June 11, 2026 Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control | Division of Watershed Stewardship | Newsroom Low tide on the Indian River navigation channel near Millsboro. Two DNREC projects are under way to make the channel more navigable and restore a nearby marsh via beneficial reuse of the dredged material. Both projects will continue through March 2027. /Delaware DNREC photo The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control continues to co

June 11, 2026 Joseph Fulgham, Director of Policy and Communications, Delaware House of Representatives Republican Caucus CLICK TO VIEW THE OPINION VIDEO: The Delaware John Lewis Voting Rights Act was released by the House Elections & Government Affairs Committee on Wednesday. House Bill 444 is a state-level framework to prevent voter suppression, vote dilution, and other discriminatory election practices. While apparently well-intentioned, the flawed bill is being fast-tracke

June 11, 2026 Delaware Senate Republicans DOVER, DE — Senate Bill 219 with Senate Amendment 1, legislation sponsored by Senator Eric Buckson (R – South Dover), passed the Delaware State Senate today and now heads to the House of Representatives for further consideration. SB 219 builds on prior efforts to support Delaware’s military retirees by increasing the state income tax exemption for military pension income. Currently set at $12,500, the exemption will be phased in over

June 11, 2026 Delaware Senate Republicans DOVER, DE — Senate Bill 53, sponsored by Senate Republican Leader Gerald Hocker (R – Ocean View), passed the Delaware State Senate today, would codify the Delaware Farm to Community Program into state law to strengthen local food access, support Delaware farmers, and build long-term resilience in the state’s food supply system. The Farm to Community Program was launched in 2023 through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Local Food P

June 11, 2026 Rep. Vanderwende is proud to be a co-sponsor of Senate Bill 211 with Senate Amendment 1, which was released from committee earlier this week. This legislation expands the Governor’s Council on Agriculture by requiring that at least one seat be reserved for a livestock or poultry farmer and one for a farmer 40 years of age or younger. This ensures that the livestock and poultry sectors, along with the next generation of farmers, have a guaranteed voice in shap

June 11, 2026 Delaware Senate Republicans DOVER, DE – Senate Substitute 1 for Senate Bill 212, legislation sponsored by Senator Dave Wilson (R – Lincoln) to advance a constitutional amendment recognizing the right to hunt, fish, and trap in Delaware, passed the Senate unanimously Thursday and now moves to the House of Representatives for consideration. The measure is the first leg of a proposed amendment to the Delaware Constitution that would acknowledge hunting, fishing, an

June 9, 2026 On June 8th, at the Sussex County office of the Department of Elections, three incumbents filed for reelection to the Delaware House of Representatives. Joining them was a new candidate who filed to run for District 20 Representative! Sussex County! We now have a full lineup of at least one Republican candidate for each Sussex County office in the 2026 election. 2 State Senators 10 State Representatives 2 Sussex County Council Members 1 Sussex County Recorder of

June 10, 2026 Maddy Lauria, Spotlight Delaware Why Should Delaware Care? In the wake of rising energy costs and concerns about future electricity demands from new high-demand users like data centers, elected officials are considering a slew of solutions. That has included a task force considering nuclear energy, but their recommendations may not arrive until after lawmakers close out the legislative session for the year. In April, New Jersey lifted a 50-year moratorium on new

June 10, 2026 Maggie Reynolds, Spotlight Delaware Why Should Delaware Care? Booming population growth, high rent prices and a lack of housing diversity have been prominent issues in Sussex County in recent years. The county government has now made changes to increase the region’s affordable housing supply, but whether the new measures will have the intended effects remains to be seen. Following more than a year of discussion over booming growth in Sussex County and how to d

June 8, 2026 GEORGETOWN, DE – Delaware State Senator Brian Pettyjohn (R-Georgetown) has been elected Chair of the Legislative Advisory Council of the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB), a regional interstate compact that works with states to improve education and workforce outcomes across the South. Pettyjohn has been involved with SREB since November 2015, when he was appointed as a legislative representative to the organization by Governor Jack Markell. During his t

