Week 5: We Rush to Dispose of Senate Bills

Sunday, February 11, 2024

Dear Friend,

This week our days started earlier than usual and sessions lasted for hours. We are rushing to dispose of senate bills before midnight on February 13 when bills must cross over to the other body on their journey to becoming law. Fortunately, most of my bills were heard early in session so I am not under excessive pressure to get them heard before the deadline.

Highlights of the Week:

I am making progress convincing my colleagues on the Finance and Appropriations Committee that strategies to raise revenue by increasing taxes on higher income households is a fairer and more sustainable way to raise revenue than relying on Governor Youngkin’s sales tax approach.

Public Education:

Funding for K-12: Fortunately, I believe my colleagues will join me in making a concerted effort to substantially increase funding to K-12 public education. In fact, I am suggesting that any money raised through new taxes should go to fund public education and the dollars appropriated by Governor Youngkin to bolster pre-K education must remain in the budget. I am working to ensure that pre-K slots available through the Virginia Pre-School Initiative (VPI) that are not used by localities (during a specific time-frame) are banked and preserved for future use. Hopefully, we can increase the state funding associated with the VPI program.

At some point, we have to re-examine the allocation process for funding public education. Readjusting the composite index formula (the formula by which state dollars are allocated to public schools) will be very controversial, but we must start the conversation. In the meanwhile, teachers need raises, schools with large numbers of children on free and reduced lunch need more state dollars and special education resources must be bolstered.

Bright Light on the Book Banning Front- A bill (SB235) that prohibits book bans in Virginia public schools passed through the Senate last week. It had support from every Democrat, as well as one Republican senator. Given Governor Youngkin’s history on this topic, I fully expect a veto of this legislation.

Affordable Housing:

Accessory Dwelling Units: I worked with one of our new senators, Saddam Salim, on SB304. This bill grandfathers existing accessory dwelling unit ordinances but establishes a by-right framework for jurisdictions to adopt one if they have not done so by January 1, 2025. I spoke on the floor in favor of this bill. Here is an excerpt: “The real purpose behind this bill is trying to facilitate more housing units in single family neighborhoods that can be affordable and accessible to all the amenities that single family homeowners have.”

Medicaid:

Ensuring Access: I will continue to work to increase the reimbursement rate to physicians and mental health providers who participate in our Medicaid program. Virginians who rely on Medicaid for access to health care need to have doctors and health care professionals available to serve them. We will also do whatever we can to reduce, if not completely eliminate, the category one developmental disability waiver wait list and provide incentives to expand the capacity of providers to offer services under this waiver category.

Protecting the Environment:

Buildings with Renewable Energy: My bill to require that new state and local public buildings designed to be over 5,000 square feet must have renewable energy infrastructure and that photovoltaic solar roofs must be the primary choice for renewable energy passed the senate. This bill also establishes a workgroup to develop strategies to help public schools address renewable energy requirements.

Invasive Plants: Another interesting bill that passed was SB306. This bill requires retailers selling invasive plants to label the plants as such. The list of invasive plants shall be established by the Department of Conservation and Recreation and made easily available. This bill enables consumers to be better informed about what they are purchasing. If such notice is not provided the owner of the retail establishment could be fined $500.

Parking Lot Solar Options: Senate bill 234 directs the Department of Energy, in consultation with the Department of Environmental Quality, to establish by January 1, 2025, a Parking Lot Solar Development Program for the purpose of encouraging development of distributed parking lot solar projects up to one megawatt in size. The bill also creates the Parking Lot Solar Development Fund for the purpose of funding solar renewable energy credit values at an updated 10-year levelized incentive level through the renewable energy certificate market.

Gun Safety:

Gun safety debates continue, but try as we might, we cannot seem to convince our Republican colleagues to vote for any of these common-sense measures. A striking example of how gun safety has become so partisan was the final vote on Senator Deeds bill to ban assault weapons, a bill which I proudly co-sponsored along with the entire Democratic caucus. This bill will establish in Virginia law the Federal ban that was in effect from 1994 to 2004. The language in Senator Deeds bill is exactly the same as the federal ban which passed Congress nearly unanimously in 1993. Experts tell us that the ban was an effective means of preventing mass shootings.

In the debate regarding passage of the assault weapons ban,I reminded my colleagues on the floor that “In 2018 an average of more than one mass shooting took place every day in the US. Moreover, if we have the evidence before us and we know there is a problem, then we as leaders must do more than offer thoughts and prayers.” Senate Bill 2 passed the Senate on a partisan 21-19 vote.

The story was the same for a number of other gun safety measures, including a bill to ban open carry in public places (SB 99). This bill prohibits the carrying of certain semi-automatic center-fire rifles, pistols, and shotguns on any public street, road, alley, sidewalk, or public right-of-way or in any public park or any other place of nature that is open to the public. Under current law, a locality may adopt an ordinance that prohibits the possession, carrying, or transport of any firearms, ammunition, or components or combination thereof in any building, or part thereof, owned or used by the locality. Senate bill 99 will make public spaces safe across the Commonwealth.

Must be 21 to Purchase a Firearm: Other gun safety measures that passed on a party-line vote included SB327. This bill prohibits any person under 21 years of age from purchasing a firearm, with exceptions for the purchase of a rifle or shotgun.

Five Day Waiting Period: This bill requires a 5 day waiting period to purchase a firearm (SB 273). I co-sponsored this legislation and spoke on the floor in an effort to persuade my Republican colleagues to vote for the bill. Here is excerpt of my remarks: “Over half of our suicides are committed with a firearm. An individual may wish to purchase a firearm out of anger or with the intent to harm himself or someone else because he sees no way out. A five day cooling off period is a step to ensure that only those who can responsibly handle a firearm are given a firearm.” This bill also passed on a 21-19 vote.

Luckily, with a majority in both houses, we don’t need Republicans to pass these widely popular measures but absent their votes, Youngkin will be bolstered to veto these bills.

Informing Parents about the Need to Safely Store Firearms: This bill (SB225) requires each local school board to provide annual notification to parents by email and SMS text message within 30 calendar days succeeding the first day of each school year of the parent's legal responsibility to safely store any firearm. The notice to parents must include the risks associated with improperly stored firearms, statistics relating to firearm-related accidents, injuries, and death among youth, and other tips and strategies. The bill requires each school board to make such parental notification available in multiple languages on its website.

Lastly, thank you for the ongoing calls and emails. Although the volume of correspondence from constituents and others has been very high, I do appreciate hearing from you.

It is an honor and privilege to represent you in Richmond.

Sincerely,