Legislative Tracking - 151st General Assembly

DSCC SUPPORTED:

HB 16: Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) - PASSED

Allows recipients to choose the most beneficial credit to be applied against their Delaware personal income taxes. Under this Act, recipients can choose between a non-refundable credit of up to 20% of the value of the corresponding federal EITC or a refundable EITC credit of up to 4.5% of the value of the corresponding federal EITC.

HB 200: Clean Water - PASSED

Establishes a framework for assessing needs and planning and implementing projects that support Delaware’s efforts to improve the quality of the State’s water supply and waterways.

SB 127: Site Readiness - PASSED

Establishes a fund to provide grants, loans or other economic assistance to businesses or public entities that invest in constructing, renovating, or improving infrastructure for sites that will attract new businesses or expand existing businesses within the State to initiate economic development opportunities that will create a significant number of direct, permanent, quality, full-time jobs.

SB 65: Focus on Alternative Skills Training Program (FAST) - PASSED

Provides up to $10,000 in tuition assistance to Delaware residents who have obtained a high school diploma and have enrolled in an approved skills training program.

HB 166: Elevate Delaware - PASSED

Provides payments for tuition and auxiliary expenses, up to $10,000, for individuals to attend an approved non-credit certificate program.

SB 12: Student Excellence Equals Degree Act (SEED) - PASSED

Increases eligibility for SEED scholarships and funding for Delaware residents who are not recent high school graduates to attend Delaware Tech.

SB 95: Inspire Scholarship Program - PASSED

Provides Delaware students with strong academic credentials and a demonstrated commitment to volunteer public service to receive scholarship monies sufficient to cover the full cost of tuition at Delaware State University.

HB 158: Low Income Tax Credit (LITC) - CURRENTLY IN HOUSE REVENUE & FINANCE COMMITTEE

Creates a $500 tax credit applicable to individual personal income taxes for certain lower income, working poor, individuals. In the case of spouses filing a joint return, the tax credit is $1,000. If spouses file their Delaware taxes separately, each spouse with the required income will be entitled to a $500 tax credit.

DSCC MONITORED:

HB 205: Delaware EARNS Act - CURRENTLY IN HOUSE APPROPRIATIONS

Establishes the Delaware Expanding Access for Retirement and Necessary Saving (“EARNS”) program to serve as a vehicle through which eligible employees may, on a voluntary basis, provide for additional retirement security through a State-facilitated retirement savings program.

SB 140: Polystyrene - CURRENTLY IN SENATE ENVIRONMENT & ENERGY COMMITTEE

Prohibits the sale of containers, food service products, or packing materials made of expanded polystyrene. Prohibits food establishments and public schools from providing readyto-eat food and beverages in expanded polystyrene containers and limits the use of single-service plastic items in food establishments.

SB 93: Consumer Contracts - PASSED

Provides protections for consumers in connection with contracts with automatic renewal provisions known as “evergreen” clauses.

HB 262: Data Brokers and Consumer Protections - INTRODUCED AND ASSIGNED TO HOUSE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE

Proposes providing consumers with information on how their personal information is being used by data brokers.

HB 91: Unfair Business Practices - PASSED

Amends Delaware’s Consumer Fraud Act (Subchapter II, Chapter 25, Title 6 of the Code) to give Delaware consumers and businesses the protection against unfair acts or practices in commerce that the General Assembly intended to give them when it enacted the Consumer Fraud Act.

SB 104: Unclaimed Property - PASSED

Clarifies various aspects of the State’s procedures to operate its unclaimed property program, including promoting and determining holder compliance, processing owner claims, and preventing fraudulent claims.

DSCC OPPOSED:

SB 15: Minimum Wage - PASSED

Gradually increases Delaware’s minimum wage to $15/ hr over a period of several years. Starts at $10.50 per hour effective January 1, 2022; $11.75/hr. Jan 1, 2023; $13.25/ hr. Jan 1, 2024; $15/hr. Jan 1, 2025.

HB 88: Youth & Training Wage - PASSED

Removes the training minimum wage and youth minimum wage, which takes effect 90 days after enactment.

HB 94: Tipped Wages - CURRENTLY IN HOUSE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE

Ensures that employees who receive tips or gratuities also receive a minimum wage increase when other employees in the State receive a minimum wage increase.

HB 64: Personal Income Tax - DEFEATED IN HOUSE

Proposed creating three new personal income tax brackets for high earners at $125,000, with a rate of 7.10%, at $250,000, with a rate of 7.85%, and at $500,000, with a rate of 8.6%.

HB 150: Legalization of Recreational Marijuana - VOTED OUT OF COMMITTEE IN HOUSE, PLACED ON READY LIST

The Delaware Marijuana Control Act regulates and taxes marijuana in the same manner as alcohol. Allows adults over the age of 21 to legally possess and consume under 1 ounce of marijuana for personal use.

SB 1: Healthy Delaware Families Act - INTRODUCED AND ASSIGNED TO SENATE HEALTH & SOCIAL SERVICES COMMITTEE

Creates a statewide paid family and medical leave insurance program in which Delaware employees can access up to 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave through the State’s paid leave trust fund for a qualifying event.