What Governor Markell has done.

Filed in National by on October 15, 2009

I love Donviti. I consider him a good friend, and he is invaluable to Delaware Liberal because he keeps us honest. He plays Devil’s Advocate concerning politics and especially the Democratic Party. And that is good. Liberals and Democrats are not known for their uniformity of opinion, and with Donviti around we will never be known for it. Ever. (LOL).

But to answer his earlier question of today, here are only a few of his accomplishments during his first nine months.

Education Bills signed

1. Senate Bill 68: Eliminates the DSTP
2. House Substitute 1 to House Bill 199: Gives Schools Flexibility
3. House Bill 158: Rewards High-performing Districts
4. House Bill 102: Qualifies Delaware for the Teach For America Program

Energy Bills signed

1. Senate Bill 106: Energy Efficiency and Conservation Act
2. Senate Bill 59: Updates Building Code Requirements for Energy Efficiency
3. Senate Substitute 1 to Senate Bill 49: Prohibits Deed Restrictions that Prevent Homeowners from Installing Solar Panels
4. House Substitute 1 to House Bill 70: Prohibits Deed Restrictions that Prevent Homeowners from Installing Wind Turbines
5. Senate Bill 85: Allows Delawareans to Sell Back Alternative Energy into the Grid for a Profit
6. Senate Bill 153: Prepares Delaware for Grid-integrated Electric Vehicles

Size of Government

1. Proposal to Eliminate of the Department of Finance
2. Reduction of 100,000 State Issued Checks
3. Instituted a Government Performance Review
4. Instituted an Online Payroll System
5. Cut size of state vehicle fleet by 20%

Open Government

1. Signed House Bill 1: Extends FOIA to the State Legislature
2. Signed Senate Bill 104: Expands the Use of Videoconferencing throughout the State
3. Signed Executive Order 1: Lobbying Reform
4. Opened the State Checkbook

Anti-Discrimination

1. Signed Senate Bill 121: Prohibits Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation
2. Signed House Bill 112: Allows Patients to Choose their own Hospital Visitors

Recessionary Measures

1. Senate Bill 156 and House Bill 170: Extends Unemployment Benefits to Delawareans
2. Senate Bill 108: Combats Title Loans

Economic Development

1. CORE Prosperity Agenda
2. Limited Investment for Financial Traction (LIFT)
3. Bids.Delaware.Gov

Public Safety

1. House Bill 152 and Senate Bill 177: Increases Penalties for Drunk Driving
2. Senate Bill 6: Helps Firefighters and Ambulances Drive through Traffic

Seniors/Healthcare

1. Senate Bill 35: Allows the Insurance Department to Review Health Insurance Premiums
2. House Bill 165: Grants Online Access to the Adult Abuse Registry

Children

1. Senate Bill 55: Makes it Easier for Legal Guardians to Adopt Children
2. Senate Bill 32: Increases the Penalties for Child Abandonment
3. Senate Bill 65: Helps Families Access Dental Care for Disabled Children

Miscellaneous

1. House Bill 107: Ends the Practice that Requires Manufactured Housing Community Homeowners to Pay Rent in Lump Sums
2. House Bill 109: Grants Incentives to Encourage Witnesses to Give Testimony
4. Weekend of Service: 30,000 Hours
5. Senate Bill 7: Eminent Domain Reform

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Comments (26)

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  1. Rebecca says:

    And he saved Delaware’s bacon. Not too shabby. Thanks for the post DD.

    Oh, and, DV, I know it was an honest and innocent question, but phlsssssssssh!

    And, I won’t be spending tomorrow at my computer like I did today, so I promise not to post and post and post. You’ll get a rest.

    Ya’ll have been fun to hang-out with.

    Onward!

  2. You can’t merely claim credit for signing other people’s bills. You should only include the one’s that he pushed or were part of his agenda.

  3. Delaware Dem says:

    Which of these bills were not part of his agenda, David? I seem to recall all of them were! And even if one wasn’t, if he had vetoed any of these bills, he most assuredly would have gotten blamed for it. So you are saying he cannot take credit for the bills he signs? Indeed, if one of these bills he signed turns out to be a mistake, he most assuredly will be blamed for it by you. So bullshit on your comment.

  4. pandora says:

    Hmm… if he’d vetoed those bills, would David be criticizing him.

