AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO FIREWORKS.

New Section 6908 requires any person who ships, advertises, offers for sale, or supplies fireworks to a Delaware retailer to hold a wholesale license from the Office of the State Fire Marshal, with a $100 application fee and annual renewal.

Section 6903(b) establishes that a $100 permit fee must accompany each retail sales permit application, and temporary structures (tents, stands) require separate $25 inspection fees for both the physical structure and the fireworks inventory.

Section 6901(d) now requires that the use, storage, sale, and possession of permitted consumer fireworks comply with NFPA 1124 (National Fire Protection Association Code for the Manufacture, Transportation, Storage, and Retail Sales of Fireworks and Pyrotechnic Articles, 2006 edition), replacing the prior reference to rules promulgated by the State Fire Prevention Commission.

General penalties under Section 6905 are significantly increased: first violation raised from a flat fine of $25-$100 to $25-$250, second violation set at $250-$500, and subsequent violations up to $1,000 (previously capped at $100).

New subsection 6905(b) establishes a three-strike rule: a person convicted of 3 or more violations is prohibited from any authorized activity under the chapter for one year, and any existing permit or license is immediately voided and revoked.

New Section 6907(b) imposes a civil fine of $1,000 for each advertising violation. Each printed copy distributed counts as a separate violation, and each time a consumer views or hears an advertisement within Delaware also constitutes a separate violation.

Section 6903(c) sets escalating penalties for operating without a required permit: $1,000 for a first violation, $5,000 for a second, and $10,000 for any subsequent violation.

New Section 6909 directs all money from permit fees, license fees, and civil penalties into a special fund for the Office of the State Fire Marshal to use for enforcement and public education.

The bill now requires a three-fifths supermajority vote in each house for passage because it imposes license fees, triggering Article VIII Section 11 of the Delaware Constitution.