Delaware 153rd General Assembly (2025-2026) Status: Passed House Bipartisan · 7 D · 1 R cosponsors

HB 359 — AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 AND TITLE 31 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DISPOSITION OF HUMAN REMAINS.

Last action — Passed By Senate. Votes: 21 YES

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  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 15, 2026. It now moves to the second chamber.

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

Prognosis

Likely to advance 74% · high confidence

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

High

How often bills like it became law.

  • Passed House

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 10 sponsors

    10 primary, 0 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Bipartisan support

    Sponsored across 2 parties (7 D · 1 R) — cross-party backing.

  • Cleared a recorded vote

    Passed 2 recorded votes so far.

Prognosis reads this bill's own signals — stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes and cross-state momentum. Odds come from a model trained on which bills have become law.

In plain language

The Act allows the State to manage unclaimed bodies without needing family consent.

This legislation enables the State to bury or cremate unclaimed bodies of indigent individuals without requiring consent from next of kin. This change aims to reduce costs, save cemetery space, and minimize environmental impacts related to formaldehyde exposure.

What this means for you
  • Families: This means that families of indigent individuals will not need to provide consent for disposal of unclaimed remains.

Summary

This Act permits the State to bury or cremate an unclaimed body or remains of an indigent individual without requiring written consent of the next of kin or other legally responsible party. This statutory change will reduce costs, conserve cemetery space, and reduce environmental impacts by limiting formaldehyde exposure in the soil.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. Passed By Senate. Votes: 21 YES

  2. Reported Out of Committee (Health & Social Services) in Senate with 7 Favorable

  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 1 Favorable, 9 On Its Merits

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

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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10 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 52 not signed on

Sponsors (10)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (52)

52 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 52 →

"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

2/3

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 environment
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 359 do?
This Act permits the State to bury or cremate an unclaimed body or remains of an indigent individual without requiring written consent of the next of kin or other legally responsible party. This statutory change will reduce costs, conserve cemetery space, and reduce environmental impacts by limiting formaldehyde exposure in the soil.
Who sponsors HB 359?
HB 359 is sponsored by Stell Parker Selby, David L. Wilson (Republican), Russell Huxtable (Democratic), Kerri Evelyn Harris (Democratic), Claire Snyder-Hall (Democratic), Ray Seigfried (Democratic), Nicole Poore (Democratic), DeShanna U Neal (Democratic), Melanie Ross Levin (Democratic), and Sarah McBride.
What is the current status of HB 359?
This bill has passed the House. Introduced April 15, 2026. It now moves to the second chamber.
Where can I track HB 359?
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