Delaware State News | Opinion | by Rep. John Kowalko Because of the recent permission granted by Trump to the Turkish autocracy that will allow/encourage a campaign of genocide against the Kurdish people, who have exhibited a courageous and determined willingness to fight the evils of terrorism, I felt obligated to revisit a past moment in my personal experience with Turkey’s history. In 2007 I sponsored a resolution of remembrance of the atrocities committed against the Armenians by the Turkish/Ottoman Empire regime. Here is the statement I released at the […]
Kowalko: Kudos to Jennings
Delaware State News | Letter to the Editor | by Rep. John Kowalko Congratulations Attorney General Jennings on a job well done. It is a great pleasure to recognize efforts by the head of a government agency in fighting for a good and open government. Attorney General Jennings’ announcement of her office’s efforts to dissolve Delaware LLCs that have illegal and nefarious intentions was announced recently. Good job AG Jennings. A great start to a necessary reform of Delaware corporate laws. I applaud you and offer myself as an ally […]
Kowalko: State should have been tougher on asbestos contractor
The News Journal | Opinion | by Rep. John Kowalko More than four months after I joined residents, workers, and local union officials in calling for an investigation into the asbestos removal project at the former Boxwood GM site, DNREC has chosen to levy a negligible fine against EcoServices Inc. for its asbestos removal malpractices. As an asbestosis victim who suffers from the condition of asbestos exposure, I felt a significant personal stake in protecting the workers, their families, and the residents in the area from the consequences of improper […]
State issues fines for mishandling asbestos at Boxwood Rd. site
Delaware Public Media | by Nick Ciolino The state is penalizing a subcontractor for mishandling asbestos at the former GM plant on Boxwood Rd. in New Castle County. The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) fined the Pennsylvania company EcoServices $20,000 for violating Delaware’s emission standards for hazardous air pollutants. DNREC is also charging EcoServices an additional $13,000 for the cost of the investigation. The ruling comes months after construction workers released a video of numerous particles floating through the air at the Boxwood site. The video […]
NCSL Digital Goods Policy Becomes Proxy Fight Over Wayfair
Law360 | by James Nani Law360, Nashville, Tenn. (August 8, 2019, 5:53 PM EDT) — Lawmakers at a National Conference of State Legislatures meeting voted Thursday to support federal legislation standardizing the taxation of digital goods, with New Hampshire and Delaware legislators opposing language added about the Wayfair ruling. Lawmakers from 47 states, Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C., voted to support a resolution urging Congress to pass the Federal Digital Goods and Services Tax Fairness Act, S.B. 3581, which according to the resolution would address the taxation of digital goods […]
State lawmakers, education advocates react to student test scores
Delaware Public Media | by Sarah Mueller State lawmakers and education advocates are reacting to Delaware students’ performance on this year’s statewide tests. Fifty-thre percent of third through eighth grade students across the state are proficient in English, a 1 percent drop from last year. The percentage of students proficient in Math, 44 percent, remained the same. Delaware Department of Education officials say scores have been generally trending up since the state transitioned to the Smarter Balanced tests in 2015. Daniel Walker is with the education non-profit Delaware Campaign for […]
With Delaware plastic bag ban coming soon, state struggles to enforce existing plastic rules
The News Journal | by Sarah Gamard Wawa, the beloved convenience chain that ranks among the top grocery store locations in the First State, will be giving up plastic shopping bags in Delaware come 2021. But it’s unclear what other stores will and won’t keep plastic bags when Delaware becomes the next state to ban the single-use bags at major supermarkets and retail stores. That’s because the state Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control is struggling to enforce the requirements of the state’s current plastic bag recycling laws, which […]
Commentary: Putting special interest over Delaware families
Delaware State News | Opinion | by Rep. John Kowalko The American Chemistry Council is the well-funded and highly influential (with members of both parties in Delaware) special interest that has flown in professionals (hacks) from as far away as California to keep my bills banning flame retardants from mattresses and children’s products bottled up in committee twice in the last few years. Joined by all of the Republicans on the two committees (that it was assigned to in recent sessions) a key Democratic member of both committees who serves […]
How Delaware legislators quietly created ability to give millions to developer
The News Journal | by Karl Baker Lawmakers in Dover last week quietly gave the state authority to hand over millions in taxpayer dollars to developers. Buried 30-pages deep in the epilogue of the state’s bonding legislation, the new legal authority stated that Delaware can help to fund 3% of the construction of facilities that cost at least $75 million and would eventually employ 500 workers or more. No developer or property was identified in the bill. But numerous sources confirmed that lawmakers approved the language in order to give […]
Signed, sealed and delivered
Delaware State News | by Matt Bittle DOVER — The first leg of the 150th General Assembly is in the books. Going into session late Sunday afternoon, lawmakers wrapped up business early Monday, marking an uneventful end to the 2019 legislative session. After failing to finish until around 5 a.m. or later four years in a row the legislature concluded business just after 1 a.m. this time. Gov. John Carney signed the capital bond and grant-in-aid bills Monday at 1:40 a.m., allowing everyone to head home. Because this is just […]