| HB 88 | Signed | K. Williams | This bill removes the training minimum wage and youth minimum wage, which takes effect 90 days after enactment. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 19 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO MINIMUM WAGE. |
| HB 133 | Signed | K. Williams | This Act changes the current evaluation system for all teachers from the former Delaware Performance Appraisal System II evaluation to a new Delaware Teacher Growth and Support System. The goal of this new evaluation system is to build a culture of professionalism and learning within every school by converting the evaluation system from a teacher-focused to a learning-focused system. It also increases accountability by requiring a beginning, middle and end of the year review of both the teacher’s professional learning goals and student improvement goals.
All teachers (not just 4-8 testing subjects) will be held accountable for student growth.
The new evaluation system will only apply to teachers. Specialists and administrators will continue to be evaluated under the Delaware Performance Appraisal System II.
Under this Act the new evaluation system will be phased in with a minimum of 3 local education agencies participating in a pilot program for academic year 2021-2022, which will sunset on June 30, 2022.
Under Section 2 and 3 of this Act, effective academic year 2022-2023, all teachers will fall under the Delaware Teacher Growth and Support System and all specialists and administrators will be evaluated under Delaware Performance Appraisal System II. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 14 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO EDUCATOR EVALUATIONS. |
| HB 7 w/ SA 1 + HA 1 | Signed | Minor-Brown | This Act makes permanent and temporary changes to the Adult Correction Healthcare Review Committee ("ACHRC") which is a committee that serves in an advisory capacity to the Governor, General Assembly and the Commissioner of the Department of Correction on all matters relating to the provision of inmate health care services. The permanent changes include adding to ACHRC a healthcare professional who by virtue of the professional's training, education, and specialization hold expertise in correctional health and allowing either a psychiatrist or forensic psychologist to serve as a member.
The temporary changes address the Department's response to COVID-19 from March 12, 2020 to March 30, 2021. This Act requires ACHRC to provide a report to the Governor, General Assembly and Commissioner a report regarding the efficacy and appropriateness of the Department's response identifying total numbers of correctional officers and inmates who tested positive and died from COVID-19 or COVID-19 related illnesses. The report also identifies the strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement and assesses the medical treatment provided to inmates who tested positive for COVID-19. The Act authorizes ACHRC to request records, consult with additional medical professionals and engage additional staff. Finally, for 2021 and 2022, the Chairpersons of the House and Senate Corrections Committees will be voting members of ACHRC, but cannot designate another individual to attend meetings or vote. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE ADULT CORRECTION HEALTHCARE REVIEW COMMITTEE. |
| SJR 2 w/ SA 1 | Signed | Hansen | This Senate Joint Resolution requires the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control to engage authoritative federal agencies to identify the administrative structure, legal structure, and resource needs to establish a State nontidal wetlands permitting program effectively shifting the permitting program from the federal to the State level. This Senate Joint Resolution also requires that a report containing the results of this review be completed and made public within 1 year. | DIRECTING THE DELAWARE DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL TO BEGIN COORDINATION WITH THE FEDERAL AGENCIES CARRYING AUTHORITY TO IDENTIFY THE STRUCTURE NECESSARY FOR A STATE NONTIDAL WETLANDS PROGRAM FOR THE PURPOSE OF SHIFTING PERMITTING AUTHORITY FROM THE FEDERAL LEVEL TO THE STATE. |
| SB 122 | Signed | Poore | This Act provides that the County Attorney of New Castle County, consistent with other department directors of New Castle County government, is appointed by the County Executive with the advice and consent of the New Castle County Council. Pursuant to § 1391 of Title 9, the Office of Law provides legal advice to the County Executive, County Council, and County departments, boards, offices, and agencies. This amendment would require the advice and consent of the County Council in the appointment of the County Attorney. Consequently, this proposed amendment would safeguard against unequal preference to either branch of government when advice is provided. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 9 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE APPOINTMENT OF THE COUNTY ATTORNEY OF NEW CASTLE COUNTY. |
| SB 126 | Signed | Wilson | This Act prescribes specific fines for violating § 4134 of Title 21. Previously, a violation of § 4134 would have been subject to the penalties outlined in § 4205 of Title 21. The amount of the penalties in § 4205 are as follows: for a first offense, a fine of not less than $25 nor more than $75. For each subsequent like offense, a fine of not less than $57.50 nor more than $95. Section 4205 is a general penalty provision that establishes penalties for violations of Chapter 41 of Title 21 or Chapter 42 of Title 21 in the event that the penalties are not otherwise prescribed.
