Sen. Brian Pettyjohn

This Act enacts the Interstate Compact for School Psychologists (“Compact”), which is designed to facilitate the interstate practice of school psychology in educational settings. School-based mental health services are in high demand in Delaware, but workforce shortages can make it difficult to meet that demand. By creating an additional licensing pathway for school psychologists to obtain equivalent licenses to practice school psychology in any state that is a member of the Compact, the Act aims to increase the availability of school psychological services for students in this State. The Interstate Compact for School Psychologists must be enacted in 7 states to become effective. The Compact has been enacted in 2 states and legislation is pending in several others.

This Act requires schools that receive federal funding ensure students, staff, and faculty are protected from sex-based discrimination and sex-based harassment. The Act further requires schools to communicate to students, through their website, the existence of Title IX administrators as required by federal law. The Act requires the school’s website provide information explaining the roles and duties of Title IX administrators, how to contact the appropriate Title IX administrator, and the school’s Title IX policy. The Act ensures that students have access to the appropriate forms to start a complaint and access to the FAQ link provided by U.S. Office of Civil Rights. The Act instructs the school to provide an explanation and examples of possible supportive measures for students who experience sex-based discrimination or sex-based harassment. The Act instructs the Title IX coordinator of every Title IX school to provide a written reminder to school staff and faculty at the beginning of the academic year, outlining the school’s Title IX policy regarding the reporting of sex-based discrimination, including sex-based harassment.

This Act requires that members of school boards, including charter school boards, receive training on all of the following: 1. Requirements for school board meetings under this title and the Freedom of Information Act, Chapter 100 of Title 29. 2. Best practices regarding the conduct of meetings, including the use of rules of order. 3. The State Employees’, Officers’ and Officials’ Code of Conduct, subchapter I. of Chapter 58 of Title 29. Most school boards already provide training that satisfies the requirements under this Act and the training and notices required under this Act may be combined with the training and notices already required under § 1803 of Title 14 for required financial responsibility training.

Maddy summaryHB 64 requires Delaware school boards to provide remote access for public participation in meetings, directly affecting school board members and community residents. The bill mandates that meetings include a functional online platform - such as live streaming or video conferencing - allowing the public to view proceedings and submit comments remotely. This change ensures that residents who cannot attend in person, including those with mobility challenges or during emergencies, can engage with school governance. The provision applies to all regular and special school board meetings under Delaware law. It focuses on practical accessibility without altering school policies or funding.

This Act adds intentional interference with the operation of a school bus to the offense of disorderly conduct. Intentional interference with a school bus may include boarding a school bus and refusing to exit after being lawfully ordered to do so by the school bus driver; wrongfully restricting the movement of a school bus; or threatening the school bus driver, a student, or any passenger entering, leaving, or waiting for a school bus. A student or passenger otherwise authorized to be on the school bus in the ordinary course of business may not be guilty of disorderly conduct for intentional interference with the operation of a school bus. This Act requires a greater than majority vote for passage because § 28 of Article IV of the Delaware Constitution requires the affirmative vote of 2/3 of the members elected to each house of the General Assembly to expand the scope of an existing crime within the jurisdiction of an inferior court.

This House Substitute No. 1 provides that if a school board allows school board members to attend meetings remotely through electronic means, then permission to attend remotely must be granted in the case of any of the following: illness of the school board member; illness of an individual in the school board member’s family where that individual requires caretaking; a public health emergency; pregnancy or immediate postpartum care responsibilities of the school board member or the school board member’s spouse or partner; or military deployment of the school board member. This substitute for House Bill No. 83 differs from the original in that it does not require school boards to allow remote attendance. But if the school board does allow remote attendance, it provides the permissible reasons remote attendance may be allowed, allows a school board to limit the number of times permission to attend remotely may be granted, and indicates that a school board may not add to the statutory reasons for remote attendance. It also expands the permissible reasons from the original bill to include pregnancy or postpartum complications of a board member’s spouse or partner.

Each year, the Department of Education (Department) publishes data regarding all Delaware public schools, currently known as School Performance Data Reports (reports). These reports are available on the Department’s website as the Delaware Report Card. This Act revises current law to correspond with and codify current Department practices regarding these reports as follows: • Changes the term “Education Profile” to “education-related data” to reflect the broad range of data that the Department publishes, in addition to the annual reports required under existing State and federal law. • Requires that there is a link to these reports on the school choice website. • Requires that these reports continue to include proficiency rates. In addition, this Act requires that the Department do all of the following: • Provide a link to these reports on the home page of the Department’s website. • Include a list of a career pathways offered at a high school in these reports. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual which includes revisions to clarify repetitive, confusing, or contradictory language.

This Act removes the time restriction that only allowed for certain teachers or specialists who were hired after August 9, 2023, to obtain additional experience credit for purposes of salary computation. This Act would allow for teachers or specialists hired before August 9, 2023, to qualify for the same experience credit for purposes of salary computation.

This bill removes the current specific tax rate and enrollment limitations placed on Sussex County Vocational-Technical High School District. Future tax rates shall be determined by the Sussex County Vocational-Technical High School District. The enrollment capacity limitations shall be established by the Certificate of Need determined by the Delaware Department of Education.

This Joint Resolution directs the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control to obtain an architectural report of Kingston-upon Hull to consider estimated costs to either restore or stabilize the property. The resolution further directs the report consider future use of the property and recommend a course of action for the property.