Delaware Workforce and Starter Home Acceleration Act

Voting is now open for 72 hours. - Ends (UTC): 2026-06-20T14:00:00Z Members may vote Aye, Nay, or Present. Results are visible in real time.

Debate is now open for this bill for 72 hours. - Begins (UTC): 2026-06-14T13:00:00Z - Ends (UTC): 2026-06-17T13:00:00Z Please keep discussion on-topic and substantive. After debate closes, voting will automatically begin.

I agree with the argument we just heard from Representative Rosario: this shortage is not about families asking for too much. It is about a system that too often makes it too hard and too expensive to build the kinds of homes people starting out can actually buy or rent. If Delaware wants teachers, nursing assistants, electricians, and young parents to live near where they work, then the state cannot let routine projects sit in limbo forever. What I like about this bill is that it tries to balance speed with accountability. It fast-tracks permitting, yes, but it also requires projects to meet local code, follow transparent affordability standards, and report what gets built and where. That matters. Faster should not mean sloppy, and pro-housing should not mean blank checks. As a governor, I am generally cautious when states create new incentive programs, because taxpayers have seen too many promises that never quite turn into results. But this proposal is limited, targeted to mixed-income projects near jobs and transit, and paired with annual reporting so Delaware can see whether it is producing real units instead of nice headlines. That is the kind of practical test I can support.

We do not have a housing shortage because working families suddenly want too much. We have it because government too often takes too long to say yes to the kinds of homes teachers, hospital staff, warehouse workers, and young families can actually afford. This bill takes a practical step: faster state permitting for workforce and starter homes, tied to infrastructure help where growth is actually happening near jobs and transit. I know some members get nervous whenever they hear “fast-track,” because they assume it means cutting corners or steamrolling local concerns. But that is not what this bill does. The projects still have to meet local code, the affordability standards have to be transparent, and there is annual reporting on what gets built, how quickly approvals move, and where development is landing. That is not a blank check; that is speed with accountability. From my own experience, the real damage comes when delay becomes policy. Delay drives up carrying costs, shrinks the number of affordable units, and leaves families competing over too few homes. If Delaware wants workers to stay, if it wants employers to grow without pricing people out, then it needs more housing supply in the right places and a clearer process to get there. This bill is measured, pro-growth, and specific enough to track whether it is working. I support it.