Rep. Val Longhurst

“Cooking wine” contains alcohol but has been exempted from alcohol regulation by the federal government (Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau) and many states as long as it contains no more than 20% alcohol by volume and no less than 1.5% salt, thereby making it unfit for beverage consumption. This Act adds cooking wine to the list of exempted liquids from the alcohol regulation. This Act provides that DATE may investigate allegations of misuse of § 725 of this title and refer the matter to the Commissioner for a hearing if the manufacturer or seller disagrees with DATE’s determination.

This bill eliminates the sunset provision on the “at-store” recycling program for plastic bags. The program established in 2009 included a sunset provision until 2014. In 2014, the General Assembly extended that sunset provision to 2017. This bill eliminates the sunset provision permanently to encourage the continued routine for consumers to recycle plastic bags through “at-store” programs. The bill will also require all stores subject to the requirements of this section to register by June 30, 2018, and provide information to DNREC regarding compliance on a form to be provided by DNREC.

This bill would require that a resident 65 years of age or older claiming a tax credit against school taxes must be a resident of the state for at least 10 years before qualifying for such credit. The current requirement is only for 3-year residency. This bill makes a conforming change in the Code provision governing reimbursements from the General Fund. It also eliminates language related to 2001 taxes, which is no longer relevant. This change will be effective for tax and fiscal years after January 1, 2017. Those residents who would have become eligible over the last three years under the prior version of the statute will remain eligible.

In every December in the years 2010 through 2015, the Code Revisors provided the General Assembly with a list of potential technical corrections they identified as they revised the Delaware Code to reflect legislation enacted that year. While technical in nature, these changes are beyond the authority of the Code Revisors to make and can only be done by the General Assembly through legislation. After reviewing the 148 items provided for the years 2010 through 2015, the following changes included in this Act are identified as technical in nature and in need of correction. Of the other 99 items, many had already been corrected, some statutes no longer existed or were subsequently amended so that the correction is no longer necessary, and some would be substantive changes. Each technical correction made by this Act is explained below: Section 1: HB 156 of the 148th General Assembly revised § 709 of Title 4. Section 709(d) now establishes rules for Sunday sales but does not list holidays. Holidays are now covered in § 709(c) of Title 4. This Act revises § 554 of Title 4 to codify current practice by listing the days that are covered by this rule. Section 2: SB 234 of the 145th General Assembly established the Recycling Public Advisory Council. This change corrects a drafting error in the language regarding the members representing the beverage industry. Section 3: HB 368 of the 147th General Assembly revised § 7402A of Title 7, adding language from federal law that does not follow the Delaware drafting style. The Code Revisors identified that the references to “paragraph c” were not clear because there are many paragraphs of § 7402A that are identified with the letter c. This Section clearly identifies which "paragraph c" is intended and corrects a typographical mistake and an additional instance where a paragraph reference is unclear. Section 4: SB 99 of the 147th General Assembly made changes to § 1009 of Title 10, eliminating paragraph (b)(3)a. The language that was in that paragraph is in § 351 of Title 31. Therefore, the reference is changed to refer to § 351 of Title 31 both times the repealed section appears in § 901 of Title 10. Section 5: SB 174, as amended by SA 1 and HA 2, of the 146th General Assembly amended § 4319 of Title 10 but failed to put “or” after the semicolon at the end of § 4319(d)(3). The word “or” is appropriate instead of “and” because all four of these conditions cannot be met at the same time. This Section makes the needed change. Section 6: HB 107, as amended by SA 1, of the 141st General Assembly intended to exclude child support obligations from the garnishment exemption for College and Able Act Savings plans. The citation was erroneously placed in § 4916 of Title 10 so that child support is exempted from garnishment rather than still available for garnishment. This Section corrects that error. Section 7: HB 427 of the 