Governor Carney Signs Order Creating the Governor’s State Complete Count Commission

Commission will help ensure a fair and accurate 2020 Census count in Delaware

WILMINGTON, Del. – Governor John Carney on Wednesday signed Executive Order #23 creating the Governor’s Complete Count Commission (SCCC) to assist with the 2020 Census. A recommendation of the U.S. Census Bureau, State Complete Count Commissions will help raise awareness and encourage full participation from Delawareans and make sure everyone is counted.

Lieutenant Governor Bethany Hall-Long will chair the commission. Its membership will be compromised of individuals representing various sectors including state and local government, faith-based organizations, nonprofits, underrepresented populations, and business. The commission will provide a report to the Governor by January 1, 2020 outlining recommendations and strategies for maximizing participation in the 24th decennial census in 2020.

“It’s important that all Delawareans are counted in the next Census, to ensure that all available resources are reaching residents in our state who need them most,” said Governor Carney. “This commission will specifically help identify and reach populations that have historically been difficult to count, including young children, non-English speakers, renters, and homeless Delawareans. Thank you to Lt. Governor Hall-Long for taking the lead on this important effort.”

“I am honored to Chair Delaware’s State Complete Count Commission,” said Lt. Governor Bethany Hall-Long. “Reaching those ‘hard to count’ populations is especially important. Census data is used for so many things from determining the number of congressional seats a state has to the amount of federal dollars a state receives for highways, schools and healthcare just to name a few. That’s why it’s crucial we count everyone in Delaware.”

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, over $600 billion are dispersed from over 300 federal programs based upon census-generated figures.

“As a federally qualified health center, Westside Family Healthcare depends, in part, on Census data to help identify community needs and inform how to best allocate our limited resources to help fill the gap in services,” said Lolita A. Lopez, President & CEO of Westside Family Healthcare, who was appointed by the Governor to serve on the commission. “As an appointed member of the Complete Count Commission, Westside is committed to partnering with Governor Carney, Lt. Governor Hall-Long, and others to encourage the communities we serve to actively participate in the Census process. The 2020 Census is vitally important to Delaware’s future.”

The Reverend Rita Paige, another member of the commission appointed by Governor Carney, added, “Make sure you’re counted. We don’t want anyone left out!”

“We thank Governor Carney for his leadership in establishing the Delaware State Complete Count Commission,” said Fernando Armstrong, Philadelphia Regional Director of the US Census Bureau. “We look forward to working in partnership with Lt Governor Hall-Long and the entire Commission in counting all Delawareans in the 2020 Census.”

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Governor Carney Signs Executive Order on Budget Smoothing

Action will create benchmark budgeting mechanism and promote fiscal sustainability

DOVER, Del. – Governor John Carney on Saturday signed Executive Order 21 to implement recommendations of the advisory panel to DEFAC to study potential fiscal controls and budget smoothing mechanisms. The Order will create a benchmark budgeting mechanism, and a Budget Stabilization Fund for budget planning, to help the State of Delaware take a more sustainable, long-term approach to annual budgeting.

Governor Carney and Michael Houghton, Chair of the Delaware Economic and Financial Advisory Council, issued the following statements on the Order following Saturday’s signing:

“Over the past several decades, we’ve seen Delaware’s budget go through good times and bad times,” said Governor Carney. “As every Delaware family knows, you’re supposed to save some of your money during the good times so you can make it through when money gets tight. This Executive Order holds state government to the same standard. It’ll even things out so when a bad economy comes along, we won’t see massive cuts in services or dramatic tax hikes. This is the responsible thing to do for taxpayers who rightly expect us to manage their money wisely.”

“I’m disappointed that we were not able to structurally improve the budget process like our committee recommended. It would have made life more predictable for nonprofits, fire companies and others relying on State funds and avoided the unhealthy ‘feast or famine’ fiscal cycle we are seeing,” said Michael Houghton, Chair of the Delaware Economic and Financial Advisory Council. “As Chair of the Advisory Panel that recommended the changes to the General Assembly, I want to thank Governor Carney for stepping up and initiating changes that more responsibly align State spending with revenues through his Executive Order.”

Learn more about the Executive Order on budget smoothing

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Governor Carney Signs Executive Order on Health Care Spending

Advisory group will advance health care benchmark initiative to reduce costs, improve outcomes

WILMINGTON, Del. – Taking the next step in implementing a health care spending benchmark for Delaware, Governor John Carney has signed an executive order establishing the Health Care Delivery and Cost Advisory Group to provide feedback to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) on how to measure and report the total cost of health care in Delaware and how to determine metrics across the health care system to create quality benchmarks.

The creation of the advisory group to implement the spending benchmark comes five months after the Governor signed House Joint Resolution 7 granting authority to DHSS to establish a benchmark with a growth rate for health care spending linked to the overall economy of the state. In June, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a 50-state analysis of per-capita health care spending showing Delaware had the third-highest rate in 2014 behind only Alaska and Massachusetts.

The CMS analysis of all insurance payers – Medicare, Medicaid and commercial – found that Delaware’s per-capita rate was $10,254, or more than 27 percent above the U.S. average of $8,045. Without changes, the analysis estimates that Delaware’s total health care spending will more than double from $9.5 billion in 2014 to $21.5 billion in 2025.

