| SB 32 w/ SA 1 | Signed | Poore | The bill adds visual impairments including blindness to the list of programs to be conducted on a 12-month schedule. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 14 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO EDUCATION. |
| HB 85 w/ HA 1 + SA 1 | Signed | Bolden | This Act creates a special license plate for retired state legislators. This Act shall be known as "The Senator Margaret Rose Henry Act". | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 21 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO SPECIAL LICENSE PLATES. |
| HB 126 | Signed | Neal | This Act clarifies to whom the annual report must be sent and the date that the report must be submitted. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE CLEAN WATER FOR DELAWARE ACT. |
| HS 1 for HB 83 | Signed | K. Williams | This Act requires every public school and charter school to provide students enrolled in kindergarten with an oral health screening by the last student attendance day of each school year. Notification to the parent or guardian must be done and a copy of the oral health screening results sent home. A referral to a dentist, if required, will be provided by the Bureau of Oral Health and Dental Services. The Division of Public Health (DPH), through the Delaware Smile Check Program, offers school-based oral screenings, at no cost to the school districts, schools, including charter schools, or the students. This Substitute Bill takes out the requirement to advise teachers of the results of the oral health screenings, including Special Education Coordinators and Educational Diagnosticians of students with an IEP. This Substitute Bill also removes any follow-up requirements, by the school, with the student’s parent or guardian. The Substitute Bill also makes the school requirements, under this Act, contingent on the Delaware Smile Check Program remaining in effect or a comparable program to provide free oral health screenings to all enrolled kindergarten students. This Act takes effect for the 2024-2025 school year.
| AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 14 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO ORAL HEALTH SCREENINGS. |
| HB 99 w/ HA 1 | Signed | Heffernan | This Act, known as the Delaware Climate Change Solutions Act of 2023, follows the issuance of Delaware’s Climate Action Plan in 2021, and establishes a statutory target of greenhouse gas emissions reductions over the medium and long term to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change due to anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions on the State. The Act establishes a process of regular updates to the Climate Action Plan to serve as the framework to achieve the targeted emissions reductions and develop resilience strategies for the State, creates Climate Change Officers in certain Key Cabinet-Level Departments who will assist DNREC in the ongoing implementation of the Climate Action Plan, requires State agencies to consider climate change in decision-making, rulemaking, and procurement, and requires an Implementation Report every 2 years on the progress of the State towards meeting the statutory targets. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLES 7 AND 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO CLIMATE CHANGE. |
| HB 12 w/ HA 1 | Signed | Phillips | This Act creates an Electric Vehicle Rebate Program to incentivize the purchase and lease of new and used electric vehicles by Delaware residents. All-electric vehicles shall receive a rebate of no more than $2,500 and hybrid vehicles shall receive a rebate of no more than $1,000. The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control shall develop standards, forms, and procedures necessary to implement this program.
This program will be terminated if either of the following occurs and notice is given to the Registrar of Regulations and the General Assembly:
(1) Available funds for the program will be exhausted within the following year; or
(2) It is determined that the median cost of electric vehicles is comparable with the median cost of similar internal combustion engine vehicles
| AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO ELECTRIC VEHICLES. |
| HB 11 w/ HA 1 | Signed | Heffernan | This Act requires new commercial buildings with a foundation footprint of 50,000 square feet or greater to meet certain requirements to ensure that their roof is able to support solar energy infrastructure. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO COUNTY BUILDING CODES. |
| HB 10 | Signed | Heffernan | This Act establishes targets for annual purchase of electric school buses through fiscal year 2030, and requires the Department of Education to submit an annual implementation report through 2029 as well as a comprehensive report in 2030 detailing future recommendations for electric vehicle purchases and other measures to reduce the carbon and environmental impact of the State’s school transportation fleet.
| AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DELAWARE ELECTRIC SCHOOL BUS PROGRAM. |
| SB 119 | Signed | Gay | This Act amends Chapter 23, Title 13 relating to guardianship and permanent guardianship of a child. The Act does all of the following:
1. Repeals § 351, Title 31, and embeds the requirement for assessments of non-relative guardianship petitioners in Chapter 23, Title 13, the statute for guardianship of a child.
2. Revises the definition of relative for Chapter 23, Title 13, to include the relationships outlined in § 351, Title 31 for whom assessment is not required. This revision also expands eligibility for relative permanent guardianship petitioners.
3. Clarifies that when a parent consents to guardianship, a reason for establishing the guardianship is still required.
4. Moves the parental consent provision previously in § 2353(c) to § 2353(a)(1).
5. Creates separate grounds for granting guardianship when parental rights have been terminated and are vested in DSCYF or a licensed agency.
