assessment must be utilized in one of two ways: (1) To increase the inpatient and outpatient payments to hospitals. (2) To develop or enhance funding for Medicaid initiatives, unlocking federal matching dollars. Funds may not be used to supplant or replace appropriations for programs in existence on the effective date of this Act, except for 25% of these funds, which may be used to support the general operations of the Medicaid program. Like Senate Bill No. 13, this Act also creates the Hospital Quality and Health Equity Assessment Commission (“Commission”), which includes state agency and hospital representation. The Commission is required to meet at least annually to monitor the implementation of the assessment. If the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) determines that either the assessment or the expenditure of money does not satisfy eligibility requirements for federal financial participation or that modifications are necessary to assure continued eligibility for federal financial participation, the Commission shall develop and approve modifications to Subchapters II and III of Chapter 10 of Tile 16 of the Delaware Code and submit the modifications to the General Assembly. This Act differs from Senate Bill No. 13 as follows: (1) By directing the Department of Health and Social Services (“Department”) to administer the Hospital Quality Assessment. (2) By establishing a different method of calculating the assessment for a hospital that begins or ceases hospital operations or does not conduct hospital operations through a calendar year or fiscal year. (3) By prohibiting a hospital subject to the Hospital Quality Assessment from passing on the cost of the assessment to any patient, insurer, self-insured program, or other responsible party. (4) By requiring a hospital subject to the Hospital Quality Assessment to attest in writing to the Department that an oral or written, formal or informal agreement or arrangement does not exist to share, redirect, or redistribute Medicaid payments which would result in violation of federal or state law. (5) By updating the split in percentages of the funds collected from the Hospital Quality Assessment to reflect the wide range of federal match levels for services. The expected amount to be collected by the Assessment does not change as the result of the update. (6) By requiring the Registrar of Regulations to publish in the Register of Regulations a certification by the Commission under § 1034(d) and (e) of Title 16 of the Delaware Code, as contained in this Act. (7) By providing that appointments of members of the Minority Caucus of the House of Representatives and Senate are to be made by the Speaker of the House of Representatives and President Pro Tempore of the Senate, respectively. (8) By making modifications to the requirements for meetings of the Commission. (9) By providing that modifications to Subchapters II and III of Chapter 10 of Tile 16 of the Delaware Code recommended by the Commission take effect as of July 1 of the ensuing fiscal year unless rejected in full by an act of the General Assembly before that ensuing fiscal year. This Act requires a greater than majority vote for passage because § 11 of Article VIII of the Delaware Constitution requires the affirmative vote of three-fifths of the members elected to each house of the General Assembly to impose or levy a tax or license fee. This Act may be cited as the “Protect Medicaid Act of 2024”.

This Act implements a recommendation from the December 31, 2023, Report of the Retiree Healthcare Benefits Advisory Subcommittee (RHBAS). Under this Act, the State must continue to offer eligible pensioners first employed by the State as a regular officer or employee (first employed) before January 1, 2025, a plan that is comparable to the current Special Medicfill Medicare Supplement plan. However, for eligible pensioners first employed on or after January 1, 2025, the State may offer different Medicare supplement plans that are not high deductible plans. This Act differs from the RHBAS recommendation because it does not limit the plan for eligible pensioners first employed on or after January 1, 2025, to plans that are comparable to the current Medicare supplement Plan G and Plan L. This difference is because under this Act, the State will not be able to offer a different Medicare supplement plan to any eligible pensioners until January 1, 2040, and details about the Medicare supplement plans that will be available at that time is unknown. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual and to align with related legislation.

