State Senator Ray Siegfried is holding off on legislation he proposed last month in response to Avelo Airlines' deportation flights, after the airline announced it was ending its contract to the Dept. of Homeland Security this week.
He proposed Senate Bill 207 and Senate Enrolled Act 123 last month.
Avelo has offered flights out of Delaware since 2023. Nine months ago, it began chartering deportation flights for the Department of Homeland Security. It did not run deportation flights out of Delaware.
SB 207 aimed to revoke the state’s fuel tax exemption for airlines contracting with the federal government to deport people without due process. Senate Current Resolution 123 asked the Delaware River and Bay Authority to scrutinize its contracts with Avelo, the lone commercial carrier operating at DRBA’s Wilmington Airport.
These bills opened the door to holding airlines and other companies accountable, Siegfried said. But they didn't address "the concept of transparency."
In favor of moving SB 207 forward, he’s working on legislation that pushes for transparency from companies that Delaware contracts with.
"Coming with that agreement or contract has got to be a verification clause, basically indicating that the company that's awarded these special benefits are going to verify that, in this case, that the immigrants that they're transporting have had due process and that (the company) followed the law."
He added contracts the state or DRBA enters into should be available to the public for feedback.
Siegfried plans to propose legislation examining a company’s obligation to follow due process and its contracts in the next couple of weeks.