6. Requires parental consent or a Court order for a guardian or permanent guardian to relocate a child if it will materially affect a parent’s visitation. This provision mirrors the relocation provision in § 734, Title 13.
7. Adds an individual with whom a child in DSCYF custody is placed as a person eligible to serve as a permanent guardian.
8. Clarifies that either a TPR ground or a parent’s consent is required to grant a permanent guardianship.
9. Clarifies that a permanent guardianship petitioner must have the child placed with them for 6 months immediately preceding the filing of the petition. This requirement is also expanded to include relatives, unless the court finds just cause to waive the requirement for a relative petitioner.
10. Provides judicial discretion, where extraordinary circumstances are found, to grant permanent guardianship to a foster parent or individual with whom a child in DSCYF custody is placed when none of the other exceptions apply.
11. Makes minor technical changes to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual, including replacing "and/or" with the appropriate conjunction and using gender silent language. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 13 AND TITLE 31 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO GUARDIANSHIP OF A CHILD. |
| SB 124 | Signed | Gay | This Act clarifies when reports of child abuse or neglect, including suspected human trafficking of a child, are required to be made orally to the Department’s report line and when they may be made via the Department’s online reporting portal. This Act also clarifies that licensed professionals who make reports may not remain anonymous. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE REPORTING OF CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT. |
| HB 157 w/ HA 1 | Signed | K. Williams | This Act prohibits a pawnbroker, secondhand dealer, or scrap metal processor from purchasing or otherwise acquiring a gift card or other item in its original packaging unless the individual offering the item for sale produces a receipt or proof of purchase at the time of transaction. The Department of Homeland Security or its designee may seize an item found in violation of Chapter 23, Title 24 for a period of 30 days to allow the pawnbroker, secondhand dealer, or scrap metal processor an opportunity to provide a receipt or proof of ownership. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 24 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO PAWNBROKERS, SECONDHAND DEALERS AND SCRAP METAL PROCESSORS. |
| HB 158 | Signed | Baumbach | This bill transfers the placement of the Cash Management Policy Board from within the Department of Finance to the Office of the State Treasurer and provides that support for the Board shall be determined by the State Treasurer as is currently done. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE CASH MANAGEMENT POLICY BOARD. |
| HB 164 | Signed | Dukes | This bill increases the amount of money the Town of Delmar is permitted to raise from levying and collecting taxes from $1,000,000.00 to $2,500,000.00. | AN ACT TO AMEND THE CHARTER OF THE TOWN OF DELMAR. |
| SS 1 for SB 103 | Signed | S. McBride | Electric vehicles (EVs) are becoming more and more popular. Between 2012 and 2016, EV sales grew at an annual rate of 32%. In 2017, growth in sales reached 45%. Batteries for EVs have become much cheaper in the last 10 years, enabling EVs to compete with traditional, fossil-fueled vehicles. In addition, major vehicle manufacturers are pledging to go all electric. Some researchers are predicting that EV sales will outnumber those of traditional, combustion engine vehicles by 2040. However, only minimal electrical charging infrastructure is available today.
This Act is a substitute for Senate Bill No. 103. Like Senate Bill No. 103, this Act will make it easier and more convenient to own an electric vehicle in this State in the years to come, resulting in increased purchases of electric vehicles, promoting cleaner air and water, and resulting in improved health outcomes for Delawareans and a reduction of greenhouse gases to curtail global warming.
Also like Senate Bill No. 103, this Act achieves these goals by doing the following:
(1) Requiring that newly constructed single-family and multi-family residential dwellings include certain electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
(2) Providing county and municipal government enforcement of the electric vehicle charging infrastructure requirements of this Act.
Additionally, like Senate Bill No. 103, this Act expires on the date of publication in the Register of Regulations of a notice by the Secretary of the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control that the Regulations for State Energy Conservation Code, Regulation 2101 of Title 7 of the Delaware Administrative Code, which are adopted under § 7602 of Title 16 of the Delaware Code, have been updated to match or exceed the standards adopted by this Act.
This Act differs from Senate Bill No. 103 as follows:
(1) Removes language from the definition of “electric vehicle capable parking space” for clarity.
(2) Clarifies that “multi-family residential dwelling” includes only boarding houses, hotels, and motels with
nontransient occupants.
(3) Clarifies that this Act applies to the construction of a multi-family residential dwelling for which an application for final site plan approval is submitted on or after January 1, 2025.
