Roundtable Applauds Governor, Assembly for Business Development Measures

The Delaware Business Roundtable applauded today’s signing of House Bills 102 and 104 into law - two legislative measures that will help attract and grow business and development in Delaware.

The Roundtable thanked Gov. John Carney and the bills’ sponsors for leadership and support in advancing the “Ready in Six” bills through the legislative process.

“This is a solid step forward in making the permitting process more efficient in Delaware and thus enabling First State businesses to create more job opportunities for Delawareans,” said Delaware Business Roundtable CEO Robert Perkins.

The measures help make Delaware more economically competitive with other states by enacting policies and practices with a goal of cutting the permitting timeline from 24 months to six months.

HB 102 “expedites the issuance of a temporary entrance permit for commercial and economic development projects.”

HB 104 amends the state’s pre-application for land use, “expediting the process for economic development projects in the State of Delaware with some exemptions from the PLUS process.”

The Delaware Business Roundtable commissioned an independent KPMG report to analyze the permitting and regulatory process in Delaware and compare them to neighboring states. The report recommended that Delaware stack permitting processes so reviews are conducted concurrently, create a permitting concierge to fast-track projects through the process, and eliminate the state’s Preliminary Land Use Service, among other steps.

The report states: “With significant competition between states for jobs, talent and investment, an efficient permit process is critical to demonstrate a favorable business climate and provide a predictable outcome for businesses seeking to locate or expand in Delaware. Because prospective businesses target locations which can achieve permitting in as few as six months, those states with longer permit timeframes experience reduced interest and missed economic development opportunities.”

“Delaware has so much to offer businesses: low taxes, a prime location, a premier higher education system, and a high-quality workforce. A more favorable permitting environment gives Delaware an even greater competitive edge needed to grow, retain and attract jobs, talent and investment to our state.

The Delaware Business Roundtable is a non-partisan, volunteer consortium of CEOs whose companies collectively employ over 75,000 people in Delaware. Since its inception in 1981, the Roundtable’s broad mission is to enhance the quality of life in Delaware by promoting commerce, job creation and select public policy issues. In recent years, the Roundtable has been a leading supporter of public education transformation and entrepreneurs in Delaware.