Delaware Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in Delaware, with full citations and the original source on every page.
No Delaware opinions match these filters
Try a different search term or clear the filters.
When a Delaware city reschedules a council meeting because of bad weather and gives less than 7 days' notice for the new date, is 'inclement weather' enough of an explanation to satisfy FOIA, or does the city have to also explain why the actual agenda items can't wait?
Both. Inclement weather explains why the original meeting got cancelled, but FOIA requires the city to also explain why each agenda item, including final readings of ordinances, has to be heard with l…
If a Delaware public body's hybrid (in-person plus virtual) meeting cuts off a remote attendee in the middle of public comment, has the public body broken the open-meeting law?
It can. Section 10006A(d)(4) says a tech glitch does not by itself invalidate a virtual meeting or the actions taken at it. But the public body still has to demonstrate compliance with FOIA. When the …
If a Delaware public body holds a virtual town hall with sign-in requirements and a waiting room, but only a few members attend, did they violate the open-meetings law?
No. AG opinion 25-IB66 found that the Redding Consortium for Educational Equity did NOT violate FOIA at its November 18, 2025 town hall meeting because less than a quorum of its 24 members attended (o…
If three Delaware city councilmembers attend a meeting about a community Christmas event, does that automatically count as a 'public meeting' under FOIA?
No, not if they aren't conducting public business as a quorum. AG opinion 25-IB64 found that the City of New Castle did NOT violate FOIA when a councilmember and the Mayor met on November 9, 2025 to d…
If a Delaware town's meeting agenda lists a 'Second Reading: Resolution' on a property tax rate, but the council actually does the first reading of an ordinance instead, is that a FOIA violation?
No. AG opinion 25-IB63 found that the Town of Blades did NOT violate FOIA when its November 10, 2025 meeting agenda listed 'Second Reading: Resolution 2025.10.27.0001 Real Estate Property Tax Rate' bu…
Does a Delaware town meeting agenda have to say it will hold a 'first reading' of a tax-rate proposal, or is 'New Tax Rate' specific enough?
'New Tax Rate' was specific enough. The AG found the Town of Blades did not violate FOIA when its October 27, 2025 special-meeting agenda listed 'New Tax Rate' without stating that the Council would h…
If only three of seven Delaware school board members meet privately about public business, does that break FOIA's open-meeting rules?
No. FOIA's open-meeting requirements apply only when a quorum of a public body gathers to discuss or act on public business. The Christina School District Board has seven members, so a quorum is four.…
When a Delaware public body reschedules a meeting, does the posted notice have to clearly state the new date, time, and place?
Yes. The AG found the Village of Arden violated FOIA because its posted notice did not clearly reflect the intended meeting and agenda along with a date, time, and location. The notice seemed to set a…
Does Delaware FOIA require state agencies to accept written public comments at meetings, or can they require comments to be made verbally during the public comment period?
Verbal is enough. The AG determined that the Office of State Planning Coordination did not violate FOIA when it declined Amy Roe's written comments before the September 3, 2025 PLUS (Preliminary Land …
When a Delaware town's executive session covers both litigation strategy and personnel matters, can the AG decide whether the closed-session use was proper, even when an employee asks for an open-session discussion?
Sometimes not, on the available record. The AG cleared the Town of Greenwood on the FOIA-coordinator-listing claim because the Town updated its website within the 20-day statutory window after appoint…
If a Delaware zoning agenda lists a parking variance for one property, does it also have to list the off-site parking lot the developer plans to use to meet the parking requirement?
No FOIA violation. Rehoboth Beach's agenda for the September 30, 2024 Board of Adjustment hearing identified the applicant, the property at 2 Rehoboth Avenue, and the four code sections involved (incl…
Can a Delaware school board take votes on iPads or laptops at a public meeting without announcing the result, or do votes have to be open?
The Christina School District Board of Education violated FOIA. FOIA requires that votes be taken at a public meeting and that the results be made public. The Board took votes via computer at its July…
Can a Delaware village hold a 'briefing' or 'informational session' the night before a public vote without giving FOIA notice, or does that count as an open meeting?
The Village of Arden violated FOIA by failing to prove that its June 23, 2024 informational session about the Schroeder Trust was not subject to open-meeting rules. Delaware courts have long held that…
Can a Delaware city use a vague 'matters discussed in executive session' agenda item to vote on hiring a new city solicitor with no public discussion?
No. Rehoboth Beach violated Delaware's open-meeting law twice: by voting on a new city solicitor without putting that decision on the agenda in 'plain and comprehensible' language, and by discussing t…
Can a Delaware town council ban rebuttals during public comment, and is it enough to list executive-session reasons by statute subsection?
