HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

151st GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HOUSE BILL NO. 375

AS AMENDED BY

HOUSE AMENDMENT NO. 1

AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE RACIAL EQUITY CONSORTIUM.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:

Section 1. Amend Part IV, Title 29 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows:

Chapter 41. Racial Equity Consortium .

§ 4101. Racial Equity Consortium; establishment and purpose.

The Racial Equity Consortium (“Consortium”) is created. The Consortium shall coordinate efforts to identify and remove systemic inequities that impact people of color in this State.

§ 4102. Consortium’s duties .

The Consortium shall do all of the following:

(1) Consider and work to implement the recommendations contained in the final report of the African American Task Force, which was created by § 39 of Chapter 243 of Volume 82 of the Laws of Delaware.

(2) Provide advice and support to state agencies regarding the state agencies’ role in identifying and eliminating disparities and inequities experienced by persons of color in this State.

(3) Facilitate collaborative partnerships between government agencies, nonprofit agencies, private sector agencies, and all other interested parties and organizations to eliminate racial inequities and disparities in this State.

(4) Recommend legislation and regulations to address inequities and disparities experienced by persons of color in this State.

§ 4103. Consortium membership; term of office.

(a) The Consortium is composed of the following members, or a designee selected by a member serving by virtue of position:

(1) The following members, who are voting members of the Consortium:

a. Two members, appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

b. Two members, appointed by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate.

c. The President of Delaware State University.

d. The President of the NAACP of Delaware.

e. The President of the Delaware chapter of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women.

f. The President of the Metropolitan Wilmington Urban League.

g. Five members of the public with relevant knowledge and experience in racial equity issues, appointed by the Governor.

(2) The following ex-officio members, who are non-voting members of the Consortium:

a. The Director of Statewide Equity Initiatives.

b. One representative of the Office of Supplier Diversity, appointed by the Secretary of the Department of State.

c. One representative of the Bureau of Health Equity, appointed by the Secretary of the Department of Health & Social Services.

d. The Secretary of the Department of Labor.

e. The Commissioner of the Department of Correction.

f. The Secretary of the Department of Education.

g. The Secretary of the Department of Services for Children, Youth & Their Families.

h. The Director of the Delaware State Housing Authority.

i. The Attorney General.

j. The Chief Diversity Officer of the Division of Human Resources.

(b) A member appointed to the Consortium serves at the pleasure of the individual or entity that appointed the member.

(c) A member of the Consortium with the ability to designate another individual to attend a Consortium meeting shall provide the designation in writing to the chair and vice chair. An individual attending a meeting for a member as a designee has the same duties and rights as the member.

§ 4104. Consortium chair and vice chair; appointment and duties.

(a) The Governor shall appoint from among the voting members of the Consortium a chair and vice chair, to serve at the pleasure of the Governor.

(b) The chair and vice chair of the Consortium shall guide the administration of the Consortium by doing, at a minimum, all of the following:

(1) Set the date, time, and place for meetings of the Consortium.

(2) Supervise the preparation and distribution of meeting notices, agendas, minutes, correspondence, and reports of the Consortium.

(3) Preside over meetings of the Consortium.

(4) Maintain order during a meeting of the Consortium and decide all questions of order.

§ 4105. Quorum; vote required for action; rulemaking authority.

(a) A quorum of the Consortium is a majority of the voting members of the Consortium.

(b) The Consortium acts by a vote of the majority of the voting members of the Consortium.

(c) The Consortium may adopt rules to carry out the purpose and duties of the Consortium, including to do all of the following:

(1) Establish committees for the Consortium.

(2) Provide for the election of officers of the Consortium, other than the chair and vice chair appointed under § 4104 of this title.

§ 4106. Consortium staffing and funding.

(a) Delaware State University shall provide staff support for the Consortium. The staff is to be managed by the Director of the Racial Equity Consortium from Delaware State University’s Global Institute for Equity, Inclusion, and Civil Rights, who must be approved by the chair and vice chair of the Consortium.

(b) The General Assembly shall include in the annual appropriations act a line item allocation of funding to the Consortium to support the operational services, research, and analysis carried out by Delaware State University.

§ 4107. Consortium report.

(a) The Consortium shall, at least biennially, issue a report to the Governor and the General Assembly on the status of persons of color in this State and progress in eliminating inequities and disparities experienced by persons of color.

(b) The Consortium shall deliver a copy of the report required under subsection (a) of this section to all of the following:

(1) The Governor.

(2) The President Pro Tempore of the Senate, for distribution to all members of the Senate.

(3) The Speaker of the House of Representatives, for distribution to all members of the House of Representatives.

(4) The Director and the Librarian of the Division of Research of Legislative Council.

(5) The Director of the Public Archives.

Section 2. This Act expires 5 years after the Act’s enactment into law, unless extended by subsequent action of the General Assembly.