Rep. Danny Short

Section 1 of this Act modifies Delaware’s Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) to allow recipients to choose the most beneficial credit to be applied against their Delaware Personal Income Taxes. Under this Act, recipients can choose between a non-refundable credit of up to 20% of the value of the corresponding federal EITC or a refundable EITC credit of up to 4.5% of the value of the corresponding federal EITC. Section 2 of this Act makes the change to Delaware’s EITC effective for the tax year in which the Secretary of Finance provides the Registrar of Regulations with notice that the personal income tax release of the Integrated Revenue Administration System is implemented. This delay in effective date is necessary to ensure that tax law changes can be properly and efficiently implemented in the Division of Revenue’s modernized Integrated Revenue Administration System, which is currently under development. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.

This bill allows the Department of Correction to implement prison nurseries, which would allow women inmates that give birth during their time incarcerated the option of raising their infant up to the age of 18 months. Studies have shown that prison nurseries allow a mother and child to bond during this critical time of infancy and in turn lowers recidivism rates of these women inmates. This bill would further take the burden off of the foster care system and reduce the damage done between the mother and child relationship as a result of imprisonment.

This bill increases the fines for littering.

This Act expands eligibility for Line-of-Duty disability benefits to paid firefighters who work for municipal fire departments and to fire service instructors and fire marshals who work for the State and for nonphysical disabilities. This Act also creates a presumption that a covered firefighter who is permanently disabled from heart disease, lung disease, cancer, or post-traumatic stress injury developed the disabling condition because of and in the course of performing official duties. This Act also provides a list of reasons may be used to rebut this presumption and requires fire companies to keep records of each firefighter's exposure to carcinogens. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.

The National League of Families POW/MIA flag is a “symbol of our Nation's concern and commitment to resolving as fully as possible the fates of Americans still prisoners, missing, or unaccounted for in all U.S. wars” 36. U.S.C. § 902. In 1989, the United States required the National League of Families POW/MIA flag be flown on Armed Forces Day, Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day, National POW/MIA Recognition Day, and Veterans Day. In 1991, Delaware enacted Senate Bill No. 87, Chapter 88 of Volume 68 of the Laws of Delaware, which required certain state buildings to fly the POW/MIA flag each day. Senate Bill No. 87 was not drafted as an amendment to the Delaware Code and so was not included in the Delaware Code. This Act codifies Senate Bill No. 87 into § 408 of Title 29 to conform § 408 with existing Delaware and federal law in recognition of this State's commitment to our Veterans. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.

This bill is the first leg of a Constitutional Amendment to require a 3/5 vote of each House of the General Assembly to enact a law that would enable a county to enact a tax or increase a tax rate above a rate currently authorized by state law. The General Assembly cannot increase a State tax or enact a new State tax without enacting such a law by a three-fifths vote of each House. This bill applies the same rule to State legislation enabling a county to take such action.

This Concurrent Resolution provides for a Joint Session of the House of Representatives and the Senate to be convened for the purpose of hearing an address by the Honorable John C. Carney, Governor of the State of Delaware.

Requesting the Division of Research, the Office of Management and Budget, and the Delaware Department of Technology & Information cooperate in creating a detailed and implementable plan to stream audio and video of all floor proceedings of the House of Representatives and Senate, and the public committee action of both legislative chambers; record all such material; and make these recordings available to the public via a web-based archive. The resolution further requests the 151st General Assembly and the governor to vote on the finished plan and authorize the funding needed to implement it.

This House Concurrent Resolution extends the date by which the report of the task force for the Recruitment and Retention of Volunteer Firefighters for the Delaware Volunteer Fire Service.

This Act makes children with disabilities who attend homeschools eligible to receive speech language pathology and audiology services in the same manner as students who attend private schools. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.