This bill allows schools and school districts to submit an application to the Department of Education to have a school designated as a Purple Star School.
This bill establishes the timeframe within which a property insurer must give prior written notice of its intent to cancel a policy. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
This Act incorporates recent changes adopted by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners to Model Law #805 “Standard Nonforfeiture Law – Individual Deferred Annuities” that address the impact on annuity products by the current low interest rate environment. Generally speaking, the standard Nonforfeiture Law requires that an individual deferred annuity contract provide the contract holder with a paid-up annuity or cash surrender benefits of a minimum amount if the contract holder surrenders the policy (e.g. stops making payments) during the accumulation period. The nonforfeiture amount is the deferred annuity’s accumulated value, minus certain charges (such as prior withdrawals and loans), based on interest rate minimums regulated by statute. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, market interest rates have fallen so low as to render unrealistic the old statutory rates that insurance companies were required to use in determining the amount to return to contract holders. The NAIC has determined this threatens the availability of annuity products to consumers and, as such, adopted a change to the interest rate from 1% to 0.15%.
This Act adds a provision addressing the assignability of rights under property insurance policies and authorizes a property insurance carrier to limit a policy’s assignability only to those persons or entities that have the legal authority to represent an insured. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
This bill allows for deviations from rating organization filings to be effective continuously until terminated with the approval of the Commissioner or subsequently modified. This change conforms the law to current practice. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
This Act provides increased funding for kindergarten through third grade students identified as eligible for basic special education services. Currently, basic special education is provided for students in fourth through twelfth grade who are identified as eligible for basic special education and related services; there is no additional unit funding for students in kindergarten through third grade who may be eligible for basic special education services. The Act adds a designation of “K-3 Basic Special Education (basic)” and over three years reduces the number of students comprising a unit from the current 16.2 to 8.4. This Act will increase the unit count funding for K-3 Basic Special Education (basic) students by School Year 2023-2024, Fiscal Year 2024, to be consistent with the 8.4 unit of pupils currently available to students in grades 4 through 12. Sections 1 through 3 of this Act change the funding chart currently in the Code to subsections and provides for a decrease in the ratio between the number of students enrolled and the unit count for basic special education from 16.2 currently to 12.2 in Fiscal Year 2022, 10.2 in Fiscal Year 2023, and 8.4 in Fiscal Year 2024. Section 4 of this Act delays the effect of each Section until the start of each new fiscal year in the 3-year cycle over which this Act’s changes are intended to occur.
This Act authorizes the State of Delaware to execute the Interstate Insurance Product Regulation Compact to protect the interest of consumers of individual and group annuity, life insurance, and disability income insurance products; to develop uniform standards for insurance products covered by the Compact; to establish a central clearinghouse to receive and provide prompt review of insurance products covered under the Compact and, in certain cases, advertisements related thereto, submitted by insurers authorized to do business in one or more compacting jurisdictions; to give appropriate uniform standards; to improve coordination of regulatory resources and expertise between state insurance departments regarding the setting of uniform standards and review of the insurance products covered by the Compact; to create the Interstate Insurance Product Regulation Commission; and to perform these and such other related functions as may be consistent with the state regulation of the business of insurance. A compacting state includes any state which has enacted the legislation and has not withdrawn or been terminated. This Act also designates the Delaware Insurance Commissioner as the State representative to the Commission. Currently, 45 states and Puerto Rico have adopted this Compact and 1 additional state has pending legislation.
This bill will provide Delaware students with strong academic credentials and a demonstrated commitment to volunteer public service to receive scholarship monies sufficient to cover the full cost of tuition at Delaware State University. The intent of this bill is to increase the number of students in Delaware who not only attend the University but who successfully complete degree programs.
The purpose of this legislation is to promote sustained economic growth and stability by establishing a fund to provide grants, loans or other economic assistance to businesses or public entities that invest in constructing, renovating or improving infrastructure for sites that will attract new businesses or expand existing businesses within the State to initiate economic development opportunities that will create a significant number of direct, permanent, quality, full-time jobs. There is intense competition between the states to attract and to keep vital businesses that create and maintain these direct, quality employment opportunities. Therefore, it is critical to expand and sustain economic growth within the State to consistently maintain readily available commercial, industrial sites to attract new business, or expand existing businesses. The delay in converting completely undeveloped sites into sites that are fully capable of conducting business may result in the loss of significant business opportunities that benefit the public. The site readiness fund will provide economic assistance to qualified businesses or public entities to renovate, construct, or improve commercial, industrial sites that are readily available to new businesses, established businesses that are considering moving to the State or existing businesses within the State that need additional sites to remain or expand within the State. To ensure fiscal accountability that site readiness funds are expended for their intended purpose, the applications will be administered in accordance with the existing regulations that govern applications made to the Strategic Fund. The Council on Development Finance will review the applications and supporting financial information to make recommendations to the Director of the Division of Small Business concerning the viability of the proposed project and whether the project meets the criteria established by this legislation to award funding. The Director has the final authority to award funding based on the Council’s recommendations and the requirements imposed by this legislation. The Director shall administer any such award in accordance with the requirements of Chapter 87A of Title 29 of the Delaware Code and the existing Strategic Fund regulations. To protect the assets of the Fund, the Director may require recapture provisions in any contract agreements for grants, loans or other economic assistance that recover for any substantial or complete cessation of operations or failure to reach any employment or other benchmarks. The Director may require the applicant to report financial statements and project progress reports to determine that expenditures on the project are consistent with the purpose of the Fund.
Many of the State’s waters do not meet water quality standards to support their designated uses, such as for drinking, swimming or supporting aquatic life. The Clean Water for Delaware Act establishes a framework for assessing needs and planning and implementing projects that support Delaware’s efforts to improve the quality of the State’s water supply and waterways. A Delaware Clean Water Trust account is created as a funding source for executing projects highlighted by this framework. The Trust account will have oversight from the Clean Water Trust Oversight Committee (the “Committee”). The Committee will draw upon recommendations from the Water Infrastructure Advisory Council, (WIAC), the county Conservation Districts’, experts in the effected Cabinet agencies and other public input with the goal of assisting municipal and county governments and others in implementing affordable water quality projects. The Committee is required to develop and publish an Annual Report and multi-year Strategic Plan for Clean Water with annual updates.
