Rep. Eric Morrison

This Act directs the Department of Safety and Homeland Security (DSHS) to develop a Firearm Responsibilities Notice for distribution to gun purchasers to ensure dissemination of important information relating to safe and lawful handling of firearms. It mandates that licensed importers, manufacturers, and dealers cannot sell, transfer, or deliver a firearm to another person without requiring the buyer to review and sign a Firearm Responsibilities Notice. Licensed dealers that provide background checks to facilitate a sale between unlicensed persons are also responsible for providing a copy of the Firearm Responsibilities Notice to the prospective buyer and retaining a copy of the Firearm Responsibilities Notice signed by the prospective buyer. The purpose of the Firearm Responsibilities Notice is to deter straw purchases and other illegal transfer of firearms, to ensure awareness of Delaware’s gun safety laws, and to increase the reporting of lost or stolen firearms. The Firearm Responsibilities Notice is also intended to prevent accidental shootings by providing information on gun safety and available gun safety courses. It is also designed to reduce suicides by providing the national suicide prevention hotline number. This bill requires licensed firearm dealers to securely maintain a record of all signed Firearm Responsibilities Notices. This bill tasks the Department with creating the Firearm Responsibilities Notice, in consultation with the Department of Justice and other stakeholders, posting the Firearm Responsibilities Notice to its website, and providing (free of charge) the Firearm Responsibilities Notice to licensed importers, licensed manufacturers, and licensed dealers in the State. All licensed deadly weapons dealers in this State are mandated to keep and securely store signed Firearm Responsibilities Notices for at least 3 years as part of the records required to be kept and maintained in the place of business at all times. A violation of provisions of Title 24 relating to records or background checks for sales between unlicensed persons is already a misdemeanor, punishable by a maximum fine of $250 or $500 and 6 months imprisonment. This law will expand the scope of those misdemeanors, thus requiring a 2/3 vote. The bill is effective 180 days after enactment. The DSHS is required to conduct outreach to licensed importers, licensed manufacturers, and licensed dealers in Delaware prior to the effective date to make them aware of the new requirements imposed by this Act and provide access to the Firearm Responsibilities Notice as developed by the Department.

This Act fosters the humane treatment of animals and prevents animal cruelty by prohibiting retail pet stores from selling dogs or cats. It further authorizes retail pet stores to collaborate with animal shelters and animal rescue organizations to offer space to showcase dogs or cats for adoption. The Office of Animal Welfare will be responsible for enforcing this Act. Retailers will receive a civil penalty of no more than $500 for each prohibited sale. This Act takes effect 6 months after its enactment into law.

