Delaware Gov. John Carney unveils Fiscal Year 2024 Budget

DOVER, Del.-  Governor Carney on Thursday presented his Fiscal Year 2024 Recommended Budget, in which the governor highlighted increased pay for teachers and state employees, greater environmental protections, and long-term budget planning for the first state.

During the presentation, Governor Carney stressed that same time the state is raising pay for teachers, investing in housing, and tax cuts for new workers, they are putting records amounts of dollars away for a rainy day.

The budget saw an increase of nine percent for teachers, three percent for all state government workers as well as a commitment to a 15-dollar minimum wage for all full-time state employees.

“This is an investment in the people who do that work everyday teacher and class support with pay raises and additional investments in schools for disadvantaged children and English learners,” Governor Carney said pointing to this record investment coming despite the state appropriating less than 98 percent of revenue.

“We will have significant reserves for when the economy turns the other way which we know it will,” he said. 

State Office of Management and Budget Director Cerron Cade says, the pay raises across state positions will help the state fill the shortage of staff in state education.

“Our school districts have had a hard time keeping teachers in the classroom and recruiting them so this will be a major step in the right direction,” Cade said.

Mike Bricknery of the Delaware ACLU tells 47ABC he is happy to see an increase of $6.1 million for a total of $12.2 million in the Early Childhood Assistance Program (ECAP), increases Opportunity Funding Investments by $15 million for a total of $53 million and $30 million for mental health services for elementary and middle school students.

“We had a series of lawsuits against the state of Delaware about unequal education, we won those efforts and the Governor pledged to increase funds so we are happy to see those dollars going to increasing equity across this system,” Brickner said.

Another measure meant to help workers is a record 101.5 million dollar investment in housing.

“It’s workforce support at some level right particularly in the eastern part of Sussex county where housing prices are unaffordable yet there are a lot of jobs in for example the hospitality industry,” Governor Carney said. 

Also in the budget, a way for low-income Delawareans who take the federal standard deduction to take an increased state standard deduction, aimed at getting money into the hands of middle-class workers.

The measure is aimed to work side-by-side with a tax cut that helps workers starting a job and coming off of social safety net programs receive a tax cut.

“the tax cut is there really geared towards making it beneficial for someone to go to work so they don’t have to pay higher taxes,” Governor Carney said. 

Gov.Carney tells 47ABC he expects the recommendation to pass the House and Senate, and begin on the first of July 2024.