By Leann Schenke

DOVER — With technology upgrades at Legislative Hall, the Delaware General Assembly will be able to livestream committee meetings on its website when the legislative session resumes Jan. 11.

While a decision about an in-person return to Legislative Hall — and the use of hybrid virtual/in-person committee hearings — will depend on the public health guidance as of early January, the public will be able to watch committee hearings live and later play back recordings of the proceedings on the General Assembly website, Legis.delaware.gov.

“Virtual committee meetings were a necessary function during the pandemic to allow the legislature to continue operating while giving residents the ability to still participate in the government process,” said House Speaker Pete Schwartzkop, D-Rehoboth Beach. “What we found was that people liked the convenience of being able to attend committee meetings and provide comment online. We saw the proof in record committee attendance and participation during the past year.”

In a statement, House Minority Leader Danny Short, R-Seaford, praised the use of technology as a welcome development to increase accessibility. However, he said it should “complement, not replace in-person participation in crafting public policy.”

“The ability of stakeholders to passionately advocate for the issues they support through face-to-face interactions with their elected officials is a core attribute of our democratic process and something that cannot be replicated with a Zoom call,” Rep. Short said.

Senate Republicans agreed.

“In-person participation is necessary and maintaining the ability to take part virtually will ensure that the public has more opportunities to interact with their elected officials,” Senate Minority Leader Gerald Hocker, R-Ocean View, said in a statement.

The Delaware General Assembly was one of the last legislatures in the nation to livestream video of the sessions when the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in March 2020. Forced to meet virtually for the first time, both chambers of the Delaware General Assembly began live streaming session video to YouTube in May 2020.

Last January, those livestreams were made available directly on the General Assembly website for the first time, while a hybrid option was in use by May.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, however, committee meetings held outside of the legislative chambers have been conducted exclusively via Zoom, giving the public an opportunity to fully participate in the legislative process, despite Legislative Hall being closed to the public.

Virtual committee meetings routinely drew more than 50 members of the public, while several drew more than 100, and a few surpassed 500 participants.

With the legislature hoping to return in-person in 2022, both chambers are eager to launch a hybrid model that preserves the virtual participation option, while also accommodating in-person public participants.

With the recent installation of monitors and camera equipment in six hearing rooms, future committee meetings now can be held in a hybrid format, giving Delawareans who wish to offer public testimony more flexibility than before.

“We all long for normalcy, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t retain some of the things we learned during the pandemic,” said David P. Sokola, D-Newark, Senate president pro tempore. “For those who miss being back in the building, we can’t wait to welcome you back as public health protocols permit. But for those who appreciated having the flexibility to participate in the legislative process on your lunch break or as you were picking up the kids at school, that accessibility will remain in place.”