| HB 35 w/ HA 1, HA 1 to HA 1, HA 2 to HA 1 + SA 2 | Signed | B. Short | This bill sets forth a framework for the licensing, regulation and inspection of business establishments that provide massage and bodywork services. This bill places oversight of any business offering massage services in the hands of the Board of Massage and Bodywork. Specifically, it defines “massage establishment,” and grants authority to the Board of Massage and Bodywork to grant or deny licensure of such establishments and adopt regulations pertaining to the licensure, maintenance and standards to be applied to such establishments. It provides authority for the Division or Professional Regulation to inspect such establishments without any advance notice or concurrent criminal investigation. This bill imposes criminal and civil penalties, including injunctive relief, fines, and imprisonment, for the unlicensed practice of massage and bodywork and the operation of an unlicensed massage establishment. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 24 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE BOARD OF MASSAGE AND BODYWORK. |
| HB 47 w/ HA 1, HA 2 + SA 1 | Signed | Yearick | This bill removes the notary requirement for requests for absentee ballots. Delaware is the only state that requires a notary to authorize a voter's affidavit for an absentee ballot. In some cases, the potential voter may have to pay for the notary and Delaware essentially charges them to vote. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 15 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO ABSENTEE VOTING. |
| HB 187 w/ HA 1, HA 2 | Signed | J. Johnson | With the implementation of land banks in the State of Delaware, an increasing number of vacant and abandoned properties will be brought to sheriff’s sales. Many of these parcels will be dilapidated and require investment to render the house habitable. Blight will only be ameliorated if the bidders upon such property acquire it intending to invest in the property, thereby improving the housing in the neighborhood and eliminating blight. If bidders at a tax lien sale have failed to pay taxes when due and have failed to maintain the condition of other real property they own in the same jurisdiction, it is not likely that they intend to invest in and improve the condition of additional property they acquire. Instead they are speculating on a turnaround in the neighborhood based upon the investment and efforts of others.
Under current law, New Castle County, or any municipal government, may disapprove of the winning bid for any tax lien sheriff’s sale, at the election of the governmental entity initiating the tax lien sale, for any public purpose or reason. This bill allows any county or municipality to additionally require that bidders at such tax lien sales certify, prior to bidding, that they do not have a record of failing to maintain other real property in which they own an interest, do not have outstanding liens owed to governmental entities in excess of $1,000 at such other property, and do not hold properties that have been vacant for 18 consecutive months unless there is active construction on the property. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLES 9 AND 22 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO SHERIFF'S SALES. |
| HB 188 | Signed | J. Johnson | Criminal and administrative enforcement of laws and ordinances relating to the condition of real property and abatement of violations thereof is a significant expense of local governments. The growing number of vacant and abandoned properties has increased these costs to local governments. The owners of vacant and abandoned property routinely fail to respond to the issuance of violation notices, citations, and tickets. Thus, the local government, at taxpayer expense, is left to maintain the property in a condition that will protect the public health, safety and welfare and minimize the deleterious effect the unmaintained property has on the local community. When a property owner fails or refuses to maintain real property according to minimum code standards, the costs incurred by local government for enforcing its codes and abating violations thereof, should be borne by the property owner rather than the taxpayers. Thus, this bill is intended to clarify that costs associated with enforcement of local laws and ordinances relating to the condition of real property and abatement of violations of those laws and ordinances shall be a lien against the property subject to the enforcement action. Recoupment of costs associated with the enforcement of building, property maintenance, zoning, drainage, sewer, housing, or sanitation codes is a lengthy and expensive process for local governments. This bill clarifies that local governments may include the amount of the lien on the local tax billing of the property subject to the enforcement action may collect the lien in the same manner as other property taxes. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 9 AND 25 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO LIENS OF POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS AND MUNICIPALITIES. |
| SB 96 | Signed | Lopez | This Act amends the Charter for the City of Lewes to make residents who are not property owners or leaseholders in the City or in an area to be annexed ineligible to vote in a special annexation election. This Act also creates a new Section 40, providing for the indemnification of City officers and employees in criminal, civil, quasi-judicial, and administrative actions in appropriate circumstances. | AN ACT TO AMEND THE CHARTER OF THE CITY OF LEWES RELATING TO VOTER ELIGIBILITY IN SPECIAL ANNEXATION ELECTIONS AND INDEMNIFICATION OF CITY OFFICIALS AND EMPLOYEES. |
| HB 197 | Signed | Gray | This bill makes changes to the Delaware Professional Engineers' licensing chapter to:
1. Limit license reinstatement to a 4-year period instead of the current 10-year period.
2. Clarifies the requirement necessary for an out-of-state Professional Engineer to obtain a temporary permit and licensure in Delaware.
3. Allows the use of an electronic signature and date. Previously only an electronic seal was authorized.
4. Clarifies that a licensee from another jurisdiction can be disciplined after they have voluntarily surrendered their license in the other jurisdiction. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 24 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERS. |
| HB 201 | Signed | B. Short | This Act clarifies that after a physician-patient relationship has been properly established in accordance with this section, subsequent communications and treatment may be conducted as the doctor and patient deem appropriate. As with all practice of medicine, such subsequent interactions must still meet the standard of care for the given field of medicine.
