Legislative Wrap »
Bill clarifies OMB director authority
Rep. Melanie Smith, D-Bear/Newark, introduced a bill March 28 clarifying that the director of the Office of Management and Budget has the authority to deposit special fund balances into the General Fund as a measure to control agency expenditures.
House Bill 105 was passed by the House March 30 and then the Senate April 5.
Bill bars employers from asking about wages
A bipartisan group of women legislators introduced legislation April 4 that would bar employers from asking prospective employees their wage history. Under House Bill 1, sponsored by all 13 of the 149th General Assembly's female legislators, wage expectations can be discussed so long as the employer does not seek salary history over the course of the discussion and negotiation. Additionally, employees may voluntarily disclose salary information.
Similar legislation has been passed in Massachusetts and the city of Philadelphia. According to a press release about the bill from the House's Democratic Caucus, using salary history to screen applicants is discriminatory, reinforces wage bias and unfairly blocks people from needed job opportunities. According to the release, Delaware women working full time, on average, earn 89 percent of what their male counterparts earn. African-American women and Hispanic women take home less than 69 percent.
Bills aimed at giving opportunity to succeed
House Democrats unveiled a package of bills, called the Fair Shot Agenda, April 5 designed to help Delawareans in the areas of their workplace, education and family life. House Bill 3, sponsored by Rep. Debra Heffernan, D-Bellefonte, makes full-time state employees, including teachers, eligible for 12 weeks of paid maternity or paternity leave after one year of employment. Under the bill, New parents would be eligible for leave for up to one year after the birth of the child or adoption of a child under the age of 6.
House Bill 113, sponsored by Rep. Paul Baumbach, D-Newark, would make the state's Earned Income Tax Credit refundable and capable of exceeding the tax amount otherwise due. The credit would be phased in, increasing 1 percent per year from 6 percent of the corresponding federal earned income credit in 2018 until it reaches 15 percent of the federal EITC in 2027.
House Bill 126, sponsored by Rep. Sean Lynn, D-Dover, would expand the eligibility criteria for childcare assistance in Delaware. The bill would allow unemployed parents and guardians to begin receiving child care assistance as they seek new employment opportunities for up to 90 non-consecutive days each year.
The final piece of legislation, a draft proposal sponsored by Rep. David Bentz, D-Newark/Bear, would establish the Complete Your Degree Grant Program. The program would provide resources to students who are re-enrolling in a publicly funded associate degree program in Delaware.
Under the bill, a student must: meet the general eligibility requirements for a SEED scholarship; have not been enrolled in a college program for at least two years; have earned a minimum of 30 semester hour credits toward an associate degree; and have an adjusted gross income that does not exceed $36,000.
