This Act removes a barrier to higher education by allowing a student who has been convicted of a violent felony to qualify for or maintain eligibility for a SEED scholarship if other eligibility criteria are met.
This Act allows for correctional officers employed with the Department of Correction to make a written request that their personal information not be published and remain confidential. The Act takes effect 180 days following its enactment. The substitute bill changes the following from the original bill: (1) Adds an applicability section clarifying these privacy protections only apply for correctional officers who serve or have served with the Department of Correction on the enactment date. (2) Retains the original language of “publicly posts” as opposed to “knowingly posts”. (3) Changes the duration period of the written request to two years. (4) Clarifies that a correctional officer that is removed for cause or fired will have their written request immediately removed. (5) Allows for renewal of written requests by correctional officers who remain employed with the Department of Correction. (6) Allows for a correctional officer to revoke their written request. (7) Allows for a correctional officer who retires or leaves the job in good standing to obtain a two-year extension of their written request from the date of their retirement or date of leave.
Over the past decade, an increasing number of states have passed legislation establishing a Student Loan Borrower Bill of Rights. At least 18 states have passed such legislation. Of these 18 states, 12 states have a Student Loan Ombudsperson and 13 have a licensing program, with another two states having a registration program instead of a licensing program. This Act is a Substitute for Senate Bill No. 132. Like Senate Bill No. 132, this Act enacts a Student Loan Borrower Bill of Rights for this State that does all of the following: (1) Requires student loan servicers to engage in certain practices related to communications with student loan borrowers and cosigners of student education loans and handling of transactions by student loan borrowers and cosigners of student education loans. (2) Prohibits student loan servicers from engaging in certain practices including unfair or deceptive practices or abusive practices. (3) Requires student loan servicers to retain records related to student loan transactions for 7 years and to yearly report non-identifying information about student education loans serviced in this State, including default and delinquency rates, to the Student Loan Ombudsperson. (4) Establishes the Office of the Student Loan Ombudsperson which shall, among other duties, receive, investigate, and attempt to resolve complaints from student loan borrowers. This Act differs from Senate Bill No. 132 as follows: (1) Makes a technical correction to correct an incorrect internal reference. (2) Excludes the State government from the definition of “student loan servicer”. (3) Makes clear the intent to exclude certain types of student loan servicers from the scope of this Act, as these student loan servicers are already regulated by state and federal regulators. (4) Removes an unnecessary “that”. (5) Adds “if applicable” to make clear the student loan servicer’s obligation to provide cosigner information applies only if applicable. (6) Moves from § 2504J of this Act certain requirements of student loan servicers related to cosigners and cosigner release to a new § 2511J of this Act containing protections related to cosigners and borrowers. (7) Specifies that a student loan servicer is only required to provide a written payment history to a student loan borrower or cosigner once each year. (8) Requires a student loan servicer to service a student education loan in conformity with § 2511J of this Act and to file a notice with the Student Loan Ombudsperson every 3 years, or on servicing the student loan servicer’s first student education loan in this State, that includes an address, email address, and phone number for the student loan servicer and an attestation that the student loan servicer understands the student loan servicer’s duties under this Act. (9) Clarifies that the Student Loan Ombudsperson (“Ombudsperson”) has certain powers, not that the Ombudsperson is required to exercise those powers in all cases. (10) Clarifies that the Consumer Protection Unit of the Department of Justice and other appropriate agencies are to have access to information available to the Ombudsperson to the extent necessary for investigation purposes. (11) Permits the Ombudsperson to meet regularly with a member of the Consumer Protection Unit to coordinate efforts. (12) Permits the Student Loan Ombudsperson to access, receive, and use any documents, information, or evidence the Ombudsperson deems relevant to the inquiry or investigation, including any documents, information, or evidence in the possession of a student loan servicer. (13) Replaces language related to whom the Student Loan Ombudsperson’s annual report is due with standard report language developed for the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual and adds the Attorney General as a recipient of the report. (14) Delays the effective date of the Act until January 1, 2025.