The Act also clarifies that this statute is not intended to limit the practice of radiology or pathology – fields in which it has long been standard for an off-site specialist to examine records created by a treating physician or technician.
| AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 24 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO TELEMEDICINE. |
| HS 1 for HB 173 w/ HA 1 + SA 1 | Signed | Jaques | This bill further consolidates animal welfare law enforcement roles and responsibilities under Title 16. The Office of Animal Welfare enforces all animal control and animal cruelty laws of this state. Upon the transfer of such responsibilities to the Office of Animal Welfare, officers were given greater enforcement authority than previously assigned under the Delaware State Constable Board. As such, animal welfare officers were removed from the Board’s oversight and the additional laws enforced previously as constables need to be added to the section of the code that defines officer authority, specifically when enforcing animal fighting laws and laws pertaining to dangerous animals. Other laws, like the dog control law, needed to be brought up to date with current Office of Animal Welfare authority. Additionally, the bill updates the Dangerous Dog Law to allow for more thorough investigation prior to civil filings, adds code provisions concerning dogs that repeatedly attack or threaten to attack people and animals in the community, creates steps for ensuring compliance to court rulings, and establishes a deadline for filing appeals after dangerous dog (with euthanasia) rulings. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11, 16 AND 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATED TO DANGEROUS ANIMALS AND ANIMAL WELFARE LAWS. |
| HB 215 | Signed | Longhurst | This bill eliminates the sunset provision on the “at-store” recycling program for plastic bags. The program established in 2009 included a sunset provision until 2014. In 2014, the General Assembly extended that sunset provision to 2017. This bill eliminates the sunset provision permanently to encourage the continued routine for consumers to recycle plastic bags through “at-store” programs.
The bill will also require all stores subject to the requirements of this section to register by June 30, 2018, and provide information to DNREC regarding compliance on a form to be provided by DNREC. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 7 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO RECYCLING AND WASTE REDUCTION. |
| HJR 5 w/ HA 1 | Committee | Potter | This resolution directs the Delaware Emergency Medical Services Oversight Council and the Office of Emergency Medical Services to establish statewide metrics for emergency room wait times, with such information being publicly reported on a regular basis and available to emergency responders. | RELATING TO IMPROVING MEDICAL OUTCOMES BY ESTABLISHING STATEWIDE METRICS FOR EMERGENCY ROOM WAIT TIMES. |
| HB 214 w/ HA 1 | Signed | Mulrooney | This bill amends merit compensation bargaining unit by allowing non-uniformed correctional employees, including correctional counselors, correctional administrative staff and similar occupations, to bargain over compensation. These correctional employees are presently the only correctional employees excluded from compensation bargaining. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 19 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO COLLECTIVE BARGAINING FOR STATE EMPLOYEES. |
| HA 1 to HB 187 | Passed | J. Johnson | This amendment exempts charitable organizations that have been working in the field of affordable housing for at least 5 years and community development corporations from the certification process at sheriff’s sales. | |
| HB 220 | Signed | Bentz | This act establishes the Addiction Action Committee as a means to establish a comprehensive, coordinated strategy to address addiction in Delaware. The committee is authorized to make recommendations on a comprehensive approach to address and monitor the addiction crisis. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO DRUG ABUSE. |
| HB 227 | Signed | Carson | This Act amends the provisions of the Municipal Tax Increment Financing Act applicable solely to the City of Dover, Delaware, to allow the City of Dover to determine the date as of which the adjusted assessed value and the original assessed value of the property in the TIF District designated by the City of Dover will be determined for the purposes of the Municipal Tax Increment Financing Act. | AN ACT TO AMEND CHAPTER 17, TITLE 22 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO MUNICIPAL TAX INCREMENT FINANCING. |
| HB 228 | Signed | Carson | This Act amends the Kent County Tax Increment Financing Act to allow Kent County to determine the date as of which the adjusted assessed value and the original assessed value of the property in the TIF District designated by Kent County will be determined for the purposes of the Kent County Tax Increment Financing Act. | AN ACT TO AMEND CHAPTER 54, TITLE 9 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO KENT COUNTY TAX INCREMENT FINANCING. |
| HA 1 to HB 214 | Passed | Mulrooney | This Amendment clarifies the employees that are placed in unit eleven for compensation bargaining purposes. | |
| HA 2 to HB 187 | Passed | J. Johnson | This amendment removes the condition that a bidder may not own property that has been subject to fines, penalties or abatements of violations within the past 24 months in order to receive a prequalification certificate. This amendment also requires that a prequalified bidder can only assign a successful bid to those who satisfy the prequalification criteria. This provision eliminates a loophole wherein a prequalified bidder could have assigned a successful bid to a person who could not secure a prequalification certificate thus averting the intent of the prequalification process. | |
| SCR 35 | Passed | Lawson | This resolution honors USO Delaware for their important and inspiring work supporting military members and their families. | HONORING USO DELAWARE FOR ITS IMPORTANT AND INSPIRING WORK SUPPORTING MILITARY MEMBERS AND THEIR FAMILIES. |
| HA 1 to HS 1 for HB 173 | Passed | Jaques | This amendment makes a technical correction. | |
| HA 1 to HJR 5 | Passed | Potter | This Amendment clarifies the authority and scope of the work of the Delaware Emergency Medical Services Oversight Council. | |
