General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Weds., April 24, 2024

Looks like a ‘just the facts, ma’am’ edition today.  Largely b/c there are a lot of facts to plow through.  Don’t worry, we’ll insert some levity/snark into the proceedings.

Here is yesterday’s Session Activity Report.  Some good bills were passed.

SB 237 (Hansen) passed. Five Senate Rethugs voted no.  Which is what happens when you get your information from a climate-denier who is somehow still employed at the U of D.  By default, Sen. Buckson is hereby crowned the Least Crazy R Senator in Dover.

The Department of Education and the Carney Administration will now have to do their job once SS1/SB 252 (Sturgeon) passes the House. It passed unanimously in the Senate on Tuesday.  Which is not the same as to predict that the Department of Education and the Carney Administration will do their job.

Resident Suxco neanderthal Rep. Collins voted against requiring sexual assault prevention training at Delaware institutions of higher education.  Presumably not because he’s in favor of sexual assault, but because he doesn’t believe in higher education.  He was the only one.

Paul Baumbach’s HB 318, which:

…increases the exemption in bankruptcy and other debt proceedings for a debtor’s personal residence from $125,000 to $200,000. The exemption has been limited to $125,000 since 2012 while home prices have increased dramatically in the intervening years. It also increases the exemption for tools of the trade and for a vehicle to $25,000 from $15,000.

passed overwhelmingly. Guess which resident Suxco neanderthal was the only legislator to not support this bill.

The annual Corporate Law package sailed right through.  I know that the Senate has started the practice of bringing in experts to actually explain the bills to the members.  It’s a good practice.  Don’t know if the House is doing the same.

Today’s Senate Agenda doesn’t interest me.  Which, let’s face it, isn’t and shouldn’t be the standard for crafting agendas.

Ho-kay, we have bleeploads of committee meetings today.

Senate Committee meeting highlights include (for now, unless noted otherwise, I’ll only discuss Senate bills in Senate committee meetings and House bills in House committee meetings since I’ve presumably already discussed the other bills when they were considered in their house of origin):

A lot of lawyering appears to have gone into SB’s 267 and 268 (both Mantzavinos), which address unclaimed property and decedent’s estates respectively.  Confession: Long synopses like these fry my synapses.  Banking, Business, Insurance & Technology.

Massive changes to how high school interscholastic sports are regulated in Delaware are the subjects of SB 259 and SB 260, both sponsored by Sen. Poore.  Here is a background article on the proposals from a Task Force that led to these bills.  Education.

SB 229 (Sturgeon) ‘… extends the right of employees to inspect their own personnel files to former employees. Under this Act, an employer must permit a former employee to inspect the employee’s own personnel files that exist at the time of the request.’ Labor.

SB 265 (Hansen) ‘authorizes processes necessary to help meet the net zero goals of the Climate Change Solutions Act of 2023.’  Environment, Energy & Transportation.

Correct me if I’m wrong.  I read SB 264 (Paradee) to mean that a temporary charge on one’s electrical and natural gas bills will become permanent. Environment, Energy & Transportation.

I’m breaking my newly-implemented rule.  I  must talk about HB’s 281 and 282, which will be considered in the Senate Executive Committee.  These are designed to protect the healthcare benefits of state retirees and future state retirees.  Both passed the House unanimously.  Both will pass the Senate.  Will Carney sign them, or allow them to become law w/o his signature?  I mean, since the bills wouldn’t have been necessary had Delaware’s Worst Governor not decided to smooth the budget on the backs of state retirees.  Warning: If you work for the City of Wilmington, an attack on your benefits and the benefits of city retirees could be in your future.

Today’s House Committee highlights:

HS 1/HB 300 (K. Johnson), a true highlight, essentially requires assisted living facilities that claim they provide certain services to be certified to provide such services.  Assisted living facilities have been underregulated with disastrous consequences.  Great bill.  With no Yrene Waldron around to lobby against it, I’m real hopeful that this bill passes.  Health & Human Development.

I mention HB 381 (K. Williams) only because I thought pamphlets concerning the landlord-tenant code were already being circulated.  I remember we had the pamphlets in Legislative Council back when I worked in Dover.  Had they stopped updating them? Housing.

Still no legislation to stop the pension windfall for retired legislators.  I was given to understand that this issue would be discussed in party caucuses this week.  I’ll provide updates even if the update is that there is no update.