This Act is the Bill of Rights for Individuals Experiencing Homelessness to ensure that all individuals, regardless of housing status, have equal opportunity to live in decent, safe, sanitary, and healthful accommodations and enjoy equality of opportunities. To that end, this Act sets forth the rights of individuals experiencing homelessness and creates a process by which the State Human and Civil Rights Commission and the Division of Human and Civil Rights may accept and investigate complaints of discriminatory treatment, attempt conciliation, and refer enforcement actions to the Department of Justice where necessary. This Substitute differs from the original House Bill No. 55 in that it expands the definition of “individuals experiencing homelessness” to include those who may be staying with different friends or family without a permanent home and it eliminates a reference to voting rights, since such rights are addressed elsewhere in the Code.
This Act facilitates the interstate and intrastate shipping and delivery of alcoholic liquors. Section 2 of this Act does all of the following: (1) Authorizes the direct shipping of wine, beer, spirits, mead, or cider to consumers in this State if the alcoholic liquor is manufactured by a person licensed as a farm winery, microbrewery, or craft distillery in this State or by a person located in another state that would qualify as a farm winery, microbrewery, or craft distillery under the laws of this State. (2) Requires the direct shipper to be licensed by the Alcoholic Beverage Control Commissioner (“Commissioner”). (3) Establishes a yearly limit on the amount of wine, beer, spirits, mead, or cider that may be shipped directly to a consumer for the consumer’s personal use. (4) Requires the licensed direct shipper to provide notice that an individual who is 21 years of age or older must receive the shipment. Sections 1, 3, and 4 of this Act do all of the following: (1) Authorizes a liquor store, farm winery, brewery-pub, microbrewery, craft distillery, and wine auction (“a seller”) to sell alcoholic liquor for delivery by a delivery service. (2) Authorizes the delivery of alcoholic liquor from a seller in this State to a consumer in this State by a delivery service. (3) Requires a delivery service to be licensed by the Commissioner. (4) Requires a delivery service’s delivery drivers to meet certain requirements. (5) Requires a delivery service to ensure that before transferring possession of a shipment of alcoholic liquor that the delivery service’s delivery drivers verify the identity of the recipient of the shipment and that the recipient is at least 21 years of age. Section 5 of this Act adopts the Uniform Alcohol Direct-Shipping Compliance 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.” The Uniform Alcohol Direct-Shipping Compliance Act (“the Uniform Act”) enhances each state’s capability to detect and stop unlawful direct to consumer shipments of alcoholic beverages to the state’s residents. The Uniform Act incorporates the state’s existing law as to the industry participants and types of alcoholic beverages for which direct to consumer shipping is allowed and does not create any new or additional authorization to ship alcoholic beverages directly to a consumer. The Uniform Act provides state regulators with new tools to distinguish between direct to consumer shipments that originate from shippers licensed under the state’s existing law and direct to consumer shipments that do not, and aids state regulators in enforcing their existing laws governing direct to consumer shipments of any type of alcoholic beverage. The Uniform Act requires fulfillment providers, a person acting on behalf of a licensed direct shipper to ship wine, beer, spirits, mead, or cider to a consumer and arranges for transport of the wine, beer, spirits, mead, or cider by a carrier to the consumer, to be registered with the Commissioner and regulates fulfillment providers. Section 6 of this Act does all of the following: (1) Authorizes a carrier to transport wine, beer, spirits, mead, or cider from a licensed direct shipper or a registered fulfillment provider to a resident of this State. (2) Requires a carrier to be licensed by the Commissioner. (3) Requires a carrier to ensure that before transferring possession of a shipment of wine, beer, spirits, mead, or cider that the individual delivering the shipment for the carrier has verified the identity of the recipient of the shipment and that the recipient is at least 21 years of age. Sections 7 through 9 of this Act makes conforming amendments to Title 4 of the Delaware Code to permit the activities authorized by Sections 1 through 6 of this Act. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. 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 Resolution recognizes March 18, 2024, as "National Public Defense Day" in Delaware.
