| SB 166 | Signed | Henry | This Act requires that feminine hygiene products be provided free of charge to individuals in custody at facilities operated by the Department of Correction and facilities operated by the Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families.
This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 14 AND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE PROVISION OF FREE FEMININE HYGIENE PRODUCTS. |
| HB 354 | Signed | Osienski | This Act makes the Delaware equal accommodation law internally consistent, correctly organized, and aligned with the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA").
This Act corrects the potential for confusion in Chapter 45 of Title 6 in the following ways:
1. The current law states that the purpose of Chapter 45 is to prohibit discrimination based upon physical disability but Chapter 45 actually prohibits discrimination against individuals with physical or mental disabilities. This Act corrects the purpose language in § 4501 of Title 6 by changing the term "physical disability" to "disability" so that it accurately states the scope of the protection provided by of Chapter 45.
2. The current law uses the term "support animal" while the ADA and other states use the term "service animal." This Act replaces the term "support animal" with "service animal" to use the same term as the ADA.
3. The current law defines "support animal" as assisting only individuals with physical disabilities and does not address service animals that assist individuals with nonphysical disabilities, even though Chapter 45 prohibits discrimination against individuals with physical or mental impairments. This Act uses the ADA definition of service animal, which requires that the dog be trained to do work or perform tasks for an individual with a disability.
4. The current law places the prohibition against discriminating against an individual with a support animal in the definition section rather than in the prohibited practices section. This Act moves the requirement that a service animal be permitted to accompany an individual with a disability in public places from the definition of disability to the statute that lists unlawful practices.
With these corrections, this Act restructures and corrects the language in Chapter 45 of Title 6 so that it is consistent with the ADA and clear that an individual with any disability, including an individual with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder or other psychiatric, intellectual, or mental disability, may be accompanied by a service animal in a public place.
This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 6 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO EQUAL ACCOMMODATIONS. |
| HB 357 | Signed | J. Johnson | The Department of Corrections sometimes has difficulty tracking sex offenders coming out of prison because overly restrictive local ordinances can severely restrict the availability of appropriate housing. Homeless sex offenders are less likely to comply with registration requirements and are less able to access required treatment and comply with other supervision conditions. This may contribute to recidivism and detract from public safety.
This bill restricts the power of municipalities to impose broader residency and proximity restrictions on sex offenders than those that apply under state law. Specifically, 11 Del. C. 112, prohibits sex offenders from residing or loitering within 500 feet of school property.
| AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 22 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO MUNICIPALITIES. |
| HB 371 | Signed | Heffernan | This legislation makes two minor modifications to Delaware’s background check process for prospective employees and volunteers at child-serving entities. It: 1) clarifies that an employer who must first obtain a signed authorization from the prospective employee for a Child Protection Registry Check, must attach that authorization to the request for the Registry check; and 2) only those persons currently on the Child Protection Registry may impact an employer’s decision whether to hire a person who is not otherwise expressly excluded from employment. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 31 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO WELFARE. |
| HS 1 for HB 346 w/ HA 2 | Signed | Bentz | This Act establishes the High Needs Educator Student Loan Payment Program. The Program allows qualified applicants to apply for a payment from the State to the applicant’s lending agency, to pay a portion of the applicant’s student loan debt. The purpose of the Program is to encourage Educators to work and remain working in certification areas in which Delaware has a shortage and to encourage Educators to work and remain working in Delaware’s hardest-to-staff Schools. The amount of the award shall be no less than $1000 and no more than $2000. This substitute redesignates the chapter where this language will be placed in the code. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 14 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO EDUCATION. |
| HB 382 | Signed | Brady | This Act has the effect of renaming the Delaware Department of Transportation Welcome Center on Interstate 95 at 530 JFK Memorial Highway, Newark, Delaware as the "Biden Welcome Center" in honor of the Biden family. This gesture is made because of the exemplary service to the State of Delaware the Bidens have provided, and because of their lifelong promotion of this State. | AN ACT TO RENAME THE DELAWARE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION WELCOME CENTER ON INTERSTATE 95 LOCATED AT 530 JFK MEMORIAL HIGHWAY NEWARK, DE 19702 IN HONOR OF THE BIDENS. |
| SB 184 w/ SA 1 | Signed | Townsend | As the self-storage industry continues to grow, it is important for consumers to have the option to insure their items stored in a self-storage facility. Currently, Delaware law does not provide a licensing structure for the sale of self-storage insurance. This type of insurance is becoming more commonplace with the growth in the self-storage industry. This legislation provides a licensing structure for self-storage businesses engaged in the sale of this type of insurance, grants the Insurance Commissioner regulatory oversight over the sales practices for this type of insurance and provides important protections and disclosures for consumers who purchase this insurance product. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 18 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO SELF-SERVICE STORAGE INSURANCE PRODUCER LICENSURE. |
| SB 193 | Signed | Sokola | This Bill updates the State of Delaware’s False Claims and Reporting Act to make it compliant with the requirements of Section 1909 of the Social Security Act. Section 1909 of the Social Security Act provides a financial incentive for States to enact laws that establish liability to the State for individuals and entities that submit false or fraudulent claims to the State Medicaid Program. This incentive provides for a ten percent increase in the share of a qui tam recovery or settlement apportioned to the State. For a State to qualify for this incentive, State law must meet certain requirements enumerated under Section 1909(b) of the Social Security Act, so that the State’s law is at least as effective as the Federal False Claims Act. After review by the Office of Inspector General for the United States Department of Health & Human Services (“OIG-HHS”), it was determined that Delaware’s current False Claims and Reporting Act fails to meet the requirements of Section 1909(b) of the Social Security Act. OIG-HHS has granted Delaware a two-year grace period, ending December 31, 2018, to address these deficiencies. This bill amends the False Claims and Reporting Act to bring it into compliance with the requirements of Section 1909(b). | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 6 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DELAWARE FALSE CLAIMS AND REPORTING ACT. |
| HB 402 | Signed | Lynn | Previously, a school superintendent was required to notify the DMV any time a student was expelled from a public school, at which time the DMV was permitted to suspend or refuse to issue or renew the expelled student a driver’s license. This bill eliminates the ability for the DMV to suspend a student’s driver’s license who has been expelled from a public school. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 14 AND TITLE 21 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO EXPULSION OF STUDENTS. |
| SB 206 | Signed | Hansen | Far too many Delawareans have been personally affected by addiction and substance use disorder and have experienced the tragedy of watching loved ones suffer from this chronic disease. Nearly 2,000 individuals in Delaware suffered a non-fatal overdose in 2017, but data suggest that many of these individuals continued to be prescribed opioid pain medications or did not receive substance use disorder treatment.
