One became the law of the land. The other went up in smoke. Both involved years of planning, hundreds of meetings, thousands of stakeholder discussions and countless compromises. The difference? One bill had the support of Gov. John Carney — the other didn’t. With his signature, the Healthy Delaware Families Act became the 151st General Assembly’s big winner, while his …
House speaker refuses to consider McGuiness removal
The Delaware Senate on Monday passed a resolution to begin a process Democratic leadership hopes will result in the removal of one of their own: State Auditor Kathleen McGuiness. Every Republican voted against the measure, putting them in line with House Speaker Pete Schwartzkopf, D-Rehoboth, who said he has “no intention of calling the House into session to consider this …
GOP chair sues Department of Elections over new voting laws
The chairwoman of the Republican Party of Delaware has filed suit against the state’s Department of Elections over two new laws legalizing mail-in voting and same-day voter registration. GOP chair Jane Brady, who was Delaware’s attorney general from 1995 until 2005, said the new laws violate the state Constitution. “The Constitution provides you must vote in person on election day …
Delaware governor signs vote by mail, same-day registration
In a private ceremony Friday, Gov. John Carney signed two Democrat-backed bills to allow voters to request mail-in ballots and register to vote on election day. In response, Delaware Republican Party chairwoman Jane Brady said she’d be holding a press conference Friday afternoon to announce a legal challenge aimed at stopping the laws from taking effect. “When [the bill] first …
Carney to sign mail-in voting bill Friday, GOP to sue
Gov. John Carney will sign a bill Friday to allow voters to send their ballots through the mail in all future elections, according to his communications director. The Republican Party of Delaware promised to respond swiftly in the form of a lawsuit. “When [the bill] first passed the General Assembly, we expressed concerns about its constitutionality,” said Jane Brady, chairwoman …
Vote by mail bill heads to Delaware governor
Gov. John Carney has taken possession of a bill to allow Delawareans to vote by mail in all future elections. Carney has 10 days, excluding Sundays, to either sign or veto the bill. Senate Bill 320 creates an opt-in vote-by-mail system wherein voters will have to request a ballot before one is sent. Ballots and ballot applications will not be …
Drivers, get ready for a mileage-based user fee
As state and federal leaders push to get more electric vehicles on the road and lower the consumption of fossil fuels, a reckoning will come about how to pay for roads if nobody is buying gasoline at the pump. Taxes on the sale of gasoline fund a huge portion of roadwork, including repaving and safety concerns, and the push is …
Brandywine board divided on joining Learning Collaborative
The Brandywine School District Board is divided on whether or not to join the Wilmington Learning Collaborative. At its meeting Monday night, several members of the board expressed concern about finances and obligations. The board announced it is continuing to negotiate with the governor’s office, that it will hold a town hall before its Aug. 15 meeting, during which it …
Wilmington Learning Collaborative: Who will sign on first?
Red Clay Consolidated School District may become the first district to vote on the agreement that would formally set up the Wilmington Learning Collaborative. Both Red Clay and Christina district boards had a synopsis of the 16-page draft agreement read to them Tuesday night. Both agreed to consider the issue in their next meeting. Christina will meet Aug. 9, but …
More legislation in the works to address teacher shortage
A bill that would help address the state’s lingering concern over a teacher shortage was unanimously released by the Senate Education Committee Wednesday. House Bill 430, now headed to the Senate floor, would encourage schools to begin a Grow Your Own Educator Program, which supporters believe will improve recruitment, retention and diversity of teachers in the First State’s public schools. …