  5. pandora says:

    I love it when we’re on the same wavelength.

  6. donviti says:

    feel better now?

    you could have easily put that in my post but instead assumed incorrectly that I was positing the question as negative.

  7. Delaware Dem says:

    Yeah. I am a whole new man. 😉

  8. donviti says:

    good, this thread is closed then!

  9. Kilroy says:

    Education Bills signed
    “Senate Bill 68: Eliminates the DSTP”
    But no where around when we started the fight in 1997. No show Jack!

    House Substitute 1 to House Bill 199: Gives Schools Flexibility No, HB 119! HB 199 AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 18 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO DEVELOPMENTAL SCREENING OF INFANTS AND TODDLERS.
    Matt Denn was very involved with HB 119 and the online checkbook ledger was are result of Copeland, Lavelle, Burris, myself demanding it. Also. Flexibility is dangerous in the hands of some school administration. Look at Red Clay giving Teacher for America $300,000.00 political gift at the urging of Jack Markell.

    I think you folks are ovetstating Jack accomplishments!

  10. I guess you aren’t up on his Executive Orders. #7 is the Re-entry IDAPT order, I believe.

  11. Joanne Christian says:

    HB 102–I don’t think that’s something to be proud of “qualify for the Teach for America program”……

  12. Delaware Dem says:

    Like I said, Nancy, this is not a comprehensive list.

  13. Kilroy says:

    Anti-Discrimination

    “1. Signed Senate Bill 121: Prohibits Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation”

    So where is his legislation on same sex marriages? Isn’t prohibiting it discrimination?

    Look folks I voted for him and right now I am pissed because he is allowing the USDOE to dicitate Delaware’s edcation and Obama /Duncan are pushing for national standard / curriculum. But I am telling you, you guys are acting like Markell has parted the Red Sea and the onlt thing he has done was push Red Clay in signing a $300,000.00 political contract with Teach for America.

  14. TommyWonk says:

    SB 106, which established energy efficiency resource standards (15% reduction in electric demand by 2015), came from the governor.

    It reflects his policy on resource loading order: efficiency first, then renewables, and then there shouldn’t be any reason to build more fossil fuel capacity in Delaware.

    This loading order reflects the best cost/benefit analysis I’ve seen, and provides an organizing principle to guide policy including stimulus spending and SEU priorities.

  15. Kilroy says:

    Jack Markell spotted walking on water

  16. Delaware Dem says:

    Sorry, Kilroy. You got caught in our spam filter for some reason. I released the comments but deleted the duplicate comments.

  17. Kilroy says:

    Thank you! Wasn’t trying to be smart with multiple comments. You can delete the two

  18. John Young says:

    How come I have been stuck for weeks?

  19. LaNuit says:

    DelDem – sorry, but to echo the above, you can’t take credit for every bill that he signed… thats just not accurate. Most of those bills are representative of the individual legislators’ work, not anything Jack did.

    And this : “Reduction of 100,000 State Issued Checks”

    Would have been nice if he had done this, you know, during the fucking decade he was actually signing them as Treasurer….

  20. Delaware Dem says:

    Well then LaNuit, you can never criticize him for any bill he vetoes or any bill that he does sign but you disagree with, for if gets no credit, he gets no blame either.

  21. Wow, DD. I want one of those jobs where you get no blame. That is awesome!

  22. Mark H says:

    2. Reduction of 100,000 State Issued Checks

    4. Instituted an Online Payroll System

    Both of these were in the pipeline before he was Governor. And with #4 that’s been in the pipeline for about 5 years 🙂

    And I’m guessing that a good number of the bills he signed (not all of them) would have been passed and signed under any of the possible occupants of the office (even Protack).

    I think the real test will be the next 2 fiscal years, as the stimulus money really masked some serious shortfalls in the present year’s budget

  23. Suzanne says:

    “Would have been nice if he had done this, you know, during the fucking decade he was actually signing them as Treasurer….”

    LaNuit – he can do a lot more now then he could as State Treasurer. Reforming state purchasing was not part of his job as treasurer.
    The Treasurer’s office is responsible for cash, investment, and debt management – meaning, they pay the checks and reconcile the accounts – they are not the ones that are responsible for HOW things are purchased but are responsible for making sure they are paid on time. If you want to bitch about the amount of credit cards and checks, bitch at the office of Management & Budget.