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- Permitless concealed carry bill fails in committee A bill to allow Delawareans to carry concealed firearms without a permit failed to be released from the five-member Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday. The lengthy committee meeting drew dozens of public comments on either side of the issue, with some members of the public taking offense to Wilmington Sen. Sarah McBride’s characterization of permitless concealed carry as a “justice system of the wild, wild west.” Senate Bill 172, sponsored by Sen. Dave Lawson, R-Marydel, would allow Delawareans who are 21 years of age or older and not otherwise prohibited under state or federal law to carry a concealed deadly weapon for the purpose of defending themselves, their family, their home or the state. Eighteen other states allow for the permitless concealed carry of firearms, often referred to by supporters of the practice as “constitutional carry.” Because the bill was not released from the Judiciary Committee, it will not proceed to a debate or vote by the full Senate. In theory, because the bill is not dead, it could be released from the committee in the future, though such a move would be highly unlikely. Under current Delaware law, individuals wishing to carry a concealed weapon must complete a stringent application process, which requires that they: Complete an application issued by the Superior Court Have the application published in a newspaper of “general circulation” once, at least ten days prior to submission of the application Submit to fingerprinting conducted by the State Bureau of Identification, which costs $52 Have a reference questionnaire completed by five citizens from the county in which the applicant resides References cannot live at the same address as the applicant or have known the applicant for less than one year Have the application notarized Attach two official color passport photos to the application Pay a fee of $65 Complete an approved gun course, which often costs between $100 and $300 Hand deliver or mail the application to the nearest Superior Court prothonotary’s office The application is then reviewed by the court and the Attorney General’s office, after which: If the application is denied, the applicant receives written notification If the application is approved, the applicant must submit notarized proof that they completed an approved gun course If proof that the applicant has completed an approved gun course is not delivered to the court within 90 days of the application’s approval, the applicant must start the process over Lawson said eliminating the concealed carry permit is “something that is overdue” and that he expects to “hear the cry from folks that ‘oh, there’s going to be blood in the streets if everybody’s carrying a gun.’” “The issue is that everybody can carry a gun in Delaware now,” he said. “Open carry is legal in Delaware.” Unlike concealed carry, Delaware gun laws currently allow residents who are legally allowed to own a handgun to carry it openly without a permit. That could change if the House of Representatives passes a permit to purchase bill that’s already been voted through by the Senate. Senate Substitute 1 for Senate Bill 3, sponsored by Sen. Elizabeth “Tizzy” Lockman, D-Wilmington, would require Delawareans to complete training and obtain a permit before purchasing any type of firearm. During the committee meeting, some argued that permitting requirements preclude Delawareans from exercising their right to bear arms, which is guaranteed under both the federal and state constitutions. Others pointed out that the process can be cost-prohibitive for some residents — often those who live in communities where the need for self-defense is the highest or where police response times are the longest. “This is a major economic bar for them to be able to protect themselves,” Lawson said. “They have to go through that process, they’re law-abiding citizens, they’ve never done wrong, they’re not prohibited. If they have to go through that process, they can’t afford it. And where is the high crime? In those underserved areas. That’s the folks that need protection.” But McBride, D-Wilmington, countered that “when you have more guns with people out and about, there is more violence, there is more death. I don’t believe a justice system of the wild wild west makes us safer.” Many public commenters in support of the measure took offense that McBride would suggest lawful gun ownership is akin to frontier justice or vigilantism. After many expressed their discontent with McBride’s characterization, the committee’s chair, Sen. Kyle Evans Gay, D-Brandywine Hundred, stepped in to “remind everyone that during public comment, you should be focusing on the bill that is before us and the subject matter that’s before us.” Lawson concluded that gun owners already have the right to concealed carry. “They just need the state to acknowledge that right,” he said.... Read More
- Taylor Swift economics workshops launched at UD The Swiftie lore has reached the University of Delaware. The largest university in the First State has recently introduced a Taylor Swift-themed data visualization course for undergraduate students. “Data Enchanted: Transforming Numbers Into Knowledge” is taught by Kathryn Bender, an assistant professor of economics who wasn’t a huge Taylor Swift fan herself until doing research for the class. “So I am a similar age to Taylor Swift, I grew up riding horses in a barn,” she said, “I’ve always liked her music, but I’ve never been like ‘Oh my gosh Taylor Swift!’ until I started researching things for this project, and then I completely became a Swiftie over the past few months.” Bender said the course is structured like a workshop series, to which students can earn a certificate and a special LinkedIn badge, which is a digital representation of skills and expertise that can be added to a résumé, social media profiles and online portfolio. There was a gap in UD’s economic curriculum, Bender said. “I taught this class in the spring called ‘Introduction to Econometrics’ and that’s where students first start learning about how economists do data analytics,” she said. “And I noticed in that class that a lot of students were really confused just about handling or working with data, just in the most basic ways.” This includes understanding necessary data structures, different variables, programs besides Excel that can be used to handle large amounts of data efficiently and more. Over the summer, Bender applied for and received a $5,000 Paul J. Rickards, Jr. Teaching Innovation Grant. She thought incorporating such a popular and successful artist into different economic topics would help students learn in a way that is more interesting, fun and digestible. “I just noticed how much engagement there was with students whenever Taylor Swift was brought up, or her boyfriend Travis Kelce,” she said. Tickets to certain sporting events would skyrocket in prices after Swift went to them and in anticipation of her being in a stadium. People were spending thousands of dollars on tickets to get a seat at one of her Eras Tour concerts. “And that’s all economics,” Bender pointed out. “I saw how much I had the whole class’s attention whenever I talked about things like that.” Each workshop uses a Swift song as its basis and theme – “I Knew You Were Trouble: Transforming and Cleaning Data For Analysis” was one. “…Ready For It: Introduction to Stata” and “You Belong With Me: Building and Structuring Data for Analysis” were other workshops. “She’s just such an amazing songwriter that she made it really easy with a lot of her lyrics or references to create lessons,” Bender said. The signature friendship bracelets of Swifties are also made in the workshops as an ice-breaking and networking tool. One workshop had students compile and create graphs from datasets consisting of Spotify stats on Swift’s songs. “We really don’t study the impact of Taylor…the focus of it is really on building their data skills and their skills with coding and getting people introduced to a couple different programs that they can code with,” Bender said. Using such a successful and impactful woman (Swift’s net worth recently cracked $1 billion) as a theme for a STEM-related workshop was also intentional. “In UD, our economics major is made up of just 25% women,” Bender said. “That’s something that I’ve always cared passionately about, as well, and Taylor Swift, she’s not just loved by women, and plenty of men have shown up at the workshops.” Bender said the class has tapped into a different group of students that may not have otherwise had their interest peaked in standard data courses. And while Bender expressed her admiration for the pop/country star, she’s never been to a concert and said her one complaint is the shortage and insanely high price of tickets. Although she thinks there’s no way Swift’s popularity will die down anytime soon, Bender has thought about expanding the workshops to include different celebrities like Lionel Messi. “We have these first eight being ‘Data: Enchanted’ and I think it’d be really fun if we had a second series that would be called something like ‘Data: Bejeweled.’” There will be eight workshops in total this year, and the final five will be held in the second semester after the winter break. The first three went – swiftly – according to Bender, with about 45 students participating thus far. There were dozens of students who had to be turned away because of the capacity of the workshops. “The environment has been fun,” Bender said. “You’ve got to make it fun, especially when it’s such a complex and difficult subject.”... Read More
- Here’s how Del. hospitals focus on underserved communities TidalHealth Nantico*ke purchased mobile medical vans to take healthcare services to hard-to-reach communities. Beebe Healthcare started a monkeypox vaccination program for the LGBTQ+ community at the beach. ChristianaCare created a new wellness and psychotherapy center for transgender patients. These are just a few of the initiatives highlighted in the Delaware Healthcare Association’s “Health Equity Report,” which details ways state hospitals are working to improve healthcare access and outcomes for underserved groups. The association is a hospital trade and member services organization for Delaware’s hospitals. Aiding underserved CEO Wayne Smith said the definition of health equity is still evolving. He described it as an approach to medicine that acknowledges “life circ*mstances and the complexities of history can have a negative impact” on healthcare and outcomes for some demographic groups. These inequities are often most pronounced among those living in poverty, the LGBTQ+ community and people of color Smith said the concept of health equity is only about five years old, but healthcare providers in Delaware have been working to break down these disparities for much longer than that. RELATED: Curative test sites will close Dec. 28 The association report highlighted the racial and ethnic disparities in infant mortality rates across Delaware. The statewide infant mortality rate dropped 20% between 2009 and 2019, but between 2017 and 2019 the rate among Black mothers was still four times higher than the rate among white mothers, said March of Dimes, an organization that compiles birth statistics. The rate for Hispanic mothers was about half the rate among Black mothers over the same period. The healthcare association also noted its support for the “momnibus” legislative package, a slate of bills focused on improving maternal and infant care statewide. It was passed into law in July. Mostly, though, the report focuses on hospital programs. Here’s a summary. TidalHealth Nantico*ke This year, TidalHealth Nantico*ke purchased two mobile medical vans that go into hard-to-reach, underserved communities to provide screenings such as diabetes risk assessments and blood pressure checks. The new team hired to work the vans includes a nurse practitioner, a registered nurse and three community health workers. TidalHealth also helps patients pay for home repairs that could improve health outcomes. For example, the initiative could help a patient at risk for falls outfit his or her home with a new wheelchair ramp. Beebe Healthcare Beebe Healthcare started a program providing monkeypox vaccinations to certain members of the LGBTQ+ community and those who’ve contracted HIV. Those groups are at a greater risk of contracting the virus than the general public. The hospital also held a virtual town hall for the LGBTQ+ community following a state outbreak of