Delaware General Assembly Pre-Game Show: Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2015
The 148th General Assembly convenes today for its first regular session. Six new legislators, R Rep. Richard Collins (41st), R Rep. Kevin Hensley (9th), D Rep. Sean Lynn (31st), D Rep. Sean Matthews (10th), R Rep. Lyndon Yearick, and R Senator Bryant Richardson, respectively replace D Rep. John Atkins (defeated in general election), D Rep. Rebecca Walker (retired), D Rep. Darryl Scott (retired), D Rep. Dennis E. Williams (defeated in primary), R Rep. Don Blakey (defeated in primary), and Sen. Bob Venables (defeated in general election). The Senate goes from 13 D’s and 8 R’s to 12 D’s and 9 R’s. The House goes from 27 D’s and 14 R’s to 25 D’s and 16 R’s.
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY FOR NEWBIES
The Delaware State Senate has 21 members. The President Pro-Tempore leads the Senate, although the Lieutenant Governor often, but not always, presides over the senate sessions as a non-voting member (That, of course, will not happen this session as there is no Lieutenant Governor now that Matt Denn has become the State’s Attorney General). Here is a list of the Senate members. Here is a list of Senate committee assignments.
The House of Representatives has 41 members, currently 25 D’s, 16 R’s. The Speaker of the House presides over the body. You can find the House membership here. Here is a list of House committee assignments.
The General Assembly is in session from the second Tuesday in January through June 30 each year. Three days a week–Tuesday through Thursday. The Senate often returns for a special session in the fall to consider nominations.
The General Assembly breaks for six weeks at the end of January for Joint Finance Committee (budget) hearings and meetings. There is another 2-week break around Easter, and an additional week’s break around Memorial Day. The Memorial Day break often enables the ‘money’ committees to finish work on marking up the budget.The typical General Assembly meets in session about 50 days a year.
The House always holds committee meetings on Wednesdays until the last week or two of session, and does not generally conduct any substantive business on Wednesdays. Senate committees also generally meet on Wednesdays, but the Senate can and does run an occasional agenda on committee days.
January generally follows a particular pattern. The first day this year will be ceremonial in nature, with swearing-in ceremonies. Although the Senate officially was sworn in previously during a Special Session to consider nominations, there will be family and friends galore in Legislative Hall today to participate in the ceremonies. The House will elect its leadership and, although there were and are some hard feeling arising out of the Democratic Caucus votes, do not look for a challenge to Speaker-Designate Pete Schwartzkopf. Governor Markell delivers his State of the State Address this week, and his legislative agenda will be spelled out in that speech. By the end of January, the Governor will also submit his proposed budget to the General Assembly.
While some ‘emergency’ legislation often passes in January, it’s usually a slow month. With a new General Assembly coming face to face with a lame duck Governor, I look for the dynamics between the two branches of government to change, and not in the interests of comity. Which, BTW, is not necessarily a bad thing. Leading to my:
KEY QUESTIONS FOR THE 148TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
1. Will legislators let a lame-duck governor double-down on wrongheadedness, or are they going to push back on behalf of schools, students and parents? This governor appears hellbent on destroying public education in the name of, what exactly, getting more funds from Washington to fund his bloated Department of Education? His wanton embrace of corporate education policy must be renounced and reversed. Will it happen? I used to think that equal rights for LGBT citizens would be Markell’s key legacy. I now think it will be his killing off of public education.
2. Will legislators ignore this lame-duck governor and pass a real and serious minimum wage increase? One that eliminates the ability of the Walmarts of this world to subsidize its workforce by having them claim public benefits rather than providing them themselves and/or enabling the workers to make enough to pay for them? Will legislators finally ensure that all state employees earn a wage that rises above the poverty level?
3. The ‘grown-ups in the room’ have finally recognized the obvious. The state’s mix of budget-balancing gimmicks, including escheat $$’s, incorporation fees, gambling dollars, licensing fees on everything, et al, cannot be counted on to balance the budget going forward. So, the ‘grownups’ have done the inevitable: They’ve formed a task force to study the issue. Never mind that the most obvious source of additional revenue: restoring some progressivity to our state income tax, is precisely what the so-called grown-ups in the room want most to avoid. Wonder what, if any, magic bullets they’ll come up with.
4. There is still a massive hole in our capital fund. This after coming up about $50 mill short last year for already-approved road projects. Speaker Pete Schwartzkopf says he can’t ‘even spell gas tax’, so what magic bullet will the General Assembly come up with? If you are sensing a theme here, you’re correct. Let’s see if the General Assembly addresses these financial issues, or just kicks the can down the pock-marked road. Since this is not an election year, either it happens this year or not until 2017, at the earliest.
5. While seemingly unwilling to address its mandated responsibilities, the General Assembly appears intent on continuing to throw good money after bad to Delaware’s racinos. Will this continue, and/or will they approve the opening of other casinos that don’t drain state funds, and does anybody know how to turn the gambling industry’s fortunes around?
6. Will anybody challenge the dubious ethics involved in both Sen. Nicole Poore‘s new windfall as President of Jobs for Delaware Graduates, and in Rep. Val Longhurst‘s (and Dick Cathcart’s) scheme for an underwater city at Fort DuPont? Anybody other than Delaware Liberal, that us. Oh, and what about the proposed interchange for the supposed Kent County Athletic Complex? With Sen. Brian Bushweller on both the Joint Finance Committee and the Bond Bill Committee, be afraid, be very afraid.
Enough questions for now. Starting today, some answers. And, of course, yet more questions.
