Represenative Bill Bush, a Dover conservative Democrat and the Chamber of Commerce’s Representative in the Democratic caucus, and Republican Represenative Kevin Hensley have teamed up to introduce a number of tax cutting and crediting bills at the start of this General Assembly, some of which will get hearings today in the House Education Committee.
First, House Bill 36, which reverses one of the budget balancing moves enacted during the Budget Deficit Crisis of 2017. It decreases by 1% the rate of the realty transfer tax to be received by the State, thereby returning it to the rate that was applicable prior to August 1,2017. Doing this will remove $115 million annually from the state treasury, which is approximately 4% of the annual budget.
| House Bill 36 Realty Transfer Tax Cut | Currrent Status – House Revenue & Finance – 12/15/22 |
| House Sponsors – Bush, Dorsey Walker, Bolden, Chukwuocha, Cooke, Griffith, Longhurst, Moore, Osienski / Ramone, Collins, Dukes, Gray, Short, Smith, Yearick | Senate Sponsors – Walsh, Brown, Hansen, Hoffner, Mantzavinos, Pinkney, Poore / Hocker, Pettyjohn, Wilson |
| House Yes Votes – | Senate Yes Votes – |
| House No Votes – | Senate No Votes – |
| House Absents or Not Voting – | Senate Absent or Not Voting – |
Second, House Bill 29 increases the Senior Real Property Tax credit to $750 from $400. This bill is getting a hearing today in the House Education Committee.
| House Bill 29 – Increasing the Senior Real Property Tax Credit | Currrent Status – House Education 12/15/22 |
| House Sponsors – Hensley, Smith, Gray, Morris, Short, Yearick / Bush, Bolden | Senate Sponsors – Richardson, Hocker, Lawson, Pettyjohn, Wilson / Hoffner |
| House Yes Votes – | Senate Yes Votes – |
| House No Votes – | Senate No Votes – |
| House Absents or Not Voting – | Senate Absent or Not Voting – |
Third, House Bill 32 raises the permissible service charge for a boat registration from $5 to $10 and the permissible service charge for a boat ramp certificate from $1.50 to $5.00.
| House Bill 32 – Raising Boat Registration Fees and Service Charges | Currrent Status -House NREC 12/15/22 |
| House Sponsors – Bush, Baumbach, Matthews | Senate Sponsors – Hoffner |
| House Yes Votes – | Senate Yes Votes – |
| House No Votes – | Senate No Votes – |
| House Absents or Not Voting – | Senate Absent or Not Voting – |
House Bill 31 reinstates a credit against school taxes of up to $400 for seniors who have been domiciled in Delaware for 3 years or more. After 10 years domiciled in Delaware the credit would increase to $500. Under current law the credit is $500 after 10 years. This bill is getting a hearing in the House Education Committee today.
| House Bill 31 – Senior School Tax Credit | Currrent Status – House Education 12/15/22 |
| House Sponsors – Bush, Cooke / Hensley, Collins, Gray, Smith, Yearick | Senate Sponsors –Hoffner / Pettyjohn, Wilson |
| House Yes Votes – | Senate Yes Votes – |
| House No Votes – | Senate No Votes – |
| House Absents or Not Voting – | Senate Absent or Not Voting – |
House Bill 30 removes the 3 year residency requirement to qualify for the disabled veteran tax credit. This bill is getting a hearing in the House Education Committee today.
| House Bill 30 – Disabled Veteran Tax Credit | Currrent Status – House Education 12/15/22 |
| House Sponsors – Bush, Carson, Chukwuocha, Neal, Williams / Collins, Gray, Hensley, Hilovsky, Short, Smith, Yearick | Senate Sponsors – Mantzavinos, Hoffner, Brown / Pettyjohn, Wilson |
| House Yes Votes – | Senate Yes Votes – |
| House No Votes – | Senate No Votes – |
| House Absents or Not Voting – | Senate Absent or Not Voting – |
So what is the total that HB31 actually defunds education by? And why isn’t this accompanied by some funds to replace what schools would lose?
I don’t understand lowering the realty transfer tax. People all over the state are complaining about too much development, but we keep providing more incentives to continue. This development will happen tax or no (and people do need a place to live) There’s nothing to be gained by throwing more money at real estate that is not affordable housing.