Delaware 153rd General Assembly (2025-2026) Status: Passed House Bipartisan · 6 D · 1 R cosponsors

HB 357 — AN ACT TO AMEND TITLES 10 AND 13 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DUTY TO SUPPORT POOR PERSONS.

Last action — Passed By Senate. Votes: 21 YES

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed House
  4. 4
    Passed Senate
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill has passed the House. Introduced April 09, 2026. It now moves to the second chamber.

Next likely step: consideration and a floor vote in the Senate.

Odds of enactment

High chance

Based on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a high chance of becoming law.

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A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.

Prognosis

Likely to advance 74% · high confidence

  • Passed House

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 7 sponsors

    7 primary, 0 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Bipartisan support

    Sponsored across 2 parties (6 D · 1 R) — cross-party backing.

  • Cleared a recorded vote

    Passed 2 recorded votes so far.

Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.

In plain language

This bill updates language related to support for individuals unable to financially support themselves.

The bill replaces the term 'poor person' with 'a person unable to financially support oneself' in Delaware law. It also clarifies that parents must support adult children with disabilities who cannot support themselves.

What this means for you
  • Families: Families with adult children who have disabilities may find more clarity on their legal obligations for support.

Summary

This Act updates § 503 of Title 13 by replacing the outdated term “poor person” with the term, “a person unable to financially support oneself”. This language change is a technical change to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. In addition, this Act clarifies that § 503 of the Title 13, relating to the duty to support a person unable to financially support oneself (formerly “poor person”), includes the duty to a support an adult child with a disability that cannot support oneself. This duty is articulated in H. v. V., 2018 Del. Fam. Ct. LEXIS 4, where the Family Court found that a parent of a 22 year-old adult child diagnosed with severe autism was statutorily obligated to provide support to the adult child.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. Passed By Senate. Votes: 21 YES

  2. Reported Out of Committee (Health & Social Services) in Senate with 4 Favorable, 1 On Its Merits

  3. Assigned to Health & Social Services Committee in Senate

  4. Passed By House. Votes: 37 YES 4 ABSENT

  5. Reported Out of Committee (Health & Human Development) in House with 9 On Its Merits

  6. Introduced and Assigned to Health & Human Development Committee in House

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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7 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 55 not signed on

Sponsors (7)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (55)

55 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 55 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Votes

3/4

Passed 21 Yea · 0 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 15000
Republican 6000
Total 21000
% of votes cast 100%0%0%0%
How each member voted (21)
Member Party Vote
Bryan Townsend Democratic Yea
Daniel Cruce Democratic Yea
Darius J. Brown Democratic Yea
David P. Sokola Democratic Yea
John "Jack" Walsh Democratic Yea
Kyra L. Hoffner Democratic Yea
Laura V. Sturgeon Democratic Yea
Marie Pinkney Democratic Yea
Nicole Poore Democratic Yea
Ray Seigfried Democratic Yea
Russell Huxtable Democratic Yea
S. Elizabeth Lockman Democratic Yea
Spiros Mantzavinos Democratic Yea
Stephanie L. Hansen Democratic Yea
Trey Paradee Democratic Yea
Brian Pettyjohn Republican Yea
Bryant L. Richardson Republican Yea
Dave G. Lawson Republican Yea
David L. Wilson Republican Yea
Eric Buckson Republican Yea
Gerald W. Hocker Republican Yea

Official roll call →

SM

Passed 37 Yea · 0 Nay · 4 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 25002
Republican 12002
Total 37004
% of votes cast 90%0%0%10%
How each member voted (41)
Member Party Vote
Alonna Berry Democratic Yea
Claire Snyder-Hall Democratic Yea
Cyndie Romer Democratic Yea
DeShanna U Neal Democratic Yea
Debra Heffernan Democratic Yea
Edward S. Osienski Democratic Yea
Eric Morrison Democratic Yea
Frank Burns Democratic Yea
Franklin D. Cooke Democratic Yea
Josue O Ortega Democratic Yea
Kamela T Smith Democratic Yea
Kendra Johnson Democratic Yea
Kerri Evelyn Harris Democratic Yea
Kimberly Williams Democratic Yea
Krista Griffith Democratic Yea
Larry Lambert Democratic Yea
Madinah Wilson-Anton Democratic Yea
Mara Gorman Democratic Yea
Melanie Ross Levin Democratic Yea
Melissa Minor-Brown Democratic Yea
Nnamdi O. Chukwuocha Democratic Not Voting
Sean M. Lynn Democratic Yea
Sherae'a Moore Democratic Not Voting
Sophie Phillips Democratic Yea
Stephanie T. Bolden Democratic Yea
William Bush Democratic Yea
William J. Carson Democratic Yea
Bryan W. Shupe Republican Yea
Charles S Postles Jr. Republican Yea
Daniel B. Short Republican Yea
Jeff Hilovsky Republican Yea
Jeffrey N. Spiegelman Republican Yea
Jesse R. Vanderwende Republican Yea
Kevin S Hensley Republican Not Voting
Lyndon D. Yearick Republican Yea
Michael F. Smith Republican Not Voting
Richard G. Collins Republican Yea
Ronald E. Gray Republican Yea
Shannon Morris Republican Yea
Timothy D. Dukes Republican Yea
Valerie Jones Giltner Republican Yea

Official roll call →

Subjects

public-safety housing civil-rights labor
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does HB 357 do?
This Act updates § 503 of Title 13 by replacing the outdated term “poor person” with the term, “a person unable to financially support oneself”. This language change is a technical change to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. In addition, this Act clarifies that § 503 of the Title 13, relating to the duty to support a person unable to financially support oneself (formerly “poor person”), includes the duty to a support an adult child with a disability that cannot support oneself. This duty is articulated in H. v. V., 2018 Del. Fam. Ct. LEXIS 4, where the Family Court found that a parent of a 22 year-old adult child diagnosed with severe autism was statutorily obligated to provide support to the adult child.
Who sponsors HB 357?
HB 357 is sponsored by David L. Wilson (Republican), Claire Snyder-Hall (Democratic), Spiros Mantzavinos (Democratic), Ray Seigfried (Democratic), Mara Gorman (Democratic), Nicole Poore (Democratic), and Melanie Ross Levin (Democratic).
What is the current status of HB 357?
This bill has passed the House. Introduced April 09, 2026. It now moves to the second chamber.
Where can I track HB 357?
Track HB 357 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

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