Budget & Taxes

This Act requires counties to void all tax bills already issued to taxpayers in the county for the 2025-2026 tax year and to reissue property and school tax bills for the 2025-2026 tax year using the previously assessed value of the real property for all property subject to county taxation under Part V of Title 9 and all property subject to the local school tax under Chapter 19 of Title 14. This requirement does not apply to tax bills for new construction completed during the 2025-2026 tax year. Within 10 days of enactment of this Act, school districts must deliver a new tax collection warrant to the county calculated using the previously assessed value of the real property for school tax, so tax bills for the 2025-2026 tax year can be reissued. The deadline for payment of the reissued tax bills is extended to October 30, 2025, and counties must refund or credit overpayments of taxes for the 2025-2026 tax year to taxpayers who submit payment in accordance with previous tax bill. A school district may request and borrow from State Division I funds in the event of a cash flow shortfall of local school funds due to the extension of the deadline for tax payments for the 2026 fiscal year.

This Concurrent Resolution directs the Public Education Funding Commission (Commission) to make findings and recommendations to achieve the equitable collection and distribution of property tax revenue to support the needs of public schools, and submit a report with the recommendations no later than January 1, 2026. This Concurrent Resolution provides that the House and Senate Education committees will hold a joint meeting in January 2026 where the Commission will present for discussion the recommendations that are due October 1, 2025, and from this Concurrent Resolution.

Section 1 of this Act requires modifications to exemptions from county taxation to reasonably reflect changes in property value and inflation. This Act also requires New Castle County to use the same eligibility criteria and calculation formula for exemption from school taxes that it used for county taxes as of June 1, 2025. Section 2 of this Act provides that upon passage of House Bill No. 242 of the 153rd General Assembly, the expanded school tax exemption will be applied during the 2025-2026 tax year in any New Castle County School district that reissues its tax warrant in accordance with House Bill No. 242.

This Act amends the Charter of the City of New Castle by authorizing the City Council to levy taxes on real property at varying rates based upon property classification (e.g. residential, commercial, or industrial). H.S. 1 to H.B. 144 clarifies that any taxes on real property must be in “just portions” sufficient to cover the aggregate of the budget.

HB 73 increases Delaware's maximum annual property tax credit for seniors from $500 to $1,000. This change directly benefits eligible Delaware seniors who pay property taxes by allowing them to receive up to $1,000 in tax relief each year. The bill amends specific sections of Delaware Code (Titles 14 and 29) to adjust the credit cap without altering eligibility requirements. This policy change provides greater financial relief for seniors with property tax burdens.

This Substitute for House Bill 211 creates the Innovate Delaware Program. This Program allows an Economic Development Organization to apply for a tax credit program through the Division of Small Business. This Substitute also lowers the cap on appropriations to support the tax credit program from 10 million to 3 million dollars in a calendar year.