145th General Assembly amended Subchapter V, Chapter 5 of Title 7 to remove the word “experimental” throughout. Title 10 references Subchapter V, Chapter 5 of Title 7 so the word “experimental” should be removed in Title 10. This Section makes that change. Section 8: HB 346 of the 147th General Assembly substantially revised Delaware’s civil mental health laws. The exact language from what had been § 5127 of Title 16 was placed in the new § 5019(a) of Title 16. The reference to § 5127 of Title 16 was not updated in § 406 of Title 11 by HB 346. This Section makes that change. Section 9: SB 234 of the 144th General Assembly revised § 1102 of Title 11. Existing drafting errors in the provision were identified by the Code Revisors when the Code was being revised pursuant to SB 234. This Section makes the needed changes. Section 10: SB 174 of the 147th General Assembly revised the definition of contraband in § 1258 of Title 11 using incorrect punctuation. This Section corrects the punctuation to increase clarity. In addition, the Department of Correction is being added. This correction is consistent with HB 47 of the 148th General Assembly which corrected instances where the Department of Correction was still referred to as the State Board of Correction or the Department of Health and Social Services, where it used to be located. Section 11: HB 260 of the 147th General Assembly revised § 1335 of Title 11 and in combining the exemptions for legal and medical procedures used the word “and” when “or” is the correct grammatical choice. This Section corrects that error. Section 12: HB 427 of the 145th General Assembly added “combative sports” to the activities regulated by Title 28 and said all violations of Title 28 are subject to prosecution under Title 11. The term “combative sports” was not added to the section of Title 11 covering these specific offenses. This Section makes the needed changes. Section 13: HB 427 of the 145th General Assembly added “combative sports” to the activities regulated by Title 28 and said all violations of Title 28 are subject to prosecution under Title 11. The term “combative sports” was not added to the section of Title 11 covering these specific offenses. This Section makes the needed changes. Section 14: SB 45 of the 148th General Assembly amended the state implementation of the federal Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act of 2004 to mirror federal law. Prior to SB 45, § 1441A of Title 11 used the term “qualified active duty law-enforcement officer” and also covered retired law-enforcement officers. SB 45 removed the words “active duty” from § 1441A of Title 11 consistent with federal law and created a new § 1441B in Title 11 to cover retired law-enforcement officers. The changes to § 1441A of Title 11 were not updated in § 1448B of Title 11. This Section makes the needed changes. Section 15: SB 197 of the 147th General Assembly revised Delaware’s Human Trafficking crimes. It revised § 787 of Title 11 so that (b)(2) is the crime of forced labor and (b)(3) and (b)(4) refer to sex crimes. The reference in § 4121(a)(4), community notification of sex offenders, was changed from §787(b)(2) to §787(b)(3)-(4), but the same reference was not revised in § 4123(c) of Title 11 which addresses sentencing for a juvenile adjudicated delinquent of a sex offense. This Section makes the needed changes. Section 16: HB 346 of the 147th General Assembly substantially revised Delaware’s civil mental health laws. Section 5136 of Title 16 was repealed and the facilities referenced in the repealed § 5136 are now included in § 5001 by HB 346. This Section makes the needed changes. Section 17: SB 144 of the 148th General Assembly revised Delaware law regarding background checks for child-serving entities. The references in § 511 of Title 14 were not updated to reflect the new sections. This Section makes the needed changes. Section 18: HB 245 of the 145th General Assembly and HB 302 of the 147th General Assembly made changes to Title 15 of the Delaware Code relating to elections. Subchapter IV, Chapter 10 of Title 14 references the job titles used in Title 15 but Title 14 still uses the job titles in place prior to both bills. Title 15 is clear that all references to job titles that appear in any other act of law, to the extent they are consistent with a function transferred by this chapter to the Department, shall be construed as referring or relating to such person or persons and their powers, duties, and functions as established and created by Chapter 2 of Title 15. This Section makes the needed changes. Section 19: HB 1 of the 146th General Assembly deleted what was at the time paragraph (a)(1) of this section but did not delete the reference in (d)(6) so the Code