| HB 288 | Committee | Romer | This Act is a result of the Joint Legislative Oversight and Sunset Committee's focused review of the Division of Developmental Disabilities Services' (DDDS) adult day and employment services. This Act requires that DDDS submit an annual report relating to its services to increase the transparency of the services and highlight unmet needs for efficient service delivery.
In § 7909A(c)(2)a. of Title 29, DDDS will provide data on census, new applications, demographics of those groups, and the size and diversity of the provider system. Section 7909A(c)(2)b. allows DDDS to demonstrate that its services, and how the services are accessed, change over time. Section 7909A(c)(2)c. gives DDDS the flexibility to provide information on service requests that could not be met, why service requests could not be met, and observed gaps in service delivery, or other information related to challenges DDDS identifies related to the service system.
This Act also makes technical changes to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DIVISION OF DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES SERVICES. |
| HB 289 | Committee | Spiegelman | This bill excludes a person convicted and sentenced for a class A felony from being able to have their sentence of incarceration modified under § 4217 of Title 11. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO MODIFICATION OF SENTENCES OF INCARCERATION. |
| HS 1 for HB 174 | Committee | Morrison | Like House Bill No. 174, this substitute enables family members of individuals who have died by suicide to receive support services through the present Victims Compensation Assistance Program through a Suicide Victims’ Assistance Fund. This Act takes effect on July 1 following its enactment into law and the appropriation of funds into the Suicide Victims’ Assistance Fund.
This substitute differs from the original bill by removing language providing funding for the bill through surcharges on business, residential, wireless, and prepaid wireless services. Instead, this substitute calls for the Suicide Victims’ Assistance Fund to be funded through annual appropriations by the General Assembly. This substitute also imposes a cap on annual expenditures from the fund and requires proportional reductions to claim payments for the remainder of the year if expenditures are expected to exceed the cap or once 75% of appropriated funds have been disbursed.
This Act also calls for the General Assembly to review the expenditure cap and adjust it as appropriate every two years, beginning in Fiscal Year 2028. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE VICTIMS COMPENSATION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. |
| HS 1 for HB 272 | Committee | Heffernan | Like House Bill No. 272, this Substitute creates the new crime of "interference with reproductive health services or exercise of religion”, which is based on a substantially similar federal law (18 U.S.C. § 248). The Superior Court is vested with jurisdiction over criminal prosecutions of this offense.
This Substitute for House Bill No. 272 adds clarification by defining “place of worship”. This Substitute also replaces the phrase “discourage any person from obtaining or providing reproductive health services” with “seek to persuade any person with respect to a reproductive health choice or the provision of reproductive health services.” Finally, this Substitute adds language modeled on the similar federal law to clarify that nothing in this law (1) prohibits expressive conduct, including peaceful picketing or demonstration, that is protected under either the U.S. or Delaware Constitution, (2) creates new remedies for interference with activities protected by the free speech or exercise clauses or limit any existing legal remedies for such interference, nor (3) provides exclusive criminal penalties or civil remedies with respect to conduct prohibited under this law. | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO CRIMES AGAINST PUBLIC ORDER. |
| HA 1 to SS 1 for SB 230 | Passed | Burns | This amendment makes the following changes to Senate Substitute No. 1 for Senate Bill No. 230, as amended by Senate Amendment No. 1: (1) It restricts the subpoena power to non-residential properties only; (2) It clarifies that objections and exceptions to a subpoena will be handled under the pre-existing rules and standards of the courts for adjudicating administrative subpoenas, see, e.g., State v. AT&T, 253 A.3d 537 (Del. 2021) (adopting the procedures and substance followed by the federal courts in administrative subpoena enforcement); (3) Explicitly removes records produced under this section from the definition of public records for purposes of FOIA and requires such records to be treated confidentially and used and disseminated only for purposes relevant to assessment or valuation of real property; (4) sunsets this Act after 2 years unless otherwise provided by a subsequent act of the General Assembly; (5) requires a report from each county after 1 year regarding implementation of this Act. | |
| HA 1 to HB 259 | PWB | K. Williams | This amendment changes the submission date for the annual report to January 1 instead of December 1 and allows the reporting on lead screening prior to school enrollment to be combined with and transmitted together with the more general annual lead report required under § 2606 of Title 16.
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| SB 249 | Committee | Pinkney | This Act does all of the following:
(1) Establishes a regulatory framework for substance use harm reduction programs that provides immunities for program providers and staff.
(2) Modifies the definition of drug paraphernalia.
(3) Decriminalizes possession of paraphernalia for individuals who use drugs, while retaining prohibitions for paraphernalia used in the manufacturing or distribution of drugs and the selling of certain drug paraphernalia.
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 AND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO SUBSTANCE USE HARM REDUCTION. |
| SB 251 | Committee | Richardson | This Act protects the life of the unborn child at a time when the potential for the child to survive outside the womb increases, especially with the advancement of medical procedures. Specifically, this Act repeals the current sections of the Delaware Code relating to termination of human pregnancy and enacts The Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act.
This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual and corresponding changes to other sections of the Code. | ACT TO AMEND TITLE 24 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO UNBORN CHILDREN. |
| SB 252 | Committee | Richardson | This Act requires a health-care practitioner to offer a patient ultrasound imaging and auscultation of fetal heart tone services before terminating a human pregnancy. The patient is free to choose not to view the ultrasound or listen to the auscultation of fetal heart tone.
This Act is known as "The Woman's Right to Know Act.” | AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 24 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE OFFER OF AN ULTRASOUND AND AUSCULTATION SERVICES BEFORE TERMINATING A PREGNANCY. |
