A bill that would stop school boards from unilaterally increasing school property taxes as much as 10% after a pending state property revaluation was sent by unanimous vote to the House floor Wednesday. During Wednesday’s House Education Committee, Rep. Mike Smith, R-Pike Creek said his House Bill 389 would address the current reassessments of property in all three countries …
Two lawmakers on opposite sides of the political spectrum have found common ground in their desire to increase transparency and accountability in state government. A bill filed by Rep. John Kowalko, D-Newark South, and Rep. Mike Smith, R-Pike Creek, would establish an independent and nonpartisan inspector general office in Delaware. The proposed office would investigate state agencies to identify and …
A bill released from the House Administration Committee Wednesday would create a committee to review grants for nonprofit organizations and make recommendations to the Joint Finance Committee. Grant-In-Aid is an annual appropriation made by the General Assembly to support the activities of non-profit organizations in the state. The funds are intended to provide supplemental resources to service agencies. Applications for …
Two bills set to be filed in the General Assembly would create an inspector general’s office in Delaware to investigate claims of waste, fraud, abuse and corruption within state government. Rep. Mike Smith, R-Pike Creek, said while Delaware already has a state auditor and attorney general, the inspector general’s office would “fill a gap in their coverage.” “The inspector general …
Delawareans could soon have wine shipped directly to their homes under a bill released from the House Economic Development Committee Tuesday. House Bill 210, sponsored by Rep. Mike Smith, R-Pike Creek, would permit wineries in the United States to obtain a license to ship wine directly to consumers so long as it is done through a common carrier like FedEx …
Rep. Mike Smith A Delaware state representative will run 48 miles in 48 hours to raise awareness and money for veterans. Starting at noon Friday, Rep. Mike Smith, a Republican from Pike Creek, will run four miles every four hours for two days alongside his friend Dave Henninger. The challenge will end Sunday at noon. They’ll do it all on …
Twelve Republican state representatives on Tuesday sent an open letter to Gov. John Carney asking that he reconsider mask mandates in state buildings and schools and stop advocating for COVID-19 booster shots. They encouraged the Democratic governor to promptly end all pandemic-related restrictions, return state workers to their normal places of employment, and “restore normality” for all Delawareans. The legislators …
Delaware Legislative Hall by Brian K. Leonard. September 2021. When Delawareans vote for their state representatives and senators a year from now, they could find out that they live in a new legislative district. That’s because during a special session of the General Assembly on Monday, both chambers approved Senate Bill 199, which redraws those district boundaries. The bill passed …
The General Assembly will convene Monday, Nov. 1 to consider redistricting legislation that will define Delaware’s House and Senate districts for the next decade. Both the House and Senate have released their final proposed maps ahead of the special session. What is redistricting? Every 10 years, states must redraw their legislative districts based on the most recent federal Census …
Sussex County House districts will change a lot if proposed plan goes forward. House Democratic leadership has released their proposed redistricting maps and Sussex County will pick up a seat — that of embattled Representative Gerald Brady, a Democrat from Wilmington. The House of Representatives will convene in a special session on Nov. 1 to finalize the maps that …
