Delaware 153rd General Assembly (2025-2026) Status: Passed House Bipartisan · 12 D · 2 R cosponsors

HB 445 — AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 26 AND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO LARGE ENERGY USE FACILITIES.

Last action — Passed By House. Votes: 26 YES 8 NO 7 NOT VOTING

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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 May 21, 2026. It now moves to the second chamber.

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

Prognosis

Advancing 58% · high confidence

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

Moderate

How often bills like it became law.

  • Passed House

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 14 sponsors

    14 primary, 0 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Bipartisan support

    Sponsored across 2 parties (12 D · 2 R) — cross-party backing.

  • Mixed recorded votes

    2 passed, 1 failed in 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 bill mandates large energy use facilities to produce all their energy from in-state renewable sources.

This bill requires large energy use facilities in Delaware to rely entirely on renewable energy produced within the state by their tenth year of operation. It also allows the Public Service Commission to regulate electric suppliers to maintain electric grid reliability.

What this means for you
  • Environment: This bill supports the transition to renewable energy, helping to reduce the carbon footprint of large energy use facilities.

Summary

This Act requires large energy use facilities to produce renewable energy within the state to power their operations to prevent a drain on the electric grid. It provides for a “ramp-up” period requiring that a large energy use facility provide a plan to the Public Service Commission to ramp up their energy production within the state each year so that by the 10th year of operations, the facility is producing 100% of its energy usage through in-state production. This Act also allows the Public Service Commission to regulate electric suppliers insofar as necessary to ensure that large energy use facilities do not negatively affect the reliability of the electric grid.

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

68 added · 104 removed

Plain-language change summary

The amendment to HB 445 alters the definition of "large energy use facility" by introducing new criteria related to energy demand and allowing for the aggregation of multiple facilities under certain conditions. It also modifies language related to the regulation of electric suppliers and changes terminology from "public electric grid" to "electric distribution and transmission system." These changes impact how large energy facilities are categorized and regulated, which in turn could affect their operational requirements and interactions with the state's energy infrastructure.

