Delaware General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Thurs., May 6, 2010

Not much to report b/c, as I pointed out last week, committee reports won’t get read into the record until after the General Assembly reconvenes today. So, we don’t know which bills were released from committee. Except…some of them appear on today’s agendas, so they have obviously cleared committee. Notable items from yesterday’s Session Activity report:

1. Captive Insurance Bill Signed into Law-HB 314(B. Short) was signed by the Governor. Raise your hands if you think this IC is equipped to administer this law. Hands? Anyone?

2. Ceremonial Resolutions Honoring Public Service ‘Partnerships’ Between State and State’s Higher Educational Institutions-UD, Del-Tech, and DelState each get their own ceremonial resolution. Hard to tell just how much public service the U of D contributes, since they continue to refuse to open their financial books to the State. When they collect the millions of $$’s on June 30, they are a public institution. When it comes to publicly accounting for those $$’s, they are a private institution. Everyone yawns.

3. Senate Passes Bill Assisting Foster Care Children Who Are Eligible for the SEED Program-SB 41(Blevins) unanimously passed in the Senate. It would enable ‘children who are leaving foster care to have access to the SEED scholarship, without the condition that they begin their higher education immediately after high school. This Act also allows them to attend school part-time. These exceptions are necessary because children aging out of foster care have the unique responsibility to support themselves and may not be able to follow the traditional timetable that children with the support of a more traditional family are able to follow.’ I think this makes total sense. Why place impediments in the paths of students who have had to overcome so much already?

4. Legislation Requiring IC to Do Her Job NOT Considered In Committee-As I feared, HB 367(D. Short) was not discussed at yesterday’s meeting of the ‘Open For Business’ House Economic Development/Banking/Insurance/Commerce Committee. Rep. D. Short expects it will be considered next week. If shenanigans are afoot, look for the Mother of All Rants from yours truly. And, the language will not be suitable for Mother’s Day, possibly not even for Swearing Sailors’ Day.

Time for today’s Pre-Game Show:

1. Universal Recycling Tops House Agenda-We know that SB 234 cleared House committee, as it is Item #1 on today’s House Agenda. David Swayze’s out there cryin’ crocodile tears on behalf of the out-of-state glass bottlers, and threatening a constitutional challenge to the bill. Please tell me again why this lobbyist whore ends up being appointed to so many state task forces? He never has the interests of  the people of Delaware at heart. Never has. Memo to General Assembly: Call his bluff, don’t give in.

2. Compassionate Consideration for Inmates With Serious Medical Conditions–A good bill from one of Delaware’s better legislators. Rep. J. J. Johnson’s bill would “authorize a sentencing court to modify, defer, reduce or suspend a minimum or mandatory sentence of one year of less if it finds the person to be sentenced has serious and ongoing medical treatment needs which make incarceration inappropriate and that the person does not pose a substantial risk to the community.” Even Sen. Venables who, in fairness, has been skeptical of minimum mandatory sentencing for quite some time now, has signed on as a co-sponsor. It’s on today’s House Agenda.

3. Robocall Restrictions Near?-Today’s Senate Agenda includes Rep. B. Short’s HB 185, which would place restrictions on those political robocalls we invariably get in the closing weeks of an election. Other than House Minority Leader Dick Cathcart going not voting (?), the bill passed unanimously in the House.

4. Enhanced Protection from Abuse Standards On Agenda–Social worker/Rep. Mike Barbieri’s HB 336 is scheduled for Senate consideration today. I praised this bill when it was being considered in the House, where it ultimately passed unanimously. It “enhances the Family Court’s ability to protect victims of domestic violence and abuse by authorizing the Family Court to enter the no contact provisions of protection from abuse orders for up to 2 years in every case and, where aggravating circumstances exist, authorizing the Family Court to order no contact for as long as it deems necessary to prevent further abuse, including the entry of a permanent order.” No reason why it shouldn’t sail through the Senate.

Happy Mother’s Day, everyone! See ya back here next Tuesday.