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

HB 42: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11, TITLE 16, AND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO HUMAN TRAFFICKING OF CHILDREN.

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 42 is a bill introduced in the Delaware House on March 6, 2025. According to its official title, it concerns: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11, TITLE 16, AND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO HUMAN TRAFFICKING OF CHILDREN. Primary sponsor: Kim Williams (Democratic), Krista Griffith (Democratic), Nicole Poore (Democratic). It lists 13 additional sponsors. Most recent recorded action (August 12, 2025): 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 does all of the following regarding suspected human trafficking of children: 1. Ensures the sharing of information between the Child Protection Accountability Commission (CPAC) and the Delaware Anti-Trafficking Action Council. 2. Expressly requires a multidisciplinary response to these cases, similar to child deaths and serious physical injury. 3. Even though human trafficking of children is child abuse, specifically delineates it throughout the child abuse multidisciplinary investigative response. 4. Codifies a review panel and oversight committee within CPAC for these cases, with the same authority, subpoena power, and immunities provided to the system that reviews child abuse deaths and near deaths. 5. Establishes that the Office of the Child Advocate will staff the review panel and oversight committee. This Act ensures that Delaware law is consistent with federal law requiring states to consider victims of human trafficking as victims of child abuse and neglect, and requiring the Department of Children, Youth and Their Families to investigate these cases. See the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5101 et. seq.) and Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act (Pub. L. 114-22). Finally, this Act makes minor technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.

Sponsors

Sponsors by party (alphabetical): Democratic 12 · Republican 4

NameRolePartyChamberDistrict
Kim WilliamsPrimary sponsorDemocraticHouse19
Krista GriffithPrimary sponsorDemocraticHouse12
Nicole PoorePrimary sponsorDemocraticSenate12
Nnamdi ChukwuochaCo-sponsorDemocraticHouse1
Mara GormanCo-sponsorDemocraticHouse23
Stephanie HansenCo-sponsorDemocraticSenate10
Gerald HockerCo-sponsorRepublicanSenate20
Kyra HoffnerCo-sponsorDemocraticSenate14
Larry LambertCo-sponsorDemocraticHouse7
Melanie Ross LevinCo-sponsorDemocraticHouse10
Spiros MantzavinosCo-sponsorDemocraticSenate7
Danny ShortCo-sponsorRepublicanHouse39
Dave SokolaCo-sponsorDemocraticSenate8
Jack WalshCo-sponsorDemocraticSenate9
Dave WilsonCo-sponsorRepublicanSenate18
Lyndon YearickCo-sponsorRepublicanHouse34

“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 Senate. Votes: 21 YES
  3. Reported Out of Committee (Finance) in Senate with 4 On Its Merits
  4. Assigned to Finance Committee in Senate
  5. Reported Out of Committee (Judiciary) in Senate with 6 On Its Merits
  6. Assigned to Judiciary Committee in Senate
  7. Passed By House. Votes: 40 YES 1 ABSENT
  8. Reported Out of Committee (Appropriations) in House with 1 Favorable, 5 On Its Merits
  9. Assigned to Appropriations Committee in House
  10. Reported Out of Committee (Judiciary) in House with 1 Favorable, 10 On Its Merits
  11. Introduced and Assigned to Judiciary Committee in House

Sources

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