Revisors inserted an explanation. The old language and explanation should be stricken. This Section makes the needed changes. Section 20: SB 20 of the 147th General Assembly created a prison education unit. The correct reference to the Department of Correction training program is § 2405 of Title 14. Section 2402 states that employees for the prison Education Program shall have the same qualifications as employees in public high schools and does not reference any Department of Correction training program. This Section makes the needed changes. Section 21: HB 384 of the 144th General Assembly revised the Universal Newborn and Infant Hearing Screening, Tracking, and Intervention program. An existing drafting error in the statute was identified when the Code was being revised pursuant to HB 384. The error is that the language of § 804A(a)(3)e and § 804A(a)(4) of Title 16 are substantially similar without any legal reason for the duplication. This Section removes § 804A(a)(3)e of Title 16. Section 22: HB 346 of the 147th General Assembly substantially revised Delaware’s civil mental health laws. In section 5003 of Title 16, the word “licensed” was omitted from paragraph (a) of subsection (3). This Section corrects that error. Section 23: HB 346 of the 147th General Assembly substantially revised Delaware’s civil mental health laws. The Code Revisors identified that the citation to § 5127 of Title 16 is no longer correct. Researching that correction identified that § 5121 of Title 16 was also updated and moved to § 5003 of Title 16. Thus, § 5121 of Title 16 should be stricken. This Section makes the needed change. Section 24: HB 346 of the 147th General Assembly substantially revised Delaware’s civil mental health laws. The Code Revisors identified that the citation to § 5127 of Title 16 is no longer correct. Researching that correction identified that pursuant to HB 311 in the 146th General Assembly, § 5121A of Title 16 states that it is only in effect until July 1, 2013. Thus, § 5121A of Title 16 should be stricken. This Section makes the needed change. Section 25: HB 346 of the 147th General Assembly substantially revised Delaware’s civil mental health laws. The Code Revisors identified that the citation to § 5127 of Title 16 is no longer correct. Researching that correction identified that § 5123 of Title 16 was updated and moved to § 5003 of Title 16 so to correct the mistake, § 5123 of Title 16 should be stricken. This Section makes the needed change. Section 26: HB 346 of the 147th General Assembly substantially revised Delaware’s civil mental health laws. The exact language from what had been § 5127 of Title 16 was placed in the new § 5019(a) of Title 16. The reference to § 5127 of Title 16 was not updated in § 5154 of Title 16. This Section corrects that error. Section 27: HB 346 of the 147th General Assembly substantially revised Delaware’s civil mental health laws. Section 5135 of Title 16 was repealed and that language was included in the new § 5025(a) of Title 16. Also, the exact language from what had been § 5127 of Title 16 was placed in the new § 5019(a) of Title 16. The reference to § 5127 of Title 16 was not updated in § 5161 of Title 16. This Section corrects that error. Section 28: HB 346 of the 147th General Assembly substantially revised Delaware’s civil mental health laws. Section 5131 of Title 16 was repealed and that type of treatment is covered under Chapter 50. Section 5174(2) of Title 16 contains a reference to § 5123 of Title 16 which was updated by the same Act and moved to § 5003 of Title 16. This Section makes the needed changes. Section 29: HB 373 of the 147th General Assembly revised the process by which a health care payment system is published and eliminated (14) of § 2322B of Title 19. The correct reference should now be § 2322 of Title 19. This Section makes the needed change. Section 30: HB 162 of the 147th General Assembly added §§ 3571 and 3610 to Title 18 and both reference § 1302(d)(2)(B)(ii)(I) of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. There is no § 1302(d)(2)(B)(ii)(I) of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act so this reference is being changed § 1311(d)(2)(B)(ii) of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care as originally intended. This Section makes the needed change. Section 31: HB 162 of the 147th General Assembly added §§ 3571 and 3610 to Title 18 and both reference § 1302(d)(2)(B)(ii)(I) of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. There is no § 1302(d)(2)(B)(ii)(I) of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act so this reference is being changed to § 1311(d)(2)(B)(ii) of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care as originally intended. This Section makes the needed