Dear Friend,
I hope that you and your loved ones had an enjoyable holiday season. Since my last update, there have been many changes in the Virginia political landscape and the legislative session, which began on January 8th. In the first ten days of session, I have enjoyed meeting many constituents and advocates representing labor groups, bankers, environmentalists, marijuana decriminalization, school counselors, immigrant rights, physicians, and many more.
Useful Resources for the General Assembly Session
The 2020 legislative session began on Wednesday, January 8th and occurs each weekday at noon for 60 days (expected adjournment is March 6). You can visit the Capitol in person and sit in the gallery of either the House or Senate to observe. Or you can watch via livestream wherever you are by visiting the Virginia General Assembly website and clicking on “Members and Session” on the left-hand side of the page.
I encourage you to use the Legislative Information Systems website (http://lis.virginia.gov/) to access bill information, committee information, and meeting schedules.
If you have specific bills you’d like to talk to me about, you can communicate with me in a number of ways:
Visit the office: Pocahontas Building, 900 East Main Street, room E408
Email: delegate.carr@betsycarr.org
Phone: 804-698-1169
Mail: PO Box 406 Richmond, VA 23218
Complete my survey: https://www.betsycarr.org/constituent-survey/
You can schedule an appointment to meet with me by calling the office at 804-698-1169.
Additionally, you can review legislation that I have introduced here (http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?201+mbr+H212C). This year I am introducing bills that focus on good governance, promoting affordable housing, providing safe avenues for those experiencing overdoses to seek medical assistance, reducing plastic and polystyrene foam consumption, and regional planning of our precious water resources.
Upcoming Important Dates for Session
February 11 - Crossover (all the bills passed in the House go to the Senate and vice versa)February 16 - House Appropriations Committee reports Budget
March 6 - Last day of Session
This year the General Assembly will pass a budget for the next biennium (2020-2022). You can view the Governor’s proposed budget and budget amendments proposed by General Assembly members here: https://budget.lis.virginia.gov/
Highlights from the Governor's Budget
K-12 Education: $1.2 billion investment in K-12 education includes increase for at-risk schools, raises teacher salaries 3%, funding for more school counselors and new staff supports for English language learners, and makes new flexible funds available for local divisions.
Housing Affordability: $92 million in new funding to address housing affordability, eviction rates, and supportive housing as well as $63 million in the Virginia Housing Trust Fund.
Tuition Free Community Colleges: $145 million is included to make tuition-free community college available to low and middle-income students who pursue jobs in high-demand fields, like health care, information technology, public safety, and early childhood education.
Protecting the Environment: $733 million in new funding for the environment and clean energy, including an additional $10 million for oyster reef restoration. Clean water investments put Virginia on track to meet the 2025 Bay cleanup deadline. An additional $15.5 million investment for the Virginia Land Conservation Foundation grant program will support targeted land protection through the ConserveVirginia initiative.
Early Childhood Education System: $94.8 million investment will increase access for at-risk three and four year olds in the early childhood education system, establish consistent accountability standards, and ensure training and support for educators. $59.5 million is proposed to support the Virginia Preschool Initiative, which boosts per-pupil dollars, ensures class size flexibility, and helps reduce waitlists.
Maternal and Infant Mortality: $22 million to combat maternal and infant mortality, focused on reducing the racial disparity in the maternal mortality rate. This includes expanding Medicaid coverage for new moms, increase home visiting, and exploring Medicaid reimbursement for Doula support services. Nearly $4 million was included to extend coverage up to one year post-pregnancy as well as including medically necessary treatment for addiction and substance abuse disorders.
You can read the Governor’s entire proposal to the Joint Money Committees here. (https://www.governor.virginia.gov/newsroom/all-releases/2019/december/headline-849987-en.html)
Changes at the General Assembly
As you most likely know, with the recent election, the Democrats now hold the majority in both the House of Delegates and Senate. This is the first time in 25 years that Democrats have held power in both the legislative and executive branches. With the new majority, we will see a shift in priorities during the 2020 session. First, the new Speaker of the House, Eileen Filler-Corn, has appointed new committee chairs and rearranged the committee assignments to reflect the new majority. I am proud to have been appointed Vice-Chair of the General Laws committee. Additionally, I am now the chair of the Transportation Systems subcommittee of Transportation, the Open Government and Procurement subcommittee of General Laws, and the Higher Education subcommittee of Appropriations. I continue to serve on the Rules committee as well.
While individual members of the Democratic Caucus have priorities across the spectrum, here are a few policy changes that have been advocated:
Gun violence prevention
Protecting voter rights
Passing ERA
LGBTQ protections
Investment in public education
I am proud that the House has already accomplished one of these policy changes with the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment. Virginia becomes the 38th state to ratify the ERA, which will place women and men on equal footing in the Constitution. Although the ERA was introduced in 1923, it still offers benefits to women today, including protection from sexual harassment in the workplace, ensuring equal pay for equal work, and protecting existing gender equity laws.
You may have also heard that there were new rules regarding bringing weapons into the Pocahontas Building and the Capitol. The intention is to keep everyone safe - visitors, full and part-time employees, pages, interns, and members of the General Assembly. The policy bans the open carrying and carrying of concealed weapons in offices or spaces occupied by legislative branch agencies. You can read the full policy here: https://publications.virginiageneralassembly.gov/display_publication/236
Finally, the Capitol Square, per the Governor's orders, is acting under a temporary state of emergency until the evening of Tuesday, January 21. Recently, law enforcement has closely monitored intelligence regarding Monday's upcoming "Lobby Day" and received real, actionable information that groups were planning violence at the rally. Due to this, no weapons of any kind will be allowed on the Capitol grounds during the temporary state of emergency.
I support the right of Virginia citizens to peacefully protest and communicate their views on proposed Virginia legislation. I also support the Second Amendment. Many groups protest peacefully during session, but with out-of-state militia groups and hate groups expected to attend, it is important to keep everyone safe.
Important Upcoming Events & Other News
We Demand: Women''s Suffrage in Virginia: 2020 marks 100 years since women gained the right to vote on the federal level. The Task Force to Commemorate the Centennial Anniversary of Women's Right to Vote, on which I serve, is hosting many exhibitions and events around the state. The Library of Virginia's exhibition, We Demand, opened on January 13th and includes many historic artifacts and memorabilia from the suffrage movement in Virginia. (https://edu.lva.virginia.gov/wedemand/?_ga=2.171748128.1086302676.1578452048-772645815.1549124484)
Gubernatorial Appointments
Throughout the year, the Governor of Virginia makes appointments to various boards, commissions, councils, and other collegial bodies. If you are interested, the vacancy list can be found at commonwealth.virginia.gov/boards in an easily searchable format that is updated monthly as positions are filled or become vacant. For recommendations or further questions about applications, please reach out to my office.
It is an honor to serve you in the General Assembly. Please do not hesitate to contact me if I can be of assistance to you. I can be reached at 804-698-1169 or delegate.carr@betsycarr.org.
Sincerely,
Betsy B. Carr