This resolution directs health care professional licensure boards to review their existing professional licensure application language to revise or remove all intrusive and stigmatizing language around mental health care and treatment and replace it with language that meets the threshold requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 101-336. 26 July 1990), by focusing on present functional impairment and the ability to perform the essential requirements of the applicant’s profession with or without a reasonable accommodation. This resolution builds on the progress that the State of Delaware made in removing structural barriers to clinicians seeking mental health and wellbeing treatment through the enactment of Senate Bill 300 in 2022. The resolution also directs each licensure board and the Division of Professional Regulation to submit a report to the General Assembly by February 28, 2025 regarding the boards' review of their applications and certifying that the applications comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

This Act is a Substitute for Senate Bill No. 82. Both this Act and SB 82 require State programs to provide annual reports to the General Assembly about compliance with federal and State law and regulation that require meaningful access to services for individuals with limited English proficiency (LEP) and effective communication for individuals with disabilities. Both this Act and SB 82 provide support for language and communication assistance for individuals renting or purchasing a home or facing eviction or foreclosure. This Act and SB 82 create a short-term program within the Office of the Manufactured Housing Ombudsperson and the Department of Justice. This program will provide special language and communication assistance support for individuals with limited English proficiency and individuals with disabilities to better understand and participate in matters related to residential leases and evictions and home purchases and foreclosures. The Department of Justice is not required to spend more than $48,500 on translation and interpretation services, and auxiliary aids, in the fiscal year following 30 days after enactment. This Act differs from SB 82 as follows: (1) Some definitions are updated to conform more closely to federal law. Additionally, this Act narrows the definition of "individual with a disability" to be someone with a disability affecting communication, since this Act is designed to gather data and provide support related to effective communication. (2) This Act narrows the scope of agency programs about which reporting must occur. Instead of collecting information about agency-wide compliance, this Act will gather preliminary information about compliance by obtaining reports about a sample of agency programs. This Act requires the secretaries and directors of various departments and divisions to select and report about at least 2 operations, units, or services provided by their department or division. Certain enumerated entities under § 10604(b) of Title 29 will be required to report about their compliance. Also, the Department of Justice shall select 5 programs that will be required to submit reports. (3) In SB 82, programs had to complete narrative reports for the first 3 years after enactment. Beginning 4 years after enactment, the reporting programs were required to submit reports that required data collection. This Act keeps only the narrative reports. (4) Revises the special language and communication assistance program to allow the Department of Justice to create 1 program to fulfill its obligations under this Act to provide support for language and communication assistance for individuals renting or purchasing a home or manufactured home or facing eviction or foreclosure, as well as limits the program’s obligations to the extent of the appropriated funds received. (5) In SB 82, the special language and communication assistance program was to sunset 2 years after enactment unless otherwise extended, while the reporting requirements were to continue. In this Act, the entire Act sunsets 2 years after enactment unless extended by an act of the General Assembly.

This Act adopts the Uniform Health-Care Decisions Act of 2023 (UHCDA 2023) to supersede the Uniform Health-Care Decisions Act of 1993, which Delaware enacted in 1996. The UHCDA 2023 was authored by the Uniform Law Commission (ULC) and was developed in a multiyear collaborative and non-partisan process to modernize and expand on the 1993 version of the act. The UHCDA 2023 maintains processes to address how health-care decisions can be made by or on behalf of individuals who lack capacity, including: (1) Allowing individuals to appoint agents to make health-care decisions for them should they become unable to make those decisions for themselves. (2) Allowing individuals to provide their health-care professionals and agents with instructions about their values and priorities regarding their health care and to indicate medical treatment they do or do not wish to receive. (3) Authorizing certain people to make health-care decisions for individuals incapable of making their own decisions, but who have not appointed agents. (4) Setting forth agent, default surrogate, and health-care professional rights and duties. The UHCDA 2023 reflects substantial changes in how health care is delivered, increases in non-traditional familial relationships and living arrangements, the proliferation of the use of electronic documents, the growing use of separate advance directives exclusively for mental health care, and other recent developments. Some updates to the Act include: (1) Removal of administrative barriers that make the creation of an advance health-care directive more difficult. (2) Addition of provisions to guide determinations of incapacity, which is important because an agent’s or default surrogate’s (surrogate’s) authority to make health-care decisions for a patient typically commences when the patient lacks capacity to make decisions. The Act modernizes the definition of