change. Section 32: As part of revising Title 18, the Code Revisors reversed the order of subsections (a) and (b) so as to maintain alphabetical order of the terms. Prior to this reversal, the term “Department” in Chapter 40 of Title 18 was modified by the phrase, “for the purposes of this chapter,” defining it for this Chapter as the Department of Health & Social Services. Reversing the order of the subsections changed “Department” to its definition in Chapter 1 of Title 18 as meaning the “Insurance Department.” This Section corrects that error and makes additional technical corrections to conform to the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. Section 33: HB 175 of the 147th General Assembly Synopsis created a new section § 2379(f)(4) of Title 19. There is a typographical error so that the statute reads “whether the employer has complied with its obligations under § 2322E(d) of this title to provide a list of possible b [sic] assignments for injured workers.” The letter “b” is an error. The synopsis for HB 175 states that this section “requires that companies be compliant with their ‘back to work’ responsibilities for injured employees before being eligible for the credit.” Section 2379(f)(4) references § 2322E(d) of Title 19 which requires employers to provide a report of “modified-duty jobs.” Instead of “b”, the statute should reference “modified-duty jobs.” This Section makes the needed change. Section 34: HB 99 of the 146th General Assembly referenced “§ 4704(c)(1)(2)”. There is no such section. Section 4704 has a (c)(1) and a (c)(2). The Code Revisors assumed the word “or” was intended and placed it in the provision in brackets. This Section removes the brackets. Section 35: HB 416 of the 147th General Assembly corrected insensitive language regarding persons with disabilities. The Bill erroneously changed this term in a manner that it is incorrect. This Section corrects that error. Section 36: SB 200 of the 145th General Assembly created a new subsection (c) in § 4502 of Title 21. A sentence in paragraph (c)(9) needs the word “that” to be grammatically correct. This Section makes the needed change. Section 37: SB 189 of the 147th General Assembly eliminated the “limited” license and created the “academic” license but did not use definition language when adding the new term to the statute. This Section makes the needed change. Section 38: Subchapter VI of Chapter 11 of Title 24 was created by HB 392 of the 144th General Assembly. It contains a sunset provision stating that the Act will expire 2 years from date of enactment, if not re-enacted. The Act was not re-enacted. Section 1106(a)(13) of Title 24 gives the State Board of Dentistry and Dental Hygiene the authority to issue a volunteer license. This Section makes the needed change. Section 39: HB 359 of the 147th General Assembly revised the definition of the practice of physical therapy and in referencing the prior practice rules used the word “and” instead of “or” which was the language in the prior statute. This Section makes the needed change. Section 40: HB 357 of the 146th General Assembly amended § 5304 of Title 24 and referred to documents instead of the people holding the documents in § 5304(c). The regulations implementing this section refer to certificate holders and licensees and this change makes the provision consistent with the regulations and grammatically correct. This Section makes the needed change. Section 41: Chapter 81 of Title 25 was created by SB 273 of the 144th General Assembly and contains a reference to § 81-303(h) which has never existed. The correct reference should be to § 81-303(f). This Section makes the needed change. Section 42: HB 427 of the 145th General Assembly replaced the word “boxing” with “combative sports” in the title to Chapter 1 of Title 28 but did not replace it in § 929(2) of Title 28. Chapter 1 regulates combative sports so section 929(d) exclude events regulated by Chapter 1 from the catchall regulations for events not otherwise regulated. Since Chapter 1 covers all combative sports, not just boxing, § 929(2) of Title 28 should have been changed by HB 427. This Section makes the needed change. Section 43: SS1 for SB 28 of the 147th General Assembly allows a per diem employee of the General Assembly who receives a service pension to be exempt from the earnings limit while working for the General Assembly. In revising the statute, the Code Revisors noted punctuation errors. This Section makes the needed change. Section 44: SB 150 of the 147th General Assembly made changes to § 8059 of Title 29, which included repealing § 8059(e)(8). The reference to the repealed section remained in the revised § 8059(d)(3) and should be stricken because there is no such section. This