(4) Clarifies that if the single-family residential dwelling does not have an attached or detached garage, an electric vehicle capable parking space must be provided in the driveway, assigned parking space for the dwelling, or at an unassigned non-street residential parking space constructed as part of the project. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGING INFRASTRUCTURE FOR RESIDENTIAL DWELLINGS. |
| SJR 2 | Signed | Hansen | This resolution designates August 31, 2023, as "International Overdose Awareness Day" in the State of Delaware, affirms the importance of overdose awareness, and encourages expanded efforts to keep Delaware residents properly informed of the grief that comes from losing a loved one to overdose.
| DESIGNATING AUGUST 31, 2023, AS "INTERNATIONAL OVERDOSE AWARENESS DAY" IN THE STATE OF DELAWARE. |
| HS 1 for HB 114 w/ SA 1 | Signed | Harris | Substance use disorder constitutes a severe threat to the health and welfare of the citizens of Delaware. Recovery residences address the needs of individuals in recovery from substance use disorder by providing a safe and healthy living environment and a community of supportive recovering peers to which residents are accountable. Recovery residences support the recovery of individuals with substance use disorder and help prevent relapse, criminal justice system involvement, and overdose. Ensuring the certification of recovery residences according to nationally recognized evidence-based standards protects residents and communities from the harm caused by poorly managed or fraudulent recovery residences.
This Act institutes a voluntary certification process for recovery residences under standards and procedures that uphold evidence-based best practices and support a safe, healthy, and effective recovery environment. This Act establishes residents' rights of a recovery residence and protects residents against unreasonable and unfair practices in setting and collecting fees and other residence payments. This Act provides training and technical assistance for recovery residence operators and staff. This Act enables the data collection needed to study the effectiveness of Delaware’s recovery residences. This Act also excludes a certified recovery house admission agreement from the provisions of the Landlord-Tenant Code. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLES 16 AND 25 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO RECOVERY HOUSING. |
| SS 1 for SB 7 | Signed | Hansen | This Bill amends the Delaware Energy Act, Title 29 of the Delaware Code, Chapter 80, Subchapter II, by updating and expanding upon the duties of the State Energy Office (located in the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control’s Division of Climate, Coastal and Energy). In Section 1 of the Bill, the General Assembly finds and declares that: (a) Planning for Delaware's energy future is vitally important to Delaware’s economy and all of its citizens; (b) Developments in the energy sector of the economy are proceeding at a fast pace, and devoting state resources to the energy sector will be beneficial; and (c) Transforming the delivery of energy to end users is expected to require new programs, planning, and workforce training. Section 1 of the Bill also declares the intent of the General Assembly to provide for the development and implementation of State energy policy and programs in accordance with the State Energy Plan, the State Climate Action Plan, and other documents developed by the Governor's Energy Advisor Council and adopted by the State Energy Office.
Section 2 of the Bill commits the State Energy Office to coordinate and partner with state, local, regional, and federal agencies, energy-related boards and councils, energy utilities, and other stakeholders in carrying out its duties under Subchapter II of Chapter 80. The Bill requires the State Energy Office to develop and update, at least every five years, a comprehensive State Energy Plan and to support the State's Climate Action Plan. Among other things, the Bill also requires the State Energy Office to do the following: (a) Provide technical and administrative support to the Governor’s Energy Advisory Council; (b) Assist the State, energy utilities, and private citizens to secure federal funds made available to states and energy utilities to support emerging energy technologies, energy workforce development, and renewable energy and decarbonization programs; (c) Serve as a liaison between State and federal agencies and energy agencies in other states and regions on energy programs and policy matters; and (d) Monitor and act in a coordinating capacity to promote the planning and buildout of the statewide energy grid to optimize resources, including in coordination the Public Service Commission.
The Bill expressly authorizes the State Energy Office, through the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, to intervene in dockets before the Public Service Commission in proceedings arising directly from the matters enumerated Subchapter II, Chapter 80, Title 29 of the Delaware Code. This provision is being added to Title 29, Section 8053 of the Delaware Code, and is not intended to limit or restrict, in any way, the Department’s rights or ability to intervene in any other proceedings of the Public Service Commission. Rather, the provision is intended to emphasize the importance of the Department’s input in Public Service Commission proceedings that arise directly from matters falling within Subchapter II, Chapter 80 of Title 29 of the Delaware Code.