Tags: Delaware General Assembly, El Somnambulo, Featured, Gov. Jack Markell, Steve Tanzer Delaware
Decriminalization?
Mike: I’m less interested in decriminalization than others. I see it as kind of a ‘bread & circuses’ issue.
I, of course, support it. It’s one of those things I think will eventually happen, but I think it’s not as weighty an issue as the ones I’ve raised. And I don’t want it to be merely a consolation prize.
Agree, though the potential revenues from true legalization (not going to happen with Markell) combined with the savings from decriminalization could impact the budget in a positive way. I certainly agree that the future of public education in this state is at the forefront…Markell needs to be checked. As far as a more progressive tax structure…if it didn’t happen when they were talking about slashing state pay 8%, its unfortunately not going to happen now. Pity.
My predictions: I will be amazed by the Ron Popeal-esque gimmicky magic bullet that the budget task force comes up with. Also, there is no way in hell that a real and serious minimum wage increase will pass.
Last but not least, the General Assembly will continue to throw good money after bad to Delaware’s racinos. Thoroughbred horse racing must not die, so we need slot machines (video lottery) that must not die, so we need table games that must not die, so we need sports betting that must not die, so we need…. (wait for it)…
….prostitution…. good old fashioned legalized fucking for money.
Way to go, Jason.
We can put high-class hookers in the vacant hotel rooms at the casinos, make them get business licenses and pay taxes, while we get the low-income hookers off the streets and take away their sole source of income.
Maybe we need a campaign for the Capital Fund that makes it clear that the damaged roads are Pete S’s fault. I’m thinking signs — like lawn campaign signs — placed along the side of roads with issues that say something like “Join us in thanking Pete Schwartzkopf for leaving this road a mess.” With an email address to send him a note. Not dealing with the capital fund ought to be legislative malpractice. And the only reason he won’t invoke gas taxes is because *he* won’t benefit from that. Damn shame to, because now is exactly when you should raise the gas taxes.
@Cassandra: Can someone set up a DL “gofundme” page so we can contribute to these awesome Schwartie signs?
LOL! We’d also need volunteers to place them.
Seriously, I keep hearing that Pete wants to be Lt. Governor. Now is the time to start telling people why he’s not fit for the job.
If Pete were lieutenant governor, the only time he could damage the state would be when there’s a tie vote in the Senate.
Had to double check on Bushweller being on both money committees. Are we making history here? wtf…
The only similar precedent I can recall was when Sen. Herman Holloway Sr. served on the Joint Finance Committee AND was the Senate Majority Whip. That, too, is against the Senate rules.
You know why he got that double-dip? Because it served to pump up his legislative pension (you get extra $$’s for serving on the money committees and you get extra $$’s for serving in leadership), AND the pensions of legislators who retire subsequent to Holloway had their pensions increased b/c, thanks to the double-dip, Holloway would have had the largest legislative pension ever b/c he ALSO served in the General Assembly for a real long time. He died before completing his last term, but the pension largesse lived on.
It’s possible that an R senator might have done it back when there were only 6 R senators. But that would have been due to exigent circumstances. There is no similar exigent circumstance here.
Did Kwacko do his press conference today?
Which rules say you can’t serve on both?
AQC knowing who you are and who you work for, I would suggest that you dispense with the name-calling it’s disrespectful and I know your boss is more sophisticated than that and would not resort to nor approve of such a classless tactic.
John Kowalko
I don’t care what or who you know John. Why don’t you talk to my boss about it?
O.K. I’ll discuss it, at your request with my colleague.
John Kowalko
Yes, El Som, please point us to the Senate Rule prohibiting Sen. Bushweller from serving on two joint committees.
Hahahaha!!!
There is a good economic argument for quick legalization. We are in the center of a huge population and very accessible. Legalization will become the law of the land, so why not get a tax windfall until other northeastern and mid-Atlantic states legalize cannabis.
Yo, Penman, why don’t YOU go back as many General Assemblies as you possibly can and see when a Senator or Rep sat on BOTH the JFC and the Bond committees. Not even Queen Nancy Cook did it.
Bushweller is breaking precedent here, and I’d like to know why. Especially since he’s up to his neck carrying the racinos’ water and he’s also pushing DELDOT for an intersection to benefit an athletic complex. While, of course, not supporting any revenue generator to fill the hole in the capital budget. Seems hinky to me. As do both wastes of taxpayer $$’s.
Delaware taxes among nation’s least regressive:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/14/business/local-taxes-hit-lower-wage-earners-harder-study-finds.html
Yee Ha! We suck marginally less than the super-crappy crap holes.
Well, we don’t have a sales tax. We also don’t have a progressive income tax.
We never had a sales tax. We USED to have a progressive income tax. Time for the wealthy to pay their fair share for the first time in 30 years.
Not that it’s gonna happen, or anything…
Turns out, according to a reliable source, that Queen Nancy DID actually serve on both JFC and Bond for a couple of terms. She was the one exception, and it gave her way too much power. She also was the only non-leadership elected official to serve on the Legislative Council Committee.
From where she controlled all hires and promotions for the Controller General’s office, as well as the hiring of political hack cronies to positions in Legislative Council.
The LAST thing we need is someone with that much power on both money committees. Especially yet another Kent County pork producer. Especially when the pork is a drain on the state.
In my Opinion, Public Education, The Budget, Minimum Wage Increase, should be the top priority’s for the general assembly this session. Decriminalization, while I wholeheartedly support it, I think its something that can take a back burner to the other more pressing concerns. We definitely, need to protect public Education in this state.
They need that transportation trust fund to fix the east west roads in Sussex before the rest of NJ, PA and MD move here