General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Report-Wed., April 28, 2010

The Insurance Commissioner got her free pass and the Rethugs in the House reemerged as the ‘Daddy’ Party. Just another day in Dover.

Mike Barbieri’s common-sense bill that eliminates mandatory reporting of  school ‘incidents’ involving kids from ages 9-12 barely passed, largely on a party line vote. In other words, those voting ‘no’, or going ‘not voting’ would substitute their judgment that administrators must report every incident to the police over the professional judgment of the school administrators. Rep. Barbieri asks the logical question in J. L. Miller’s News-Journal report:

“If it is serious, the school administration will deal with it. If they’re not [serious offenses], then why bring it to the criminal level?” Barbieri asked.

“How many times have you seen two 9-year-olds pushing each other and you called the police?” he asked.

Good questions. Nobody from the Daddy Party was available for response. The fact that Monsignor Lavelle didn’t rush to the microphones suggests that this was even more political than most Rethug stunts, coming on the day that Terry Spence filed to run against Barbieri. One R, Rep. Don Blakey, who is more of a D than R anyway, voted for the bill. One D, former cop John Mitchell of Elsmere, voted against. Two D’s, John Atkins and Dennis P. Williams, were recorded as ‘absent’. Which brings me to today’s Teaching Opportunity!

Kids, it’s time to tell you what ‘Taking a Walk’ means in legislative parlance. It means being unavailable for a roll call, or ‘absent’, even though you’re actually in the building, and well aware of what’s going on. While I’m not saying that Atkins or former Wilmington cop/unofficial Wilmington mayoral candidate Williams took a walk on this vote, it’s the kind of vote that they might well have wanted to avoid, and they were present and voting during the rest of session.

In an anticlimactic vote, the House unanimously approved Karen Weldin Stewart’s captive insurance company legislation. The second House vote was required b/c a Senate amendment had been added to the bill, and the bill must pass in identical form in both houses. It now heads to the Governor’s office.

Both the 10-year extension of the Historic Preservation Tax Credit and Sen. Simpson’s bill making cats the victims of dangerous dogs passed in the Senate and now head to the House.

Here’s yesterday’s Session Activity Report.

While most of today’s activity will be in committee meetings, the Senate does have an Agenda as well. HB 166(Rep. Hocker) interests me, even though it’s ‘only’ a Bethany Beach charter change, as it really gives a lot of power in municipal elections to non-resident property owners. This is an ongoing issue that is prevalent in beach communities as you have people who own property, but do not have their official residences in the beach communities. I’ve gotta ask, though, just where do you draw the line on this? Hocker’s bill draws the line at 8 non-residents per property. 8. As in “…this act limits the maximum number of persons who may vote as non-resident property owners in Town elections to eight natural persons per property.” The limit is supposedly in place to “…prevent an unduly large number of persons from qualifying to vote in Town elections as “non-resident property owners” by having multiple owners on the deed to a single parcel of real estate.”

Eight non-residents per property strikes me as an unduly large number. Non-residents could dwarf residents when voting in municipal elections. Is that fair? Is that constitutional? I’ll defer to Sussex Countians to respond. Not to mention experts in  constitutional law. Whaddayathink, John ‘Intake’ Manifold?

Helene Keeley’s oft-amended bill giving more consumer protective powers to the AG’s office is also on the agenda. The fact that the bill has been through so many permutations once again raises questions about the performance of the Department of Justice and the Attorney General, and their ability to craft legislation.

Little of note in Senate committee meetings today. Once again, a Senate Committee is meeting with no announced public agenda, thankyouverymuch, Sen. Bethany Hall Long.

The Senate Education Committee has a substantive agenda, including HB 328 which, if memory serves, raised red flags with Joanne Christian. Am I right on that, JC?

Here’s the House Committee Meeting schedule.

The House Economic Development/Banking/Insurance/Commerce Committee will consider HB 343(Brady), which would require insurance companies/health plans to, at a minimum, provide prosthetic and orthotic devices at the Federal reimbursement rate for the aged and disabled.

The House Administration Committee is scheduled to consider (and likely table) HB 214(Ramone), which would reduce the number of New Castle County Councilmanic districts from 12 to 6. Too bad, because the bill, almost by definition, would cut the number of political hacks/unethical operators in half as well, all the while saving the County quite a few $$’s. I think the bill deserves a hearing and vote on the House floor, but I doubt that it will happen.

Rep. Brad Bennett has another bill sure to get under Nancy Cook’s skin scheduled for the House Judiciary Committee today. This would put into the Kent County merit system positions in the Court of Common Pleas that heretofore have been the personal and political dumping ground for Sen. Cook and her allies.

So, all in all, a pretty interesting day. Check out the full schedule on your own and let me know if I’ve missed something that strikes your interest.