HB 344 DE

0likes☆Favorite🔕SubscribeShare

Passed Legislature

This Act clarifies and streamlines the disclosure and enforcement provisions of Delaware’s campaign finance laws. Among other things, this Act does the following: (1) Requires a political committee to submit written documentation of all loans provided to the committee and requires that proceeds of a loan are deposited into the committee’s account within 3 business days. (2) Prohibits candidates from charging interest on personal loans to a candidate committee. (3) Requires political committees to retain records for 5 years, rather than 3 years. (4) Requires the State Election Commissioner to provide the Division of Civil Rights and Public Trust (within the DOJ) with a monthly list of alleged violations of campaign finance laws and further clarifies that the Division must investigate and prosecute violations of campaign finance laws. (5) Expands the 1-time extension permitted for filing tardy reports from 24 hours to 48 hours after the reporting deadline. (6) Requires the Division of Civil Rights and Public Trust to submit an annual report of its activity to the Governor and the General Assembly. (7) Authorizes the Commissioner to create regulations relating to political committee audits. (8) Requires the Commissioner to create a mandatory biennial training program for candidates and treasurers. (9) Prohibits political committees from engaging in campaign finance activities 30 days after the issuance of a citation if the citation has not been resolved in that time.

• Eric Morrison Democratic · primary
• Bryan Townsend Democratic · primary
• Darius J. Brown Democratic · primary
• Claire Snyder-Hall Democratic · primary
• Mara Gorman Democratic · primary
• Kerri Evelyn Harris Democratic · primary
• Sarah McBride · primary

1. Apr 9, 2026 Introduced and Assigned to Elections & Government Affairs Committee in House · lower
2. Apr 22, 2026 Reported Out of Committee (Elections & Government Affairs) in House with 2 Favorable, 2 On Its Merits · lower
3. Apr 23, 2026 Assigned to Appropriations Committee in House · lower
4. Jun 4, 2026 Amendment HA 1 to HB 344 - Introduced and Placed With Bill · lower
5. Jun 10, 2026 Reported Out of Committee (Appropriations) in House with 4 On Its Merits · lower
6. Jun 11, 2026 Amendment HA 1 to HB 344 - Passed In House by Voice Vote · lower
7. Jun 11, 2026 Passed By House. Votes: 24 YES 14 NO 1 NOT VOTING 2 ABSENT · lower
8. Jun 11, 2026 Assigned to Elections & Government Affairs Committee in Senate · upper
9. Jun 25, 2026 Reported Out of Committee (Elections & Government Affairs) in Senate with 2 Favorable, 2 On Its Merits · upper
10. Jun 25, 2026 Assigned to Finance Committee in Senate · upper
11. Jun 30, 2026 Reported Out of Committee (Finance) in Senate with 4 On Its Merits · upper
12. Jul 1, 2026 Passed By Senate. Votes: 16 YES 5 NO · upper