HB 462 DE

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Passed Legislature

In 2025, the General Assembly passed House Bill No. 242 (now found at Chapter 135, Volume 85 of the Laws of Delaware), allowing school districts located entirely in New Castle County to use different tax rates for residential and non-residential properties. This Act amends the Delaware Code to continue the authority for non-vocational technical school districts in New Castle County to utilize a residential and non-residential tax rate for school tax purposes. Such a split rate may be established or adjusted in the year after a general reassessment or as part of a referendum. The rate must be uniform for each class of property. Under this Act, the non-residential rate must be at least equal to the residential rate and may be no more than 1.85 times the residential rate. For purposes of the split tax rate, a school district must follow the classifications of the county in which the district is located. Under the transition provisions of this Act, a district that initially established split tax rates under the authority of House Bill No. 242, may continue to use those split rates at the same or a lower ratio between residential and non-residential tax rates established in the 2025-2026 tax year. But if a district’s non-residential tax rate for the 2025-2026 tax year was more than 1.85 times the residential tax rate, it must adjust its rates to meet the 1.85 maximum ratio permitted under this Act. The New Castle County Vocational Technical District may not continue the use of different tax rates past the 2025-2026 tax year. The Act also changes the amount a school district must add to its tax rate to account for delinquencies and late payments to “up to 10%” rather than requiring that a school district must add exactly 10% to its tax rate for this purpose. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform this chapter of the Delaware Code to the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual and strikes references to the City of Wilmington School District, which no longer exists. It also revises § 1913 of Title 14 to reflect current practice. It strikes an outdated requirement in § 1918 of Title 14 that the school districts deliver a copy of the assessment list to the County along with their tax warrant. This is inconsistent with the role of the school districts and with current practice.

• Kimberly Williams Democratic · primary
• John "Jack" Walsh Democratic · primary
• Bryant L. Richardson Republican · primary
• Sarah McBride · primary
• Kerri Evelyn Harris Democratic · primary
• Trey Paradee Democratic · primary
• Eric Morrison Democratic · primary
• Cyndie Romer Democratic · primary
• Claire Snyder-Hall Democratic · primary
• Josue O Ortega Democratic · primary
• Spiros Mantzavinos Democratic · primary
• Bryan Townsend Democratic · primary

1. Jun 4, 2026 Introduced and Assigned to Administration Committee in House · lower
2. Jun 10, 2026 Reported Out of Committee (Administration) in House with 3 Favorable, 1 On Its Merits · lower
3. Jun 12, 2026 Assigned to Appropriations Committee in House · lower
4. Jun 16, 2026 Reported Out of Committee (Appropriations) in House with 6 On Its Merits · lower
5. Jun 16, 2026 Reported Out of Committee (Appropriations) in House with 6 On Its Merits · lower
6. Jun 18, 2026 Passed By House. Votes: 33 YES 6 NO 2 ABSENT · lower
7. Jun 18, 2026 Assigned to Executive Committee in Senate · upper
8. Jun 24, 2026 Reported Out of Committee (Executive) in Senate with 5 On Its Merits · upper
9. Jun 24, 2026 Assigned to Finance Committee in Senate · upper
10. Jun 25, 2026 Reported Out of Committee (Finance) in Senate with 4 On Its Merits · upper
11. Jun 30, 2026 Passed By Senate. Votes: 14 YES 4 NO 2 NOT VOTING 1 ABSENT · upper