A Competitiveness Signal

Issue 12.05

February 6, 2026

THE PAST MONTH IN DOVER

The second leg of the 153rd General Assembly convened on January 13, with lawmakers prioritizing several high-impact issuesy, including hospital budget oversight (SB 213 with SA1), reforms to New Castle County nonresidential property assessments (SS1 for SB 228), education funding changes aligned with the Redding Consortium’s recommendations, review of the Governor’s Recommended Budget, and veto overrides of Senate Bills 63 and 75. The Joint Finance Committee began its annual budget hearings this week, which will continue through the first week of March. There were several bills introduced in January that could impact the business community. Read more >

A COMPETITVENESS SIGNAL

USING WHAT WE ALREADY HAVE TO SOLVE WHAT WE CURRENTLY LACK

Delaware pays to maintain space it does not fully use. Roughly 20% of public schools operate below 66% capacity, even as the state spends about $270 million each year on school building maintenance. In any business portfolio, sustained underutilization paired with fixed operating costs triggers a strategic decision: right-size the footprint, reinvest in what remains, and redeploy excess assets. For Delaware, that decision sits at the intersection of two constraints that employers and employees repeatedly raise — housing availability and workforce readiness. Read more >

AN UNEVEN EXPERIENCE

DELAWARE SCHOOL ENROLLMENT TRENDS 2024-2025

The latest Delaware school capacity report for 2024–2025 shows notable contrasts across the state. Some districts are operating well below their intended building capacity, while others are nearing — or exceeding — the limits of their facilities. This data represents real school buildings, on real land, in established neighborhoods already connected to roads, utilities, and communities. The full district capacity list can be found in the 2026 Competitiveness Bluebook on table 60. Read more >

DELAWARE SCHOOL BOARD INDEX

TOOL TO LEARN ABOUT YOUR LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRICT

The Delaware School Board Index by First State Educate presents neutral, factual information about each school district in a format designed for general public understanding. Each district page highlights:

The size, structure, and scope of the district
How the school board is organized and how long members have served
Current district priorities and challenges, drawn from public sources
Seats up for election and the role those seats play on the board

Explore the index >

PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

What I have learned in the decades since is that not everyone is cut out for college, and not everyone is cut out for skilled trade or technical work either. There is enormous value in a diversely skilled workforce. Today, we have employment gaps that retirements and our declining population is struggling to fill. Immigration is one meaningful way we can add physicians, engineers, lab scientists, roofers, nursing home support staff, childcare workers, and more to shore up employment needs. We need organized immigration now more than ever as the U.S. birthrate continues to decline. Read more >

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