Delaware Senate Republicans June 5, 2026 When lawmakers return to Dover on June 9, just 10 legislative days will remain before the General Assembly adjourns for the year on June 30. As often happens in the final weeks of session, some of the most consequential legislation is still awaiting action. Bills can move quickly through committees and onto the floor, making it important for Delawareans to stay informed about what is still under consideration. From energy costs and tax

The State of Delaware has issued a statewide drought watch due to precipitation levels experiencing a steep and steady decline throughout the state for the second time in three years, particularly in Kent and Sussex Counties. The Delaware Water Supply Coordinating Council (WSCC) recommended the watch after reviewing months of declining rainfall, low soil moisture, and reduced stream flows. A drought watch is the first of three drought‑related levels of action and calls for

May 29, 2026 State Senator Eric Buckson For many years, both before and since being elected to serve in the Senate, Senator Eric Buckson has advocated that the Caesar Rodney statue that once stood in Rodney Square in Wilmington be removed from storage and again put on display. It has been a long battle, but the statue has now been removed from the storage facility and has made its way to Washington D.C. as part of our nation's 250th celebration. As great as that is, Senator B

May 26, 2026 Delaware Republican Party This is the CLEAR CHOICE facing Delaware right now! Republicans are fighting for working families with SB-299, which delivers overtime tax relief of up to $15,000 in income, and HB-387, which provides child care relief. Democrats are pushing the opposite: HB-400 raises fees and taxes on LLCs and businesses, while HB-375 allows people to change their gender on their state ID. One vision lowers costs and helps Delaware families. The other

May 24, 2026 Delaware Republican Party This is NOT a joke. Delaware now has the highest foreclosure rate in the entire nation. 1 in every 1,739 housing units. Since Governor TAX TO THE FUTURE Meyer and one-party Democrat rule took over in February 2025, foreclosure rates have skyrocketed 61%. Delaware families are paying the price for reckless spending, endless tax and fee hikes, and an anti-business environment that is driving jobs and opportunity out of our state. This is t

May 26, 2026 WDEL The Delaware Supreme Court has upheld a state law allowing construction of an electrical substation tied to an offshore wind project in Sussex County, rejecting legal challenges from Sussex County and the Town of Fenwick Island. In a decision issued May 26, the state’s highest court affirmed a Court of Chancery ruling that supported legislation passed by the Delaware General Assembly in 2025, authorizing conditional use permits for certain electrical substat

May 23, 2026 Representative Bryan Shupe Constitutions are supposed to be difficult to change. They are designed to protect citizens from temporary political movements, emotional swings in public opinion, and short term control by one party or another. That is exactly why Delaware’s constitutional amendment process has historically required broad agreement over time before permanent changes can be made. That process is now under attack. First came House Bill 321, legisla

Olivia Marble, Spotlight Delaware Georgetown farmer Jay Baxter told the Sussex County Council that measure to discourage development on farms could force farmers to sell to developers. | SPOTLIGHT DELAWARE PHOTO BY OLIVIA MARBLE Why Should Delaware Care? Sussex County farmers field enticing offers to sell their land to housing developers as demand for new homes in the area remains high. But some Sussex residents want the county to discourage those developments, saying new res

Kevin T. Conlon, Cape Gazette Sussex County’s housing boom has cooled in recent years, and that could have profound consequences for local governments, jobs and the community. Construction of new houses and sales of existing homes have both been declining. The number of building permits issued for construction of single-family homes has been falling for five years, according to data from the Sussex County Planning & Zoning Department. With three months left in the fiscal year

May 22, 2026 Delaware House - Republican Caucus IN PHOTO: State Rep. Valarie Jones Giltner debates House Bill 59 with the bill's sponsor, State Rep. Sean Lynn, in the House on Tuesday. A bill passed by the House of Representatives in a contested vote on Tuesday would bar police from seeking the public’s help in identifying suspects in most crimes. House Bill 59 (as amended) has two distinct aspects. The first would bar law-enforcement agencies from releasing or publishing the