Welcome to The Press Room, a weekly roundup of the major stories and happenings of the 2023 Delaware legislative year.
This week’s edition focuses on Republicans being against the newest state Supreme Court justices, an attempt to have absentee voting and an ambitious climate change package.
As always, send story tips, feedback, ideas or gossip to me at mnewman@delawareonline.com.
Follow me on Twitter at @MereNewman.
Republicans denounce governor’s Supreme Court nominees
The Delaware Senate voted to confirm two Delaware Supreme Court nominees last week, including the first Black man to ever serve on the state’s highest court.
Gov. John Carney nominated lawyer Christopher Griffiths and Judge Abigail LeGrow, who serves on the Delaware Superior Court.
These two will fill the seats of Justice Tamika Montgomery-Reeves and Justice James Vaughn Jr.
Montgomery-Reeves, the first Black person to serve on the Delaware Supreme Court, is now on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit. Vaughn is retiring after 25 years as a judge.
Yet Republicans, who are in the minority, blasted the nominees, mainly because of the lack of Kent County representation.
During floor debate, GOP senators called both nominees “very fine people” and said the votes against them were not because of their backgrounds. Some even apologized for voting against them. But the lawmakers said they felt insulted that the Kent County residents do not have a voice on the Supreme Court.
“I am absolutely embarrassed by the governor putting these two fine people in the middle of this quagmire,” said Sen. Dave Lawson, a Republican representing Marydel.
The Republican caucus in a statement said Carney’s decision to not have representation of Kent County is “both unprecedented and disappointing.”
The senators said they have “received an extraordinary number of calls and emails from members of the legal community throughout the state, predominantly from Kent County” about these nominations. They said it was “unfortunate” that Carney “placed both Judge LeGrow and Mr. Griffiths in this situation.” These protests from Republicans did not make much of an impact because Democrats have a supermajority in the Senate.
Republicans, also in a statement, took some concern with Griffiths’ recent DUI arrest, which was then downgraded to a reckless driving charge – a traffic violation. He pleaded guilty last month and is on probation. GOP senators did not raise this issue regarding Griffiths during the Senate floor debate last week. The focus was on Carney ignoring Kent County representation.
Griffiths was asked about it during a committee hearing, just before the confirmation vote. He acknowledged that he was pulled over by a police officer on Jan. 28 and said he had too much to drink and “shouldn’t have been driving.”
“The severity of my actions is not lost on me and I don’t try to not underscore it,” he said. “It’s well below my personal standard. And I can guarantee to you that it will never happen again.”
Despite any concerns raised, the governor continues to support both nominees.
“Judge LeGrow and Chris have the experience, knowledge, and commitment to public service necessary to serve on the Supreme Court,” Carney said in a statement after the vote. “Their service will be beneficial to all Delawareans.”
There is a bill that recently passed with overwhelming bipartisan support in the House that would require at least one justice to be a resident of Kent County. There would also be at least one justice representing Sussex County and at least two justices from New Castle County. It now makes its way to the Senate.
Supreme Court justices in Delaware serve 12-year terms.
Delaware looks to reduce greenhouses gas net emissions by 100% by 2050
House lawmakers introduced the state’s most ambitious package of climate change bills last week, which would radically reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the First State.
The package, led by Reps. Debra Heffernan and Sophie Phillips, includes eight bills that lawmakers say will reduce greenhouse gas net emissions by 50% by 2030 and reach a 100% net reduction by 2050.
INSIDE LEG HALL:Delaware lawmakers introduce bills to dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2050
It includes:
- Requiring all state-owned passenger and light-duty vehicles to be zero emission by 2040. It includes targets in which 15% of these vehicles must be zero emission by 2026, then 25% by 2029, and 50% by 2032. Law enforcement and school district vehicles would not be included.
- Starting in 2025, new commercial buildings with a foundation footprint of 50,000 square feet or greater would need to have a roof that supports solar infrastructure.
- Newly constructed single-family and multifamily residential dwellings would be required to include electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
Here we go again: Democrats try again with changing absentee voting
Democrats are once again attempting to expand voting access in Delaware, even after the state Supreme Court ruling overturning vote-by-mail.
In October, the state’s highest court ruled that vote-by-mail legislation, which was a signature achievement for Democrats last session, was unconstitutional. This legislation would have allowed residents to request a mail-in ballot. Lawmakers passed this bill with a simple majority, as opposed to attempting to make it a constitutional amendment, which requires a higher threshold of support.
BACKGROUND:Delaware Supreme Court finds vote by mail, same-day registration unconstitutional
Now, because of the ruling, Democrats are back to trying to expand access through a constitutional amendment.
This new bill, which the Senate passed Thursday, eliminates the existing limitations on absentee voting (in which a person needs to provide an acceptable excuse) and allows the General Assembly to pass laws relating to absentee voting procedures. It heads to the House, where Democrats do not have a supermajority.
Because it is a constitutional amendment, it must have two-thirds support in each body and pass in two consecutive legislative sessions. Since this is the first year of the 152nd session, this bill still has a long road ahead.
What else to keep an eye on
- Senate Bill 2: The major gun control bill of the session (so far) has passed the Senate. This bill, a version of which the Senate has tried to pass for years, would require Delawareans to obtain a permit and complete training before purchasing a handgun. It passed in the Senate last week, with (not surprisingly) no Republicans supporting the measure. It will soon be heard in the House of Representatives, where previous versions have stalled.
- RISE Delaware, the group fighting the changes to state retirees’ health care, is hosting a rally at Legislative Hall from 1 to 2:30 p.m. on May 9. Despite the state temporarily stopping these changes, retirees are still upset with how the Carney administration and lawmakers have handled this issue. Litigation is also ongoing.
