WILMINGTON — New Castle County Executive Marcus Henry signed his first budget into law Thursday morning following unanimous approval by County Council the night before. The $454 million operating budget for Fiscal Year 2026 passed 13–0. “Thank you all for joining us today as I officially signed the FY 26 budget for New Castle County,” Henry said during a …
Wilmington City Council passed the city’s $201.7 million operating budget for Fiscal Year 2026 on Thursday, approving investments in public safety, infrastructure, housing, and education, while avoiding an increase in property taxes. The adopted budget reflects a $7.6 million increase over the previous year and includes a $95.1 million water and sewer fund operating budget. Utility rates will …
WILMINGTON — After five weeks of departmental hearings, Wilmington City Council has concluded its review of Mayor Carney’s proposed $201.6 million general fund and $95.4 million water/sewer utility budget for Fiscal Year 2026. READ: Mayor Carney outlines his $200 M budget at latest Town Hall meeting The Council must now finalize and adopt a balanced budget by June 1, or …
Facing a historic funding crisis, SEPTA unveiled a proposed budget Wednesday that would slash nearly half of its service, raise fares, and cut staff. If implemented, the Wilmington/Newark Line would be shut down, along with other major rail services. The proposal, driven by a looming $213 million deficit for the upcoming fiscal year starting July 1, includes a 45% reduction …
WILMINGTON- Mayor John Carney and the City of Wilmington are encouraging citizens to participate in an ongoing series of Mayoral Town Halls. The first two sessions, held on March 25 in Districts 7 & 8 and April 1 in Districts 1 & 2, were met with strong community participation. The town hall meeting on Monday, April 1, hosted by Mayor …
On Tuesday, the Senate passed with five bills that relate to the environment, with Republicans offering some resistance, and a budget that had less opposition. House Bill 99, sponsored by Rep. Debra Heffernan, D-Brandywine Hundred South, would require that Delaware meet certain emission reduction requirements, getting to zero net emissions by 2050, and create climate change officers within all nine …
Several members of the Joint Finance Committee asked the Department of Education officials on Wednesday when and if they would ever see a return on the state’s investment in public education. Student achievement metrics like standardized test scores have fallen off a cliff over the past decade and the state still faces a teacher shortage. Education Secretary Mark Holodick and …
S Staff retention in Delaware’s prison system was an important issue at Wednesday’s Joint Finance Committee budget hearing. Monroe Hudson, the commissioner of the Delaware Department of Correction, told Sen. Laura Sturgeon, a Democrat who represents the Greenville area, that he thinks the department has made progress since 2017. It now has 2,647 full-time employees, the most since at least …
The committee responsible for drafting the state’s budget has approved an increase in funding for Delaware’s public school bus drivers. The Joint Finance Committee, comprised of eight Democrats and four Republicans, voted last week to add $16.9 million to address recommendations from the Public School Transportation Committee, a group consisting of legislative and state budget officials, public and charter school …
The General Assembly’s budget-writing committee on Tuesday approved raises for state workers. Under the governor’s proposed budget, employees on the lower end of the pay scale would get the most significant boost in pay. The Joint Finance Committee approved the increases during its first day of “markup,” a period during which the committee takes the governor’s recommended budget and votes …
Wilmington Mayor Mike Purzycki Included in Wilmington Mayor Mike Purzycki’s proposed $176.9 million city budget are a 7.5% property tax increase, a 5% increase in water and sewer fees, and the elimination of 14 positions in city government. Purzycki presented the fiscal year 2023 budget proposal before City Council Thursday along with an $82.1 million water, sewer and stormwater budget. …
Left to right: Senate Minority Leader Gerald Hocker, R-Ocean View, Senate Minority Whip Brian Pettyjohn, R-Georgetown, House Minority Whip Tim Dukes, R-Laurel, Rep. Ruth Briggs King, R-Georgetown. House and Senate Republicans are generally pleased with Gov. John Carney’s $5 billion proposed state budget but argue more should be done to return money to taxpayers given the state’s rosy economic outlook. …
