# Delaware HB 407: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLES 7 AND 30 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DELAWARE HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES CLEANUP ACT AND THE REALTY TRANSFER TAX. Delaware HB 407, AN ACT TO AMEND TITLES 7 AND 30 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DELAWARE HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES CLEANUP ACT AND THE REALTY TRANSFER TAX., is a 153rd General Assembly (2024–2026) House bill sponsored by Debra Heffernan (Democratic); status failed, last action 2026-08-17 (HS 1 for HB 407 - Signed by Governor); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/DE-HB407-153 - As of: 2026-10-12 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: Delaware HB 407 - State: Delaware - Session: 153rd General Assembly (2024–2026) - Title: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLES 7 AND 30 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DELAWARE HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES CLEANUP ACT AND THE REALTY TRANSFER TAX. - Status: failed - Chamber: House - Introduced: 2026-05-07 - Last action: 2026-08-17, HS 1 for HB 407 - Signed by Governor - Sponsor: Debra Heffernan (Democratic) - Cosponsors: 12 - Touches household money: yes - Economic provisions PRIA read: 6 ## Summary No summary available. ## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read - Faster action at hazardous cleanup sites: benefit, low. Beginning July 1, 2026, Delaware's environmental agency can enter facilities without a court order to address emergencies. The Secretary must have good cause to believe an emergency exists. The agency no longer needs to show that the operator cannot or will not act. The Secretary can also authorize… - Site owners can request sample shares: benefit, low. Beginning July 1, 2026, facility owners or operators can request a share of samples taken during state property investigations. They must ask in advance, and Delaware's environmental agency must split the sample with them. If the agency analyzes samples, it can share the results but is not required… - Guaranteed funding for contaminated site grants: benefit, low. Beginning July 1, 2026, Delaware guarantees at least $10 million annually for the Brownfields Grant Program. This replaces the prior one-third annual allocation rule. At least $2 million comes from hazardous-substance cleanup funds. Another $8 million comes from realty transfer tax receipts, deposi… - Higher penalties for cleanup fraud: cost, low. Beginning July 1, 2026, the maximum civil penalty for covered cleanup fraud rises from $10,000 to $40,000 per act. It applies when a potentially responsible party defrauds the Secretary or another potentially responsible party. Covered fraud involves a proposed settlement or an application certifyi… - Responsible parties face added cleanup costs: cost, low. Beginning July 1, 2026, Delaware's environmental agency can seek cleanup collection costs from potentially responsible parties. These costs expressly include attorney fees and employee time when the agency incurs cleanup costs and seeks repayment. The agency can bring covered cases in any court wit… - Petroleum sellers' tax adjustment lasts longer: cost, low. Beginning July 1, 2026, the law extends annual adjustments to the additional tax on businesses' petroleum sales receipts. The formula covers taxable periods after December 31, 2018, through December 31, 2036. The rate equals 0.9% multiplied by $15 million divided by cleanup fund deposits during the… ## Sponsors and cosponsors - Sponsor: Debra Heffernan (Democratic), House - Cosponsor: Frank Burns (Democratic), House - Cosponsor: Ronald E. Gray (Republican), House - Cosponsor: Stephanie L. Hansen (Democratic), Senate - Cosponsor: Jeff Hilovsky (Republican), House - Cosponsor: Kendra Johnson (Democratic), House - Cosponsor: Spiros Mantzavinos (Democratic), Senate - Cosponsor: Eric Morrison (Democratic), House - Cosponsor: Trey Paradee (Democratic), Senate - Cosponsor: Sophie Phillips (Democratic), House - Cosponsor: Ray Seigfried (Democratic), Senate - Cosponsor: Claire Snyder-Hall (Democratic), House - Cosponsor: Jeffrey N. Spiegelman (Republican), House ## Actions (11) - 2026-08-17: HS 1 for HB 407 - Signed by Governor (Governor) - 2026-06-25: HS 1 for HB 407 - Passed By Senate. Votes: 21 YES (Senate) - 2026-06-23: HS 1 for HB 407 - Reported Out of Committee (Environment, Energy & Transportation) in Senate with 5 On Its Merits (Senate) - 2026-06-18: HS 1 for HB 407 - Assigned to Environment, Energy & Transportation Committee in Senate (Senate) - 2026-06-18: HS 1 for HB 407 - Passed By House. Votes: 40 YES 1 ABSENT (House) - 2026-06-18: HS 1 for HB 407 - - Passed In House by Voice Vote (House) - 2026-06-12: Substituted in House by HS 1 for HB 407 (House) - 2026-06-11: Substituted in House by HS 1 for HB 407 (House) - 2026-05-14: Assigned to Appropriations Committee in House (House) - 2026-05-13: Reported Out of Committee (Natural Resources & Energy) in House with 4 Favorable, 5 On Its Merits (House) - 2026-05-07: Introduced and Assigned to Natural Resources & Energy Committee in House (House) ## Bill text - Current, 2026-05-07: [HTML](https://legis.delaware.gov/json/BillDetail/GenerateHtmlDocument?legislationId=143250&legislationTypeId=1&docTypeId=2) ## Related bills - HS 1 for HB 449: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 24 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DIETITIAN/NUTRITIONIST LICENSURE ACT. (passed house) - HB 357: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLES 10 AND 13 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DUTY TO SUPPORT POOR PERSONS. (signed) - SB 279: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 14 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO SCHOOL-BASED OCCUPATIONAL THERAPISTS. (vetoed) - HB 393: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 26 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO PROTECTIONS FOR PUBLIC UTILITY CONSUMERS. (vetoed) - SB 231: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 14 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO SCHOOL SOCIAL WORKERS. (vetoed) - HB 356: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO PFAS IN FIREFIGHTING FOAM AND EQUIPMENT. (failed) ## Sources - [Current (HTML)](https://legis.delaware.gov/json/BillDetail/GenerateHtmlDocument?legislationId=143250&legislationTypeId=1&docTypeId=2) ## Related - [HS 1 for HB 449: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 24 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DIETITIAN/NUTRITI…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/DE-HS1FORHB449-153) - [HB 357: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLES 10 AND 13 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DUTY TO S…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/DE-HB357-153) - [SB 279: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 14 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO SCHOOL-BASED OCCUPATI…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/DE-SB279-153) - [HB 393: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 26 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO PROTECTIONS FOR PUBLI…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/DE-HB393-153) - [SB 231: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 14 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO SCHOOL SOCIAL WORKERS.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/DE-SB231-153) - [HB 356: AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO PFAS IN FIREFIGHTING…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/DE-HB356-153) - [Delaware bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/delaware/bills) - [Delaware state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/delaware) - [All state legislation](https://policyrisk.com/state-bills) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/DE-HB407-153 (as of 2026-10-12).