This Act is the first leg of a constitutional amendment to increase the number of Justices of the Supreme Court to 7 and to require that of the 7 Justices appointed to the Supreme Court, at least 2 must be residents of Kent County, at least 2 must be residents of Sussex County, and at least 2 must be residents of New Castle County. The seventh Justice may be from any county. Sections 2 and 3 of this Act make necessary conforming amendments to the Delaware Constitution based on the increase in the number of Justices of the Supreme Court. Section 2 of this Act also removes the unconstitutional restrictions limiting the appointment of judges to the Supreme Court, Court of Chancery, and Superior Court to members of the two major political parties. This amendment is in response to the stipulated consent judgment and order entered in James R. Adams v. The Honorable John Carney, C.A. No. 20-1680-MN (D. Del.), Jan. 30, 2023. Because the Supreme Court currently consists of 4 residents of New Castle County and 1 resident of Sussex County, Section 4 of this Act requires that of the 2 Justices of the Supreme Court seats created by this Act 1 must be a resident of Kent County and 1 must be a resident of Sussex County. Section 4 of this Act also provides that the requirement that at least 2 Justices must be residents of New Castle County, Kent County, and Sussex County applies beginning with the next vacancy of a Justice of the Supreme Court to occur, whether by expiration of term or otherwise. This Act requires a greater than majority vote for passage because § 1 of Article XVI of the Delaware Constitution requires the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each house of the General Assembly to amend the Delaware Constitution. Amending the Delaware Constitution requires not only the passing of the changes in this Act, but also passage of the same changes after the next general election by the next General Assembly. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
This Senate Concurrent Resolution honors and recognizes the leadership, achievements, and sacrifices of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and urges all citizens of the First State to participate fittingly in the observance of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day on January 15, 2024.
This is the first leg of a constitutional amendment creating a "Crossover Day" deadline for each House of the General Assembly to send legislation over to the other House. The annual budget appropriation act, grants-in-aid act, bond and capital improvements act, and resolutions are excluded from this deadline. Currently 26 states, including Maryland, have crossover day deadlines for passing legislation between their two legislative chambers.
This bill precludes the so-called LGBTQ+ "panic" defense that seeks to partially or completely excuse or justify a defendant from full accountability for the commission of a crime on the grounds that the actual or perceived sexual orientation, sex, gender, gender identity, or sex assigned at birth of the victim is sufficient to explain, excuse, or justify the defendant's conduct, or contributes to or causes the defendant's mental state, or that the defendant’s reaction thereto constitutes a mental illness, mental defect, or mental disorder sufficient to excuse or justify the defendant's conduct (including under circumstances in which the victim made a nonviolent romantic or sexual advance toward the defendant or in which the defendant and the victim dated or had a romantic or sexual relationship). Sections 1 and 3 of this bill move the definitions for gender identity and sexual orientation currently in the hate crimes statute to the general definitions section of the Criminal Code to maintain standard definitions of these terms throughout the Criminal Code. Section 2 of this bill provides that in any prosecution or sentencing for an offense: (i) a defendant is not justified in using force against another based on the discovery of, knowledge or belief about, or the potential or actual disclosure of the victim’s actual or perceived sexual orientation, sex, gender, gender identity, or sex assigned at birth; (ii) for the purposes of determining whether there is a reasonable explanation or excuse for the existence of extreme emotional disturbance or other asserted mitigating factor or circumstance, such explanation or excuse is not reasonable if it is based on the discovery of, knowledge or belief about, or the potential or actual disclosure of the victim’s actual or perceived sexual orientation, sex, gender, gender identity, or sex assigned at birth; and (iii) a defendant does not suffer from a mental illness, mental defect, mental disorder, serious mental disorder, psychiatric disorder, or other impairment affecting or impacting the defendant’s mental state relating to any questions of intent, knowledge, capacity to appreciate the wrongfulness of the defendant's conduct, disturbance of the defendant's thinking, feeling or behavior, culpability, willpower to choose whether to do or refrain from doing an act, or ability to distinguish right from wrong, based on the discovery of, knowledge or belief about, or the potential or actual disclosure of the victim’s actual or perceived sexual orientation, sex, gender, gender identity, or sex assigned at birth. This bill does not preclude a defendant from availing themself of any defense permitted by the Delaware Criminal Code or other applicable Delaware law on bases other than those specifically precluded by this bill. This House Substitute No. 2 differs from the original in that it corrects the omission of the phrase “or sentencing” in § 472(a), (b), and (c).
