Delaware’s 2025 labor data reveals a troubling paradox: employment rose while unemployment increased. A growing labor force outpaced job creation, leaving more people competing for fewer private-sector jobs. Nearly all employment gains came from healthcare, while manufacturing and other market-driven sectors declined, raising concerns about economic diversity and Delaware’s ability to support an aging population.

Opposition to offshore wind in the Mid-Atlantic remains active and increasingly sophisticated. While U.S. Wind’s federal approval stands, legal challenges continue at both the state and federal levels. Public engagement has not slowed, with packed forums and ongoing lawsuits highlighting growing concerns among coastal communities, fishermen, and local leaders in Maryland and Delaware about the project’s long-term impacts.

Delaware’s students face a serious literacy crisis, but an effective, evidence-based solution already exists: cursive handwriting instruction. Research shows cursive strengthens reading, spelling, memory, and written expression, yet Delaware’s current law lacks enforcement and support. Strengthening cursive instruction offers a low-cost, science-backed opportunity to improve student outcomes statewide.

As several states move to restrict certain SNAP purchases, Delaware has chosen not to limit items such as sugar-sweetened beverages. Medical research links obesity to higher rates of diabetes, heart disease, and rising health care costs—conditions already widespread in the state. With SNAP shaping dietary choices and Medicaid covering obesity treatment, this article explores whether aligning nutrition assistance and health policy could improve health outcomes and reduce long-

A federal judge has denied U.S. Wind’s request for a preliminary injunction, a ruling Ocean City quickly called a victory. But despite the headlines, the offshore wind project is far from over. U.S. Wind still holds a valid federal permit, state law may soon allow cables to come ashore, and multiple lawsuits remain active. With federal agencies reexamining approvals and new court challenges underway, the project’s future is uncertain and far from settled.

Delaware’s decision to decouple from federal accelerated depreciation is being framed as budget protection, but in practice it functions as a quiet tax increase on investment. Accelerated depreciation is not a bonus or windfall—it simply allows businesses to recover costs sooner. By slowing deductions for capital equipment and R&D, Delaware raises the effective cost of investing, weakens competitiveness, and signals policy uncertainty at a time when capital can easily move el

Delaware’s electric grid is nearing a breaking point as rising demand collides with declining reliable power generation. Population growth, data centers, and electrification policies are increasing electricity use, while major power plants have closed. With PJM warning of possible blackouts by 2026, Delaware faces urgent questions about affordability, reliability, and energy policy choices needed to keep the lights on and the economy running.

Delaware’s $400 million budget shortfall isn’t the result of federal tax changes—it’s the outcome of years of unchecked state spending. As the Caesar Rodney Institute explains, Dover’s leaders have expanded budgets through off-book appropriations and relied on temporary federal aid to mask structural problems. With surpluses fading, Delaware faces a fiscal crisis of its own making, demanding real reform—not blame-shifting to Washington.

The Caesar Rodney Institute is proud to launch a new feature showcasing Delaware students’ research on real-world community issues. Our first project highlights Benjamin Parsons, a high school senior studying how trail maintenance affects wildlife on the Delmarva Peninsula. His findings use the gray squirrel as a stand-in for the Delmarva fox squirrel and offer practical ways to balance recreation with habitat protection.

As the federal shutdown continues, most Delawareans won’t see changes in their health insurance premiums. The current debate in Washington only affects temporary ACA marketplace subsidies that help a small share of insured residents. Medicare, Medicaid, and employer-based coverage remain stable. Even if enhanced subsidies expire, higher rates would impact only some ACA enrollees. For most Americans, coverage and costs will stay the same. Learn more at CaesarRodney.org.