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HB337 • 2025

AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO FOLIC ACID FORTIFICATION.

AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO FOLIC ACID FORTIFICATION.

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
Last action
2026-06-16
Official status
Passed By Senate. Votes: 21 YES
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official summary cuts off mid-sentence regarding U.S. Food agency actions, leaving uncertainty about federal context or enforcement details.

Delaware Law to Add Folic Acid to Corn Masa Products

This law requires corn masa flour and wet corn masa products sold or used in Delaware to contain specific amounts of folic acid.

What This Bill Does

  • Requires corn masa flour sold or used in the state to have 0.7 milligrams of folic acid per pound.
  • Requires wet corn masa products to have 0.4 milligrams of folic acid per pound of end product.
  • Mandates that these products list their folic acid content on nutrition labels following federal law.
  • Amends Title 16 of the Delaware Code regarding food fortification rules.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Companies or individuals who sell corn masa flour in Delaware.
  • Businesses that use wet corn masa products within the state.

Terms To Know

Corn masa
A staple food made from treated corn, often used to make tortillas and other foods in many minority diets.
Folic acid
An effective amount added to food that research shows can reduce the risk of neural tube defects by over half when taken daily.
Neural tube defects (NTDs)
Serious birth defects occurring during early pregnancy, including spina bifida and anencephaly.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The official text does not state when this law officially takes effect.
  • The source cuts off before explaining what specific action the U.S. Food agency took in response to research findings.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

HA 1

1 • Ortega

Passed 5/7/26

Plain English: This amendment updates statistics about birth defects in the bill's background section and changes rules to make folic acid levels a recommendation instead of a requirement while replacing a fixed fine with standard reinspection fees.

  • Updates the statistic for babies born with spina bifida from per 100,000 live births to per 10,000 live births in different racial groups.
  • Changes the rule so that adding a specific amount of folic acid to corn masa products is recommended instead of required.
  • Removes a fixed $500 fine for violations and replaces it with standard reinspection fees listed in state law.
  • The exact dollar amounts for the new reinspection fees are not included because they depend on another section of the Delaware Code.
  • The specific details about how much folic acid is recommended per pound of product are mentioned but the full technical standards are in other parts of the law.

Bill History

  1. 2026-06-16 Delaware General Assembly

    Passed By Senate. Votes: 21 YES

  2. 2026-05-20 Delaware General Assembly

    Reported Out of Committee (Health & Social Services) in Senate with 5 On Its Merits

  3. 2026-05-07 Delaware General Assembly

    Amendment HA 1 to HB 337 - Passed In House by Voice Vote

  4. 2026-05-07 Delaware General Assembly

    Passed By House. Votes: 37 YES 4 ABSENT

  5. 2026-05-07 Delaware General Assembly

    Assigned to Health & Social Services Committee in Senate

  6. 2026-05-05 Delaware General Assembly

    Amendment HA 1 to HB 337 - Introduced and Placed With Bill

  7. 2026-04-15 Delaware General Assembly

    Reported Out of Committee (Health & Human Development) in House with 9 Favorable, 3 On Its Merits

  8. 2026-04-09 Delaware General Assembly

    Introduced and Assigned to Health & Human Development Committee in House

Official Summary Text

AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO FOLIC ACID FORTIFICATION.
This Act requires that effective amounts of folic acid be added to corn masa flour and corn masa which are staples in many minority diets. Under this Act, corn masa flour sold or used in the State must contain folic acid at a level of .7 mg of folic acid per pound of corn masa flour. Wet corn masa product must contain .4 mg of folic acid per pound of end product. These products must include a declaration of folic acid on the nutrition label in accordance with applicable federal law.

Minority communities in the United States face a greater risk of neural tube defects (NTDs), which are serious birth defects that occur during early pregnancy. NTDs include spina bifida, characterized by an opening along the spine that can cause mild to severe nerve damage and disability, and anencephaly, a fatal condition where parts of the brain or skull are missing in newborns.

Research has shown that daily intake of folic acid can reduce the risk of NTDs by over half. In response, the U.S. Food