Daily Report for 3/23/2022

Governor's Actions

No legislation is Signed by Governor Today

New Legislation Introduced

BillCurrent StatusSponsorSynopsisTitle
HA 1 to HB 259PassedLambertThis Amendment does all of the following: 1. Provides clear authority for emergency alerts to be sent to wireless devices using systems created after the system that is currently in use. 2. Revises the definition of "catastrophic release" to use the term "extremely hazardous substance" because that term is defined in § 7705 of Title 7, and to clarify that the risk to public health extends beyond the property boundaries of the facility. 3. Revises the definition of "extremely hazardous substance list" to better align with Chapter 77 and the regulations required under § 7707 of Title 7 because the regulations use different terminology. 4. Clarifies that alerts must be sent to wireless devices if the catastrophic release requires the public to take protective action. 
SB 254CommitteePettyjohnThis Act suspends the state taxes on motor fuel in this State for 30 days.AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 30 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE MOTOR FUEL TAX.
HA 1 to HB 277PassedLynnThis Amendment amends the State Tort Claims Act to ensure that victims of child sexual abuse by public school employees will have the same legal rights as victims of abuse by private institutions and their employees. This Amendment effectively changes the standard of culpability for public schools from “gross negligence” to “negligence” in civil claims based on childhood sexual abuse. Under current law, children who are sexually abused by a employees of a private employer (e.g. daycare providers, private schools, etc.) have more protection than children abused by their teachers and coaches at public schools. There should be one standard of care that holds schools and businesses equally accountable when their recklessness, inattention, or failure to act causes a student to be sexually abused. This Amendment seeks to avoid future instances of courts dismissing childhood sexual abuse cases against public schools after finding that a complaint’s allegations of gross negligence lacked evidentiary support, as occurred in Bates v. Caesar Rodney Sch. Dist., No. 13, 2021, 2021 Del. LEXIS 315 (Del. Oct. 6, 2021) and Collins v. Dutton, No. S19C-01-045, 2019 Del.Super. LEXIS 571 (Del. Super Ct. Sussex County, Nov. 19, 2019). 
HA 1 to HB 260PWBWilson-AntonThis Amendment corrects a typographical error. 
SR 27PassedMantzavinosThis resolution recognizes March 25 as "Greek Independence Day" in Delaware.RECOGNIZING MARCH 25, 2022 AS "GREEK INDEPENDENCE DAY" IN THE STATE OF DELAWARE.

Legislation Passed By Senate

BillCurrent StatusSponsorSynopsisTitle
HB 176 w/ HA 1 + SA 2Passed SenateKowalkoThis Act clarifies the responsibilities of manufactured home community owners and homeowners for maintenance. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 25 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO MAINTENANCE IN MANUFACTURED HOME COMMUNITIES.
HB 335SignedSchwartzkopfThis Act makes changes to the Senate and House of Representatives districts so as to minimize the need for new election districts and increase the efficiency of election administration. Section 841 is updated to reflect the consolidation of the Department of Elections and provide direction to the Department on the filing of finalized maps. The final House and Senate Maps (March 2022) reflecting the changes to the districts as set forth in this Act can be found on the General Assembly website.AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE REAPPORTIONMENT OF THE STATE LEGISLATIVE DISTRICTS.
SA 2 to HB 176PassedWalshThis amendment revises House Bill No. 176 by doing all of the following: 1. Deletes “root system” from the definition of “tree”. 2. Deletes the addition of "other grounds" to the areas that a landlord must maintain to prevent the accumulation of standing water. 3. Deletes the addition of the word "and" to § 7008(a)(13) because it is unnecessary. 4. Deletes language added by House Amendment No. 1, limiting the exception to areas that a landlord must maintain to prevent the accumulation of standing water to those areas that do not contain a constructed community asset. 5. Revises the requirements for maintenance of trees by doing all of the following: • Reorganizes the paragraph, retaining the revision made by House Amendment No. 1, updating the reference to the group that currently establishes industry standards for tree maintenance. • Clarifies that the removal of a tree means removing the stump below the surface of the ground. • Repeals the details of trees that a landlord must maintain because those details are currently in the definition of “tree” under § 7003 of Title 25. 6. Makes this Act effective 6 months after its enactment into law. 

Legislation Passed By House of Representatives

No Legislation Passed By House

Senate Committee Assignments

Committee
Executive

House Committee Assignments

Committee
Administration

Senate Committee Report

Committee
Banking, Business & Insurance
Executive
Finance

House Committee Report

Committee
Administration
Education
Health & Human Development
Housing & Community Affairs
Judiciary

Senate Defeated Legislation

No Senate Defeated Legislation

House Defeated Legislation

No House Defeated Legislation

Nominations Enacted upon by the Senate

NomineeStatusCommission/BoardReappointment
Daniello, JohnConfirmedIndustrial Accident BoardNew
Donnelly, KevinConfirmedWater Infrastructure Advisory CouncilNew
Finnicum, LarryConfirmedWater Infrastructure Advisory CouncilNew
Papili, JosephConfirmedDelaware Interscholastic Athletic AssociationNew
Sherlock, MaryConfirmedLottery CommissionNew
Wilkins, Richard ConfirmedWater Infrastructure Advisory CouncilNew