Rep. Krista Griffith

Since the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution was adopted on July 9, 1868, with Delaware ratifying it in 1901, at least 15 states have added a provision to their state constitution that prohibits the denial or abridgement of equal rights under the law based on race, color, or national origin. In 2019, Delaware amended the state constitution to prohibit the denial or abridgement of equal rights under the law based on sex, but no such prohibition exists as to race, color, or national origin. This Act is the first leg of a constitutional amendment to add race, color, and national origin to the Article I, § 21 of the Delaware Constitution to explicitly declare that protection against discrimination based on race, color, and national origin is one of Delaware's fundamental rights. This Act requires a greater than majority vote for passage because Article XVI, § 1 of the Delaware Constitution requires the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each house of the General Assembly when the General Assembly amends the Delaware Constitution.

This Act mandates that the Department of Health and Human Services, in conjunction with the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control to establish Maximum Contaminant Levels for specific contaminants found in drinking water in this state. Such contaminants include PFOA and PFOS, which are man-made chemicals that have been used in industries in this state. These chemicals were found to be associated with increased risks of chronic diseases. The Environmental Protection Agency, thus far, has not established a maximum contaminant levels, but only health advisories. The establishment of maximum contaminant levels is essential in order to protect the health and safety of all Delawareans from dangerous contaminants in drinking water.

This Act amends the Delaware Energy Act to encourage the adoption of electric vehicles in the State by creating more accessible electric vehicle charging infrastructure. Specifically, this Act permits State Agencies to charge a reasonable fee for use of electric vehicle charging stations installed by the Agency and to reimburse the appropriate State Agency which procured the underlying electricity used. This Act limits the locations to state-owned or state-leased properties used by state employees or visitors.

This Act limits the use of certain Class B firefighting foams (“Class B foams”) in Delaware. Class B foams are used to put out fires caused by flammable liquids like gasoline, oil, and jet fuel, and can be divided into 2 categories: those with PFAS chemicals and those without. PFAS chemicals include a range of chemistries with differing properties, which have been widely-used for decades in products other than Class B foams, like food packaging, carpets, and other household items, and in firefighting foam. The use of firefighting foams containing PFAS chemicals, however, is an emerging public health challenge to avoid future contamination and reduce exposure to firefighters and Delawareans. Firefighting foam containing PFAS chemicals can get into water wells and drinking water supplies, and expose firefighters and others to the chemicals. More studies into the effects of PFAS chemicals are emerging; some of the health effects of exposure to certain PFAS chemicals include pregnancy complications, liver damage, and high cholesterol. The PFAS chemicals in firefighting foams must be weighed against their particularly-effective nature in fighting liquid fires when mixed with water. To that end, this Act prohibits the use of Class B foams containing intentionally-added PFAS chemicals unless the use is for fire prevention or emergency firefighting. Further, this Act permits the use of such foam for training and testing only if the facility in which the training or testing occurs has implemented containment, treatment, and disposal measures to prevent releases of Class B foams containing PFAS chemicals. This Act also makes technical changes to Part IV of Title 16, to more accurately reflect its current structure.

This Bill institutes a State nontidal wetlands program and leaves intact the current State tidal wetlands program under Chapter 66 of Title 7. Prior to these amendments, the only regulatory protection of the State's nontidal wetlands was through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the federal Clean Water Act ("CWA"). Nontidal (freshwater) wetlands are valuable resources that contribute to the quality of life for all Delawareans and deserve a local program of protection. The State nontidal wetlands program will be, more efficient and more responsive than the federal program. The State nontidal wetlands program will cover gaps in federal jurisdiction under the CWA and mitigate the uncertainty surrounding the limits to federal jurisdiction. The bill also makes technical revisions and conforms certain language to language in 7 Del. C. Ch. 60, for consistency.

In January of 2015, the Office of Civil Rights & Public Trust was created by the Attorney General to establish a centralized office within the Department of Justice for the investigation of matters concerning civil rights enforcement and the prosecution of matters concerning violations of the public trust. This office must remain an independent entity within the Department of Justice to avoid conflicts with other Department of Justice duties and thus effectively enforce laws protecting the public trust and civil rights. Thus, this Act creates the Division of Civil Rights and Public Trust within the Department of Justice which will be separate from the other Divisions within the Department of Justice and have a Director who reports directly to the Chief Deputy Attorney General, to avoid conflicts of interest with the work of the other Divisions. This Act also clarifies the current scope of the Department of Justice’s ability to investigate and bring civil rights actions to protect the civil rights of all Delawareans.

A placard must be prominently displayed at all entrances of massage and bodywork establishments that have failed to obtain a valid license or have a license that is suspended, revoked, or expired. This bill provides that no placard can be removed unless the establishment is validly licensed and the removal of the placard is approved by the Division of Professional Regulation. This bill makes the unlawful removal of the placard a Class A misdemeanor, punishable of up to 1 year in jail and up to a $2300 fine.

This bill extends the amount of years an identification card is valid from four (4) to eight (8) years. This bill is necessary for the Division of Motor Vehicles to maintain consistent business processes. The driver license is currently valid for eight (8) years, and this change would maintain consistency with the driver license requirement.

Current Delaware regulations provide that transportation benefits must be provided for students in grades K through 6 who live 1 or more miles from the schools to which district administrators would normally assign them. In grades 7 through 12, the same students are entitled to transportation benefits if they live 2 or more miles from their assigned public schools. See 14 Del. Admin. C. § 1150-12.1. This Act expands transportation benefits to students in grades 7 and 8 who live 1 or more miles from the public schools to which district administrators would normally assign them. This Act takes effect 1 year after enactment. It also and makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.

This Act establishes a Behavioral Health Professional of the year award program throughout the State. Through this legislation, the state will formally honor and recognize the work behavioral health professionals, such as, school counselors, social workers, licensed clinical social workers, school psychologists, and school nurses.