This Act links specific patient care data related to overdose collected by the Office of Emergency Medical Services or the Office of the State Epidemiologist with data in the Delaware Prescription Monitoring Program (“PMP”). This Act will foster best practices in the use of health information, to ensure that consistent, humane, evidence-based treatment and care is available and provided to those suffering from substance use disorder or non-fatal overdose.
Linking this data may assist prescribers and pharmacists in the identification of substance use disorder and promote safer prescribing.
This Act also provides prescriber and dispenser identified data to the PMP Advisory Committee and the Addiction Action Committee, which will enable these committees to do the following:
1. Appropriately identify prescribing and dispensing patterns of concern.
2. Make recommendations to the PMP administrator.
3. Provide targeted education to those individuals whose prescribing or dispensing practices are outliers from the Delaware average.
This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
| AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE PRESCRIPTION MONITORING PROGRAM. |
| HB 430 | Signed | Carson | This Bill authorizes the Department of Agriculture to utilize any laboratory designated by the Department of Agriculture rather than only the State Chemist to analyze samples of foods, dairy and other feeds and insecticides, and to cooperate with the United States Department of Agriculture and other federal agencies in the enforcement of the laws related to foods, dairy and other feeds, and insecticides. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 3 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO AGRICULTURE. |
| SB 225 w/ SA 1, SA 2 | Signed | Hansen | This Act encourages prescribers and patients to use proven non-opioid methods of treating back pain by doing the following:
1. Prohibits numerical limits on physical therapy and chiropractic care, which might deter prescribers or patients from using those treatments rather than opioids.
2. Adds continuing education requirements for prescribers relating to risks of opioids and alternatives to opioids.
3. Creates a pilot program within the state employee health care plan that allows the use of massage therapy, acupuncture, and yoga for the treatment of back pain. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16, TITLE 24, TITLE 29, AND TITLE 31 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO INSURANCE COVERAGE FOR THE TREATMENT OF BACK PAIN. |
| HS 1 for HB 440 | Signed | Bentz | House Substitute No. 1 for House Bill 440 differs from House Bill 440 only in that it locates the Overdose System of Care and the Overdose System of Care Committee in Chapter 97 of Title 16 instead of in Chapter 10 of Title 16.
House Substitute No. 1 for House Bill 440 establishes an overdose system of care to improve care, treatment, and survival of the overdose patient in State of Delaware. This Act allows the Secretary of the Department of Health and Social Services to establish stabilization centers that can receive overdose patients from Emergency Medical Services and designate acute health care facilities, freestanding emergency departments, and hospitals that meet established requirements as an overdose system of care centers. This Act also establishes a standing Overdose System of Care Committee to assist in the oversight of the overdose system of care and provide recommendations for its implementation and maintenance. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE CREATION OF AN OVERDOSE SYSTEM OF CARE. |
| HB 451 w/ HA 1 | Signed | Bolden | This Act stabilizes revenue for the Hazardous Substances Cleanup Act ("HSCA") Fund ("the Fund") by minimizing the wide swings in revenue due to oil prices changes. Under this Act, the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control ("the Department") is prevented from receiving a revenue windfall when oil prices rise, while minimum funding for the Brownfields Grant Program is protected when oil prices are low. The legislation ties HSCA funding to a median benchmark and authorizes the Division of Revenue to adjust the tax rate up or down for the following year to smooth the revenue stream and avoid the roller coaster effect of oil price changes.
This Act caps the HSCA tax rate at 1.675% and allows the lowest rate to drop to .675%, versus the current HSCA rate of .9%. This Act sets aside a minimum of $5,000,000 annually in HSCA funds for the Brownfields Grant Program, which has leveraged private investment of 16 times the public funds expended in cleaning up polluted sites and returning them to productive use, generating jobs and tax revenue. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 7 RELATING TO THE HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCE CLEANUP ACT. |
| HS 1 for HB 335 w/ HA 2 | Signed | D. Short | This Act establishes the Delaware School Safety and Security Fund to allow certain eligible public schools to partially or fully fund projects intended to improve school facilities and training relating to safety or security. The Department of Education shall administer the fund. This Act is effective upon appropriation. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 14 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO ESTABLISHING A SCHOOL SAFETY AND SECURITY FUND. |
