Why Should Delaware Care?
Akin to the president’s State of the Union address, the State of the State address is a governor’s highest profile speech each year and it lays out his or her legislative agenda for the year. Gov. Matt Meyer has until June 30 to complete any remaining goals in his first legislative session.
Gov. Matt Meyer gave his first “State of the State” address Thursday, laying out major goals for the remainder of the legislative year, including approving a new school funding formula, creating a state inspector general, and launching a recreational marijuana market.
Much of his speech reflected on the unique moment that Meyer finds himself in though. Once reliable revenue streams from the federal government for everything from public education to the arts, housing to health care, is suddenly in question under the Trump administration.
That is placing new stresses on the state, and Meyer in turn has proposed creating new tax brackets for the wealthy in Delaware and raising numerous administrative taxes and fees to help drum up new revenue.
The 62-member legislature, where Democrats hold wide majorities in both chambers, has had an uneven relationship with Meyer to start his term. Together, they’ve already passed a major corporate law reform, but they’ve also taken a dispute over gubernatorial appointments to the Supreme Court.
Here is a look at the speech’s major themes and reactions.
Trump looms on address
The Trump administration loomed large on the day, being addressed by Meyer just a few minutes into his roughly 40-minute speech by saying the stability the federal government once provided “has now been shaken.”
“In building this year’s budget, our team is managing swings in revenue and expenses in the tens of millions of dollars — sometimes from one hour or day to the next, sometimes from one headline out of Washington to the next,” he said.
Meyer specifically called out Delaware Republicans, rebuking them for supporting the president’s policies while preparing to oppose his state proposals, saying, “You cannot have it both ways.”
“You cannot offer your full-throated support for a federal administration that is slashing hundreds of millions of dollars in critical funds to our state and promoting tariffs that are crippling our economy, and then, in the very next sentence, rise in opposition to responsible and hard decisions we’re making here in Delaware to meet those challenges,” he said. “In other words, you can’t give more fuel to the arsonist with one hand, and then with the other hand point your finger disapprovingly and say we aren’t putting the fires out fast enough.”
Meyer was referencing recent talking points from state Republicans that criticized proposals to raise taxes on the wealthiest residents and fees on all instead of focusing on cutting government spending.
Talking with the press afterward, House Minority Whip Jeff Spiegelman (R-Clayton) said the moment was “an absolutely unnecessary and totally inappropriate shot,” but Republicans would look to work with Meyer on like-minded objectives, like reforming public education.
Education efforts are priority
Meyer, a former seventh grade math teacher, led his policy discussions with education, including the goal to reform the state’s public education funding formula before July.
“Public education must be the great equalizer in American society, an opportunity for every family to dream big about their future, but only if we direct resources equitably to address the real needs of kids and families. And we must do so with urgency,” he said.
That is a major goal that is unlikely to be achieved in that timeframe, but leaders are aligned on the need for it. The current, decades-old funding formula largely sees every student the same, but a new formula could add greater weight to those with special needs.
“We need to make sure it’s done right. This formula is embedded deep within our education system right now, and that type of change is not something that can happen overnight,” Senate Minority Whip Brian Pettyjohn (R-Georgetown) told the media after the speech.
While saying “work must begin, not when kids start school, but at birth,” Meyer is not proposing investments in child care in his first budget. He told the media that was a matter of priorities in an uncertain budgetary time, but that he remained committed to addressing it in coming years.
Earlier this year, Meyer declared a “literacy emergency” in the state following poor fourth and eighth-grade literacy scores on a national exam. In his speech, he called current reading and math outcomes “unacceptable.”
He highlighted the work of three teachers who saw their classes’ scores improve more than 10 percentage points at schools across the state, and said that their examples should be followed. He also said that he would move pilot programs on cellphone bans to statewide implementation.
“The research shows the developmental, emotional, social, and educational harm of cell phone usage by children. That’s why my administration will work with districts and charters to get cell phones out of classrooms and students focused on what really matters,” he said.
Meyer is also seeking to expand a program he started as New Castle County executive, where teachers could receive direct project funding. More than 1,300 teachers in the county took part in that program, and other states have since replicated it. His budget proposal includes $3 million in state funding and a $3 million private sector match to move the program statewide.
Finally, the budget proposal will include $75 million to raise the state portion of teacher pay next fiscal year, seeking to stem the tide of teachers leaving for more lucrative roles in New Jersey or Maryland.
“We will keep pushing ourselves until we no longer chase surrounding states regarding educator pay. They should be chasing us,” he said.
Housing for all
Meyer also said that Delaware’s housing shortage – estimated to number up to more than 20,000 unit by 2030 – has “reached crisis levels.”
“With stagnant wages and so few homes on the market, fewer families than ever have the ability to achieve their American dream,” he said.
Meyer said he wanted to “streamline regulation and create smart, efficient systems to approve new and renovated housing for police officers, teachers, waiters, nurses, and our workforce of tomorrow.”
He also is moving to reconstitute the Delaware Interagency Council on Homelessness, a statewide effort that seeks to create housing and services to serve the homeless. It comes just days after the Trump administration moved to shut down the federal version of the program.
“It’s not just the right thing to do. Done right, strong rehabilitation and support systems actually save money for all Delawareans,” the governor said.
Health care proposals unclear
Meyer – who shouted out First Lady Dr. Lauren Meyer, an emergency room physician at ChristianaCare – emphasized the need for driving down health care costs on Delawareans, but offered only a few details as to how he would do so.
His administration aims to expand services provided by Division of Public Health mobile health units, which can provide on-the-ground health care in places often underserved.
He also supported several initiatives under consideration in the General Assembly, including a Constitutional amendment to protect a right to abortion, the creation of an Office of Suicide Prevention, and the founding of the state’s first medical school.
While Meyer said his budget would eliminate $50 million in medical debt for Delawareans, details on that proposal were sparse. Another call by Meyer for ensuring that medical debt will not hurt someone’s credit score received some confusion from Republican leaders, who noted that the federal government prohibited that in an action last year.
Other major initiatives
One of the loudest applause of the afternoon was saved for Meyer’s support for the creation of a state inspector general, a role whose task would be to root out fraud and waste in government. That effort has gained steam despite a proposed cost of more than $1 million.
The governor also plans to consolidate workforce development efforts currently found across multiple state agencies into one statewide office.
Meyer also supported an effort to create a Cabinet-level agency to support military veterans. He said that he would work on an amended version of House Bill 1 to seek passage – its fiscal impact remains a significant hurdle.
“As Representative Carson likes to say, 99% of Americans wake up each morning to enjoy their freedom and democracy. And 1% wake up each day to preserve and defend that very same freedom and democracy. There is no excuse for that service not to be honored here at home,” he said.
Finally, Meyer said that he would name a new marijuana commissioner within days, while working to cut through the federal bureaucracy that has played a role in stymieing the roll out of the state’s recreational marijuana market.
