Delaware Climate Legislation:2024 Edition

By: Dr. David R. Legates, Guest Contributor

In August 2023, the General Assembly passed, and the Governor signed Delaware’s Climate Change Solutions Act of 2023, or HB99.  It calls for the state to establish targets “to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions on the State.”  Moreover, it also establishes “Climate Change Officers in certain Key Cabinet-Level Departments who will assist DNREC in the ongoing implementation of the Climate Action Plan.”  Note that the bill charges the DNREC Secretary and other entities within the Executive Branch with making climate change an integral part of decision-making, rulemaking, and procurement—the legislature abdicated their responsibility to oversee its implementation to the Executive Branch.

This year, the General Assembly passed five more bills, supposedly to save the State from the ravages of climate change.  As before, climate change is only the stated goal; it is not the real focus of the legislation.

The Delaware Energy Solutions Act of 2024, also known as Senate Bill 265, supports the net zero goals of HB99 by facilitating “offshore wind to be a significant element of Delaware’s energy future.”  Through this legislation, the General Assembly has passed the authority of making decisions regarding offshore wind to the State Energy Office and the Public Service Commission.

House Bill 9 requires that all state-owned passenger and light duty vehicles be zero emission vehicles by 2040, although exemptions are made for law enforcement vehicles and “vessels of State agency law-enforcement personnel,” vehicles owned by the Department of Education, school districts, and charter schools, and designated take home vehicles for certain state employees.  Similarly, House Substitute 2 for House Bill 13 authorizes a program, headed by the Director of the Sustainable Energy Utility, to assist low-income residents to purchase and install electric vehicles and their recharging systems.

Two additional bills focus on longer-range planning.  House Bill 402 requires that all new state buildings, including schools, to provide a designated space on the roof reserved for future solar panel installation.  And Senate Bill 237 ensures future plans focus on community resiliency and sustainability as it relates to impacts of climate change.

These bills serve to move Delaware toward an economy free of fossil fuel-based energy sources.  Offshore wind and rooftop solar will necessarily make energy more expensive, as will proliferation of plans to protect our communities and prepare public buildings from the non-issue of dangerous climate change.  By every metric available, our very existence is NOT being threatened by increasing storms, floods, droughts, hurricanes, tornadoes, and sea level rise.

In 2021, Delaware’s energy use was only 0.264% of the total energy use in the United States.  Requiring the United States to become Net Zero by 2050 will save the planet from a rise of only 0.06°F by 2050.  Thus, Delaware’s legislation to force the State into Net Zero compliance will lead to a decrease of only 0.00016°F—a number that is unmeasurable with any environmental thermometer in use.  It will have no effect whatsoever on the impact of storms, floods, droughts, sea level rise, and other weather variables that impact people’s lives and affect their possessions.  What will happen is that energy and all goods that use energy for production, transportation, or refrigeration will become much more expensive.

One only has to consider the question of why these legislative bills make exceptions for law enforcement, state-owned school buses, and selective state agencies and why subsidies are needed for low-income residents of the state.  As before, these legislations are not about the science—it’s about making energy so expensive few will be able to afford it.

Dr. David R. Legates is an Emeritus Professor at the University of Delaware and is the Director of Research and Education at the Cornwall Alliance for the Stewardship of Creation.  He also is an Advisory Board Member of A Better Delaware.

Demanding Transparency: Why Delaware Needs to Hold Its Government Accountable

By: Jane Brady, Chair, A Better Delaware

We at A Better Delaware have long contended that more transparency is needed in Delaware’s government.  Information about what our elected officials are doing in their official roles and with our tax dollars should be readily available. Sadly, that is not the case. According to the Pioneer Institute, Delaware ranks among the six worst states for financial transparency.

We certainly saw evidence of a lack of transparency recently with the revelation, months later, that there had been a criminal embezzlement of public funds at the Department of Labor Unemployment office. Think of the complicity that such a deception required – co-workers of the individual who committed the crime, the individuals who investigated the matter within the agency, the police investigators, perhaps even the highest levels of our State government.  Yet they felt no obligation to report the incident publicly. And this is not a partisan issue – both Democrats and Republicans raised concerns, former Democrat legislator John Kowalko among the most vocal.

What if you want to know how well your student’s school is doing with promoting actual learning? Well, according to an expert in these matters, it takes six different “clicks” on the Department of Education website to get to the information. A bill that would have required that to be available from the Department’s Home Page failed in the General Assembly last year.

Did you know that while we have no sales tax in Delaware, we have a gross receipts tax, and that vendors, stores and companies are not allowed to display that tax as an addition to the cost of an item or service you purchase? Tax free shopping? Or invisible tax shopping? Delaware is one of only a few states that retain that tax in their funding structure.

Remember the heavy-handed, boulder-sized response the Governor and General Assembly had last session to address the state’s health care costs? They established a 5-person government appointed panel to review hospital budgets with the authority to reject a hospital’s proposed spending plans or to demand specific expenditures.  (Hospitals are now suing over that legislation.) Did you know that, at the same appropriations hearing at which the General Assembly authorized $700,000 to administer that oversight program, they also authorized expanded health care coverage and eliminated co-apays for state employees and retirees for certain medical procedures? And they wonder why the state’s health care costs are so high!

Why is transparency so important? Without transparency, there is no accountability.  If you don’t know how poorly your student’s school is performing, you won’t be at the school board hearing demanding better. If you don’t know there was embezzlement, you won’t demand better and more effective accounting systems. If you don’t know that the state is crying “wolf” on the one hand, and increasing costs on the other, you won’t ask them “Why?” If you aren’t aware of all the ways the government is getting its tax money, you won’t appreciate that it is not the business that is increasing prices to gouge you but raising them to cover the hidden costs of doing business in the state.

