Top Priorities for Delaware

WORKFORCE & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

• Invest in Delaware workers and families

-Provide support for Forward Delaware, the rapid workforce training and redeployment initiative

-Create incentives for employers who hire Forward Delaware graduates

-Encourage federal funding to be directed towards assisting with stabilizing childcare providers to solve a long-standing child care challenge that has been heightened as a result of the pandemic

• Attract and maintain jobs for Delawareans

-Strengthen the state’s ability to compete for jobs with other states by not increasing taxes on individuals and businesses

• No increases or changes to minimum wage, training wage or youth wage until the unemployment rate reaches 4.0%

• Legalization of recreational mariujana should not be passed without a test for impairment, employer internal policies protections, and protections from outside lawsuits are in place

• The Family & Medical Leave Act (FMLA) or stimilar state laws should closely mirror the federal FMLA

REGULATIONS & PERMITTING

• Protect natural spaces and create jobs by redeveloping abandoned sites

-Support Governor Carney and the General Assembly’s efforts to create a Clean Water Trust Fund to ensure the availability of clean water for future generations -

Initiate and support state programs that will increase funding for strategic economic development funds, establish site readiness funding, and focus these efforts on abandoned sites as a mean of creating clean, new jobs

• Implement the Ready in 6 initiative’s recommendations

-Establish a clear and precise timeframe state agencies must respond to permit applicant requests

-Hire an economic development “project concierge” to ensure projects move swiftly through the approval process

-Eliminate the Preliminary Land Use Service (PLUS)

COVID-19

• Open businesses back up to 100% occupancy as quickly and safely as possible

• Prioritize Delawareans and all Delaware workers during the vaccination rollout

EDUCATION

•Take bold steps to establish education equity and opportunity

-Establish a new funding formula to replace Delaware’s current unit funding formula to provide more accountability for taxpayers on the $1.4 billion the State spends each year on public education

-Grow, scale and sustain Delaware Pathways, work-based learning and employer engagement

-Support for early learning is essential, and Delaware must make significant progress toward creating universal, high quality pre-kindergarten to be offered across public schools, private providers and Head Start