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Delaware · 153rd General Assembly (2025-2026) · Bill

HB 195: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 4 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO BARTENDING.

Enacted Official data

  1. Introduced
  2. In committee
  3. Passed one chamber
  4. Passed both chambers
  5. Enacted

Last official action: ·Record last updated:

Plain-language summary

HB 195 is a bill introduced in the Delaware House on June 5, 2025. According to its official title, it concerns: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 4 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO BARTENDING. Primary sponsor: Kim Williams (Democratic), Jack Walsh (Democratic). It lists 3 additional sponsors. Most recent recorded action (June 10, 2026): Signed by Governor.

Generated automatically from the official title, sponsor list, and status record only. It does not characterize the bill’s purpose or effects. How summaries are written

Official summary

Abstract published by the legislature (via Open States). Text as published by the legislature; reproduced verbatim.

This Act changes the age at which a person can bartend from 21 years old to 18 years old, and requires that a bartender who is 18, 19, or 20 years old be directly supervised by a person who is 21 years of age or older and who is working behind the bar with the 18-, 19-, or 20-year-old. This Act also increases the frequency of statutorily mandated alcoholic beverage server training from every 4 years to every 2 years. To ensure that 18–20-year-olds are protected from sexually oriented content by virtue of being permitted to bartend, this Act prohibits anyone under the age of 21 from entering into or working in any capacity in a tavern or taproom that offers sexually oriented entertainment. This includes taverns and taprooms that are licensed as adult entertainment establishments under Chapter 16 of Title 24, taverns and taprooms that offer sexually explicit performances as defined in § 787 of Title 11, and tavern and taprooms that are advertised as “strip clubs,” “adult entertainment clubs,” “gentlemen’s clubs,” or that offer performances or services of a sexually oriented nature. Currently, Delaware is in the minority of states when it comes to requiring bartenders to be 21 years old. By reducing the legal bartending age to 18, this Act will help Delaware’s food service industry remain competitive with the many other states, including New Jersey and Pennsylvania, in which 18–20-year-olds can bartend.

Sponsors

Sponsors by party (alphabetical): Democratic 4 · Republican 1

NameRolePartyChamberDistrict
Kim WilliamsPrimary sponsorDemocraticHouse19
Jack WalshPrimary sponsorDemocraticSenate9
Tizzy LockmanCo-sponsorDemocraticSenate3
Spiros MantzavinosCo-sponsorDemocraticSenate7
Mike SmithCo-sponsorRepublicanHouse22

“Support” is shown only as formal sponsorship recorded by the legislature. Roll-call votes are available on the official bill page.

Recent official actions

  1. Signed by Governor
  2. Passed By House. Votes: 32 YES 6 NO 1 NOT VOTING 2 ABSENT
  3. Passed By Senate. Votes: 14 YES 5 NO 2 NOT VOTING
  4. Amendment SA 1 to HB 195 - Passed By Senate. Votes: 21 YES
  5. Reported Out of Committee (Banking, Business, Insurance & Technology) in Senate with 2 Favorable, 3 On Its Merits
  6. Amendment SA 1 to HB 195 - Introduced and Placed With Bill
  7. Assigned to Banking, Business, Insurance & Technology Committee in Senate
  8. Passed By House. Votes: 31 YES 5 NO 5 ABSENT
  9. Reported Out of Committee (Economic Development/Banking/Insurance & Commerce) in House with 6 Favorable, 2 On Its Merits
  10. Introduced and Assigned to Economic Development/Banking/Insurance & Commerce Committee in House

Sources

  1. Open States / Plural (data from the official legislature website)
  2. Official legislature source