This Act institutes a State nontidal wetlands program to include additional wetlands that are no longer regulated at the federal level. The State wetlands program will cover both tidal and nontidal wetlands, and in that manner fill in gaps in federal jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act and mitigate the uncertainty surrounding the limits to federal jurisdiction and improve efficiencies in the wetland permitting processes. Section 1 of the Act makes a number of changes to Chapter 66 of Title 7 of the Delaware Code: Section 1 adds definitions to § 6603 of Title 7, including for "aquatic habitat functions and services"; "Community Water Access Structure"; "Delaware Wetland Screening Tool," which is a screening tool o be developed in regulations to determine whether an area has the potential to qualify as a wetland; "Exceptional Value Wetlands", which are wetlands that are unique or high functioning, that support flora or fauna that are endangered or threatened, that are located in public water supply Source Water Protection Areas, or located within designated natural areas; "foot bridge"; "linear utility infrastructure projects"; "mitigation"; "normal residential gardening and lawn and landscape maintenance"; "pilings"; "unique wetlands," meaning wetlands that are categorized by the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) as Coastal Plain seasonal ponds, inner-dune depression meadows, peatland fens, Piedmont stream valley wetlands, bald cypress swamps, Atlantic white cedar swamps, or black ash seepage swamps; "voluntary wetland habitat restoration project"; and "wetland walkway". In addition, the definition of "wetlands" is revised to include all tidal and nontidal wetlands in the State, and will be further clarified in regulations adopted by DNREC. Section 1 also amends § 6604 of Title 7 to provide that an applicant for a wetlands permit has the burden of proving whether a proposed activity is within tidal or nontidal wetlands. In addition, Section 1 amends § 660 of Title 7, concerning activities that are exempt from permit requirements under Chapter 66 of Title 7. Under the Act, the following activities are exempt: farming, provided certain requirements are met, including that farming or an intent to farm has been conducted on the land in the prior 10 years on a rolling basis; silvicultural activities permitted by the Department of Agriculture; conservation practices on lands that are engaged in programs through certain federal or state governmental agencies; hunting, fishing, trapping, and duck blinds; wildlife nesting structures; mosquito control activities authorized by the DNREC; construction of certain drainage ditches, tax ditches, swales, and other drainage features; artificial ponds and borrow pits; construction of directional aids to navigation; placing of boundary stakes; foot bridges; normal residential gardening and lawn and landscape maintenance. In addition, other activities are conditionally exempt: certain activities that would be allowed under a nationwide permit issued by the United States Army Corps of Engineers; nontidal wetlands equal to or less than a contiguous 0.50 acres, provided certain criteria are met; work performed by a state, county, or municipal government or conservation district, or such an entity's designated contractor, on nontidal wetlands in the Delaware Atlantic Coastal Plains Province with a contributing drainage area of less than 800 acres; maintenance, reconstruction, or retrofitting work performed by or with the assistance of any state, county, or municipal government or conservation district in nontidal wetlands; certain work in agricultural drainage ditches; the creation or maintenance of certain ponds constructed in uplands; and wetland walkways, under certain conditions. Section 1 also amends § 6607 of Title 7, concerning the procedures, regulations, and application fees associated with permit applications. The Act provides that initial regulations promulgated under Chapter 66 will establish the Delaware Wetland Screening Tool. Further, in addition to the regulations the Secretary of DNREC is already directed to adopt, the Secretary is instructed to adopt regulations affording additional protections to Exceptional Value Wetlands; reducing duplication with the permitting requirements of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; improving the State's ability to account for impacts from wetlands permitting actions; promulgating mitigation strategies to facilitate no overall net loss in wetland acreage and function and to protect the State's resilience to the impacts of climate change; and establishing general permits for common and environmentally beneficial activities with minimal environmental impact. Section 1 further amends § 6607 concerning the timeline for DNREC issuing a decision regarding a permit application Section 1 creates a new § 6621, establishing the Wetlands Regulatory Advisory Committee. The Committee is directed to assist DNREC in developing the initial regulations required under Chapter 66 of Title 7 and to evaluate the permitting processes for activities regulated by state and federal agencies. The Committee is to be made up of 23 members, including the County Administrator or County Executive, or the County Administrator's or County Executive's designee; representatives from the Delaware Farm Bureau, the conservation districts, various environmental advocacy groups, an environmental justice organization, the Home Builders Association of Delaware, the Delaware Association of Realtors, the American Council of Engineering Companies of Delaware, the Delmarva Chicken Association, a general business group, a private wetlands consultant certified by the Society of Wetlands Scientists, and members from higher education institutions with specialization in wetlands science, agricultural economics, and with knowledge of forestry or soil conservation. The Committee is directed to review DNREC's implementation of the initial regulations required by Chapter 66 and provide a final report recommending legislative or regulatory improvements. Section 2 of the Act deletes Chapter 66A of Title 7 of the Delaware Code, "Nontidal Wetland Standards," which had created a Wetlands Advisory Committee to assist the Secretary of the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control in developing wetland protection priorities for the State and identifying a comprehensive approach for improving nontidal wetland conservation, restoration, and education to recommend to the General Assembly, and to evaluate the permitting process for activities regulated by state and federal agencies. Section 3 of the Act provides that activities in private nontidal subaqueous lands authorized under a nationwide permit issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and in effect in the state are exempt from any requirements under Chapter 72 of Titel 7 of the Delaware Code, if a water quality certification has been received from the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, where necessary. Section 4 of the Act provides that §§ 6621 and 6622 of Section 1 of the Act, and Section 2 of the Act, are effective upon enactment; Section 3 of the Act is effective 60 days after enactment; and the remaining provisions of the Act are effective upon the adoption of initial regulations by the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control.