Section makes the needed change. Section 45: HB 427 of the 145th General Assembly amended Chapter 1 of Title 28 by replacing the language “boxing, mixed martial arts” with “combative sports”. Included in this change was § 103 which directs the Division of Professional Regulation to promulgate and enforce rules and regulations relating to the regulation of combative sports and combative sports entertainment. Section 8735 of Title 29 also gives the Division of Professional Regulation this authority but it was not amended by HB 427. Adding “combative sports” to § 8735 of Title 29 of makes the sections consistent. This Section makes the needed change. Section 46: SB 140 of the 148th General Assembly amended § 6502 of Title 30 so that paragraph (b)(4) refers to "paragraphs a. and b." of the section. Section 6502 has "paragraphs a. and b." in sections (1), (2), and (3), making the reference in paragraph (b)(4) unclear. Because paragraph (b)(4) refers to "paragraphs a. and b." in all 3 of the sections, this Section makes the needed change by striking the language about "paragraphs a. and b.". Section 47: HB 205 of the 148th General Assembly revised Subchapter II of Chapter 27 of Title 16 and repealed the model form that was contained in § 2719. Section 2713 of Title 16 sets forth the manner of executing anatomical gifts, including an indication on a person’s driver’s license and is the correct reference. This Section changes the reference to § 2713 of Title 16. Section 48: SB 66 of the 148th General Assembly created The Delaware Neighborhood Conservation and Land Banking Act. Language requiring bidding information to be posted on a website was included in one amendment, but not included in the amendment that ultimately passed, however, this reference to bidding information remained. This Section makes the necessary change.

In January 2017, the Code Revisors provided the General Assembly with a list of potential technical corrections that they identified as they revised the Delaware Code to reflect legislation that was enacted by the 148th General Assembly in 2016. While technical in nature, these changes are beyond the authority of the Code Revisors to make and can only be done by the General Assembly through legislation. Section 1. HB 227 revised the Farm Wineries law to permit Farm Wineries to make and sell mead and cider in addition to wine to align with federal rules. As written, Farm Wineries would need to manufacture wine, mead, and cider to meet the definition of a Farm Winery. This Section changes the language to allow Farm Wineries to make wine, mead, or cider as intended by HB 227. Section 2. When reviewing the error identified by the Superior Court in § 4798(t) of Title 16 a technical error was found subsection (r) of this section. Under § 304 of Title 1, words in the singular number include the plural. This corrects that error. Section 3. The Superior Court discovered an error in the subject and verb agreement of § 4798(t) of Title 16. In reviewing this error, an additional technical error was identified. Under § 304 of Title 1, words in the singular number include the plural. This corrects that error. Section 4. This issue was discovered by the Code Revisors without relation to current legislation. There are 5 paragraphs after § 2304(28) of Title 18 that actually apply to §§ 2304(24) and (25). Section 2304(24) prohibits “discriminatory practices against victims of abuse regarding life and health insurance” and was added by SB 128 in 1995 and contained those 5 paragraphs. Section 2304(25) prohibits “discriminatory practices against victims of abuse regarding home owner’s and private passenger motor vehicle insurance” and was added by SB 433 in 1995. The 1998 and 1999 printed volumes of the Delaware Code had the 5 paragraphs after (25) because both (24) and (25) apply to issuing insurance to victims of abuse and these 5 paragraphs apply to issuing insurance to victims of abuse. Subsequently, in 2005, HS1 for HB 90 added § 2304(26) relating to regulatory inquiries; in 2007, SS1 for SB 31 added § 2304(27) relating to credit scoring; and in 2008 SB 239 added § 2304(28) relating to volunteer firefighters. These 3 subsections, (26), (27), and (28) were added in error above those 5 paragraphs. This Section clarifies that the 5 free-standing paragraphs at the end of § 2304 apply to subsections (24) and (25). Section 5. HB 381 amended Chapter 33 of Title 18 by redesignating what had been Chapter 33 as Subchapter I and creating a new Subchapter II. There were references to this "chapter" throughout what is now Subchapter I and the Code Revisors asked if they were correct to leave the term "chapter." In § 3302, the term "chapter" should now be "subchapter." This Section makes the necessary