General Assembly to continue in virtual format next week

By Matt Bittle
Posted 3/2/21

DOVER – The Delaware General Assembly will reconvene next week in a virtual format due to the ongoing public health risks posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.  The full legislature has not met …

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General Assembly to continue in virtual format next week

Posted

DOVER – The Delaware General Assembly will reconvene next week in a virtual format due to the ongoing public health risks posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.  The full legislature has not met in person since January 2020.

On break for the past five weeks, the House and Senate will return to session Tuesday for four weeks of committee meetings and floor votes. Both chambers will continue to operate in the same virtual-session format used in January.

Legislative Hall will remain closed to the public indefinitely. 

"Although we have made good progress in combatting the virus, administering more than 228,000 doses of the COVID vaccine, we still are in a situation where we cannot fully open the building safely," House Speaker Pete Schwartzkopf, D-Rehoboth Beach, said in a statement. "As I have stated numerous times, the health and safety of my fellow legislators, our staff and the public are my primary responsibilities. Remaining in virtual session for the time being is critical to that goal."

Legislators have used Zoom to conduct meetings, taking part from their homes or offices. Sessions are viewable both live or at any time afterward on the legislative website (under the “Meetings and Archives” tab). 

Top Democrats Tuesday noted the House and Senate’s 22 combined January committee meetings averaged 64 attendees each, exceeding the typical turnout.

"One of the more positive outcomes of this pandemic has been the enhanced ease and convenience with which the public is able to actively participate in the legislative process from the safety and comfort of their own homes," Senate President Pro Tempore Dave Sokola, D-Newark, said in a statement.

"Our public health workers deserve an enormous amount of credit for the strides they have made in vaccinating our state’s most vulnerable residents, but we are not yet in a position where we can safely return to the world we left one year ago. Fortunately, the General Assembly has proven that we can continue to debate and pass meaningful legislation that will improve the lives of Delawareans, even when we are not all in the same room together."

Currently, the House plans to hold committee meetings on most Tuesdays and Wednesdays during the next four weeks, with floor votes scheduled for Thursdays. House committee meeting schedules can be found here. The House agenda can be found here

The Senate will continue to convene on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Committee meetings will be held primarily on Wednesdays with some hearings scheduled for Tuesdays and Thursdays as needed. The full Senate may convene Wednesdays after committee meetings to consider gubernatorial nominations and other business.

Senate committee meeting schedules can be found here. The Senate agenda can be found here

Rep. Schwartzkopf and Sen. Sokola are continuing to monitor the situation regarding COVID, and legislative staffers are working diligently to develop plans that would allow the legislature to safely return to some form of in-person session this year, provided the conditions continue to improve and vaccinations continue to increase. The legislative session ends June 30.

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