Gov. Matt Meyer delivers State of the State address
DOVER, Del. – Governor Matt Meyer spoke to legislators and his constituents at his State of the State address, promising to tackle health care disparities, teacher shortages and tax inequities, during his first term.
He criticized the Trump administration, assuring Delaware residents he will be working to guard their freedoms that he said have been stripped away.
“Too many Delawareans that trusted the federal government to guard their freedoms are now witnessing that very government reaching to strip those freedoms away,” said Gov. Meyer.
One of those freedoms, the right to K-12 education. Gov. Meyer said to deliver top quality education to children across Delaware, the state has to pay its educators fairly.
“On my watch, we win by retaining our top talent, and no where is that more important than retaining educators in our classrooms,” said Gov. Meyer.
But Senator Brian Pettyjohn said the governor’s education plans aren’t that simple.
“We’re spending so much in our classrooms, but the results, at the end of the day, are not where they should be,” said Sen. Pettyjohn. “We have states throughout the country that have made drastic improvements to their education system.”
Arguably, one of the most controversial moves Gov. Meyer plans to make, is to create a new tax bracket for residents.
“At a time when federal government is doubling down on tax cuts, where the majority of the benefits go to the wealthiest, we’re readjusting the scales, to ensure the richest pay their share and working class Delawareans get a fair shake,” said Gov. Meyer.
Looking ahead, Sen. Pettyjohn said this could have negative impacts on on people who are already contributing to the economy.
“We need to be very cautious about the fact that a lot of those individual filers, that may be in that higher tax brackets, are also business owners,” said Sen. Pettyjohn.