cases in partnership with the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services. ChristianaCare ChristianaCare created a Gender Wellness Program in June to provide psychotherapy and other support to patients 13 or older experiencing gender dysphoria. The hospital offers individual, group, couple and family therapy options. It also has resources to help patients update their personal documents and get permission for sex reassignment surgery. The program also refers patients to doctors in the community who can administer other gender-affirming treatments like hormone replacement therapy. Bayhealth Bayhealth has partnered with the Food Bank of Delaware to combat food insecurity in Delaware by creating an app called 302 Food Rescue. It is designed to connect food banks and other community groups with edible goods and meals that otherwise would be thrown out by grocery stores and restaurants. Bayhealth also started an initiative to raise awareness about nutrition and healthy grocery shopping and cooking practices. Nemours This year, Nemours Children’s Health Delaware, has been focused on its school-based health center program, which provides medical care to students in underserved communities. It opened a new center at Seaford’s Frederick Douglass Elementary School in September and already had one running with Colonial School District in New Castle. The centers can provide services like sports physicals, immunizations and behavioral health counseling. No care can be administered to a student without parental consent. St. Francis Hospital St. Francis Hospital wants to implement a “healthy village” program to help underserved residents. The concept has been around for more than 20 years, focused on bringing neighborhood planning and public health priorities together to improve quality of life. Those programs could include providing access to nutritious food, social support programs such as daycares, and any medical care a patient might need. ... Read More
- Mini-Bond bill heads to Carney; pilot labor projects intact Despite four attempts by Republicans to amend it, the mini-Bond bill was voted out of the House Thursday and will head to Gov. John Carney to be signed into law. Passing the bill usually is a routine matter, will add 17 projects to the state’s Bond and Capital Improvement fund. Nobody objected to that. What did draw a lot of heat from Republicans and construction executives was language in the epilogue to Senate Bill 35 to set up a pilot project that said the winning bids on those four projects would need a workforce that include a certain percentage of union workers and minority workers. Republicans questioned whether the program was designed to favor unions; why the pilot project was included without wider notice to the legislature and others; why the wording didn’t detail how the projects would operate or what percentage of projects; why the pilot programs need to be rushed through with the mini-bond projects were needed immediately; and whether the projects would automatically become state practice. “What strikes me about this whole process is about the transparency and the public engagement,” said Rep. Ruth Briggs King, R-Georgetown. She said more than 30% of her constituents are Hispanic or Black and none were asked about or allowed to participate in either forming the language or to testify in a hearing about how it would affect them. Bond bills are created by legislative committees and don’t go through the normal hearing process that most bills do. They are simply presented in the full House and Senate. The bill’s wording didn’t even specify exactly what the pilot projects are or how they would operate, Republicans pointed out Thursday night. Mini-Bond bill epilogue Cerron Cade, director of the Delaware Office of Management and Budget, said the pilot projects need to be authorized by the legislation before they can be fleshed out. It was not designed to favor union, he said, but was included in the mini-bond because at least one and likely two of the construction projects will be bid this spring, likely before the 2024 Bond Bill is passed. Construction executives complained during a Senate debate it was uncommon for non-union contractors to hire union, and vice versa. That would knock non-union shops out of the running for bids, they said. Bill sponsors insisted that it was and could be done. RELATED: Construction exec slams hiring language in mini-Bond bill RELATED: Carney released 2024 state budget proposal Rep. Lyndon Yearick, R-Camden/Wyoming, the House minority whip said he kept hearing a lot of P words. “And that’s pilot so far,” he said. “The P word I’d like to bring out is process.” The bill was not about pro union or anti-union bill, he said. “It’s about the opportunity for people to have the freedom to bid on a project whether they belong to a union or not,” Yearick said. This is the ninth year he’s been a part of the mini-Bond bill, he said. “I’ve never seen a mini-Bond bill go through such a contentious debate process,” he said. “We’re not losing out on anything. It’s about respecting that process of what should be happening.” The four proposed amendments — each of which Rep. Deb Heffernan, D-Bellefonte, declared unfriendly to the bill — tried to remove the pilot projects, remove certain language so any bids would be handled as they are now, change the language to require workers to be legal residents of Delaware and require every Community Workforce project to include at least one Disadvantaged Business Enterprise as a contractor or subcontractor. Rep. Mike Smith, R-Pike Creek, took a final pot shot at Carney while addressing the chamber at the end of the debate on the bill. “I just want to make sure we can still have a good working relationship in this body and not let the governor and his administration continue to pull us apart with our constituents,” he said. “This is another example from the Medicare Advantage plan to this on how we’re getting stuck with the bag and our constituents, and the constituents need to pick and choose sides and go against each other because he won’t have the leadership to do this himself.” The House will now stand in recess until March 7. The month of February and the first days of March will be filled with Joint Finance Committee hearings which start Jan. 31. ... Read More
