Plain English Breakdown
The official status label says 'Passed Legislature' but the last action date shows it was only assigned to a committee on June 12, 2026. This creates uncertainty about whether the bill has actually passed both chambers as claimed in the metadata.
HB473: Death Benefits for County and City Public Works Employees
This bill changes Delaware law to give line-of-duty death benefits to county and city employees who work in public works, utilities, or engineering on infrastructure projects.
What This Bill Does
- Amends Title 18 of the Delaware Code regarding line-of-duty death benefits.
- Adds a new group called 'covered person' that includes employees from counties or cities working in public works, utilities, engineering, or similar departments.
- Covers workers assigned to field activities involving building, fixing, running, checking, or keeping up infrastructure like water systems, roads, bridges, and gas lines.
Who It Names or Affects
- County employees working in public works, utilities, engineering, or similar departments.
- City (municipal) employees assigned to field activities on infrastructure projects.
- Families of these workers who may receive death benefits if the worker dies while performing job duties.
Terms To Know
- Line-of-duty death
- A death that happens while a person is doing their assigned work tasks.
- Covered person
- An employee who qualifies for benefits under this law, now including specific public works staff from counties and cities.
Limits and Unknowns
- The official text does not state when the new rules will start.
- The bill lists examples of infrastructure like water and roads but may not list every possible job task or location.
- While the metadata says it passed, the document shows no effective date.