With the 2023 General Assembly session ending in June, educational advocates are cheering the legislature’s action on early education, mental health support and transparency relating to school boards. One leader, though, would like to see bills that focus on letting parents know clearly and precisely what’s happening in the classroom, starting with easy to find proficiency ratings. About 60 bills …
The Senate has approved $1.4 billion in capital improvement projects, along with a bill that would ban the LGBTQ panic defense, and a bill that adds more funding for the suicide crisis hotline. Senate Bill 160, sponsored by Sen. Jack Walsh, D-Stanton, would allocate $1,409,448,938 to address capital improvement projects across the state through this year’s bond bill. Walsh said …
The cost of providing electric vehicle charging stations up and down Delaware popped up in a Joint Capital Improvement Committee meeting this week. Sen. Nicole Poore, D-Delaware City, asked if the Department of Transportation is considering the cost of adding more electric vehicle charging stations across the state and transitioning school districts to more electric vehicles. “Everybody wants to move …
Proposed laws shifting who deals with appeals to the state’s new paid leave program, which starts in 2026 drew little comment in Wednesday’s Senate Health and Social Services Committee meeting. Senate Bill 178, sponsored by Sen. Sarah McBride, D-Wilmington and committee chair, makes technical changes to private plans under the Family and Medical Leave Program. The new program requires Delaware …
The Senate passed seven bills Thursday, but two of them – one about offshore wind energy and one about tenant protections – received some resistance. Senate Bill 170, sponsored by Sen. Stephanie Hansen, D-Middletown, requires the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) to work with the Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Maryland Interconnection to look into the viability of generating offshore wind …
Several representatives of Delaware unions praised a bill that would allow state tax deductions for union dues, a practice no longer allowed on federal taxes. Senate Substitute 2 for Senate Bill 72, sponsored by Sen. Nicole Poore, D-Delaware City, would let people claim up to $500 in a tax credit to pay union dues on state taxes. Opponents say it’s …
The Senate Labor Committee on Wednesday approved a bill that would give union members a tax credit for their union dues. Senate Bill 72, sponsored by Sen. Nicole Poore, D-Delaware City, would let people claim up to $500 in tax credit to pay for union dues on state taxes. Poore said union members used to be able to deduct dues …
Two bills that aim to prevent animal abuse unanimously passed through the Senate floor Tuesday. Senate Bill 71, sponsored by Sen. Stephanie Hansen, D-Middletown, would require law-enforcement agencies, the Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families and the Department of Justice to report suspected animal cruelty to the Office of Animal Welfare. The reports would only be required …
The Senate on Thursday passed the bill banning the use of single-use foam take containers and plastic items in restaurants, but it will allow customers to request a straw. Senate Bill 51, sponsored by Sen. Trey Paradee, D-Dover, would ban the use of beverage, cocktail picks and sandwich picks made of plastic, but exempts straws attached to an item such …
The president of a state contractors group says a proposed bill that would allow union members to claim a tax credit for their union dues is unfair. Senate Bill 72, introduced by Sen. Nicole Poore, D-Delaware City, would let people in unions claim up to a $500 tax credit for union dues. Edward Capodanno, president of the Associated Builders and …