This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 21 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO OPERATION OF VEHICLES ON APPROACH OF AUTHORIZED EMERGENCY VEHICLES. |
| SA 1 to SJR 2 | Passed | Hansen | This amendment removes language in the resolution that is unclear. | |
| SA 1 to HB 7 | Passed | Pinkney | This amendment increases the size of the Adult Correction Healthcare Review Committee and adds as a member an organization that serves inmates and inmates' families. | |
| SB 164 | Signed | Townsend | This Act postpones the effective date of Senate Bill No. 67, enacted in 2019. Senate Bill No. 67 was to become effective on January 1, 2020; however, the Clerks of the Peace for all 3 counties have indicated that they intend to postpone implementation of the requirements set out in Senate Bill No. 67. This postponement is in order to allow additional time for engagement with leaders of faith communities and to identify any additional changes to the marriage registry structure or to its implementation or enforcement. | AN ACT TO AMEND CHAPTER 95, VOLUME 82 OF THE LAWS OF DELAWARE RELATING TO MARRIAGES. |
| SS 1 for SB 101 | Defeated | Townsend | This Act is a substitute for Senate Bill No. 101. Like Senate Bill No. 101, this Substitute creates a right to counsel for tenants in evictions and other landlord-tenant actions. Approximately 18,000 eviction cases are filed each year in the State of Delaware, and while 86% of landlords are represented by an attorney, agent, or business manager, only 2% of tenants have representation.
The disruptive displacement that accompanies eviction proceedings create significant costs for state and local government related to shelter funding, education funding, health care provided in hospitals instead of community-based providers, transportation costs for homeless youth, and foster care. Evictions and disruptive displacement also have significant, well-documented, and long-lasting effects on the lives of individuals and families, including poorer physical and mental health, increased risk of homelessness, increased risk of employment loss, loss of personal property, damage to credit standing, and relocation into substandard housing. Further, evictions fall disproportionately on Black and Latinx families, who have also been the hardest hit by the COVID-19 crisis.
Section 1 of this Act establishes a right to counsel for covered individuals with household income below 200% of the federal poverty guideline for evictions and other landlord-tenant actions. A Coordinator for the program will be appointed by the Attorney General. The Coordinator will contract with legal services providers for the provision of representation in proceedings covered by this Act. Section 1 also requires the Coordinator to work with community organizations to do outreach and education regarding the right to counsel. And, landlords must provide notice of the right to counsel at periodic designated intervals in the tenancy and in eviction proceedings.
Section 2 of this Act creates a monetary floor for initiation of eviction proceedings for nonpayment of rent – no action may be filed where the amount of rent owed is 1-month’s rent or less than $500, whichever is greater. It also provides that a landlord may not initiate or continue eviction proceedings for nonpayment of rent if the tenant pays and the landlord accepts all rent due. Finally, it creates a right of redemption for a tenant who pays all back rent, costs, and fees before eviction.
Section 3 of this Act authorizes the creation of a residential eviction diversion program modeled after the Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Mediation Program.
Section 4 of this Act provides COVID-19-specific relief in an action where execution was stayed based on a finding that the stay was required in the interests of justice.
Section 5 of this Act is a severability clause.
This Substitute differs from Senate Bill No. 101 as it does all of the following:
(1) Includes representation by non-attorneys in the definition of “legal representation”, if the Rules of the Supreme Court are amended to permit the representation.
(2) Removes the provision for representation in proceedings related to the reduction of a housing subsidy.
(3) Makes clear that legal representation is provided as it is available and that an individual does not have a cause of action if it is not available.
(4) Provides examples of circumstances in which a designated organization may decline representation.
(5) Provides that the Right to Counsel Coordinator (“Coordinator”), with appropriate funding from the General Assembly, shall contract with designated organizations to provide the services required under the Act.
(6) Requires the Coordinator to include the Justice of the Peace Court’s experience with the Act in the Coordinator’s annual report.
(7) Removes events that require a landlord to provide a tenant with a brochure about legal representation available to tenants.
(8) Makes technical changes to make clear that an action for possession based on unpaid rent may not be brought if the amount of rent owed is less than 1-month’s rent or less than $500, whichever is greater.
(9) Changes the time for the application of the tenant’s right of redemption to before the writ of possession is posted.
(10) Changes one of the possible deadlines for implementing the residential eviction diversion program to 270 days after the effective date of the Act.
(11) Provides that the Residential Eviction Diversion Program is to be established and implemented by the Justice of the Peace Court or the Court’s designee, which may be the Right to Counsel Coordinator.
(12) Expands the exemption to participation in the residential eviction diversion program to include when threats of substantial or irreparable harm to the landlord’s or other tenant’s person or property and cites the appropriate provisions of the Delaware Code relating to proceedings based on irreparable harm.
(13) Changes what a landlord is required to do once the Twenty-Seventh Modification of the Declaration of a State of Emergency for the State of Delaware Due to a Public Health Threat expires or is not renewed.
(14) Makes Sections 1, 2, 4, 5, and 8 of this Act effective 120 days after the Act’s enactment and makes the effective date of Section 3 of the Act (regarding the residential eviction diversion program) contingent on funding.
(15) Requires the Coordinator to provide the General Assembly with a copy of the first annual report to determine if additional funding is needed to address the fiscal impact of the Act on the Justice of the Peace Court. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 25 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE RESIDENTIAL LANDLORD-TENANT CODE. |