“Delaware has consistently ranked among the states that spend the most on health care, yet we’re not seeing the best results,” said Governor Carney. “High costs present a barrier to quality health care, squeeze family budgets, crowd out other important state investments, and prevent businesses from investing in innovation and job creation. We’re committed to addressing this issue, to bringing providers to the table, reducing costs, and improving health outcomes for Delawareans across our state.”

“We have the talent and the capacity in our Delaware health care community to move to better value in our health care system and deliver better outcomes for the people of our state,” said DHSS Secretary Dr. Kara Odom Walker, a board-certified family physician. “The advisory group gives us the unique opportunity to continue progress in a collaborative forum and gather input on how to best to track the trend lines in the total cost of health care over time.”

The advisory group will provide feedback to the DHSS Secretary on the selection of methodologies to measure and report on the total cost of health care in Delaware, and on the establishment of a spending growth target that will become Delaware’s cost benchmark. Advisory group members also will help identify which metrics should be used to create quality benchmarks across our healthcare system to reduce costs, and recommend changes to the Delaware Health Care Commission.

The advisory group will include the DHSS Secretary; Director of the Office of Management and Budget; Chair of the Delaware Health Care Commission; Chair of the Delaware Center for Health Innovation; hospital representatives; representatives from the insurance industry, a licensed physician; a health economist; and a business community representative.

A full list of members is available in the text of the Executive Order. The advisory group will dissolve on June 30, unless the period is extended.

Click here to watch a video message from Dr. Kara Odom Walker, Secretary of the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services, on the benchmark initiative.

To learn more about the health care spending benchmark, visit:
https://www.choosehealthde.com/Health-Care-Spending-Benchmark

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Governor Carney Expands Open Data Council

Executive Order 18 expands the Council to include all Executive Branch agencies

WILMINGTON, Del. – Governor John Carney on Monday signed Executive Order 18, expanding the Delaware Open Data Council to include members from all Executive Branch agencies to promote data sharing. The Governor was joined by members of his Cabinet, technology entrepreneurs and Open Data advocates at The Mill in Wilmington for the Executive Order signing.

The Council brings together a team from state government focused specifically on making more data available to members of the public via the state’s Open Data Portal which streamlines access to public information and enhances government transparency. Established by Executive Order 57 in October 2016, the Open Data Portal is a centralized website that connects the public with non-identifiable public data across state agencies and provides interactive features that allow users to browse and sort information. The public can utilize more than 200 data items through maps, charts, and graphs to visualize it in new and innovative ways. Since its launch, the Open Data Portal has had more than 3.5 million page views. Eleven new data sets were added last year, including Delaware business licenses and air quality monitoring, among others.

“Open Data and data sharing are an integral part of government transparency, efficiency and accountability,” said Governor Carney. “Expanding the Open Data Council to include members from all Executive Branch agencies will help facilitate the work we’ve begun through the Family Services Cabinet Council, and allow us to share and analyze data to effectively deliver services and allocate resources for Delawareans.”

The Delaware Open Data Council, which will now include members from 18 state agencies and offices, is charged with making data available to the public, establishing a statewide data strategy, and recommending standards and policies governing the posting of public data and data sharing among state agencies.

“Our state agencies have a vast treasure trove of data and we can tap into that potential to help solve real-world problems, improve the delivery of government services and enrich the quality of life for Delaware’s citizens,” said Chief Information Officer James Collins. “Great ideas can come from anyone, anywhere. By making this information available to everyone we create even more opportunities for innovative solutions.”

“Open data is all about building partnerships and using the power of information to fill the gaps between state agencies, community groups, businesses and the average Delawarean,” said Secretary of State Jeff Bullock. “The best ideas require collaboration to come to fruition, and I’m proud that the Department of State is a part of the next wave of new thinking in Delaware.”

“Over the past two years, Open Data Delaware has been excited to see the State’s commitment to open data grow,” said Ryan Harrington of Open Data Delaware. “In those two years, we have seen Delaware transition to a system that makes it easier than ever for anyone to access critical information about the state, giving advocates the opportunity to improve their communities and entrepreneurs more resources to grow companies. The inclusion of every Executive Branch agency into Delaware’s Open Data Portal furthers the ability for people to gain the information that they need to build upon this work.”

“Tech Impact is proud to support Governor Carney and his administration in expanding the Open Data Council,” said Tech Impact Executive Director Patrick Callihan. “Delaware has taken a leadership role in exposing data sets and enabling a transparent government. Some of that data has already been used to create public and social benefit for the state and this greater commitment will surely increase the opportunities to develop solutions to some of our most difficult social issues.”

Members of the public are invited to recommend additional datasets for inclusion in the Open Data Portal by visiting data.delaware.gov/nominate.

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Governor Carney Authorizes Delaware National Guard to Assist with Water Distribution in Town of Blades

Executive Order provides additional resources for town, residents

DOVER, Del. – Governor John Carney on Friday signed an Executive Order authorizing the Delaware National Guard to assist the Town of Blades with distributing water to residents impacted by high levels of perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) in municipal wells.

The Delaware National Guard has provided two, 400-gallon portable water tanks and coordinated troops to ensure 24-hour water distribution operations out of the Blades Fire Hall. Additionally, a 5,000-gallon water tanker is prepared and available for follow-up support.

The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) and the Delaware Division of Public Health (DPH) on Friday morning started to provide bottled water for drinking and cooking to residents of Blades.

Water will be supplied to the Town of Blades by DNREC, DPH, and the Delaware National Guard to ensure residents have access to potable water.

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The Executive Order is available here.