HB 293 — AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO PUBLIC COMMENT AT OPEN MEETINGS.
Last action — Signed by Governor
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✓Introduced
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✓In Committee
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✓Passed House
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✓Passed Senate
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✓To Executive
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6Enacted
This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced March 03, 2022. Enacted.
Odds of enactment
High chanceBased on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a high chance of becoming law.
Upgrade to see the exact probability and what's driving it.
A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.
Prognosis
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Enacted
Current position in the legislative process.
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14 sponsors
4 primary, 10 co-sponsors signed on.
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Bipartisan support
Sponsored across 2 parties (7 R · 4 D) — cross-party backing.
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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.
Summary
House Bill No. 293 requires that meetings of public bodies that are open to the public must provide an opportunity for public comment. Meetings of a public body of the General Assembly are excluded from the requirement to provide an opportunity for public comment because under § 9 of Art. II of the Delaware Constitution, the rules of proceedings for legislative meetings are established by the Senate and House of Representatives of each General Assembly. House Substitute No. 1 for House Bill No. 293 differs from House Bill No. 293 by revising the limitations a public body may impose on public comment as follows: 1. It requires that the time for public comment provide a meaningful opportunity for the public to engage with the public body. 2. Allows a public body to impose reasonable time, place, and manner restrictions on the length of the public comment period and the amount of time allotted for each person providing public comment. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual and requires a greater than majority vote for passage because § 1 of Article IX of the Delaware Constitution requires the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each house of the General Assembly to amend a charter issued to a municipal corporation.
Bill Text
- Bill Text View text Current pdf
Action History
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Signed by Governor
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Passed By Senate. Votes: 21 YES
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Reported Out of Committee (Executive) in Senate with 6 On Its Merits
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Reported Out of Committee (Executive) in Senate with 6 On Its Merits
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Assigned to Executive Committee in Senate
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Passed By House. Votes: 38 YES 3 ABSENT
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Reported Out of Committee (Administration) in House with 5 On Its Merits
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Adopted in lieu of the original bill HB 293, and Assigned to Administration Committee in House
Sponsors
- Stephanie L. Hansen · Primary
- Brian Pettyjohn · Primary
- Richard G. Collins · Primary
- Gerald W. Hocker · Cosponsor
- David L. Wilson · Cosponsor
- Eric Morrison · Cosponsor
- Bryan W. Shupe · Cosponsor
- Michael F. Smith · Cosponsor
- Kimberly Williams · Cosponsor
- Madinah Wilson-Anton · Cosponsor
- Lyndon D. Yearick · Cosponsor
- Ruth Briggs King · Cosponsor
- Ernesto B Lopez · Cosponsor
- Paul S. Baumbach · Primary
Sponsorship breakdown
Export CSV (upgrade) →4 sponsors · 10 co-sponsors · 48 not signed on
Sponsors (4)
- Stephanie L. Hansen Democratic
- Brian Pettyjohn Republican
- Richard G. Collins Republican
- Paul S. Baumbach
Co-sponsors (10)
- Gerald W. Hocker Republican
- David L. Wilson Republican
- Eric Morrison Democratic
- Bryan W. Shupe Republican
- Michael F. Smith Republican
- Kimberly Williams Democratic
- Madinah Wilson-Anton Democratic
- Lyndon D. Yearick Republican
- Ruth Briggs King
- Ernesto B Lopez
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.
Votes
| Party | Yea | Nay | Present | Not Voting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Democratic | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unaffiliated | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| % 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 |
| Party | Yea | Nay | Present | Not Voting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | 15 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Republican | 11 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Unaffiliated | 12 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 38 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| % of votes cast | 93% | 0% | 0% | 7% |
How each member voted (41)
Subjects
Frequently asked questions
- What does HB 293 do?
- House Bill No. 293 requires that meetings of public bodies that are open to the public must provide an opportunity for public comment. Meetings of a public body of the General Assembly are excluded from the requirement to provide an opportunity for public comment because under § 9 of Art. II of the Delaware Constitution, the rules of proceedings for legislative meetings are established by the Senate and House of Representatives of each General Assembly. House Substitute No. 1 for House Bill No. 293 differs from House Bill No. 293 by revising the limitations a public body may impose on public comment as follows: 1. It requires that the time for public comment provide a meaningful opportunity for the public to engage with the public body. 2. Allows a public body to impose reasonable time, place, and manner restrictions on the length of the public comment period and the amount of time allotted for each person providing public comment. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual and requires a greater than majority vote for passage because § 1 of Article IX of the Delaware Constitution requires the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each house of the General Assembly to amend a charter issued to a municipal corporation.
- Who sponsors HB 293?
- HB 293 is sponsored by Stephanie L. Hansen (Democratic), Brian Pettyjohn (Republican), Richard G. Collins (Republican), Gerald W. Hocker (Republican), David L. Wilson (Republican), Eric Morrison (Democratic), Bryan W. Shupe (Republican), Michael F. Smith (Republican), Kimberly Williams (Democratic), Madinah Wilson-Anton (Democratic), Lyndon D. Yearick (Republican), Ruth Briggs King, Ernesto B Lopez, and Paul S. Baumbach.
- What is the current status of HB 293?
- This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced March 03, 2022. Enacted.
- Where can I track HB 293?
- Track HB 293 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.
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