Input Requested on Paid Family and Medical Leave Program: The Delaware Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program administered by the Delaware Department of Labor (information page), went into full effect on January 1, 2026. The NCC Chamber is seeking input from employers on their experience with the program and what issues they may be experiencing, as well as input as to how it can be improved. [statute: Chapter 37 of Title 19 of the Delaware Code, regulations: 1400 Division of Paid Leave]. Input can be sent by email to Joe Fitzgerald. Please indicate “Paid Family & Medical Leave” in the subject line of the email.
Property Reassessment Working Group holds first meeting: A working group created by HCR 150 (Romer) and chaired by Representative Cyndie Romer (D-RD 25) held its initial meeting on Monday August 31. [video recording of August 31 meeting]. According to the legislation’s synopsis, HCR 150 “establishes a statewide Property Assessment Working Group ("Working Group") to examine the statutory and regulatory frameworks for states that have adopted IAAO standards to inform Delaware's own quality benchmarks and operational requirements. The Working Group shall produce recommendations, ready for introduction in the 154th General Assembly, to establish State standards governing property assessment practices in Delaware.”
U.S. House Passes Stopgap Funding Measure: On Tuesday, September 1, the U.S. House voted to approve the continuing resolution (CR) passed by the Senate last month. The CR (H.R. 6500) will fund the federal government (mostly at FY 26 levels) until December 11. The deadline would have been midnight on September 30 (federal fiscal year runs Oct 1 - Sep 30). Absent a C.R. or a funding package, after the deadline, after the deadline, a shutdown would have ensued. The CR passed by a bipartisan vote of 370-48. It awaits action by the president. President Trump is expected to sign it.
Status of FY 2027 Appropriations Bills as of August 14
The continuing resolution passed on Tuesday, September 1 is a stopgap measure that will fund the federal government at FY 26 levels through December 11, 2026.
- In the House, all 12 of the House versions of the appropriations bills that comprise the federal budget have completed the markup phase in the House Appropriations Committee, but only a few (three) have passed the full House and those were under special rules.
- In the Senate, as of this writing (September 1) none of the 12 appropriations bills that comprise the federal budget (detail on process below) have progressed beyond the subcommittee stage in the Senate. There are significant disagreements in the Senate which are slowing efforts to develop their package.
The federal fiscal year runs from October 1 - September 30 each year. Under the regular federal budget process, the goal is to have a federal budget passed by both the House and Senate and signed by the president prior to midnight on September 30. When it appears that that is not possible, apart from passage of budgetary measures via the reconciliation process, the House and Senate must pass a continuing resolution. Failure to pass an either a budget (under either regular order or under reconciliation) or a continuing resolution prior to midnight on September 30 results in a government shutdown.
Brief Summary of Federal Budget Process
Early in the calendar year (usually Q1 or early in Q2), the White House submits a budget proposal (the White House FY 2027 Budget Proposal was submitted in April).
Under regular order (the standard/traditional legislative process in Congress) there are 12 bills that make up the federal budget. The pertinent subcommittees deliberate and cast votes (think Joint Finance Committee in Dover writ large), and produce those bills which fall under their jurisdiction, which are then voted on by the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee. Following that, they are brought before the Senate. A similar process occurs in the House, with the U.S. House Appropriations Committee and pertinent subcommittees following a substantially similar process.
Once the 12 Senate bills and the 12 corresponding House bills are in their final form, leadership and certain appropriations chairs and members engage in the conference process where conferees work out differences between the Senate and House versions. This results in a conference report that contains the entirety of the appropriations language for the pending federal budget. The conference report is then brought to the floor of both bodies for an up or down vote. At this stage, for the budget to pass, both the House and Senate must approve the identical conference report with no further amendments.
Should the conference report pass both houses, it is forwarded to the president for consideration and action.
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