The Rodney Report: January 2026
- Sussex County Republican Committee
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
January 30, 2026
As we close the first month of 2026, the Delaware General Assembly is back in session and major policy decisions are already moving in Dover.
This month’s Rodney Report introduces Bills to Watch, a new section tracking key proposals we are monitoring in Dover. You’ll also find an offshore wind update and a new piece on cursive writing and why it still matters.
Thank you for reading and supporting our work.
Sincerely,
The CRI Team
Offshore Wind Update: Legal Challenges Continue, Coastal Communities Stay Engaged
Opposition to offshore wind in the Mid-Atlantic is not slowing down. If anything, it is becoming more focused, more legally sophisticated and more publicly engaged. Headlines may suggest “wins” or “losses,” but the reality is that the fight is ongoing. U.S. Wind’s federal Construction and Operations Plan approval remains in effect, and legal challenges continue on multiple fronts.
Public engagement has not waned. On Jan. 12, an offshore wind forum in Ocean City, Maryland, drew a standing-room-only crowd at the Roland E. Powell Convention Center. Hosted by the Stop Offshore Wind Coalition with the town of Ocean City and Worcester County government, the forum brought together local leaders, fishermen, policy experts, environmental professionals and national security specialists to discuss where the project stands and what is at stake for coastal communities in Maryland and Delaware.
In Delaware, Fenwick Island and Sussex County have filed lawsuits challenging SB 159. At the federal level, the Caesar Rodney Institute (CRI) remains a named plaintiff in litigation seeking to vacate the project’s approval. In Delaware, CRI has also filed suit challenging state permitting actions related to the project.
Strengthening Cursive Instruction in Delaware
By Rick Radatovich, CRI Contributor & former BIC executive.
Edited by the Caesar Rodney Institute
Delaware’s reading results remain low. In the 2024 to 2025 school year, about 42% of students were proficient in English language arts on Delaware’s state assessment, according to the Delaware Department of Education’s (DDOE) Report Card. On the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), a national benchmark, 26% of Delaware grade 4 students and 23% of grade 8 students scored at or above NAEP Proficient in reading.
The Delaware Report Card and NAEP are different tests, but both point to the same challenge.
One low-cost, research-backed step already sits in Delaware law: cursive handwriting
instruction. Delaware requires cursive by the end of grade 4, but the law does not require schools to report instructional time or whether students reach basic competency. That makes
implementation difficult to measure and uneven across classrooms.
Copeland: Why decoupling is a strategic mistake
Delaware State News | Jan. 16, 2026
Delaware’s decision to decouple from the federal accelerated depreciation rules (House Bill 255, as amended), which passed in November 2025 and was signed into law shortly thereafter, is being sold as a responsible way to “protect the budget.” Read More >>
Casscells: SNAP, obesity and Delaware’s health
Delaware State News | Jan. 19, 2026
While more than a dozen states have received or sought the U.S. Department of Agriculture waivers to restrict certain Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program purchases beginning in 2026, Delaware has chosen not to pursue such an option. Read More >>
(Status can change quickly during sessions. Track updates through the General Assembly’s Bill Detail pages.)
Energy and Environmental Policy
SS 1 for SB 64: 1/28/2026 Adopted in lieu of the original bill SB 64. Would cap certain RGGI proceeds at 2025 levels and direct amounts above that to a ratepayer rebate program through Delmarva Power.
SB 65: Would terminate Delaware’s participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative by repealing the relevant CO2 trading provisions in Title 7.
HB 233: Reported out of Committee 1/28/2026. Would require utilities to establish a separate rate for large energy-use facilities to limit cost shifting and protect reliability for other customers.
Education Policy
Economic & Fiscal Policy
HB 211: Creates a tax credit program (Innovating Delaware Act) that accelerators can apply for; limits credit to not reduce tax burden by more than 50%.
HB 186: Creates an electricity production tax credit and bonus credits to incentivize building combined-cycle gas turbine generation facilities in Delaware. Revenue & Finance Committee in House.
Health Policy
SB 213 w/ SA 1: Passed on 1/29/2026. Hospital cost oversight framework changes
What issues are most important to you? Send us an email and let us know at info@caesarrodney.org.
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As the legislative session moves forward, CRI will continue monitoring key proposals, publishing policy analysis and highlighting issues that deserve public attention. From energy and education to fiscal policy and health care, we aim to keep Delawareans informed with research that is clear, timely and practical. Your support makes this work possible and helps keep Delaware’s policy conversations grounded in facts and results.
The Caesar Rodney Institute (CRI) is a Delaware-based, nonprofit 501(c)(3) research organization. As a nonpartisan public policy think tank, CRI provides fact-based analysis in four key areas: education, energy and environmental policy, the economy and government spending, and health policy.
Our mission is to educate and inform Delawareans—including citizens, legislators and community leaders—on issues that affect quality of life and opportunity.
