To establish more transparency in government, and to strengthen citizens' faith in the election and redistricting processes that serve as the foundation of democracy in Delaware, this bill establishes an Independent Redistricting Commission for the State of Delaware. The Commission will be responsible for drawing the boundaries of Delaware's legislative districts every ten years, following each decennial census. A pool of twenty-four potential Commission members shall be selected by a bipartisan judicial panel from applications filed with the Commissioner of Elections. The pool will consist of eight current or former Delaware attorneys or former Delaware judges and sixteen other citizens of Delaware. The pool must include eight candidates from each of the State’s two largest political parties and eight candidates that are not a member of either of the State’s two largest parties. Prior to selection of Commission members, the following individuals shall each have the opportunity to strike one candidate from the pool: the Speaker of the House, the House Minority Leader, the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, and the Senate Minority Leader. From the pool of remaining candidates, the Secretary of State will draw by lot until the following conditions are satisfied: 1) The Commission will have nine members, three of whom must be current or former attorneys or former Delaware judges, and six of whom must be other Delaware citizens. 2) Three members of the Commission shall be members of the State’s largest political party, three shall be members of the State’s second largest political party, and the remaining three shall not be a member of either of the State’s two largest political parties. Eligible candidates may not be, and may not have in the five years prior to appointment been, a federal or state lobbyist, an officer of a federal or state political party, an officer of a campaign committee, or an elected federal or state official. Commissioners are also prohibited from running for the General Assembly in the election following the redistricting, and from registering as a federal or state lobbyist for five years following the term as a Commissioner. A preliminary plan must be prepared by the Commission for public distribution, and four public hearings must be held before a Final Redistricting Plan and Report is approved by the Commission. The Delaware Supreme Court shall have original and exclusive jurisdiction to resolve challenges to the Final Redistricting Plan adopted by the Commission.
Sponsored bills
This Resolution recognizes April, 2017 as Child Abuse Prevention Month in Delaware.
This bill lowers the tax rate by .05%. Also, it creates a new tax bracket at $125,000 with a rate of 7.05%, and an additional bracket at $250,000 with a rate of 7.80%.
This Concurrent Resolution recognizes April 4, 2017, as "Equal Pay Day."
This Joint Resolution opposes the cost allocation of the Artificial Island Transmission Project as unfair and unduly burdensome to the ratepayers of Delaware and urges PJM to join with Delaware in contesting the cost allocation in the proceedings pending before FERC.
In many circumstances persons who owe child support have received monetary awards in the form of a court settlement, verdict, judgment, or under a worker’s compensation award. This Bill requires a prevailing litigant to advise his attorney or insurance carrier of any outstanding child support arrears owed and directs the attorney, insurance carrier or other paying agent to pay the proceeds up to the arrears owed to DCSS to satisfy any outstanding arrearages owed to the custodian. If child support arrears or retroactive support is owed, the lien, up to the amount of child support arrears or retroactive support owed, must first be paid before any funds (excluding the first $1,000 of net proceeds) may be released to the prevailing party.
This Act is a first leg of a constitutional amendment that would eliminate from the Delaware Constitution the limitations as to when an individual may vote by absentee ballot. This amendment to the Delaware Constitution provides that the General Assembly shall enact general laws providing the circumstances, rules, and procedures for absentee voting.
This Concurrent Resolution provides for a Joint Session of the Senate and the House of Representatives to be convened for the purpose of hearing an address by the Honorable John C. Carney, Jr., Governor of the State of Delaware.
An individual's housing status should not be a basis for discrimination. This bill establishes a "Homeless Individual's Bill of Rights" that provides rights to protections for individuals experiencing homelessness, including protections from discrimination while in public and while seeking access to housing, employment, and temporary shelter. This bill vests important investigatory and enforcement authority with the State's Division of Human Relations and the State Human Relations Commission, similar to their roles with Delaware's Equal Accommodations Law and Delaware's Fair Housing Act.
Section 1 of this Act updates Delaware’s existing Motor Voter Program to adopt an automatic voter registration process. Currently, when Delawareans apply for, renew, or replace a driver’s license or identification card, they must choose to register to vote, update an existing registration, or decline registration. This bill would require eligible voters to instead “opt out” of having their information automatically shared with the Delaware Department of Elections for registration. Six states and the District of Columbia have enacted similar opt out policies. A portion of Section 1 (specifically, § 2050(b), Title 15) and Sections 2, 3, and 4 of this Act make technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual with no intent to change the substance of these sections.