Rep. Sean Lynn

This Act requires public schools serving grades 7 to 12 that issue pupil identification cards to print on either side of the card the following information, which previously was optional for the public schools: (1) Teen Dating Violence Hotline:1-866-331-9474 or Text “loveis” to 22522. (2) Stop Bullying Now Hotline: 1-800-273-8255(TALK). Sections 1 and 2 of this Act remove application dates from the previous enactments of laws related to information printed on pupil identification cards for public schools serving grades 7 to 12 and on student identification cards for public institutions of higher learning. These application dates could be interpreted to mean that the previous enactments of these laws were to be effective only during the stated school years. By removing these application dates and establishing the effective date in Section 5 of this Act, these laws will be effective on July 1, 2026. This Act also makes technical corrections in Sections 3 and 4 of this Act to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.

This Act adds clarity to distinguishing between legal hemp and hemp-derived cannabinoid products (HDCPs) and marijuana and controlled substances and provides clearer guidelines on acceptable tests for determining the difference to eliminate uncertainty for businesses, consumers, and law enforcement.

Because Delaware lacks an adequate amount of emergency shelter beds, housing support services, and affordable housing units, only 952 out of 7,131 households that contacted the Housing Alliance Delaware’s homelessness hotline in 2024 were referred to housing assistance. Without adequate shelter available, thousands of individuals experiencing homelessness are forced to seek shelter on the streets, parks, parking lots, and sidewalks, which puts them in constant conflict with local residents, businesses, and the police. Instead of providing adequate housing, local governments are using emergency services, hospital services, and the criminal justice system to remove unhoused individuals from public spaces, exacerbating the barriers unhoused individuals face to achieve stable housing and wasting taxpayer money. This Act seeks to incentivize localities to coordinate or create adequate emergency housing, permanent housing, and wrap-around services for individuals experiencing homelessness, which will ease the financial burden placed on emergency services, hospitals, and the criminal justice system, while providing unhoused individuals stability and dignity. To that end, this Act does the following: 1. Permits an individual experiencing homelessness to conduct life sustaining activities in public, so long as such activities do not obstruct the normal movement of pedestrian or vehicular traffic in such a manner that creates a hazard to others, unless adequate alternative indoor space is available to the individual in a given jurisdiction and has been offered to the individual, including transportation for the individual and their belongings. 2. Mandates that an individual experiencing homelessness receive the same degree of protection for personal property stored in public places as personal property stored in a private dwelling, which includes protections against unreasonable search and seizure. 3. Prohibits the State or local jurisdiction from requiring an individual experiencing homelessness to move a motor vehicle or a recreational vehicle provided that the vehicle is parked on public property and the vehicle is not parked in a position to obstruct the normal movement of traffic or create a hazard to other traffic upon the highway. 4. Provides that, if a motor vehicle or recreational vehicle must be moved because the vehicle is obstructing normal movement of traffic or creates a hazard to other traffic on the roadway, the individual experiencing homelessness must be permitted to relocate the vehicle before a parking ticket is issued or the vehicle is towed. This Act does not prohibit State and local governments from making and enforcing reasonable time restrictions on public spaces (including public parks and parking lots) so long as those time restrictions apply to everyone and are not disproportionately enforced against individuals experiencing homelessness. This Act further permits an individual experiencing homelessness to raise a violation of this Act as an affirmative defense to any charge of violating a statute or ordinance that prohibits life-sustaining activities protected under this Act. The attorney general may commence a civil action against any State or local government, government agency, or government official that violates this Act and this Act also contains a private right of action. This Act specifically waives sovereign immunity. This Act is named in honor of Dr. DeBorah Gilbert White.

Section 1 of this Act prohibits Department of Finance employees from disclosing any information about the citizenship or immigration status of any person that is contained in a tax return, tax document, or Department of Finance document, without Attorney General approval or court order associated with a felony criminal investigation or as otherwise provided by law. It also makes such disclosure a misdemeanor. Section 2 of this Act prohibits the Department of Labor employees from disclosing information about the citizenship or immigration status of any person that is contained in or attached to any Department of Labor document or database without Attorney General approval or court order associated with a felony criminal investigation or as otherwise provided by law. It also makes such disclosure a misdemeanor.

This House Concurrent Resolution expresses gratitude to the men and women of the Civil Air Patrol for their outstanding service to the State of Delaware.

This House Concurrent Resolution designates the 21st day of the Month of March 2026 as “Rock Your Socks for World Down Syndrome Day” and celebrates the beauty and contributions that people with Down syndrome make in Delaware.

This Resolution recognizes the pertinent work of social workers throughout Delaware and the entire country, encourages the creation and expansion of Social Work programs, and recognizes March 2026 as Social Work Month in the State of Delaware.

Like House Bill No. 174, this substitute enables family members of individuals who have died by suicide to receive support services through the present Victims Compensation Assistance Program through a Suicide Victims’ Assistance Fund. This Act takes effect on July 1 following its enactment into law and the appropriation of funds into the Suicide Victims’ Assistance Fund. This substitute differs from the original bill by removing language providing funding for the bill through surcharges on business, residential, wireless, and prepaid wireless services. Instead, this substitute calls for the Suicide Victims’ Assistance Fund to be funded through annual appropriations by the General Assembly. This substitute also imposes a cap on annual expenditures from the fund and requires proportional reductions to claim payments for the remainder of the year if expenditures are expected to exceed the cap or once 75% of appropriated funds have been disbursed. This Act also calls for the General Assembly to review the expenditure cap and adjust it as appropriate every two years, beginning in Fiscal Year 2028.

This Concurrent Resolution recognizes January 27, 2026, as International Holocaust Remembrance Day and encourages education and remembrance in observance of the day.

This Senate Concurrent Resolution honors and commends Mr. Thomas Welch for his nearly two decades of work in preserving the remarkable life story of Delaware Revolutionary War hero Allen McLane, a resident of the town of Smyrna.