Among the last week’s work in the 2024 session will be Delaware House of Representatives saluting six legislators who are leaving or have left the Delaware House. They include Rep. Sherry Dorsey Walker, D-Wilmington; Rep. Sean Matthews, D-Middletown; Rep. Paul Baumbach, D-Newark; Rep. Pete Schwartzkopf, D-Rehoboth Beach; Rep. Michael Ramone, R-Newark/Pike Creek; and former Rep. Ruth Briggs King, R-Georgetown. On …
House committee rejects bill to open primary voting
A Delaware House panel on Wednesday voted down a bill to open voting in Delaware’s primary elections to unaffiliated voters. State Rep. Michael Smith, R-Newark, introduced the legislation with Reps. Bill Bush, D-Cheswold, and Sean Matthews, D-Middletown. But despite House Bill 43’s bipartisan sponsorship, the House Administration committee rejected it three-to-two along party lines with committee Democrats opposed. Currently, a …
Committee wrestles with porn site content sent to minors
The discussion in a House committee Tuesday got testy in response to a bill that would hold porn websites liable for showing graphic content to minors. “You’re getting a little snippy, and I’m trying to support your legislation, but I can stop…would you prefer that?” said Rep. Madinah Wilson-Anton, D-Newark, after asking a series of clarifying questions to Rep. Mike …
Data privacy bill passes House committee
A data privacy bill that will give consumers more rights went unanimously through the House Technology & Telecommunications Committee Tuesday, two in favor and four on its merits. House Bill 154, sponsored by Rep. Krista Griffith, D-Greenville, would give consumers the right to delete their personal data, change their personal data, know who is collecting their personal data and opt …
What would a road diet look like? What would it do?
The thoroughfare had problems with accidents, so Delaware Department of Transportation officials wanted to reduce the number of through lanes and make other changes — a concept called a road diet. That’s the situation for Foulk Road today, and it was also the situation for the Philadelphia Pike more than a decade ago. The Pike was put on a road …
House votes against overriding Carney’s marijuana veto
An attempt to override Gov. John Carney’s veto of a bill to legalize marijuana possession failed in the Delaware House of Representatives Tuesday. With the vote, this year’s endeavor to end marijuana prohibition in Delaware is all but certainly dead. Numerous lawmakers who previously voted to pass House Bill 371 voted against the veto override Tuesday out of an apparent …
Bill to bar school boards from raising property taxes goes to House
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 …
Bill to study, encourage early childhood workforce heads to House floor
A bill requiring the state to conduct an annual workforce study of early childhood professionals and help the pool of workers earn more unanimously passed the House Education Committee. House Bill 377, sponsored by Sherae’a Moore, D-Middletown, would have the Department of Education do the annual study, with the first due by Nov. 15, 2022, along with a …