change. Section 6. HB 381 amended Chapter 33 of Title 18 by redesignating what had been Chapter 33 as Subchapter I and creating a new Subchapter II. There were references to this "chapter" throughout what is now Subchapter I and the Code Revisors asked if they were correct to leave the term "chapter." In § 3342(h), "chapter" should now be "section." This Section makes the necessary change. Sections 7 through 9. HB 160 amended Title 19 to allow the Department of Labor to collect over payments due under additional state and federal laws. In the list of those laws in §§ 3325, 3360, and 3384, there is a citation to § 5402 of the Federal Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. § 5402). This is the definition of a brewery. The correct citation is to § 6402 of the Federal Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. § 6402), which allows states to recover unemployment compensation debt, which is consistent with this section. In these 3 Code provisions, there is also a citation to § 303 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. § 303). This is also incorrect and the correct citations are to § 303 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. § 503). This Section makes the necessary changes. Section 10. HB 387 added a reference to “paragraph (a)(4) of this section” in § 1799F of Title 24 but there is no paragraph (a)(4) in § 1799F of Title 24. The correct reference should be to "subsection (a) of this section". This Section makes the necessary change. Section 11. SS 1 for SB 143 updated the definition of the practice of optometry. There is a reference in § 2101(a)(3)c. to “7(b).” There is no 7(b) and the correct reference should be to § 2101(a)(3)a.2. This Section makes the necessary change. Sections 12 & 14. HB 331 changed the name of the Bureau of Child Support Enforcement and the Division of Child Support Enforcement to the Division of Child Support Services. The name of the accounts used by the Division of Child Support Services were not updated to reflect this new name. This Section makes the necessary changes. Section 13. HS 1 for HB 262 adopted the Joint Sunset Committee recommendations to update the Open Space Council. In making this update, § 7506 of Title 7, a vacant statute, now provides the powers and duties of the Open Space Council. Section 8017A of Title 29, regarding the Delaware Council on Greenways and Trails, references § 7506 of Title 7 and that reference had been marked by Code Revisors as “[repealed]”. The reference to the new § 7506 of Title 7 is not relevant so this Act removes that sentence.

This legislation amends the Delaware Code to establish the Department of Human Resources by transferring various divisions and other organizational units from the Office of Management and Budget to the newly established Department of Human Resources. The powers and duties of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget and the Secretary of the Department of Human Resources are aligned to reflect the transfers of the divisions and other organizational units of the newly established Department of Human Resources. Various sections of the Delaware Code are amended to reflect changes in titles and nomenclature. This bill also establishes Office of Women's Advancement and Advocacy. This bill sets forth that the Office of Women's Advancement and Advocacy will be a unit of the Department of Human Resources. The purpose of this Office is to promote the equality of women in all areas of society. Functions of the Office include fostering and facilitating collaborations between all facets of government and private businesses to eliminate gender-based bias and discriminatory practices, study and report on the status of women in the State, compile and analyze statistics, advise executive and legislative bodies on the effect of proposed legislation, make specific legislative proposals and submit a report to the Governor, Secretary of the Department of Human Resources and the General Assembly at the beginning of every General Assembly of the Office’s activities and recommendations. The bill establishes that the governing body of the Office is the Commission for Women comprised of 9 members. This bill provides that the Office of Women’s Advancement and Advocacy oversees the Delaware Women’s Hall of Fame Committee and the Delaware Women’s Workforce Council. The Delaware Women’s Hall of Fame Committee shall have 7 members and the Delaware Women’s Workforce Council shall be comprised of 11 members. Delaware Women’s Workforce Council shall conduct a study of gender-based inequities in workplaces in Delaware, recommend policies to remove gender-based inequities in the workplace, and develop and publish best practices for employers to achieve gender equality.