capacity so that it accounts for the functional abilities of an individual and clarifies that the individual may lack capacity to make one decision but retains capacity to make other decisions. (3) Authorizing the use of advance directives exclusively for mental health care. (4) Modernizing default surrogate provisions that allow family members and certain other people close to a patient to make decisions in the event the patient lacks capacity and has not appointed a health-care agent. The new default surrogate provisions update the priority list in the 1993 Act to reflect a broader array of relationships and family structures. They also provide additional options to address disagreements among default surrogates who have equal priority. (5) Clarifying the duties and powers of surrogates. For example, to reduce the likelihood that an individual’s health-care needs will go unmet due to financial barriers, the Act authorizes a surrogate to apply for health insurance for a patient who does not have another fiduciary authorized to do so. (6) Modernizing the optional model form to be readily understandable and accessible to diverse populations. The form gives individuals the opportunity to readily share information about their values and goals for medical care. Thus, it addresses a common concern raised by health-care professionals in the context of advance planning: that instructions included in advance directives often focus exclusively on preferences for particular treatments, and do not provide health-care professionals or surrogates with the type of information about patients’ goals and values that could be used to make value-congruent decisions when novel or unexpected situations arise. The form addresses these concerns by providing options for individuals to indicate goals and values, in addition to specific treatment preferences. This Act also adopts some of the optional provisions suggested by the ULC, including that an agent or surrogate has limited ability to consent to the long-term placement of an individual in a nursing home without express authorization. Specifically, without express authorization, the agent or surrogate may not consent to the placement for more than 100 days over the individual’s contemporaneous objection unless (1) no alternative living arrangement is reasonably feasible or (2) the individual is terminally ill. The ULC suggested 100 days in recognition that the federal Medicare program covers up to 100 days of nursing home care for qualified beneficiaries. This Act does not authorize mercy killing, assisted suicide, or euthanasia. In addition to style changes throughout, this Act makes some modifications to the UHCDA 2023 that are consistent with Act and should not disrupt uniform interpretation. These modifications include: (1) Revising language to conform to Delaware court practices. (2) Providing surrogates with the authority to file insurance or benefit claims on behalf of the individual and to appeal such outcomes, in addition to the UHCDA 2023 allowance for a surrogate to apply for insurance or benefits on behalf of the individual. As under the UHCDA 2023, a surrogate does not have the duty to perform these actions and may only do so if no other fiduciary is authorized to do so. (3) Creating an additional disqualification that disallows a potential surrogate from serving if the individual has a pending Protection From Abuse petition against the potential surrogate, the individual has a Protection From Abuse order against the potential surrogate, or the potential surrogate is the subject of a civil or criminal order prohibiting or limiting contact with the individual. Section 2 of this Act adds a new Chapter 25B to the Delaware Code. Chapter 25B will contain Delaware-specific supplements to the UHCDA 2023. These Delaware-specific additions are being placed within their own chapter to promote uniform interpretation of the UHCDA 2023. Chapter 25B includes § 2502B, which relates to health-care institution authorization to petition for guardianship for an individual to whom the institution is providing care. Section 2502B reinforces the work of the Non-Acute Medical Guardianship Task Force, created by Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 30 by the 150th General Assembly. That task force’s work resulted in the current § 2519 of Title 16, which offers a process and timeline whereby health-care institutions can take steps to help obtain a guardianship for patients who no longer require acute care and can be transferred to another type of health-care setting. While § 2502B retains the ability for a health-care institution to address the discharge of long-term stay patients without an authorized decisionmaker, it modifies the powers in the current § 2519 by doing all of the following: (1) Allowing health-care institutions to petition of the appointment of a guardian in instances beyond where an individual no longer needs acute care. (2) Reiterating that the health-care institution may only petition if they believe there is no less restrictive alternative that will meet the individual’s needs. (3) Streamlining notice requirements and changing who must receive these notices so that a health-care institution does not send a notice if there is a reasonably available surrogate. If there is a reasonably available surrogate and there is a dispute between the surrogate and the health-care institution about the treatment or level of care needed by an individual, then the parties should seek judicial relief under § 2526 of the UHCDA 2023 as opposed to using the guardianship process. The new Chapter 25B also contains a provision to encourage public awareness and use of advance mental health-care directives. Sections 3 through 11 of this Act update the Delaware Code in light of the adoption of the UHCDA 2023 by updating internal citations, updating terms to match the terms used in the UHCDA 2023, and ensuring a consistent list of default surrogate decisionmakers. This Act is effective immediately and is to be implemented 1 year from the date of enactment.