This is a Substitute Bill that incorporates a number of proposed changes to Senate Bill No. 7, including those contained in Senate Amendment No. 1 to Senate Bill No. 7, and are summarized as follows: (a) On lines 6 to 10, the addition of a "Whereas clause" stating that State Energy Policy should consider the costs and benefits of energy policy options for all Delawareans, including utility ratepayers, and the health and environmental impacts on existing overburdened and underserved communities; (b) On lines 55 to 59, the addition of language the it is the intent of the General Assembly to provide for the development and implementation of State energy policy and programs in accordance with the State Energy Plan, the Climate Action Plan, and other documents adopted by the State Energy Office as recommended by the Governor’s Energy Advisory Council; (c) On lines 75 to 80, the addition of language about the State Energy Office partnering with local and regional energy agencies, the Delaware Division of the Public Advocate, and the Delaware Department of Transportation in carrying out its duties under the Delaware Energy Act; (d) On lines 82 and 83, the addition of the reference to "energy utilities" as entities that the State Energy Office will assist in securing federal funding for Delaware renewable energy and decarbonization programs; and (e) On lines 123 to 128, the addition of a provision authorizing the State Energy Office, through the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, to intervene in Public Service Commission proceedings involving the Delaware Energy Act. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE STATE ENERGY OFFICE. |
| HB 182 | Signed | Griffith | Sections 1 through 6 of this Act revise the State's existing child abuse laws as follows:
(1) Revises Child Abuse in the Third Degree by removing extraneous language and redesignating it as Child Abuse in the Fourth Degree.
(2) Revises Child Abuse in the Second Degree by redesignating it as Child Abuse in the Third Degree and making it a class D felony.
(3) Revises Child Abuse in the First Degree by removing extraneous language, adding a sentence enhancement for certain aggravating factors, and redesignating it as Child Abuse in the Second Degree.
(4) Creates a new crime of Child Abuse in the First Degree, a class A felony, when a person intentionally or recklessly causes serious physical injury to a child and that injury causes permanent disfigurement, permanent impairment of health, or permanent loss or impairment of a bodily organ.
(5) Creates a new crime of Child Torture, a class B felony.
(6) Creates a new crime of Continuous Child Abuse when a person intentionally or recklessly engages in 3 or more acts of child abuse or child torture over a period of time not less than 3 weeks in duration.
Sections 7 through 9 and 11 through 14 of this Act make conforming amendments to the Delaware Code based on the revisions made by Sections 1 through 6 of this Act.
Section 10 of this Act designates Child Abuse in the First Degree and Child Abuse in the Second Degree as violent felonies. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11, TITLE 13, TITLE 16, AND TITLE 31 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO CHILD ABUSE. |
| HB 183 w/ HA 1 | Signed | Griffith | This Act revises the existing crime of endangering the welfare of a child by providing or permitting a child to consume or inhale unprescribed controlled substances in the following ways:
1. Prohibits a person from intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly making controlled substances or prescription drugs available to a child through exposure, consumption, or inhalation.
2. Creates new penalties for endangering the welfare of a child through exposure, consumption, or inhalation of drugs.
This Act requires a greater than majority vote for passage because § 28 of Article IV of the Delaware Constitution requires the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each house of the General Assembly to expand the scope of an existing crime within the jurisdiction of the Court of Common Pleas, Family Court, or Justice of the Peace Court. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO ENDANGERING THE WELFARE OF A CHILD. |
| HB 207 | Signed | Parker Selby | This Act amends the Charter of The Town of Milton. Specifically, Section 1 of the Act allows for an exception to the lengthy annexation process for a contiguous property owner seeking annexation if the property is two acres or less. Section 2 of the Act then sets up that less cumbersome annexation process for properties two acres or less. Section 3 of the Act replaces the list of exceptions to competitive bidding with incorporation by reference of the more detailed Town of Milton Procurement Policy. Section 4 of the Act reinstates a prior limit on real property taxes to a function of the total of assessed values within the Town. Specifically, the “cap” is 0.5% of that total. Currently, the cap is a fixed number, $1,750,000. However, the Town has annexed into its limits a number of parcels that will necessarily require additional expenditures of Town funds for services such as policing and, therefore, the Town will need to collect additional real property taxes. | AN ACT TO AMEND THE CHARTER OF THE TOWN OF MILTON. |
| SB 170 w/ SA 1 | Signed | Hansen | This Act directs the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control to work with PJM Interconnection, LLC to study the transmission impacts of offshore wind development, to work with neighboring states on offshore wind transmission, and to study and report back to the Governor and the General Assembly on a process for procuring offshore wind power. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO OFFSHORE WIND ENERGY. |
| HB 219 | Signed | Bush | This Act expands eligibility for the investment and employment credit against corporation income tax available under 30 Del. C. § 2011 to the operators of climate-controlled fruit or vegetable growing facilities with at least 400,000 square feet of enclosed space. Eligibility for the expanded tax credit is conditioned on a qualified investment of at least $40 million. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 30 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO TAX CREDITS FOR CREATION OF EMPLOYMENT AND QUALIFIED INVESTMENT IN BUSINESS FACILITIES. |
| HB 231 | Signed | Bush | This Act provides clarity on the type of certification and the accepted certifying agencies for increases over the basic salary schedule. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 14 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE BASIC SALARY SCHEDULE FOR CERTAIN SCHOOL EMPLOYEES. |
