Two notable bills passed yesterday: The Senate passed SB 25(Townsend), which increases the legal minimum age to purchase tobacco products from 18 to 21. The House passed HB38(Bentz), which established early voting in Delaware.
Uh, that’s not quite accurate. The Senate passed SS1/SB25, which was introduced in lieu of the original. The vote was 14 Y, 6 N, 1 A. One D, Bruce Ennis, voted against the bill, and 3 R’s. Cloutier, Delcollo, and Lopez, voted for the bill.
The vote on HB 38 was 34 Y, 6 N, 1 A. All D’s voted yes, as did several R’s. The 6 no votes came from deep downstate: Collins, Gray, Morris, Postles, Vanderwende, and Yearick.
Here is yesterday’s Session Activity Report.
A lighter committee schedule than usual today. We’ll start with Senate highlights:
*SB 48(Walsh) ‘ requires that bidders for public works contracts that are above a minimum value and required to provide the prevailing wage include approved craft training programs for journeyman and apprentice levels if the contract is not for a federal highway project. Labor.
*SB 6(Pettyjohn) ‘establishes that State government offices are to close when a National Day of Mourning is declared due to the death of a current or former President’. Executive. Don’t see why we need this bill. You would think that any governor would be capable of making that determination on their own.
That literally is ‘it’ for today’s Senate committee meetings. Hey, I don’t understand it either. Maybe Scott Goss can fill us in.
House committee highlights:
*While Speaker Pete can’t ‘spell gas tax’, the same issue apparently does not apply to aircraft. Two bills, both sponsored by Rep. Osienski, require (a) certain aircraft to pay an annual fee; and (b) impose a 5 cent a gallon tax on aviation jet fuel. Presumably to fix the potholes in our airspace. HB 84 and HB 86, to be specific. Which is why any revenue raised by these bills will be deposited into the Transportation Trust Fund. HB 84 is projected to raise about $650K annually. Transportation/Land Use & Infrastructure.
*Delaware Attorney General Kathleen Jennings will make a presentation to the House Judiciary Committee. If anyone attends, could you fill us in on that presentation?
*HB 19(Jaques) ‘seeks to ensure that every public school in the State has a school nurse’. The bill ‘…provides a mechanism to allow a district or a charter school that currently does not have a school nurse to receive State funds. This Act also permits a district to levy a tax under § 1902(b), Title 14, known as a “match tax”, to assist those districts that hire a school nurse as a result of this Act to pay for the local share of that school nurse’. Education.
*HB 88(Carson) ‘…removes the automatic suspension of a driver’s license for failure to provide proof of insurance. The Division of Motor vehicles will continue to suspend the registration of the uninsured vehicle. The removal of the automatic license suspension will allow the vehicle owner to get to work, keep a job, so that the driver will be able to obtain vehicle insurance’. Makes total sense to me. Public Safety & Homeland Security.
*HB 73(Jaques) is the first leg of a constitutional amendment that would permit ‘no excuse’ absentee voting in Delaware. It must be passed in identical fashion in two consecutive General Assemblies in order to become law. Administration.
The Senate has yet another one-bill agenda today.
I guess I should close with this little bit of news: Leg Hall has been evacuated, according to Matt Bittle. I’ll provide any updates if warranted. Or, even if not warranted. Slow news day.