WDEL | by DJ McAneny Delaware’s General Assembly managed to pass a behemoth $1.3 billion bond bill Tuesday that spends $400 million over the previous year. “The Fiscal Year ’22 bond bill is the very largest in the state of Delaware’s history,” said bond committee co-chair Democrat Rep. Debra Heffernan. “It takes care of $1.3 billion–billion, with a ‘B’–capital investments throughout the state of Delaware.” The bill puts almost $500 million into transportation and infrastructure; $304 million into K-12 and higher education; $198 million into economic development; $151 million for […]
Record-setting Bond Bill passed, heads to Gov. Carney
Delaware Public Media | by Roman Battaglia & Joe Irizarry Lawmakers passed the largest bond bill in state history today Tuesday, with both chambers overwhemingly approving the $1.3 billion plan. State Senators passed it unanimously. It passed the House 39-1 with State Rep. Lyndon Yearick (R-Camden) voting ‘no’ and State Rep. John Kowalko (D-Newark South) not voting. The bill dwarfs the largest previous Bond Bill – a $863 million dollar allocation two years ago, and is $450 million more than Gov. John Carney proposed in January. State Sen. Nicole Poore […]
Delaware’s 2022 operating budget clears House
Delaware Public Media | by Joe Irizarry House lawmakers easily approve the Fiscal Year 2022 operating budget. The 2022 budget is a $4.77 billion spending plan and more than 4.9% bigger than this year. It passed in the House by a 38-1 vote with two not voting. State Rep. Rich Collins (R-Millsboro) cast the lone ‘no’ vote while Mike Ramone (R-Pike Creek Valley) and Democrat John Kowalko (D-Newark South) were the two not voting. Collins was the lone ‘no’ vote, arguing taxpayers should get some money back since the state […]
Senate Bill 155 would set back open-government initiatives
Delaware State News | Letter to the Editor | by Rep. John Kowalko A few Delaware legislators working with the Department of Justice seem to be interested in further denying the public and media access to its contrivances and methods. Lifting the shroud of secrecy and exposing the horrible underbelly of the “Delaware Way” is facing another serious challenge that threatens the public interest. It is Senate Bill 155, a thinly veiled attempt to shutter the windows from public view. My primary focus during my entire 15 years in office […]
House passes $15 minimum wage, sends bill to governor
Delaware State News | by Matt Bittle After one of the most impactful votes the General Assembly has taken in years, legislation to raise the state’s minimum wage to $15 is now before Gov. John Carney. In a 26-15 party-line vote, the House of Representatives approved a bill to increase the wage floor from $9.25 in a series of steps Thursday. The bill passed the Senate with solely Democratic support in March. Per his office, Gov. Carney backs a $15 minimum wage. Senate Bill 15 would start by increasing the […]
Delaware lawmakers give final approval to $15 minimum wage
Newark Post | by Randall Chase The Democrat-led state House voted along party lines Thursday to give final approval to a bill raising Delaware’s minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025. Democrats approved the measure after defeating half a dozen Republican amendments, including proposals to allow small businesses and nonprofits to pay 85 percent of the minimum wage and to require the controller general’s office to submit annual reports regarding the fiscal impact of the wage increases on the state budget, and on the broader effects on the state […]
Critics say FOIA ‘abuse’ bill bad for Delaware government transparency
The News Journal | by Xerxes Wilson & Sarah Gamard Democratic lawmakers and Attorney General Kathy Jennings are seeking to give government officials more power to hide public documents from the public. A bill proposing those changes passed its first committee hurdle earlier this week. It seeks to empower government officials to deny requests for public records that those officials deem “unreasonably broad, unduly burdensome, abusive” or intended to “disrupt the essential functions of the public body.” Advocates of open government have criticized the legislation, saying the vague language in […]
Delaware lawmakers urge passage of D.C. statehood bill
Delaware State News | Letter to the Editor | by Rep. Madinah Wilson-Anton Editor’s note: On May 6, more than two dozen Delaware lawmakers, led by Rep. Madinah Wilson-Anton, sent the following letter to our congressional delegation, thanking them for their support of Democratic Sen. Tom Carper’s Washington, D.C., statehood bill. Representation is at the very heart of what we, as elected officials, do: We represent constituents. We represent their issues, concerns, beliefs and interests, and we take action on their behalf. It is a basic function of government that […]
Celebrating a diamond on Main Street in Newark
WDEL | by Mike Phillips Bing’s Bakery on Main Street in Newark officially celebrated its 75th anniversary with a ribbon cutting celebration on Friday, May 14, 2021. Carla Guzzi and her husband Tom, who was head baker at the time, bought the bakery from Selena Bing in 2005 shortly before Mrs. Bing’s death at the age of 91. Guzzi said it’s actually a double anniversary for the bakery because the Bings bought the original bakery from the Fader Family, who had established it in 1871. “It’s 150 years of a […]
House votes to abolish training wage and youth wage
Newark Post | by Randall Chase The state House has voted to approve a Democratic proposal eliminating a provision in Delaware law that allows employers to pay minors and probationary workers less than the minimum wage. The measure cleared the Democrat-controlled House on a strict party line vote Thursday and now goes to the Democrat-led Senate. Under current law, businesses are allowed to pay employees under age 18 up to 50 cents less per hour than the minimum wage, which is currently $9.25 per hour. Employers also can pay the […]