Looks like a fairly laid-back pre-Easter week in Dover. To be followed by two weeks off. Gee, you don’t think Carney would veto those pot bills while the General Assembly is away, do you? Not even a Friday afternoon news dump will escape the public’s attention.
Today’s House Agenda features what I assume is an already baked-in tax cut. To the tune of about $55 mill a year. HB 89 (Baumbach):
…increases the standard deduction for personal income tax purposes of resident individuals and spouses of this State for tax years beginning after December 31, 2023. Section 3 of this Act increases the monetary filing thresholds resulting from the increases the standard deduction under Section 1. Sections 2 and 4 of this Act increase the refundable earned income tax credit to 7.5% of the corresponding federal earned income tax credit for tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2023, and clarify that a previously enacted refundable earned income tax credit of 4.5% of the corresponding federal earned income tax credit took effect for tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2021.
Budget-smoothing does not apply to tax cuts, just to limiting adequate funding for programs.
The agenda also includes two solid Senate bills, SB 33 (Gay) and SB 60 (Sturgeon). Both passed the Senate unanimously.
I could have sworn that today’s Senate Agenda originally included the bill restricting the use of plastics in restaurants. If so, it has been replaced by another, less estimable, bill from Sen. Paradee. Looks like another giveaway to the racinos. SB 64 ‘promotes increased capital investment at Delaware casinos by restructuring the table games licensing fee reduction currently received by video lottery agents to allow capital investments greater than the minimum amounts required…to count toward the allowable license fee reductions.’
Somehow, this legislative legerdemain requires no fiscal note. I can’t figure out why. The usual central Delaware suspects dominate the bill’s sponsorship.
Only two committee meetings today, both in the House:
HB 91 (Bush) ‘creates a new offense of Aggravated Criminal Mischief with enhanced penalties (class D felony) applicable when an individual knowingly damages or tampers with critical utility infrastructure intending to disrupt utility services.’ Public Safety & Homeland Security.
HB 92 (Carson) ‘requires drivers to change lanes or reduce their speed while approaching a stationary vehicle displaying warning signals, including vehicle hazard warning lights, road flares, traffic cones, cautions signs, or any non-vehicular warning signs’. Doesn’t appear to be any sanction associated with this. Public Safety & Homeland Security.
That, mes amis, is it for today. Hoping for more action tomorrow.