DELAWARE. - On Tuesday, Senator Russ Huxtable and Representative Kendra Johnson introduced the 'The Housing for Every Delawarean Act', or Senate Bill 23.
According to the state, the act will require both counties and municipalities to create affordable housing plans to better guide decision-making regarding future development. The introduction of this bill comes just over a year after the Affordable Housing Production Task Force submitted its final report to the Governor.
The April 2025 report found that zoning reform at both the municipal and county levels is vital to increasing housing supply and diversity in the state.
Sen. Huxtable says these efforts will only help strengthen communities.
“Access to housing is one of the greatest challenges facing Delawareans, and we should use every tool available to make life more affordable for our neighbors. This legislation provides avenues to housing in our state – but it also intentionally strengthens our counties and municipalities by balancing communities, reducing commutes, protecting open space, and providing a boost to local workforces,” said Sen. Huxtable, prime sponsor of Senate Bill 23.
In a 2023 assessment done by the state, it found that half of the renters in Delaware and 21 percent of homeowners are burdened by home ownership and renter costs, saying those payments make up 30 percent of the home's gross income.
Under the bill, all three counties and areas with a population over 2,000 must include affordable housing within their comprehensive plans.
In those plans, the state says municipalities and counties must:
Increase maximum allowed residential density and the number of homes allowed per acre to support more affordable and diverse housing options.
Allow a mix of housing types such as single-family homes, townhouses, duplexes, apartments, and accessory units without the need for conditional use permits or special exceptions.
Update zoning rules for minimum lot sizes and setbacks, maximum building height, and dedicated open space requirements if less than 20 percent of the total housing inventory is affordable.
For development that complies with zoning standards, replace discretionary reviews with a streamlined administrative approval process. Development proposals with variance or conditional uses must still go through a discretionary review.
According to the state, counties must also include a minimum of 5 options to increase production, including transit-designed zoning, amendments to bolster housing availability, and incentivizing affordable housing inclusivity.
The state says that Senate Bill 23 has been assigned to the Land Use Committee and Senate Housing.
