With Matt Meyer ascending to Delaware’s top elected post this month, the state will be getting a governor who has professed support for a string of transparency reforms, including many that would force lawmakers to disclose more information to the public than they do today.
They include calls for expanding the state’s open records laws to the legislature; requiring politicians to publicly disclose business relationships with lobbyists; and prohibiting departing elected officials from immediately taking jobs as lobbyists, in state government, or from entering into state contracts.
The proposed reforms were part of a larger platform presented during Meyer’s campaign for governor that he said would make state government more transparent and efficient.
And it came amid heightened public scrutiny around public transparency, following a corruption scandal at the Delaware Department of Labor, and questions around the accuracy of Lt. Gov. Bethany Hall Long’s campaign finance reports.
Now, with the launch of the 2025 legislative session, some proposals Meyer supports – like the creation of an inspector general’s office – appear to have a wide-range of support. But, for others, the prospects are less clear.