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Stephanie Bolden

Stephanie Bolden is a lifelong resident and public servant of Delaware’s 2nd District. She has served in the House of Representatives since 2010 and is the longest serving African-American woman in Delaware’s legislature. Her work in the House of Representatives has given her the role of Chair of the Gaming and Parimutuels Committee as well as membership on several others. 

Bolden also served five terms on Wilmington’s City Council and prior to that, she worked for over thirty years as an educator in Delaware schools. Outside of her legislative achievements, she founded the Burton-Phelan Memorial Scholarship to support college students from her district.

Bolden is a fierce advocate for public education, public safety initiatives, and protecting vulnerable populations in Delaware. Her time spent working intimately with the community has led her to Fight for financial protections for seniors, and for ageism in the workplace. She has also been a vocal supporter of legislation to increase protections for children, and resources for victims of crime.

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Legislative Accomplishments

Worker’s Rights & Financial Protections

  • Would protect seniors from financial exploitation by putting reporting and other safeguards in place. 

    Requires reporting by certain employees of broker-dealer or investment adviser firms who have a reasonable belief that financial exploitation of an eligible adult has occurred, been attempted, or will be attempted.

  • Bars employers from asking prospective employees their wage history. 

    Salary expectations can be discussed so long as the employer does not seek salary history over the course of the discussion and negotiation. 

  • Until December 31, 2020, statute regarding the exhaustion of the maximum short-term disability benefits are suspended if the employee was unable to receive non-emergency or elective procedures due to COVID, if the procedure would have allowed them to go back to work.

    Allows the State Employee Benefits Committee to approve of a disability pay schedule for this circumstance

  • Establishes a statutory target of greenhouse gas emissions reductions over the medium and long term to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change due to anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions on the State.

    The Act establishes a process of regular updates to the Climate Action Plan to serve as the framework to achieve the targeted emissions reductions and develop resilience strategies for the State 

    Creates Climate Change Officers in certain Key Cabinet-Level Departments who will assist DNREC in the ongoing implementation of the Climate Action Plan 

    Requires State agencies to consider climate change in decision-making, rulemaking, and procurement

    Requires an Implementation Report every 2 years on the progress of the State towards meeting the statutory targets.

Environmental Protections

  • Creates a right to representation for tenants in evictions and other landlord-tenant actions.

Tenant’s Rights

  • The School District Consolidation Task Force has reviewed school functions from 200 comments from residents. 

    Task force was composed of educators, school administrators, parents, advocates and legislators.

    The recommendations point to ways to save money and positively impact academic performance for all children, including those with disabilities, English language learners (ELL), and those who come from low-income families.

Education

  • Move Delaware’s state primary elections to coincide with its presidential primary elections which is the fourth Tuesday in April

    Delaware’s primaries for statewide and local political offices are held on the second Tuesday after the first Monday in September.

  • Consolidate Delaware’s state and the federal primaries by moving Delaware primaries from September to the fourth Tuesday in April, when federal primaries are held. 

Voter’s Rights

  • Simplify the charges outlined in the burglary statute of the Delaware Code by consolidating the various home invasion charges

    Treats the burglary of an occupied dwelling in a uniform manner, regardless of whether the crime occurred during the daytime or nighttime. 

    Removes minimum mandatory sentences for some conduct but keeps it for home invasion by mandating a 6-year minimum and a maximum of 25 years in prison. 

    Certain sentence enhancements based on prior convictions and the age of the victim are also eliminated with this legislation.

  • Simplifies the robbery statute within the Criminal Code in order to promote fairness within the criminal justice system. 

    Removes sections of the code relating to carjacking and embeds them within current robbery statute. 

    Robbery in the first degree will include the theft of a vehicle where there is physical injury or the use

    A display or threat of a deadly weapon or death which is a Class B felony; this carries a 3 year minimum mandatory sentence and a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison. 

    Robbery in the Second Degree, a Class E felony, will be elevated to a Class D felony if the theft involves a vehicle and elements that pose additional risk to public safety. 

    The bill also removes minimum mandatory sentences for certain types of conduct and eliminates certain sentence enhancements that are based on prior convictions and the age of the victim. 

    The ability to impose lengthier sentences for subsequent conduct or for crimes against vulnerable victims rests with the discretion of sentencing judges.

  • Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families (DSCYF) has exclusive jurisdiction over a juvenile's care, custody, and control for any juvenile until at least their 18th birthday. 

    Juveniles found guilty and sentenced to a Superior Court offense shall remain in the custody, care, and control of DSCYF until they turn 18. 

    Youth with Superior Court terms of confinement, which extend beyond their 18th birthday to be transferred to the custody of the Department of Correction for the remainder of their sentence after they turn 18. 

    Clarifies that Family Court is permitted to retain jurisdiction in some cases and Family Court may require DSCYF to provide services and supervision for non-incarcerated persons aged 18-21.

    Allows individuals charged in Family Court before they turn 18 to be held by DSCYF until they turn 19. 

  • Authorizes the creation of Family Justice Centers within Delaware to provide victims of crime with a single source to obtain resources and support services.

Criminal Activity