The Department of Justice's monitoring of the Christina School District Board of Education will last until July 1, 2025.

Dept. of Justice to monitor Christina SD Board for 1 year 

Jarek RutzHeadlines, Education

The Delaware Department of Justice will monitor the meetings of Christina School District’s board of education for the next year.  Every year, the General Assembly creates a grants-in-aid bill, which outlines the state’s investments in  government agencies and nonprofits, like senior centers, veterans organizations and fire companies, for example. The bill appeared to be business-as-usual, but the penultimate section of …

The Delaware General Assembly passed a few firearm bills this year, and a few more are hung up and can be brought back next year. (Photo by Mariusz Blach/Adobe Stock)

Legislative Wrap-up: gun bills passed in 2024

Jarek RutzHeadlines, Government

Delaware’s state legislature is not immune to the national discussions on key societal issues, such as firearms.  With this year’s legislative session ending Sunday, here’s a look at the bills relating to guns that passed in 2024: House Bill 357 – definition of “firearm” Sponsored by Rep. Jeff Spiegelman, R-Clayton, the bill derives from a task force charged with updating …

HB 311 punishes most people for carrying a firearm in a Delaware college Safe School Zone with a class E felony.

Safe School Zone law moves on days after DSU fatal shooting

Jarek RutzHeadlines, Government

Just days after a fatal shooting of an 18-year-old woman on Delaware State University’s campus, the state General Assembly moved on with a bill creating felonies for people with guns in Safe School Zones. House Bill 311, sponsored by Rep. Cyndie Romer, D-Newark, adds post-secondary colleges and universities to the Safe School Zone criminal offense. That means any person who …

Deep fakes are images or videos digitally created used to depict someone falsely or make them appear as someone else. (Photo by Mdv Edwards/Adobe Stock)

Makers of inappropriate deep fake images could face penalties

Jarek RutzHeadlines, Government

A bill that would punish citizens for creating and spreading inappropriate artificial intelligence images known as deep fakes passed unanimously in the House Judiciary Committee Wednesday morning. House Bill 353, sponsored by Rep. Krista Griffith, D-Wilmington, provides civil and criminal penalties for the wrongful disclosure of deep fakes that depict individuals in the nude or engaging in sexual conduct. Several …

More than half a million Americans have some form of metastatic cancer. (Photo by apomares/iStock Getty Images)

Metastatic cancer patients could get expanded treatment coverage

Jarek RutzHeadlines, Health

A bill that would expand treatment for a certain type of cancer passed the House Economic Development/Banking/Insurance & Commerce Committee unanimously Tuesday afternoon. House Bill 364, sponsored by Rep. Cyndie Romer, D-Newark, requires that individual, blanket and group health insurance carriers cover drug treatment for the associated conditions of metastatic cancer in the same way treatment for metastatic cancer is …

The proposed bill would adjust how the pensions are calculated in the county and municipal police and firefighter pension plan.

Financial burdens cause opposition to pension bill

Jarek RutzHeadlines, Government

A bill that would adjust the pension calculations for Delaware’s police officers and firefighters faced opposition from those very groups in Wednesday’s House Judiciary Committee meeting. House Bill 266, sponsored by Rep. Cyndie Romer, D-Newark, would add wages earned as a result of required additional work hours to the definition of “compensation” for purposes of calculating pensions in the county …

8 bills are ready to be signed into law after passing through the Senate Thursday.

8 bills pass Senate, ready to become Delaware law

Jarek RutzGovernment, Headlines

Eight bills were discussed and passed through the Senate Thursday and are heading to Gov. John Carney’s desk for signature in what is the last week of the legislative session. Here’s what is set to become law: House Bill 65, also sponsored by  Rep. Debra Heffernan, D-Brandywine Hundred South, provides state employees who suffer a miscarriage, stillbirth or other loss, …

police

House  passes updated police bill of rights by large margin

Sam HautGovernment, Headlines

The Delaware House of Representatives this week overwhelmingly passed a bill that would establish new standards for reporting police misconduct allegations, hailed by sponsors as a giant leap toward transparency. After the bill passed, the Speaker of the House Rep. Pete Schwartzkopf, D-Rehoboth Beach, thanked the people who helped get the bill passed. “I also want to thank the police …

A new bill would make technical corrections to Delaware's paid leave program.

Paid leave hasn’t started, but changes already suggested

Jarek RutzHeadlines, Government

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 …

child abuse

3 bills addressing child abuse issues pass House

Sam HautGovernment, Headlines

Three bills that change Delaware law as it relates to child abuse passed the House, with some sparking more contention than others. House Bill 182, sponsored by Rep. Krista Griffith, D-Fairfax, would change child abuse in the third, second and first degree to child abuse in the fourth, third and second degree respectively; and changes the new third degree child …