The Town Council of Ellendale did not violate FOIA. A public comment period that allows two minutes per speaker and disallows rebuttals still gives the public a meaningful opportunity to engage. FOIA …
Can a Delaware school district hide the appointment of an acting high school principal inside a generic 'personnel agenda' and refuse to tell the public the names or positions involved?
No. The Indian River Board's June 26 and August 16, 2023 agendas listed only 'personnel' for the executive session and 'personnel agenda' / 'personnel addendum' for the open-session vote. That gave no…
Can a Delaware school board hold an executive session without saying what it is about, then come back and vote on a 'monthly personnel report' that quietly includes the superintendent?
No. FOIA requires the agenda to state the purpose of an executive session, not just label it 'Executive Session.' The Delmar Board also violated FOIA by reordering its agenda mid-meeting without telli…
Can a Delaware city council go into executive session and pick a replacement for a vacant council seat by secret written ballot, then return to open session for a unanimous public vote?
The Wilmington City Council Committee of the Whole violated FOIA. At its November 28, 2022 and February 1, 2023 meetings to fill vacant At-Large and First District Council seats, the Committee intervi…
Can a Delaware board vote in public on 'administrative action discussed in executive session' without identifying which employee, when there are only three employees in the agency?
Yes, in narrow circumstances. The DIAA Board has only three employees. Naming the employee in the public motion would have exposed private personnel information about an identifiable individual. The A…
If four members of a thirteen-member city council meet at a councilmember's house, is that a 'meeting' under Delaware's open-meetings law?
No prima facie violation. Wilmington City Council requires seven members for a quorum, not three. The Petition only showed meetings of up to four councilmembers, which by itself does not establish a F…
Can a Delaware village hold a fully virtual public meeting during the COVID emergency, and is an agenda that just lists 'officer reports' and 'old business' enough to satisfy FOIA?
Two of the three FOIA claims succeeded. The Village was allowed to hold a fully virtual meeting in March 2022 because Delaware was still under a public-health state of emergency. But it failed to prov…
Can a Delaware school board hold no-confidence and mask-mandate votes under a vague '2021-2022 School Year' agenda heading without separate notice?
The Indian River School District Board of Education violated FOIA. Its August 22, 2021 agenda listed only '2021-2022 School Year (D)' for discussion. Two votes followed: one expressing no confidence i…
Can a Delaware town council 'poll' its members by email and phone to decide whether to close for a holiday, instead of voting at a public meeting?
The Town of Georgetown violated FOIA. The Town Manager polled all five council members by email and phone on whether to close for Juneteenth 2021. Three said no, two said yes. The Town Manager then an…
Can a Delaware city add the name of a Board nominee to a meeting agenda only a few days before the vote, without explaining the late amendment?
No. Delaware FOIA requires agendas seven days in advance and amendments only up to six hours before with a stated reason for the delay. Rehoboth Beach amended the August 21, 2020 agenda to add the nom…
Can a Delaware charter-school board hold a meeting in a locked building, and can it go into executive session without putting that on the agenda?
Mostly no. The Odyssey Charter School Board violated FOIA by holding an executive session at the December 3, 2019 meeting without including it on the agenda. The locked-building location did not viola…
When can a Delaware town go into closed session to talk about rumored potential lawsuits or personnel matters?
The Delaware AG concluded South Bethany violated FOIA by holding an executive session for one topic based on a rumor of potential litigation, which is not an objective indicator. A second topic discus…
Are a city personnel committee's meetings public under Delaware FOIA, and can a city council go into executive session to discuss a wastewater transfer?
The Delaware AG concluded Rehoboth Beach violated FOIA twice: holding an executive session to discuss an attorney-client privileged memorandum without meeting the litigation-strategy requirements, and…
Can a Delaware city council go into executive session to get legal advice about zoning, then come back into open session and vote?
The Delaware AG concluded that the City of Lewes violated FOIA by using an executive session under the 'exempt-documents' provision to get general legal advice on a zoning decision and then voting on …
Is a mayor's hand-picked advisory committee on water rates subject to Delaware's open meetings law?
The Delaware AG concluded that the City of Rehoboth Beach's wastewater working group was a public body under FOIA. Because the committee was appointed by the Mayor (a public official) and was charged …
Does a public board violate open-meetings law if its president has a quiet side conversation with counsel or staff during a meeting?
No, according to this opinion. A legislator complained that the State Board of Education's president had a private sidebar with the board's attorney and asked a staff member to confirm advice during a…
Browse Delaware opinions by topic
Attorney general opinions in Delaware are written by the Delaware Attorney General's office in response to questions from state agencies, legislators, and prosecutors. They are not binding like court decisions, but courts and agencies treat them as persuasive guidance on how state law applies. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original text.