Rep. Debra Heffernan

This Act appropriates $49,167,700 to provide a $500 one-time salary supplement to full-time and part-time employees, to provide a $400 pension supplement to pensioners and provides one-time funded projects through the Office of Management and Budget.

This Bill is the Fiscal Year 2019 Appropriation Act.

The Delaware Marijuana Control Act regulates and taxes marijuana in the same manner as alcohol. It allows adults over the age of 21 to legally possess and consume under 1 ounce of marijuana for personal use. It does not permit people to grow their own marijuana. Section 1: Amends Chapter 47 of Title 16 to provide that the offenses and penalties under Uniform Controlled Substances Act do not apply to marijuana-related conduct allowed under the Delaware Marijuana Control Act or the Delaware Medical Marijuana Act, Chapter 49A of Title 16. Section 2: Amends § 4764 of Title 16 to eliminate any penalty for possessing 1 ounce or less of marijuana for individuals over the age of 21 but maintains the existing civil penalty for possession of 1 ounce or less for adults age 18 to 21. Section 3: Amends § 4902A of Title 16 so that the definition of a registered safety compliance facility includes not just marijuana produced for medical use but also marijuana produced under the Delaware Marijuana Control Act. Section 4: This Act creates the Delaware Marijuana Control Act. Subchapter I contains definitions and general provisions. Where definitions or analogous provisions exist in the Delaware Code, the definitions are referenced and the language from existing statutes is used. This section of the Act permits individuals over age 21 to possess, use, purchase, or transport 1 ounce (28 grams) or less of marijuana, no more than 5 grams of which may be concentrated, by individuals 21 years of age or older if the individuals are in compliance with this chapter. It permits the operation of marijuana businesses if they operate under licenses granted under this chapter but imposes the same limits on hours and holiday sales as apply to sales of alcohol. It prohibits the use of marijuana in public, by drivers or passengers in vehicles, and prohibits the smoking of marijuana anywhere that smoking tobacco or ecigarettes is not permitted. Marijuana may not be sold in an establishment licensed to sell alcohol. Employers and some owners of residential housing can prohibit the use of marijuana. There are specific provisions imposing the same penalties as with alcohol sales, for individuals under the age of 21 using false identification to purchase marijuana, and for businesses that fail to verify the age of marijuana consumers. This Act creates the Delaware Marijuana Control Act Oversight Committee. This Oversight Committee will coordinate the implementation of this Act with the Medical Marijuana Program, the Division of Public Health, the Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health, and the public. The Oversight Committee will review the effectiveness of the Delaware Marijuana Control Act in regard to the safe operation of facilities licensed under this Act, the impact of this Act on public safety, and the impact of this Act on public health. The Commissioner must submit an annual report to the Governor and the members of the General Assembly setting forth all matters of interest and all statistics concerning marijuana regulation and control in the State including: the number of licenses of each variety issued with the State; including the name and address of each person licensed to cultivate, manufacture, or sell marijuana or marijuana products in the State; the amount of marijuana and marijuana products sold within the State; and the number of licenses of each kind granted and the number cancelled during the year. Subchapter II creates the Division of Marijuana Control and Enforcement in the Department of Safety and Homeland Security. The powers and duties granted to this Division are substantially the same as those in Title 4 creating the Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement but revised to conform to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. This includes the identical power to conduct hearings if neighbors protest the license application of establishments that sell marijuana and subpoena power. It requires the Commissioner to coordinate with the Delaware Economic Development Office so that potential businesses licensed under this Act have access to programs, particularly those that support small businesses owned by minorities, women, and veterans. Subchapter III provides the Marijuana Commissioner the authority to adopt regulations to implement this Act and includes specific requirements that marijuana establishments must meet to obtain licenses. Regulations must require that products containing marijuana use of a symbol and a standard measurement to be used on all marijuana products so they are easily identified as containing marijuana and consumers can identify the amount of marijuana in different products; be in opaque, child-resistant packaging; and contain a warning label explaining evidence-based harms from consuming marijuana, including the impact on developing brains. The regulations must also contain security requirements, testing requirements, advertising restrictions, and require that food products comply with State food safety laws. There are separate licensing requirements for retail marijuana stores, marijuana testing facilities, marijuana cultivation facilities, and marijuana product manufacturing facilities. The application fee for licenses is up to $5000, which is the same as the application fee for facilities under the Delaware Medical Marijuana program. There is a $10,000 biennial fee for each license issued under this Act, which is lower than the fee for compassion center under the Delaware Medical Marijuana program. Within 10 months of the effective date of this Act, applications will be accepted from compassion centers and safety compliance facilities registered under Chapter 49A of Title 16 to operate as retail marijuana stores, marijuana cultivation facilities, marijuana product manufacturing facilities, and marijuana testing facilities. Localities have the ability to license and set rules for marijuana establishments. The procedure for appeals and grounds to deny a license are the same as for applications to sell alcohol under Title 4, except that instead of prohibiting someone with any substance abuse felony from obtaining a license, the language from § 4902A(7)(b) of Title 16, is used, permitting an exception if the conviction and sentence served was 10 years or more in the past or the conviction was for something that would be legal under this Act. Subchapter IV creates the Marijuana Regulation Fund. This fund will consist of fees collected, penalties imposed, and taxes collected under this Act. It creates an excise tax on marijuana and apportions the revenue as follows: first to the administrative costs and expenses of the Division of Marijuana Control and Enforcement and then, of the amount that remains, 20% to the Department of Education, 10% to the Department of Health and Social Services for distribution to nonprofit organizations to address barriers to reentry for communities that have been disproportionally affected by past federal and state marijuana prohibition policies, 10% to the Department of Health and Social Services for use in evidence-based, voluntary programs for the prevention or treatment of alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana abuse, and 10% to the Department of Health and Social Services for a public education campaign educating youth and adults about the health and safety risks of alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana. Section 5: Creates a State tax deduction for all ordinary and necessary expenses paid or incurred by a marijuana establishment to reflect the inability of a business licensed under this Act to deduct these expenses from federal taxes and thus state taxes. This creates a more level playing field with other businesses. Section 6: Provides that the initial regulations required under this Act be adopted not later than 9 months after the effective date of this Act.

