Appropriations committee approves expedited-filings bill with one-year staffing funding

The House Appropriations Committee on Oct. 27 recommended House Bill 47 as amended, a measure to allow expedited business filings at the Secretary of State's office, and approved an amendment attaching a one-year appropriation to fund a senior staff position tied to the bill.

Supporters told the committee the expedited filing option responds to business demand for faster turnaround—particularly in merger-and-acquisition contexts—and that the Secretary of State's office meets an existing 15-day statutory deadline but faces staffing limits that make a faster service desirable.

The nut of the amendment was fiscal: the Secretary's office said the bill would create roughly a half of an FTE of additional work but requested that one full position (classified BACA 08, senior consumer support specialist) be attached to the bill to ensure the work can be done. The agency framed that attachment as a backstop: subsection (c) of section 2 would remove the added position if one or more equivalent positions are provided in the governor's budget.

Secretary of State staff described current capacity constraints. "We have about 70% of the filings of Delaware," the Secretary said, "and we have 10% of the staff." The office said it has used significant temporary staffing and overtime and requested three positions in its budget request; the committee and agency discussed attaching one position specifically tied to HB 47 if the broader budget request did not succeed.

Committee members pressed fiscal-detail questions about two different cost estimates in the record. The agency's administrative impact estimate included a $43,000 figure identified as the pro-rated cost of a half-time position; the committee amendment carried a roughly $93,000 annual amount for the full position. Agency staff said the larger number reflects the higher BACA 08 classification and additional fixed costs the budget office included (telecom, hardware, maintenance), and that the amendment amount matches the classification used in the Governor's budget request.

Committee debate also covered funding source. Representative Sherwood moved to fund the position from special business-filing revenue (rather than the general fund); that motion failed for lack of a second. Representative Haroldson then moved the committee recommend the bill "do pass as amended" with the higher appropriation figure; Representative Aleman seconded. The roll-call vote was 7–0 in favor: Representatives Aleman, Angelos, Haroldson, Pendergraft, Sherwood, Smith and Chairman Bair recorded aye votes.

The committee record notes the agency's continued request for three positions in the base budget; if one or more of those positions are enacted through the budget process, subsection (c) attached to HB 47 would remove the bill-level position. The committee also acknowledged a remaining small discrepancy in line-item math that agency staff said they would clarify with the fiscal analyst.

With the committee recommendation recorded, HB 47 advances to the full House with the amendment that attaches one BACA 08 position funded for one year and language that removes the provision if equivalent positions are placed in the budget.