This Act is designed to increase the opportunity for Delaware children to undergo developmental screening with a research-based screening tool at an early age in order to identify children who may be eligible for Early Intervention or special education services. It requires any applicant for a license or renewal of a license to operate a child care facility on or after July 1, 2023 to commit that each child between the age of birth and 5 years old (who has not yet entered kindergarten) enrolled by the child care provider will undergo developmental and social emotional screening. The screening mechanism to be used is the screening system approved by the Department of Education and will be administered by the parent or guardian of the child seeking to be enrolled in the child care facility. This Act permits an operator of a child care facility at a YMCA to be appointed to the Provider Advisory Board, changes references from “day care” to “child care” in the existing law and makes other changes consistent with the Legislative Drafting Manual.
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In 2019, the Office of Child Care Licensing (“OCCL”) was transferred from the Department of Services for Children, Youth, and Their Families to the Department of Education. This Act makes changes to improve OCCL’s implementation and enforcement of the Child Care Act, Chapter 30A of Title 14 of the Delaware Code. Additionally, this Act does the following: (1) Updates and expands the definition of child care to include early education programs for children below the grade of kindergarten that are operated by public or private schools. (2) Increases penalties for violations of the Child Care Act. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
Section 1 of this bill establishes the crimes of possession of an unfinished firearm frame or receiver with no serial number, possession of and manufacturing a covert or undetectable firearm, possession of and manufacturing an untraceable firearm, and manufacturing or distributing a firearm using a three-dimensional printer. This bill also makes it a crime to possess a firearm frame or receiver with a removed, obliterated, or altered serial number. This bill makes very limited exceptions to the requirement that certain guns have serial numbers which are: (1) Firearms manufactured before 1968; (2) Muzzle loaders that only use black powder, and antique replicas. Finally, this bill makes clear that § 1463 of Title 11 concerning untraceable firearms does not apply to members of the military forces or members of a police force in this State duly authorized to carry an untraceable firearm, and does not apply to the manufacture or importation for sale to a law-enforcement or military entity in this State. Section 2 is a severability clause. Section 3 provides that Section 1459A of Title 11, which is possession of an unfinished firearm frame or receiver with no serial number, takes effect 90 days after the Act's enactment into law.
The Victims’ Compensation Assistance Program (“Agency” or “VCAP”) administers the Victims’ Compensation Fund and provides financial assistance to eligible victims of crimes to help cover the costs of a variety of services that help victims and their families begin to rebuild their lives, including lost wages, medical expenses, payment for mental health counseling, and funeral expenses. By awarding financial compensation for losses that victims sustain as a result of crime, VCAP can help alleviate the financial burden and distress that crime leaves behind. In FY 2019, VCAP paid $2,091,787.94 to and on behalf of victims of crime. VCAP is solvent and the Victims’ Compensation Fund balance as of June 30, 2020 was $4,155,111.82. This Act seeks to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of VCAP in the following ways: (1) Lifts the statutory employment cap that limited the number of employees VCAP could employ. This update will enable the Department of Justice to augment VCAP staff by utilizing grant or federal funding. (2) Codifies benefits and more clearly enumerates available benefits and increases the funeral and burial benefit to $5,000/$2,500, respectively. (3) Makes several changes to conform to the current practice, including removing the claims payment process description in § 9005(8) and § 9009, updating the claims application process in § 9009, and removing the reporting requirements in § 9017. (4) Amends § 9009(10) to give the Agency specific authority to close inactive claims. (5) Updates the list of Advisory Council members to reflect the dissolution of the Sexual Assault Network of Delaware, which became the Delaware Alliance Against Sexual Violence. (6) Expands the population of victims able to be served, including changes to ensure victims of human trafficking are eligible for compensation. (7) Extends the deadlines to request reconsideration and file an appeal with the Appeals Board and reorganizes appeals process provisions by placing them all in the same section. (8) Changes "offense date" to "sentencing date" in § 9014(c). (9) Updates the chapter so that each program is referred to by a consistent name. (10) Adds defined terms “Executive Director” and “claimant” to the definitions section and further clarifies to which category of victims parts of the Code apply. (11) Removes the term “incompetent” in favor of adopting a phrase that uses people first language. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
This Act is a substitute for Senate Bill No. 82. Like Senate Bill 82, this Substitute does all of the following: (1) Codifies the Department of Education’s (“Department”) current efforts to establish a uniform public school registration process and requires that, beginning with the 2023 through 2024 school year, all public schools shall use the uniform public school registration process. This registration process will simplify the process for families, enable public schools to engage with families and plan in advance of the school year, and integrate data systems to eliminate duplication of effort. (2) Requires the uniform public school registration process to be Internet-based and in paper form and in English and Spanish and may be in other languages. This Act also requires that certain information must be provided in the process and that the Internet-based uniform public school registration process must include certain features. (3)Requires the Department to provide training to certain school district and charter school employees regarding the uniform public school registration process and issue guidelines for privacy of information submitted as part of the registration process. (4) Requires the Department to report to the Governor and General Assembly, no later than March 14, 2022, on the Department’s ability to connect the Internet-based uniform public school registration process to other Internet-based systems that are used to collect student data by the State; the Department; a licensed child care provider, including Head Start; or a public school serving preschool through age 21. This Substitute differs from Senate Bill No. 82 by doing all of the following: (1) Clarifying that a student must be registered in the student’s school district of residence before being eligible for the school choice process. (2) Requiring a public school be certified as completing training from the Department on the uniform public school registration process before providing paper forms as part of the in-person registration process. (3) Requiring the Department to provide uniform information about the uniform public school registration process to public schools and requiring the public schools to post the information on the school’s website and in other publications. (4) Requiring a public school to provide a parent with certain information after the parent completes the registration process, including the public school and school in which the child is enrolled.
