Wrap-Up for 2023 Legislative Session

The following bills were supported or opposed by SDARJ, through direct contact with legislators, as a member of involved coalitions, and through commentary or letters to the editor.

Criminal Justice:

• SB4, the Probation Reform Bill: This bill is still in the Appropriations Committee. Part of the bill, relating to data collection, imposes a huge cost and the question is whether to delete this part and make it a separate bill.  It will be addressed next session.
• Law Enforcement Officers Bill of Rights: SB205, 206 passed. Two bills were introduced: HB205 and HB206. HB205 purported to repeal LEOBOR and replace it with PODPAT, “Police Officer’s Due Process,Accountability, and Transparency.”  The bill would provide a right of access for “sustained” findings of discharge of a firearm, use of force that results in serious injury, sexual assault, officer dishonesty, and commission of domestic violence. These narrative reports are to be posted on the websites of the Police Officer Standards and Training Commission (POST) and the Criminal Justice Council. Disclosure of sustained investigation findings pursuant to a court order is authorized.  The problem with this revision is that a court order is required and while this may help in criminal defense cases, members of the public still have no access.  And the victims are promised nothing at the conclusion of the investigation other than to “reasonably address concerns.”  The bill also applies only to new hires. In addition, although an investigation commission is established, its 17 members are heavily weighted toward law enforcement.
• HB1, 2 – Marijuana Legalization and regulation of sale bills passed.

Voting Rights:

• HB96 was introduced to lower the voting age for school board elections only to 16. The bill did not make it out of committee.  The ACLU Delaware Voting Rights Coalition supported this bill, but SDARJ did not, due to concerns with the maturity of 16-year-olds, concerns over students being unduly influenced in schools, concerns with give 16-year- olds a say in selecting school board members who would vote on budgets and teacher tenure issues, unfairness to 16-year-olds who could not vote in other elections.  There was bipartisan opposition to this bill and it did not make it out of committee.
• HB121 was a bill seeking to amend Seaford’s charter to permit business entities owning property in Seaford to vote. The DVRC, including SDARJ, opposed this bill because of the influence it would give entities, over residents, to the disadvantage of residents of color. This bill became the “hill to die on” in order to pass the bond and grant-in-aid aspects of the budget.  In other words, Republicans said if this bill did not pass, they would not pass those aspects of the budget.  Unfortunately, Democrats voted for SB121 to pass the budget. Fortunately, the bill did not pass in the Senate and did not become law.
• SB26, the cleanup constitutional amendment that lowers the voting age in the Delaware Constitution to 18, but does not remove Jim Crow Era Literacy Requirements. The amendment is seen as dead and Rep. Kerri Evelyn Harris is working on a new version that will eliminate the literacy requirement.

Reproductive Rights and Family Health:

• HB110, requiring all private insurance companies and state Medicaid to provide coverage for termination of pregnancy passed out of the Health & Human Services Committee, but ended the session in the Appropriations Committee.
• HB150, the Cover All Kids Act, requiring the state to provide Medicaid Coverage to all Delaware children, including undocumented, passed out of the Health & Human Services Committee, but did not pass out of the Appropriations Committee due to the $15 million cost. The bill’s prime sponsor, Sen. Krista Griffith, will meet with advocates to strategize for next year.
• HB80 – requiring Medicaid to pay for Doula services – passed

 Right to Counsel and Tenant Rights:

• SS1 for SB1 – Tenant right to counsel in eviction proceedings. Signed into law
• HB86, HB217, and HB240 – bills requiring right to counsel for indigent parents in DSCYF proceedings: Remain in the Appropriations and Judiciary Committees, respectively.
• HB37 – Sanctions against landlords who permit dangerous conditions to go unremedies; allows action for rent escrow by tenant or refusing to pay rent and asserting dangerous condition as an affirmative defense in eviction action – stuck in the House Housing Committee.