This Act requires that health insurance offered in this State provide coverage for fertility care services, including in vitro fertilization ("IVF") procedures for persons, who along with their partner, suffer from a disease or condition that results in the inability to procreate or to carry a pregnancy to viability. Like all other diseases, infertility should be covered by insurance. According to the National Infertility Association, RESOLVE, infertility affects 1 in 8 couples and 1 in 4 cannot afford treatment. Everyone deserves the right to procreate. Right now, many Delaware families diagnosed with infertility fall into a “coverage gap” and pay out-of-pocket for fertility care services. Only certain employers provide any fertility care coverage in Delaware and many of these plans provide very limited coverage. Families generally must pay high co-pays or adhere to service restrictions and lifetime dollar caps that strictly limit their treatment options, and thus make it unaffordable for many of them to proceed without risking their financial security or without achieving a successful pregnancy. For example, 1 IVF cycle can cost between $15,000 and $25,000 and, on average, it takes 2 to 3 cycles to achieve pregnancy. Additionally, highly inflated managed care pharmacy prices for IVF medications, where families with coverage can pay as much as 100% more for medications compared to prices charged to self-pay families, often contribute to 25-50% or more of total IVF costs, which can quickly drain lifetime caps and severely limit overall IVF care options. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, 15 states currently have laws requiring insurance coverage for infertility diagnosis or treatment, including 2 states that border Delaware, New Jersey and Maryland. This puts the State at a significant competitive disadvantage, as many reproductive age residents intentionally change employers and leave Delaware to gain more attractive fertility care benefits. It is also well-documented that individuals who self-pay for IVF procedures, or have limited benefits, often demand that 2 or more embryos be transferred to their uterus. This is a dangerous and costly approach for heavily burdened health care resources, and can be completely avoided, with greater access to covered fertility care services. This Act require insurers to cover fertility care services based on the latest IVF technologies to increase pregnancy success rates for singleton births at the lowest possible costs. This will greatly reduce the risk of multiple births and greatly reduce hospital and health care costs, thus saving employers money. Several recent studies have found that the cost of perinatal and neonatal care for twins is about $100,000, whereas singleton pregnancies cost about $13,000. Triplet pregnancies can cost $400,000 or more. For every 100 pregnancies from IVF that are singletons (but could have been twins), about $8.7 million dollars is saved, on top of reduced pain and suffering for parents and premature babies. This Act would significantly reduce this high financial and societal burden, with the promotion of IVF technologies that exclusively use single-embryo transfers. This Act could increase the number of persons treated for infertility, but also increase the number of babies born in Delaware by 2-300 per year, thus increasing the state’s birth rate by 1-2% and providing a boost to the local economy, while also decreasing health care costs.

This Act increases by 1% the rate of realty transfer tax to be received by the State.

This Act increases the State’s alcoholic beverage tax rates. The rate for beer increases by 2¢ per 12 ounce can. The rate for wine increases by approximately 3¢ per 5 ounce serving. The rate for spirits containing more than 25% ethyl alcohol by volume increases by 15¢ per 750 ml bottle.

Vapor products, commonly known as e-cigarettes or vape products, are increasing in popularity. This Act adds a definition of vapor products to Chapter 53, Title 30 (regarding Tobacco Product Tax), includes vapor products as a type of tobacco product, and makes other amendments to the Chapter to require those who deal in vapor products to obtain licenses just like those who deal in traditional tobacco products and to impose a tax on vapor products. This Act also increases the tax on tobacco products. Specifically, this Act does the following related to tobacco product and vapor product taxes: (1) Increases the tax on cigarettes from $1.60 to $2.10 per 20 cigarette pack. (2) Increases the tax on all tobacco products other than vapor products, moist snuff, and cigarettes from 15% of the wholesale price to 30% of the wholesale price. (3) Imposes a tax of 5 cents per fluid millimeter of vapor product. (4) Increases the tax on moist snuff from 54 cents per ounce to 92 cents per ounce. This Act also increases the fees charged for retail tobacco product licenses and tobacco product vending machine licenses. These license fees were originally established in 1964. The retail license fee was last increased in 1969. The vending machine license fee was last increased in 1976. The licensing fees adopted by this Act are similar to, or less than, the fees charged by other states in the region. By including vapor products in the definition of tobacco products, vapor product wholesalers, retailers, and vending machine operators must pay license fees at the same rates as for traditional tobacco products. Section 28 establishes when the Sections of this Act take effect and how increases in existing taxes are to be handled. Finally, this Act makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.