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Latest
Heffernan HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 153rd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE AMENDMENT NO.
Heffernan & Rep.
1 TO HOUSE BILL NO.
Minor-Brown & Sen.
445 AMEND House Bill No.
Hansen Reps.
445 by deleting lines 5 through 7 in their entirety and inserting in lieu thereof the following:
Gorman, K.
“(2)a.
Johnson, Morrison, Romer, Snyder- Hall, Gray, Griffith, Lambert, Ortega, Phillips;
“Large energy use facility” means a facility that does any of the following:
Sens.
1.
Hoffner, Wilson, Pinkney, Seigfried HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 153rd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE BILL NO.
Uses or is projected to use a monthly maximum demand of 50 megawatts or greater at a load factor of 85% or greater.
445 AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 26 AND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO LARGE ENERGY USE FACILITIES.
2.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:
Uses a monthly maximum instantaneous demand of 100 megawatts or greater.
Section 1.
3.
Amend § 102, Title 26 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows and by redesignating accordingly:
Uses or is able to use a monthly maximum demand of 30 megawatts or greater and is primarily engaged in providing a service described under code 518210 of the 2022 North American Industry Classification System.
§ 102.
b.
Definitions.
Multiple facilities may be aggregated and treated as a large energy use facility for the purposes of this definition based on close physical proximity, common ownership or control, or ownership or control through an affiliated company, sharing of local electrical infrastructure, and reliability risks to the electric system because of their size, proximity, and operational characteristics.”.
As used in this title, unless the context otherwise requires:
FURTHER AMEND House Bill No.
(2) “Large energy use facility” means a facility that uses or is able to use 30 megawatts or more and is primarily engaged in providing a service described under code 518210 of the 2022 North American Industry Classification System.
445 on line 13 by deleting “public electric grid,” as it appears therein and inserting in lieu thereof “electric distribution and transmission system,”.
Section 2.
FURTHER AMEND House Bill No.
Amend § 202, Title 26 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows:
445 by deleting lines 21 through 30 in their entirety and inserting in lieu thereof the following:
§ 202.
“(a)(1) Large energy use facilities may not operate in the State unless the facility produces sufficient power in the state or procures sufficient generation to support its operations, subject to subsection (b) of this section.
Limitations on jurisdiction of Commission.
(2) Procured generation must be from a facility or facilities interconnected in the State or within PJM’s DPL transmission zone or within a transmission zone contiguous by land to the DPL transmission zone, with sufficient existing transmission infrastructure to deliver this additional electricity to Delaware, and which has not been already committed in a prior PJM capacity auction.
(f) Except insofar as may be necessary to implement Chapter 10 of this title regarding the establishment of retail competition, competition and as may be necessary to ensure large energy use facilities do not negatively affect the reliability and affordability of the public electric grid, the Commission shall have no supervision or regulation over any electric supplier.
This may include newly constructed generation at an existing facility, uprates, or repowering of deactivated or retired generating units as of June 12, 2026;
Section 3.
provided that capacity that HD :
Amend Chapter 80, Title 29 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows and redesignate accordingly:
§ 8052.
Definitions.
For the purposes of this subchapter:
(3) “Large energy use facility” means as defined under § 102 of Title 26.
§ 8066.
Large energy use facilities.
(a) Large energy use facilities may not operate in the state unless the facility produces sufficient power in the state to support its operations, subject to subsection (b) of this section.
All power generated in the state must meet the HD :
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06/16/2026 11:50 AM previously participated in the PJM Base Residual Auction shall qualify only to the extent attributable to such uprate or repowering.
05/21/2026 12:09 PM renewable energy portfolio standards established under Subchapter III of Chapter 1 of Title 26, except that a facility may use a combination of one or more of the following to meet the percentage thresholds established therein:
(3) All power generated in the State must meet the renewable energy portfolio standards established under Subchapter III-A of Chapter 1 of Title 26, except that a facility may use a combination of 1 or more of the following forms of acceptable clean energy technology to meet the percentage thresholds established therein:
Generation eligible for compliance with the renewable energy portfolio standards or any successor clean energy standards and interconnecting in Delaware.
An eligible energy resource as defined in Subchapter III of Chapter 1 of Title 26.
c.
(b) A large energy use facility that does not anticipate producing sufficient power within the state to support its operations immediately must submit to the Public Service Commission a plan to increase the facility’s energy production in the State each year so that the facility is producing 100% of its annual energy needs within 10 years of commencing operations.
Energy storage interconnecting in Delaware and used for the primary purpose of storing energy generated from resources outlined in this subsection and subsection (b) of this section.
(1) New energy production generation must be sought out and funded by the large energy use facility or in part by the large energy use facility.
(4) Compliance with this subsection may be achieved through any combination of procurement of renewable or clean energy resources, onsite or directly interconnected generation, power purchase agreements, or other Commission-approved mechanisms.
(2) The large energy use facility may not connect to the public electric grid until it has at least 25% of its required energy generation online.
(5) A single-cycle or open-cycle power generation facility is not an acceptable clean energy generation technology for purposes of this subsection.
The energy generation must meet the renewable energy portfolio standards under Subchapter III of Chapter I of Title 26, except that a facility may use a combination of one or more of the following to meet the percentage thresholds established therein:
(b) A large energy use facility that does not meet the requirements of subsection (a) of this section must submit for approval by the electric utility’s regulatory body a plan to increase the facility’s energy production in the State or procurement from a facility or facilities interconnected in the State or within PJM’s DPL transmission zone or within a transmission zone contiguous by land to the DPL transmission zone so that the large energy use facility is producing or procuring 100% of its annual energy needs within 10 years of commencing operations.”.
a.
FURTHER AMEND House Bill No.
An eligible energy resource as defined in Subchapter III of Chapter 1 of Title 26.
Show all 86 changed rows (46 more)
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445 on line 30 after “operations.” as it appears therein by inserting “Large energy use facilities choosing this option are curtailable for price cost impact thresholds determined by the Commission and reliability events determined by PJM Interconnection or Delmarva Power and must participate in PJM demand response programs.
b.
Large energy use facilities utilizing this option that continue to operate during curtailment periods must use back-up generation systems including at least 50% power met by battery storage or clean energy technology.”.
Nuclear power.
FURTHER AMEND House Bill No.
(3) The large use energy facility may not connect to the public electric grid unless it has entered a 30-year binding contract with the Public Service Commission that contains, at a minimum, a guaranteed insurance bond that pays into the General Fund if the large energy use facility attempts to terminate the contract or goes bankrupt.
445 on line 31 by deleting “(1)” as it appears therein and inserting in lieu thereof “(c)”.
(c) A large energy use facility that fails to produce sufficient renewable energy in the state to support its obligations in a calendar year, or the planned amount of energy if subject to an agreement under subsection (b) of this section, must pay a penalty in an amount determined by the Public Service Commission, which must be sufficient to cover the costs of producing the energy or creating the infrastructure that the facility failed to produce or create.
FURTHER AMEND House Bill No.
(d) A large energy use facility must pay for any upgrades to transmission and energy delivery required by the facility, as well as new energy generation facilities, as determined by the Public Service Commission.
445 by deleting lines 33 through 41 in their entirety and inserting in lieu thereof the following:
Any costs incurred by the Public Service Commission to make determinations or manage the requirements of this section with respect to a large energy use facility may also be recovered from the large energy use facility.
SYNOPSIS This Act requires large energy use facilities to produce renewable energy within the state to power their operations to prevent a drain on the electric grid.
It provides for a “ramp-up” period requiring that a large energy use facility provide a plan to the Public Service Commission to ramp up their energy production within the state each year so that by the 10th year of operations, the facility is producing 100% of its energy usage through in-state production.
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06/16/2026 11:50 AM “(d) A large energy use facility may not connect to the electric distribution and transmission system until all of the following criteria are met:
05/21/2026 12:09 PM This Act also allows the Public Service Commission to regulate electric suppliers insofar as necessary to ensure that large energy use facilities do not negatively affect the reliability of the electric grid.
(1) At least 25% of its required energy generation consistent with subsection (a) of this section is energized and interconnected.
(2) At least 25% of back-up power comes from clean energy technology and is energized and interconnected.
(3) The large energy facility has entered a 15-year binding contract with the Public Service Commission that contains, at a minimum, a guaranteed insurance bond that pays into the General Fund if the large energy use facility fails to meet its obligation to produce or procure the required amount of clean energy in the State in any year;
attempts to terminate the contract;
files for bankruptcy, insolvency, restructuring, or any similar undertaking;
or violates any provision of this section.
This is in addition to any other enforcement authority of the Commission.”.
FURTHER AMEND House Bill No.
445 on line 42 by deleting “(c)” as it appears therein and inserting in lieu thereof “(e)”.
FURTHER AMEND House Bill No.
445 on line 44 by deleting “Public Service Commission, which” and inserting in lieu thereof “electric utility’s regulatory body, which at a minimum”.
FURTHER AMEND House Bill No.
445 on line 45 by deleting “the energy or creating the infrastructure that the facility failed to produce or create.” as it appears therein and inserting in lieu thereof “or procuring the energy or building or procuring the infrastructure that the facility failed to produce or procure.” FURTHER AMEND House Bill No.
445 by deleting lines 46 through 49 in their entirety and inserting in lieu thereof the following:
“(f) Any costs incurred by the electric utility’s regulatory body to make determinations or manage the requirements of this section with respect to a large energy use facility may also be recovered from the large energy use facility.
(g) The regulatory body of an electric utility is authorized to promulgate regulations to fully define the requirements necessary for the implementation of this section.”.
FURTHER AMEND House Bill No.
445 by inserting the following after line 49:
Section 4.
Nothing in this Act precludes an electric distribution company from imposing additional requirements on a large energy use facility.
SYNOPSIS This Amendment to House Bill No.
445 updates the Act to incorporate a standardized definition of what constitutes a large energy use facility;
allows the procurement of new power generation, in addition to building new power generation;
expands the location of acceptable energy generation to include PJM transmission zones contiguous by land with the DPL zone with sufficient transmission resources, thereby allowing generation like expansions of the Salem nuclear HD :
GOG :
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06/16/2026 11:50 AM generation facility or other nearby generation to comply;
clarifies the definition of new generation to ensure new large energy use facilities are bringing truly new or expanded generation;
clarifies the types of generation resources that are eligible as clean energy generation;
excludes single-cycle or open cycle generation as acceptable forms of generation;
specifies that large energy use facilities that rely on a 10-year plan to meet compliance may be curtailable and must meet a minimum component of clean or storage as backup forms of generation if they continue to operate;
makes the required contract with the Public Service Commission 15 years, instead of 30 years, and clarifies its scope;
and allows the regulatory body of an electric utility to adopt regulations to implement these requirements and recover costs from large energy use facilities.
This Amendment also clarifies that nothing in the Act precludes an electric distribution company from imposing additional requirements on a large energy use facility.
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Action History

