Democratic legislative leadership announced Wednesday the General Assembly would be forming "bipartisan Special Committees to investigate the recent statewide property reassessment" as part of a larger commitment to address recent property tax hikes and to mitigate future reassessment struggles.
The announcement comes just weeks after House Speaker Melissa Minor-Brown (D-New Castle) called a one-day special session to provide immediate relief to New Castle County residents — who have faced the brunt of tax hikes following the first-in-decades property reassessment — via seven pieces of legislation.
One of the pieces of legislation passed was a resolution calling on officials from the counties, municipal governments, school districts and others stakeholders to work collaboratively with the General Assembly on the development of legislative and operational measures to improve on the recent reassessment and prepare for future reassessments.
The joint press release from Democratic House and Senate leadership says the committees will hold a series of public hearings this fall to examine the property valuation methodologies used by Tyler Technologies during the latest reassessment process, as well as evaluate Delaware’s current property tax framework and consider potential changes.
Not long after the announcement, House Republican Caucus Director of Policy and Communications Joseph Fulgham sent out a response, taking concern with the word "bipartisan."
"Someone in House and Senate leadership might want to consult a dictionary on the meaning of ‘bipartisan.’ Just as they did before and during the special session on reassessment, this process has been entirely partisan. Democratic leaders held closed-door meetings with select groups, drafted legislation behind the scenes, and rushed those bills through the legislature—without proper vetting, due process, and an opportunity for public input," the statement reads.
House Republican Leader Tim Dukes (R-Laurel) says the public press release was the first he heard of the special committees and public hearings, but a meeting between the leadership of both caucuses is planned for Friday where he hopes more information comes to light.
"I've not had a phone call from one person yet on the Democrat side to explain what is going on. Tomorrow [Friday], we are supposed to have a meeting, and I maybe will find out some things, but it's a little disappointing that they would start such an initiative and not talk to the the leadership of the minority party," Rep. Dukes said.
In addition to a request that Republicans be kept in the loop about ongoing reassessment relief efforts, Rep. Dukes says he wishes there was discussion on Republican-backed legislation from State Rep. Mike Smith (R-Pike Creek) and State Rep. Bryan Shupe (R-Milford) during the one-day special session earlier this month.
Rep. Smith made a motion to suspend the rules to bring House Bill 245 forward, which would have required school districts to prove a financial deficit in order to raise taxes following a reassessment, but that motion failed.
Under current Delaware law, school boards can vote to approve a revenue gain of up to 10% following property reassessment, which several have taken advantage of to varying degrees across the state.
Rep. Dukes says he would also like to raise the state's senior property tax credit from $500 to $1000 to provide further relief to those largely on fixed incomes amid the tax hikes.
Bipartisan legislation was filed in March of this year by State Rep. Bill Bush (D-Dover) to make that exact change, but it was not brought forward for consideration during special session.
Speaker Minor-Brown says although the resolution passed during special session didn't directly form special committees, she says their creation shouldn't be a surprise to GOP lawmakers.
"We discussed this topic at length during special session, we passed the resolution committing to do a comprehensive review of the reassessment process and so that is what we are doing," the speaker said. "I feel like we're doing what they've asked us to do. One of the chief complaints that we've heard from the Republican caucus, and members of the public, was that there was a lack of opportunity for public engagement and input throughout this process. So we're going to ensure that these hearings allow for the public's voices to be heard."
"This should be a bipartisan issue. I don't know why it's coming off as being so partisan when this impacts everybody in our state," she added.
The announcement of the special committees and hearings also follows Tuesday's New Castle County Council decision to vote down a resolution that would have called on the county auditor to review property reassessments done by Tyler Technologies.
The resolution failed 7-6, but a New Castle County spokesperson says Auditor Robert Wasserbach is already looking into the reassessment process and his work is in line with what the resolution was asking for.
Council members in opposition of the resolution said it would have politicized the auditor's office and "wouldn't change anything."
Speaker Minor-Brown clarifies the special committees being convened by the General Assembly have been in the works well before New Castle County Council's decision, but she does want to bring Tyler Technologies to the table to develop a better understanding of the latest reassessment process.
She says an additional special session to make further legislative changes is unlikely and that any reassessment-related bills would likely be brought to the table during the regular session beginning in January 2026.
The speaker says additional hearings could be added to the schedule if need be.
The following is a detailed list of the public hearings that will take place over the next three months:
Hearing #1: Week of September 22, 2025
Topics: The Recent Reassessment
- What happened at County level?
- What was Tyler Technology’s methodology, for both residential property and non-residential properties?
- How did information flow across levels of government?
- What flags were in place for unusual valuations?
- What was the appeals process, and what options do Delawareans have now?
- Preliminary update on the implementation of emergency legislation passed on August 12.
Hearing #2: Week of October 6, 2025
Topic: What might future reassessments and tax structures look like?
- What reassessment processes and structures do other states and jurisdictions use?
- Discuss potential for different tax rates based on property type (residential, commercial, agricultural, industrial).
- Discuss potential for different tax rates based on size within categories (small vs. large business, small vs. large agricultural). Discuss different housing categories (homeowners, small rentals, large rentals, manufactured homes, second homes).
- Drill down on county capacity to adopt differentiated categories or tax rates within categories.
- Update on the implementation of August 12 legislation.
Hearing #3: Week of October 20, 2025
Topics: Delawareans and their property taxes
- What other considerations might drive changes to Delaware’s property tax framework?
- What programs are in place to protect Delawareans experiencing economic hardship or on fixed income?
- How do these programs compare to other states’ offerings?
- What updates to property-tax exemptions should occur given the first-in-40-years reassessment?
- Update on implementation of August 12 legislation.
Hearing #4: Week of November 3, 2025
Topics: Reassessments and Education Funding
- How does ongoing property reassessment relate to education funding with Delaware’s current funding system and to the legal settlement in the Court of Chancery case that sparked the 2024 reassessment?
- Discuss the work of Delaware’s Public Education Funding Commission and others to identify optimal coordination of efforts relating to education funding.
Each meeting will take place in the Senate Chamber in Legislative Hall. All meetings will be open to the public and will be live-streamed at legis.delaware.gov