The Certification of Adoption of Sustainability and Transparency Standards Act (the “Act”) establishes a voluntary disclosure regime to foster dialogue around sustainability and responsibility among participating Delaware business entities and their various stakeholders. Because issues relating to sustainability and responsibility are fact-specific and fact-intensive and may vary greatly depending on, among other things, the size of the entity, the nature of its business and operations, and the industry in which it operates, the Act does not prescribe specific standards, measures of performance or criteria for evaluating performance. Rather, consistent with the enabling approach of Delaware business laws generally, the Act requires the governing body of each entity seeking certification under the Act to adopt principles, guidelines and standards to guide its business activities in a sustainable and responsible manner, as well as metrics for assessing whether it has met its objectives. Although Section 5003D of the Act grants the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware (the “Secretary of State”) the authority and discretion to provide the form of application for certification under the Act, the Act does not contemplate that State officers will make qualitative judgments regarding the standards or metrics that an entity adopts. The Act also does not contemplate or require that State officers determine qualitatively whether an entity has been operated in a sustainable and responsible manner. The Secretary of State's certification is focused on information acknowledged by an authorized representative of the entity regarding its adoption of procedures to operate sustainably and responsibly and its commitment to disclose, at least annually, such procedures. To that end, Section 5003D of the Act requires an entity applying for certification under the Act to make disclosures regarding the sustainability and responsibility standards it has adopted, the metrics it uses to evaluate whether it has met those standards, and its performance in meeting those standards. The Act is entirely voluntary. The decision whether to seek certification is in the sole discretion of each entity. The Act imposes no obligations on any Delaware entities that have not elected certification. (Of course, any person or entity that misrepresents an entity's certified status may be subject to civil or criminal fines or penalties.) The Act does not impose fines or penalties on entities that elect not to seek certification, nor does it impose penalties or fines on entities that, having become certified, fail to satisfy their own performance standards. Moreover, the Act specifies that fiduciary liability shall not be imposed as a result of, among other things, the decision whether or not to seek certification or the failure to meet specific sustainability and responsibility standards.