This Act is a Substitute for House Bill No. 450. Like House Bill No. 450, this Substitute Act is to be known as the Reforming Opportunities and Accelerated Development for Delaware Act (“ROAD-DE Act”) and will make significant changes to Delaware’s land use permitting process by building on Governor Meyer’s Executive Order No. 18, which created the Permitting Accelerator to reform policies, processes, and procedures that have accumulated over decades and are holding back jobs, housing, and other critical infrastructure statewide. In 2019, a study of Delaware’s permitting process was undertaken. The study concluded that Delaware’s permitting process was significantly longer and more challenging than those of surrounding states in the region. In 2025, this State began digitizing permitting processes. During the initial stages of that effort, more than 52 hours of interviews with 57 stakeholders were conducted across state agencies, local governments, developers, and technical experts. Those interviews revealed that statewide delays are not driven by isolated performance issues. Rather, they stem from structural misalignment, sequential review processes, incentive distortions, and capacity constraints that compound across agencies. Delaware’s permitting process can stretch beyond 24 months, placing this State at a distinct economic development disadvantage when it comes to attracting and growing businesses. In the region, Delaware’s competitors, including Maryland and Pennsylvania, can achieve substantially faster permit approvals, making them more attractive locations for economic development and affordable housing. The 2019 and 2025 studies resulted in recommendations that the permitting process be streamlined and modified to improve accountability and eliminate redundancies within various government agencies, particularly within the Delaware Department of Transportation (“DelDOT”). To implement these recommendations, this Substitute Act, like House Bill No. 450, does all of the following: (1) Section 1 of this Substitute Act requires DelDOT to base the threshold for determining if a traffic impact study is required on peak-hour trips, not vehicle trips per day, and set the minimum peak hour trips threshold at 500 peak-hour trips for residential developments and 500 peak-hour trips, excluding pass-by trips, for all other development types. (2) Sections 2, 4, 6, and 8 of this Substitute Act require the counties and municipalities to base their threshold for determining if a traffic impact study is required on the same requirements as required for DelDOT in Section 1 of this Act. (3) Sections 3, 5, 7, and 8 of this Substitute Act provide for certain residential density requirements. (4) Section 9 of this Substitute Act requires DelDOT to deploy, operate, and maintain technological systems for the automated monitoring, analysis, and management of transportation infrastructure and traffic operations. (5) Section 10 of this Substitute Act provides that engineering studies or traffic investigations conducted by DelDOT may include automated or continuous data collection systems, remote sensing technologies, digital imaging, algorithmic analysis of traffic patterns, and other technological methods used to evaluate roadway safety, traffic operations, and infrastructure conditions. (6) Section 11 of this Substitute Act requires DelDOT to establish and collect transportation impact fees throughout this State and to use the moneys collected to fund off-site improvements to bring existing transportation infrastructure up to current State standards. Additionally, this Section requires DelDOT to use the moneys collected in the county in which the transportation impact fee was collected unless the county or the municipalities within the county fail to adopt the traffic impact study and residential density requirements under Sections 2 through 8 of this Act. This Substitute Act differs from House Bill No. 450 as follows: (1) Changes the residential density requirements provision contained in Sections 3, 5, 7, and 8 of this Substitute Act for the original Act. (2) Requires DelDOT to consult with the applicable municipal government on how to spend the money collected from the transportation impact fee. (3) Increases the amount of the surcharge DelDOT must assess on the transportation impact fee from 1% to 2%. (4) Adds the Brownfield Development Program as 1 of the programs to receive money from the surcharge assessed on the transportation impact fee by DelDOT. This Substitute Act requires a greater than majority vote for passage because § 1 of Article IX of the Delaware Constitution requires the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each house of the General Assembly to amend a municipal charter, whether directly, by amendment to a specific municipality’s charter, or, as in this Act, indirectly, by a general law. This Substitute Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.

This Act requires large energy use facilities to produce renewable energy within the state to power their operations to prevent a drain on the electric grid. It provides for a “ramp-up” period requiring that a large energy use facility provide a plan to the Public Service Commission to ramp up their energy production within the state each year so that by the 10th year of operations, the facility is producing 100% of its energy usage through in-state production. This Act also allows the Public Service Commission to regulate electric suppliers insofar as necessary to ensure that large energy use facilities do not negatively affect the reliability of the electric grid.

This Act serves to clean up Delaware’s ghost gun law to address issues raised in ongoing litigation. This Act primarily creates a clear path for individuals who legally possessed unserialized firearms prior to the law’s enactment to come into compliance, either by having them serialized through a federally licensed dealer or rendering them permanently inoperable. This Act also clarifies definitions and aligns the law with federal serialization standards, while preserving the underlying prohibition on untraceable firearms.

The purpose of this Act is to protect victims of sexual assault, discrimination, or harassment from retaliatory lawsuits that arise when a victim of sexual assault discloses information regarding an act of sexual assault, discrimination, or harassment. Specifically, this Act protects assault victims from defamation lawsuits by placing a higher burden of proof on the complainant, even if the complainant is a private figure. It also entitles a prevailing defendant in a defamation lawsuit to attorneys’ fees and costs, actual damages, and punitive damages.

Current law prohibits persons subject to Family Court protective orders from purchasing or possessing deadly weapons, with some exceptions. This Act extends this prohibition to individuals with out-of-state protective orders as well.

This Act provides guidelines for Delaware schools in addressing elopement of students. This Act requires schools to notify the eloping student’s parent or guardian the same day as the elopement incident. All schools must develop policies and procedures to implement the requirements of this Act.

This Act excludes large energy use facilities from the definition of a qualified facility for purposes of determining eligibility for a tax credit or license fee reduction for the creation of employment and qualified investment in business facilities.