  1. Passed By House. Votes: 26 YES 8 NO 7 NOT VOTING

  2. Defeated By House. Votes: 15 YES 26 NO. Reason Taken: motion to recess to read amendment - HB 445 w HA 1 and SA 3

  3. Passed By Senate. Votes: 21 YES

  4. Amendment SA 3 to HB 445 - Passed By Senate. Votes: 21 YES

  5. Amendment SA 2 to HB 445 - Stricken in Senate

  6. Amendment SA 1 to HB 445 - Stricken in Senate

  7. Reported Out of Committee (Environment, Energy & Transportation) in Senate with 2 Favorable, 3 On Its Merits

  8. Amendment SA 3 to HB 445 - Introduced and Placed With Bill

  9. Amendment SA 2 to HB 445 - Introduced and Placed With Bill

  10. Amendment SA 1 to HB 445 - Introduced and Placed With Bill

  11. Assigned to Environment, Energy & Transportation Committee in Senate

  12. Passed By House. Votes: 31 YES 5 NO 5 ABSENT

  13. Amendment HA 1 to HB 445 - Passed In House by Voice Vote

  14. Amendment HA 1 to HB 445 - Introduced and Placed With Bill

  15. Reported Out of Committee (Natural Resources & Energy) in House with 1 Favorable, 7 On Its Merits

  16. Introduced and Assigned to Natural Resources & Energy Committee in House

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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14 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 48 not signed on · 23 voted No