Both the Delaware Strategic Fund (Title 29, Chapter 87A, Subchapter II) and the Delaware Technical Innovation Fund (Title 29, Chapter 87A, Subchapter III) provide funding for Delaware businesses, including new businesses in growing technology-related fields. The Delaware Strategic Fund is intended to assist in the development of startup strategies such as seed capital and incubator programs. The Delaware Technical Innovation Fund is intended to promote coordination with Delaware’s institutions of higher education and the private sector to commercialize innovative products and processes developed by small businesses. This act encourages Delaware’s institutions of higher education to assist foreign-born, student entrepreneurs, who are engaged in the development of new businesses and technologies in Delaware, to provide them with assistance in maintaining proper legal status within the United States. Presently, thirteen universities in six states offer Global Entrepreneur in Residence Programs which have been successful in assisting foreign-born, student entrepreneurs in creating new businesses, new jobs, and attracting additional capital investment for their development and expansion. This act will add a provision comparable to those found in Global Entrepreneur Residence Programs within the existing frameworks provided by the Delaware Strategic Fund and the Delaware Technical Innovation Fund. This will encourage the creation and development of new businesses and new technologies in Delaware, without creating a new program with new funding needs.

This Act amends the Delaware Governmental Accountability Act to make the annual budget process part of a performance management system of strategic planning, performance metrics and performance budgeting, dedicated to continuous process improvement that makes government more efficient, reduces costs and eliminates waste in the process and operations that deliver goods and services to taxpayers, customers and employees of State government.

Senate Bill No. 209, enacted by the 145th General Assembly, extended the Historic Preservation Tax Credit Act through June 2020. This Act extends the Historic Preservation Tax Credit Act through June 2030 and puts the provision regarding the effective date in the statute.

This bill provides for election day registration for presidential primary, primary, special, and general elections whereas currently the deadline is the fourth Saturday prior to the date of the election. Moreover, same day registration at polling places will be permitted with submission of valid government issued identification or other generally accepted proof of identification.

This bill establishes in-person early voting for the State of Delaware. Registered voters will be allowed to vote in-person for at least 10 days prior to an election, up to and including the Saturday and Sunday immediately prior to the election at locations determined by the Commissioner. The Commissioner is also charged with determining whether such voting should occur by voting machine or paper ballot. All other procedures relating to conducting voting are the same as for election day voting. For statewide elections the statute directs that there must be at least one in-person polling place in each county, and an additional location in the city of Wilmington. This Act takes effect on January 1, 2020.

This Act amends the Renewable Energy Portfolio Standards Act (REPSA) to provide for a workable cost cap to protect Delmarva Power customers from sharp annual increases in their bills due to the cost of procuring renewable energy. This Act authorizes the Director of the Division of Energy and Climate of the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) to freeze the renewable portfolio standard (RPS) if the cost of compliance to Delmarva Power customers increases by more than 1% a year, or 0.5% for solar power, without shutting down the RPS permanently. However, this Act requires the Director to lift a freeze if the increase in costs is expected to fall below the annual cost caps. This Act revises the RPS cost cap provisions by making it clear that the cost caps measure the annual increase in the cost of compliance with REPSA. This Act reduces the cost cap thresholds from 3% to 1% for renewable energy overall and from 1% to 0.5% for solar energy. Finally, the Act delineates the authority to promulgate regulations on the part of DNREC and the Public Service Commission to avoid any regulatory conflict and ensure that the agencies work together to implement REPSA while protecting customers from sharp cost increases.