Delaware House Bill 210 aims to increase penalties for environmental violations and direct more funds to affected communities.

Supporters say the bill addresses environmental injustice, while agricultural groups and some Republicans worry about the impact on family farms.

The bill would update fines not changed since the 1970s and 1990s.

A sweeping environmental accountability bill that could drastically increase penalties for polluters and direct more funds to frontline communities is stirring both praise and pushback in Delaware. Days ahead of the end of this year’s legislative session, House Bill 210, also known as the Pollution Accountability Act, cleared the Senate Environment, Energy and Transportation Committee and is headed to the Senate floor.

The bill, backed by a coalition of Democratic lawmakers and environmental justice advocates, would quadruple some existing fines for environmental violations and boost the percentage of penalty funds going to local projects from 25% to 40%. Proponents argue it is a long-overdue step toward justice for communities that have lived with pollution for decades. But some agricultural groups and Republican legislators worry the bill could unintentionally burden small family farms and poultry producers.

The need for action was underscored by a 2022 Environmental Integrity Project report, which found almost all of Delaware’s rivers and streams are too polluted for swimming, recreation, aquatic life, fish consumption or drinking water. Citing Environmental Protection Agency data, the report noted that most water pollution in the state results from runoff originating on farms and in suburban and urban areas, often due to aging or inadequate sewage infrastructure.

Revenue from fines to be reinvested into affected communities

“This legislation was prompted by my lived experience,” said Rep. Larry Lambert, the bill’s prime sponsor. Lambert, who grew up in Claymont near the Marcus Hook industrial corridor, recalled that while industry brought jobs to his community, it also left a legacy of pollution.

House Bill 210 seeks to strengthen environmental enforcement by raising fines across multiple areas of Delaware law, including air and water quality, hazardous waste, noise pollution, and oil spills. For example, civil penalties under Title 7 could jump from $10,000 to $40,000 per violation per day. Criminal penalties for violations would also rise, including increasing daily fines for unpermitted activity from $100 to $500 for a first offense and $5,000 for repeat violations.

A key feature of the bill is its expanded support for the Community Environmental Project Fund, which would receive a larger share of fine revenue. The fund prioritizes investments in air and water quality projects located within a two-mile radius of the pollution source – an effort to ensure that impacted communities see direct benefits.

During the June 25 Senate hearing, co-sponsor Sen. Nicole Poore, D-New Castle, described the bill as essential to addressing environmental inequities.

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“Low-income neighborhoods and communities of color often bear the brunt of environmental harm, yet have the fewest resources to push back,” Poore said. The lawmaker emphasized that the bill only updates fines – some of which haven’t changed since 1970s – and brings Delaware closer to what neighboring states like Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Virginia are doing.

Agriculture advocates fear impact on family farm operations

According to the Environmental Integrity Project report, 97% of Delaware’s waterways are contaminated primarily due to nutrient pollution and bacteria, much of it originating from agricultural runoff and meat processing wastewater.

But this connection to agriculture has triggered concern among farming advocates. Although an amendment removed provisions related to nutrient management regulations under Title 3, farms operating under Title 7 – such as concentrated animal feeding operations, or CAFOs – remain subject to the proposed increased penalties, prompting alarm within the agricultural community.

During the hearing, state Sen. Eric Buckson and Sen. Brian Pettyjohn, cautioned that the bill’s broader reach could unintentionally affect family farms holding permits under Title 7 of the Delaware Code.

Their concerns were echoed during committee hearings by representatives from the Delaware Farm Bureau and the Delmarva Chicken Association. Sydnie Grossnickel of the Delaware Farm Bureau said her organization appreciates that the bill was amended to exempt nutrient management activities overseen by the Department of Agriculture, but called for further consideration of concentrated animal feeding operations covered under other permit systems.

“We’re not asking for CAFOs to be exempt from fines or fine increases entirely,” Grossnickel said. “We believe they deserve a fair, proportionate adjustment, consistent with the treatment outlined in House Bill 222 for nutrient management.”

Grayson Middleton of the Delmarva Chicken Association also asked for parity. He warned that higher penalties may hit family chicken farmers, already highly regulated, and argued for consistency with recent reforms that set proportionate penalties for nutrient management violations.

Defending the bill, Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control Secretary Greg Patterson emphasized that most permit violations by family farms are addressed through education and compliance support rather than fines. He insisted the proposed penalties would apply mostly to chronic or severe violators, not first-time or minor offenders.

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Patterson also reminded lawmakers that Delaware’s agreement with the EPA obligates the state to maintain appropriate oversight and enforcement mechanisms.

Refinery incident raises questions about enforcement limits

Still, some lawmakers raised the need for stronger enforcement tools beyond financial penalties. Pointing to Delaware City Refinery’s unpermitted release of over 38,000 pounds of sulfur dioxide and more than 262,000 pounds of carbon monoxide on March 13, Sen. Ray Siegfried questioned whether the state is doing enough to deter repeat violators.

In a post-hearing interview, Rep. Lambert acknowledged those concerns, noting that the original version of the bill included tougher measures beyond monetary fines. However, those provisions were removed during the legislative process.

Lambert maintained that higher fines could still be a meaningful deterrent, particularly for companies that prioritize profit over public safety. “Sometimes the most effective way to have accountability and to have safety is to impact their bottom line by increasing costs,” Lambert said.

He added that if the increased penalties don’t prove effective, he would consider reintroducing the broader enforcement tools originally proposed.

If passed by the Senate, HB 210 will head to Gov. Matt Meyer’s desk.

You can contact staff reporter Anitra Johnson at ajohnson@delawareonline.com.