Sponsors (14)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (48)

48 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 48 →

"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

SM

Failed 15 Yea · 26 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 22500
Republican 13100
Total 152600
% of votes cast 37%63%0%0%
How each member voted (41)
Member Party Vote
Alonna Berry Democratic Nay
Claire Snyder-Hall Democratic Nay
Cyndie Romer Democratic Nay
DeShanna U Neal Democratic Nay
Debra Heffernan Democratic Nay
Edward S. Osienski Democratic Nay
Eric Morrison Democratic Nay
Frank Burns Democratic Nay
Franklin D. Cooke Democratic Nay
Josue O Ortega Democratic Nay
Kamela T Smith Democratic Nay
Kendra Johnson Democratic Nay
Kerri Evelyn Harris Democratic Nay
Kimberly Williams Democratic Nay
Krista Griffith Democratic Nay
Larry Lambert Democratic Nay
Madinah Wilson-Anton Democratic Yea
Mara Gorman Democratic Nay
Melanie Ross Levin Democratic Nay
Melissa Minor-Brown Democratic Nay
Nnamdi O. Chukwuocha Democratic Nay
Sean M. Lynn Democratic Nay
Sherae'a Moore Democratic Yea
Sophie Phillips Democratic Nay
Stephanie T. Bolden Democratic Nay
William Bush Democratic Nay
William J. Carson Democratic Nay
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 Yea
Lyndon D. Yearick Republican Yea
Michael F. Smith Republican Yea
Richard G. Collins Republican Yea
Ronald E. Gray Republican Yea
Shannon Morris Republican Yea
Timothy D. Dukes Republican Nay
Valerie Jones Giltner Republican Yea

Official roll call →

SM

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 31 Yea · 5 Nay · 5 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 27000
Republican 4505
Total 31505
% of votes cast 76%12%0%12%
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 Yea
Sean M. Lynn Democratic Yea
Sherae'a Moore Democratic Yea
Sophie Phillips Democratic Yea
Stephanie T. Bolden Democratic Yea
William Bush Democratic Yea
William J. Carson Democratic Yea
Bryan W. Shupe Republican Nay
Charles S Postles Jr. Republican Not Voting
Daniel B. Short Republican Yea
Jeff Hilovsky Republican Not Voting
Jeffrey N. Spiegelman Republican Yea
Jesse R. Vanderwende Republican Not Voting
Kevin S Hensley Republican Not Voting
Lyndon D. Yearick Republican Nay
Michael F. Smith Republican Yea
Richard G. Collins Republican Nay
Ronald E. Gray Republican Yea
Shannon Morris Republican Not Voting
Timothy D. Dukes Republican Nay
Valerie Jones Giltner Republican Nay

Official roll call →

Subjects

public-safety energy
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 445 do?
This Act requires large energy use facilities to produce renewable energy within the state to power their operations to prevent a drain on the electric grid. It provides for a “ramp-up” period requiring that a large energy use facility provide a plan to the Public Service Commission to ramp up their energy production within the state each year so that by the 10th year of operations, the facility is producing 100% of its energy usage through in-state production. This Act also allows the Public Service Commission to regulate electric suppliers insofar as necessary to ensure that large energy use facilities do not negatively affect the reliability of the electric grid.
Who sponsors HB 445?
HB 445 is sponsored by Marie Pinkney (Democratic), David L. Wilson (Republican), Josue O Ortega (Democratic), Spiros Mantzavinos (Democratic), Nicole Poore (Democratic), Ronald E. Gray (Republican), Claire Snyder-Hall (Democratic), Cyndie Romer (Democratic), Eric Morrison (Democratic), Ray Seigfried (Democratic), Mara Gorman (Democratic), Trey Paradee (Democratic), Debra Heffernan (Democratic), and Melanie Ross Levin (Democratic).
What is the current status of HB 445?
This bill has passed the House. Introduced May 21, 2026. It now moves to the second chamber.
Where can I track HB 445?
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