As chair of the budget-writing Joint Finance Committee, Sen. Trey Paradee sponsored a $5.1 billion operating budget for the State of Delaware that upheld the General Assembly’s commitment to state workers and retirees, while making new investments in Delaware’s public schools and critical programs that benefit some of the state’s most vulnerable residents.
Passed with overwhelming bipartisan support, Senate Bill 250 made sizable investments in affordable childcare and Delaware’s public school transportation network – both of which were severely strained during the height of the pandemic.
The spending plan added nearly $19 million to Delaware’s Purchase of Care program that helps low-income families afford early childhood and after-school education for children up to the age of 12.
Senate Bill 250 invested roughly $17 million in school bus drivers and related programs after a workforce shortage that predated the pandemic and a brief strike at a major busing contractor threatened to cause severe disruptions for thousands of school children and their families in 2001.
The FY 2023 operating budget also fulfilled a four-year commitment to fully fund increases in the reimbursement rates for direct support professionals who serve adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
The spending plan further included a $16.5-million increase to reach 100% of the benchmarks required by the McNesby Act, funding that resulted in an additional $27.5 million in federal matching funds.
Other notable highlights in the budget bills include:
- $104 million to provide a 3% pension benefit increase for former state workers who retired between June 30, 1992 and June 30, 2017 and a 2% increase for those who retired after June 30, 2017.
- Approximately $55 million to help keep state employee wages competitive through increases ranging from 2.3% to 9% for the lowest pay grades, in addition to negotiated collective bargaining unit and statutory step increases.
- $38 million to increase pension benefits for volunteer firefighters, the first pension increase of its kind since the program was established in 1986.
- $21 million to fund start-up costs for the Delaware Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program.
- $14.2 million to fund targeted education and support services for Wilmington students, as recommended by the Redding Consortium for Educational Equity and the Wilmington Learning Collaborative.
- $8 million to continue increasing mental health supports in Delaware elementary schools.
- $4.7 million to restore the Senior Property Tax Credit to a maximum of $500.
- $3.6 million to increase rates for private duty nurses and home health care workers.
- $2 million to create a Substitute Teacher Block Grant that will help school districts address teacher shortages through the hiring of full-time substitutes.