The Center for Public Integrity gives Delaware an “F.” Specific measures include State Budget Processes (42^nd), Internal Auditing (43^rd) Legislative Accountability (48^th) and Ethics Enforcement (43^rd).

Delaware needs to be more transparent, and our state officials need to be held accountable.  An Inspector General can assure an independent review of agency actions, and more transparency.  An ethics officer can assure better scrutiny of the conduct of state officials.  Delaware should pass laws to create both offices now. The citizens of our state deserve to know when, how and why our government is acting, and where our money is being spent.

Jane Brady serves as Chair of A Better Delaware. She previously served as Attorney General of Delaware and as a Judge of the Delaware Superior Court.

A Guide to the General Election: Stay Informed and Vote!

By: Jane Brady, Chair, A Better Delaware

The primary election is over, and the candidate slate for the general election to be held in November has been set.

We at A Better Delaware feel it is important for voters to be informed about where the candidates stand on the issues that are important to them.  Over the next several weeks, we are going to present information from materials prepared by the candidates, either electronically or printed, that express their positions on the core issues of education, energy, and the economy.

A Better Delaware will not be endorsing any specific candidate or telling you for which one you should vote. What we want to do to educate you about the candidates’ positions on the issues that we cover on a regular basis in order to help you make your decision about how to vote.  There will be links to the candidates’ websites so you can further explore those, and other, issues on your own.

Only 22% of eligible voters came to the polls on primary day. It’s a shame that more people don’t exercise the authority they have to determine who will govern them. Imagine it this way- your bothersome next-door neighbor that you don’t care much for and disagree with on everything could decide your future simply by pushing a couple of buttons. Sound appealing? Of course not.

Go to the polls and vote for the people you think will make your life better, improve your state and community and reflect your views as they conduct the government’s business.

There are a number of offices we will cover. The statewide offices – Governor, Lt. Governor, Insurance Commissioner, US House of Representatives, and US Senate.  We will also select a few local races we deem competitive, such as state legislature and perhaps even some county races.

This year is a presidential election year and voter turnout is usually higher for the general election in a presidential election year, but it’s a shame so few people engage in our election process.  So be committed to becoming informed and show up at the polls. Bring some friends with you and share the information you learn from our newsletters freely, with friends and your neighbors (except you know who!).

Jane Brady serves as Chair of A Better Delaware. She previously served as Attorney General of Delaware and as a Judge of the Delaware Superior Court.

The Crisis in Education Requires Our Attention

By: Nancy Mercante, Guest Contributor

Our moral obligation to the children is clear: we must nurture and educate them well. It’s time to apply this commitment to all children by fixing the failures of our public education system.

All children have a right to get a good education. It requires close teamwork among parents, teachers and students. Parents are solely responsible for the education and upbringing of their children in four areas: spiritual, moral, health and academic motivation. Teachers provide students with instruction in reading, writing, math, and critical thinking that enables children to achieve their full potential as productive members of society. Together, parents and educators should teach young people how to become good citizens who can think for themselves and make morally and socially wise decisions.

 Too many children who attend K-12 public schools in Delaware enter adulthood unprepared to lead successful lives. For decades Delaware public schools have failed to provide all children with an adequate education in a safe, caring environment supported by involved parents.

Many factors contribute to this sad situation. The most obvious one is the crowding out of emphasis on the basics: reading, writing and math. Leading causes are inefficient bureaucracy, ideological interference, and the influence of social media, both in and out of the classroom. We rely too much on teachers to manage and resolve long-standing social issues from within the classroom, limiting their time and ability to teach core subject matter in a controlled and predictable environment.

Despite spending an average of $20,000 per student in 2023 according to the Delaware Department of Education, children are promoted through the system without achieving grade level proficiency in the basic knowledge needed to prosper in life.

While Delaware spending on public schools is near the top in the nation, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) ranks Delaware students near the bottom in ability to master core subjects:

• 47^th in fourth grade reading
• 48^th in sixth grade reading
• 45^th in eighth grade math and reading

This means that about seven of ten Delaware public school students graduate without the skills they need in these core subjects.

For minority students, it’s much worse. In at least 17 schools with mostly minority students, fewer than one in ten students can read or do math at grade level. Research tells us that if children can’t read at grade level by third grade, they rarely recover. Instead, they get trapped in a system where they never catch up. This gives rise to a lifetime of underperformance that often leads to poverty, crime, drugs and even prison.

In short, the decline in Delaware’s public education system is devastating for these students, our communities and our state.

Public pressure could bring more change, but our voices aren’t loud enough yet. The general apathy about this situation is shocking. Many parents may think their kids are doing well because they get passing grades at school. Some parents are too busy working two jobs to make ends meet. Many others may simply lack the motivation or knowledge to help their own children.

Many parents are unaware that public-school districts actively promote ideologies that conflict with and undermine their own moral values.  Parents, citizens and organizations must unite to constantly reinforce the power of faith and the principles of hard work, resilience, and integrity upon which our nation was founded.

Whatever the reason for such apathy, we must change it and recognize the moral imperative to educate all children. Nothing will get better until parents and the public at large become aware of the true state of public education in Delaware and demand better. You can contribute immensely by leading an effort to promote a CAMPAIGN OF AWARENESS as a starting point to motivate people to act. We must accept responsibility for the education of all children.

Now is the time to commit to improving education to put all children within reach of the potential each and every one of them has been given.

Nancy Mercante had a career in corporate communications for major companies in the financial, pharmaceutical and telecommunications industries. She founded Citizens for Delaware Schools, a nonpartisan nonprofit, two years ago to advocate for a better education for every student in Delaware.