| HB 370 | Committee | Shupe | This Act requires the seller of an interest in residential real property to provide the following to a buyer of the property before closing on the sale of the property:
(1) For residential real property that is supplied with potable water by a private well located on the property, a report on the results of testing of the water supplied by the private well that is conducted within 3 months of the signing of a form documenting compliance with the water testing requirements of this Act.
(2) For residential real property that is supplied with potable water from a public water system, the results of testing of the water supplied by the public water system performed by the public water supplier that is conducted within 1 year of the signing of a form documenting compliance with the water testing requirements of this Act.
| AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 6 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE BUYER PROPERTY PROTECTION ACT. |
| SS 1 for SB 132 | Committee | S. McBride | Over the past decade, an increasing number of states have passed legislation establishing a Student Loan Borrower Bill of Rights. At least 18 states have passed such legislation. Of these 18 states, 12 states have a Student Loan Ombudsperson and 13 have a licensing program, with another two states having a registration program instead of a licensing program.
This Act is a Substitute for Senate Bill No. 132. Like Senate Bill No. 132, this Act enacts a Student Loan Borrower Bill of Rights for this State that does all of the following:
(1) Requires student loan servicers to engage in certain practices related to communications with student loan borrowers and cosigners of student education loans and handling of transactions by student loan borrowers and cosigners of student education loans.
(2) Prohibits student loan servicers from engaging in certain practices including unfair or deceptive practices or abusive practices.
(3) Requires student loan servicers to retain records related to student loan transactions for 7 years and to yearly report non-identifying information about student education loans serviced in this State, including default and delinquency rates, to the Student Loan Ombudsperson.
(4) Establishes the Office of the Student Loan Ombudsperson which shall, among other duties, receive, investigate, and attempt to resolve complaints from student loan borrowers.
This Act differs from Senate Bill No. 132 as follows:
(1) Makes a technical correction to correct an incorrect internal reference.
(2) Excludes the State government from the definition of “student loan servicer”.
(3) Makes clear the intent to exclude certain types of student loan servicers from the scope of this Act, as these student loan servicers are already regulated by state and federal regulators.
(4) Removes an unnecessary “that”.
(5) Adds “if applicable” to make clear the student loan servicer’s obligation to provide cosigner information applies only if applicable.
(6) Moves from § 2504J of this Act certain requirements of student loan servicers related to cosigners and cosigner release to a new § 2511J of this Act containing protections related to cosigners and borrowers.
(7) Specifies that a student loan servicer is only required to provide a written payment history to a student loan borrower or cosigner once each year.
(8) Requires a student loan servicer to service a student education loan in conformity with § 2511J of this Act and to file a notice with the Student Loan Ombudsperson every 3 years, or on servicing the student loan servicer’s first student education loan in this State, that includes an address, email address, and phone number for the student loan servicer and an attestation that the student loan servicer understands the student loan servicer’s duties under this Act.
(9) Clarifies that the Student Loan Ombudsperson (“Ombudsperson”) has certain powers, not that the Ombudsperson is required to exercise those powers in all cases.
(10) Clarifies that the Consumer Protection Unit of the Department of Justice and other appropriate agencies are to have access to information available to the Ombudsperson to the extent necessary for investigation purposes.
(11) Permits the Ombudsperson to meet regularly with a member of the Consumer Protection Unit to coordinate efforts.
(12) Permits the Student Loan Ombudsperson to access, receive, and use any documents, information, or evidence the Ombudsperson deems relevant to the inquiry or investigation, including any documents, information, or evidence in the possession of a student loan servicer.
(13) Replaces language related to whom the Student Loan Ombudsperson’s annual report is due with standard report language developed for the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual and adds the Attorney General as a recipient of the report.
(14) Delays the effective date of the Act until January 1, 2025. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 6 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE STUDENT LOAN BORROWER BILL OF RIGHTS ACT. |
| HS 1 for HB 302 | Passed | Bolden | According to the American Cancer Society, prostate cancer is the second-leading cause of death from cancer in men. It is estimated that about 1 in 41 men will die of prostate cancer. According to ZERO Prostate Cancer, Black men face serious health care disparities regarding prostate cancer. 1 in 6 Black men will develop prostate cancer in their lifetime compared to 1 in 8 men overall. Black men are also 1.7 times more likely to be diagnosed with, and 2.1 times more likely to die from, prostate cancer than white men.
HB 302 requires all group, blanket, and individual health insurance policies to cover prostate screening for men at risk of prostate cancer. This Substitute bill broadens the definition of “prostate screening” to include any medically necessary and clinically appropriate method for the detection and diagnosis of prostate cancer, including a digital rectal exam and prostate specific antigen test, and associated laboratory work. This Substitute bill also clarifies the ages at which prostate screenings must be covered, consistent with the American Cancer Society guidelines, as follows: (1) Age 50 for men at average risk of developing prostate cancer; (2) Age 45 for men at high risk of developing prostate cancer, including African American men and men who have a first degree relative diagnosed with prostate cancer; and (3) Age 40 for men at even higher risk for prostate cancer, including men who have more than one first degree relative diagnosed with prostate cancer.
This Substitute bill also extends the effective date to health insurance policies modified after December 31, 2025, and makes technical corrections. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 18 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO PROSTATE CANCER SCREENING. |
| SB 263 | Committee | Paradee | This Act limits the use of plastic and other beverage container rings, as well as plastic shrink wraps and plastic tops used to connect beverages, by expanding the definitions of “beverage” and “beverage container” and prohibiting beverages from being sold in containers connected to each other with plastic, ring, or ring-like connectors. Juice boxes and other aseptic containers are not defined as beverage containers and are not included in the ban.
By prohibiting the use of rings or plastic connectors to package or connect beverage containers, this Act reduces waste and furthers the State’s sustainability goals. It also supports the use of beverage packaging alternatives, which are already being used widely. This Act also updates the findings of the General Assembly to reflect the importance of aluminum and glass as recyclables and the need for increased rates of reuse, circularity, and recycling of these valuable materials.
This Act takes effect on July 1, 2025.
This Act makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. | AN ACT AMENDING TITLE 7 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO SOLID WASTE RECYCLING. |
| HA 1 to HS 1 for HB 5 | Passed | Longhurst | This amendment removes the provision allowing the Department of Education to retain 5% of federal reimbursements to defray administrative costs and rephrases the requirement that reimbursements be used for school-based behavioral health programs and services. | |
