Delaware 151st General Assembly (2021-2022) Status: Passed Senate Bipartisan · 24 D · 5 R cosponsors

SB 31 — AN ACT CONCURRING IN A PROPOSED AMENDMENT TO ARTICLE I OF THE DELAWARE CONSTITUTION RELATING TO EQUAL RIGHTS.

Last action — Passed By House. Votes: 41 YES

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

This bill died with 151st General Assembly (2021-2022). It reached “Passed Senate” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.

This bill is no longer active — its legislative session has ended, so there is no live prognosis. It would have to be reintroduced in the current session to move again.

Summary

This Act is the second leg of a constitutional amendment to add race, color, and national origin to § 21 of Article I of the Delaware Constitution to explicitly declare that protection against discrimination based on race, color, and national origin is one of Delaware's fundamental rights. The first leg of this constitutional amendment was Senate Bill 191 of the 150th General Assembly, published in Chapter 287 of Volume 82 of the Laws of Delaware. On passage of this second leg by this General Assembly this amendment will become part of the Delaware Constitution. Since the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution was adopted on July 9, 1868, with Delaware ratifying it in 1901, at least 15 states have added a provision to their state constitution that prohibits the denial or abridgement of equal rights under the law based on race, color, or national origin. In 2019, Delaware amended the state constitution to prohibit the denial or abridgement of equal rights under the law based on sex, but no such prohibition exists as to race, color, or national origin. This Act requires a greater than majority vote for passage because § 1 of Article XVI of the Delaware Constitution requires the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each house of the General Assembly when the General Assembly amends the Delaware Constitution.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. Passed By House. Votes: 41 YES

  2. Reported Out of Committee (Administration) in House with 4 Favorable, 1 On Its Merits

  3. Assigned to Administration Committee in House

  4. Passed By Senate. Votes: 21 YES

  5. Reported Out of Committee (Executive) in Senate with 6 Favorable

  6. Introduced and Assigned to Executive Committee in Senate

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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10 sponsors · 35 co-sponsors · 33 not signed on

Sponsors (10)

Co-sponsors (35)

Not signed on (33)

33 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 33 →

"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 41 Yea · 0 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 13000
Democratic 16000
Republican 12000
Total 41000
% of votes cast 100%0%0%0%
How each member voted (41)
Member Party Vote
Andria L. Bennett — Yea
David Bentz — Yea
Gerald L. Brady — Yea
John A. Kowalko — Yea
John L. Mitchell — Yea
Michael Ramone — Yea
Paul S. Baumbach — Yea
Peter C. Schwartzkopf — Yea
Ruth Briggs King — Yea
Sean Matthews — Yea
Sherry Dorsey Walker — Yea
Stephen Smyk — Yea
Valerie Longhurst — Yea
Debra Heffernan Democratic Yea
Edward S. Osienski Democratic Yea
Eric Morrison Democratic Yea
Franklin D. Cooke Democratic Yea
Kendra Johnson Democratic Yea
Kimberly Williams Democratic Yea
Krista Griffith Democratic Yea
Larry Lambert Democratic Yea
Madinah Wilson-Anton Democratic Yea
Melissa Minor-Brown Democratic Yea
Nnamdi O. Chukwuocha Democratic Yea
Sean M. Lynn Democratic Yea
Sherae'a Moore 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
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 Yea

Official roll call →

2/3

Passed 21 Yea · 0 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 5000
Democratic 11000
Republican 5000
Total 21000
% of votes cast 100%0%0%0%
How each member voted (21)
Member Party Vote
Bruce C. Ennis — Yea
Colin Bonini — Yea
Ernesto B Lopez — Yea
Kyle Evans Gay — Yea
Sarah McBride — Yea
Bryan Townsend Democratic Yea
Darius J. Brown Democratic Yea
David P. Sokola Democratic Yea
John "Jack" Walsh Democratic Yea
Laura V. Sturgeon Democratic Yea
Marie Pinkney Democratic Yea
Nicole Poore 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
Gerald W. Hocker Republican Yea

Official roll call →

Subjects

civil-rights
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Frequently asked questions

What does SB 31 do?
This Act is the second leg of a constitutional amendment to add race, color, and national origin to § 21 of Article I of the Delaware Constitution to explicitly declare that protection against discrimination based on race, color, and national origin is one of Delaware's fundamental rights. The first leg of this constitutional amendment was Senate Bill 191 of the 150th General Assembly, published in Chapter 287 of Volume 82 of the Laws of Delaware. On passage of this second leg by this General Assembly this amendment will become part of the Delaware Constitution. Since the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution was adopted on July 9, 1868, with Delaware ratifying it in 1901, at least 15 states have added a provision to their state constitution that prohibits the denial or abridgement of equal rights under the law based on race, color, or national origin. In 2019, Delaware amended the state constitution to prohibit the denial or abridgement of equal rights under the law based on sex, but no such prohibition exists as to race, color, or national origin. This Act requires a greater than majority vote for passage because § 1 of Article XVI of the Delaware Constitution requires the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each house of the General Assembly when the General Assembly amends the Delaware Constitution.
Who sponsors SB 31?
SB 31 is sponsored by Kyle Evans Gay, William Bush (Democratic), Franklin D. Cooke (Democratic), Krista Griffith (Democratic), Debra Heffernan (Democratic), Darius J. Brown (Democratic), Bryan Townsend (Democratic), Marie Pinkney (Democratic), Laura V. Sturgeon (Democratic), Kendra Johnson (Democratic), Larry Lambert (Democratic), Melissa Minor-Brown (Democratic), Sherae'a Moore (Democratic), Stephanie L. Hansen (Democratic), Gerald W. Hocker (Republican), Dave G. Lawson (Republican), S. Elizabeth Lockman (Democratic), Spiros Mantzavinos (Democratic), Trey Paradee (Democratic), Brian Pettyjohn (Republican), Nicole Poore (Democratic), Bryant L. Richardson (Republican), David P. Sokola (Democratic), John "Jack" Walsh (Democratic), David L. Wilson (Republican), Sean M. Lynn (Democratic), Eric Morrison (Democratic), Edward S. Osienski (Democratic), Kimberly Williams (Democratic), Madinah Wilson-Anton (Democratic), Peter C. Schwartzkopf, Michael Ramone, John L. Mitchell, Sean Matthews, Valerie Longhurst, John A. Kowalko, Ruth Briggs King, Gerald L. Brady, Andria L. Bennett, Paul S. Baumbach, Sarah McBride, Bruce C. Ennis, Colin Bonini, Sherry Dorsey Walker, and Ernesto B Lopez.
What is the current status of SB 31?
This bill died with 151st General Assembly (2021-2022). It reached “Passed Senate” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.
Where can I track SB 31?
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