This Act requires that individual, group, State employee, and public assistance insurance plans provide coverage for a medically necessary insulin pump at no cost to a covered individual.
This Act allows pharmacists to administer or dispense contraceptives under a standing order from the Division of Public Health. At least 11 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands allow pharmacists to dispense contraceptives without a prescription from another health-care practitioner. This practice is supported by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
The purpose of this act is to open up The Delaware Student Excellence Equals Degree Act (SEED Act) to adult Delaware residents, who are not recent high school graduates. Currently, about 56% of Delawareans age 25-64 lack a post-secondary degree. This expansion of the SEED grant program will encourage adult learners to return to school to enhance their knowledge and skills and increase their job opportunities. Adult individuals with a high school diploma or less education were significantly impacted by Covid-19-related job loss. This legislation can help to mitigate the effects of the pandemic on those adults. Tennessee has instituted a similar program called the Tennessee Reconnect Act.
This Act is a substitute for Senate Bill No. 120. Like Senate Bill No. 120, this Substitute continues recent efforts to strengthen the primary care system in this State by doing the following: (1) Directing the Health Care Commission to monitor compliance with value-based care delivery models and develop, and monitor compliance with, alternative payment methods that promote value-based care. (2) Requiring rate filings limit aggregate unit price growth for inpatient, outpatient, and other medical services, to certain percentage increases. (3) Requiring an insurance carrier to spend a certain percentage of its total cost on primary care. (4) Requiring the Office of Value-Based Health Care Delivery to establish mandatory minimums for payment innovations, including alternative payment models, and evaluate annually whether primary care spending is increasing in compliance with the established mandatory minimums for payment innovations. (5) In Sections 2 and 3 of this Act, revising the appointment process for members of the Primary Care Reform Collaborative who are not members by virtue of position to comply with the requirements of the Delaware Constitution. These revisions are largely similar to those proposed in Senate Substitute No. 1 to Senate Bill No. 59 (151st General Assembly) (“the Substitute”). As such, Section 2 is designed to take effect if the Substitute does not pass both chambers or passes but is not enacted; Section 3 is designed to take effect if the Substitute passes both chambers and is enacted. (6) Making technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual This Substitute differs from Senate Bill No. 120 as it does all of the following: (1) Adds a “whereas clause” stating that the Department of Insurance does not regulate Medicaid or employer-based plans provided under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, or their rates. (2) Provides that rate filings for health benefit plans may not include aggregate unit price growth for nonprofessional services that exceed the greater of 2% or Core CPI plus 1% in 2024, 2025, and 2026. (3) Makes a technical correction to properly alphabetize definitions in Section 4 of the Act (relating to § 2503 of Title 18). (4) Removes “mental health and substance abuse disorder” from the definition of an “inpatient hospital”. (5) Adds a definition of “professional services” and makes clear that “nonprofessional services”, which are subject to the aggregate unit price growth limits of § 2503(a)(12)a. of Title 18, do not include professional services. (6) Amends the definition of “other medical services” to make clear the term includes the facility component of vision exams, dental services, and other services when those services are billed separately from the professional component. (7) Changes the date for mandatory minimums for payment innovations to support a robust system of primary care to January 1, 2026. (8) Make clear that the Office of Value-Based Health Care Delivery is to annually evaluate whether primary care spending is increasing in compliance with the requirements of, and regulations adopted under, all of Title 18. (9) Requires the Office of Value-Based Health Care Delivery to collect data and develop reports to monitor and evaluate the percentage of spending in primary care that is delegated to hospitals and related networks for care coordination through alternative payment models. (10) Removes the sunset date on provisions requiring individual, group, and State employee insurance plans to reimburse primary care physicians, certified nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and other front-line practitioners for chronic care management and primary care at no less than the physician Medicare rate. (11) Sunsets Sections 5 and 6 of this Act and § 2503(a)(12)a. of Title 18 as contained in Section 4 of this Act on January 1, 2027.
This Act makes the following changes to election law: (1) Increases the contribution or expenditure threshold for requiring a candidate for a public office, including a municipal office, to form a candidate committee, or file a statement of organization, with the State Election Commissioner from $2,000 to $5,000. (2) Changes the deadline to file campaign finance reports from 4:30 p.m. to 11:59 p.m. and makes clear that the reports are required to be filed electronically using the Department of Elections’ campaign finance reporting system. (3) Provides a deadline by which a candidate must withdraw to be removed from the general election ballot. 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 § 1 of Article IX of the Delaware Constitution requires the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each house of the General Assembly to amend a municipal charter.