Dear Friend,
Thank you for sharing your priorities with me over the last week. The third week of session certainly saw an uptick in activity at the General Assembly and with legislative meetings. Additionally, five of my 18 bills were heard. With Crossover nearing (when all passed bills in House crossover to the Senate and vice versa), much of my time will be spent presenting the remainder of my legislation and voting on bills in committees and on the House Floor.
Advocacy Meetings Last Week:
Virginia Education Association (plus Richmond & Chesterfield chapters)
Virginia Association of Elementary School Principals
Virginia Humanities
President of George Mason University
Marijuana Policy advocates
Richmond citizens concerned about loud vehicle exhaust systems
YMCA Summer School Programs
Care in Action & SEIU advocates
Virginia Coalition of Motorcyclists
Southern Legislative Conference
President of Virginia Tech
M&E and S.B. Ballard Contractors
Focused Ultrasound Foundation
Substance Abuse Free Environment (SAFE) advocates
Virginia Public Media
President of Hollins University
President of Lynchburg College
Families Forward Virginia advocates
Virginia Apartment Management Association
City of Richmond 4th District Constituents
Virginia Association of Optometrists and Opticians
Virginia Poverty Law Center
Virginia Housing Alliance
Amalgamated Transportation Union
Voices for Virginia’s Children
National Coalition of 100 Black Women
Bills in subcommittee
HB637 - “Move Over Law” Expansion
For several years I have hosted an intern from Randolph Macon College. This year, Dr. Rich Meagher invited me to work with his class to develop a bill. After hearing the students’ presentations, I introduced HB637 to expand Virginia “Move Over” law. The students worked on the bill and spoke in the subcommittee. The bill did not pass the subcommittee. The current “Move Over” law became law in 2019 and the subcommittee members agreed that more time needs to pass to understand the effectiveness of it. While the bill did not pass, I, as well as several subcommittee members, were very impressed with the students’ professionalism and engagement with the legislative process.
HB642 - Health Care Coverage for Certain Service Members
HB642 was brought to me by the Virginia Department of Military Affairs (DMA). During emergencies, the Commonwealth is often required to call members of the Virginia National Guard (VNG) and Virginia Defense Force (VDF) to State Active Duty (SAD), a temporary state employee status, to respond to threats, natural or man-made. Sometimes when SAD requires service longer than 14 days, a service member may lose their civilian health insurance. This legislation would authorize the DMA to pay the employer portion of health care insurance premiums for any member of the VNG or VDF experiencing a gap in coverage resulting from that service member being called to SAD, during a declared state of emergency, for a period lasting longer than 14 days, and for which their employer is no longer paying an insurance premium to maintain their health insurance coverage. HB642 passed the Appropriations committee and will now head to the House Floor for consideration.
HB644 - Department of General Services; Selling Surplus Property
This bill addresses the timing of when DGS may proceed to sell surplus property. There were inconsistencies in the Code, which this bill resolves. Additionally, the Commonwealth sometimes acquires properties that include multiple parcels that make up the site. In such cases, there is a potential for boundary issues to arise during the surveying process in preparation for the sale. This bill gives DGS authority to resolve boundary line issues to alleviate delays and impacts on the ability to sell the property in a timely manner. HB644 passed the General Laws subcommittee unanimously.
HB647 - Packaging Stewardship Program and Fund
Our recycling system is broken and we have long relied on local stewards to keep Virginia’s land and water litter free. The Packaging Stewardship Program and Fund puts the responsibility on manufacturers - not only on individuals or taxpayers - for the waste their products create and bear responsibility for the collection and proper recycling of those products at the end of their useful lives. This incentivizes producers to design their products to be more environmentally friendly through their lifecycle. HB647 did not pass the Agriculture subcommittee. However, I was pleased that the Chairman intends to send a letter to the Recycling Taskforce requesting further research on how this could impact the Commonwealth.
HB1214 - Damage to Motor Vehicles; Catalytic Converter Theft
Over the past year or more, I have heard from constituents and others in the City of Richmond that their catalytic converters were stolen. This is a costly theft to the individual and well-stocked car dealerships. Unfortunately, this is a trend that is occurring throughout the Commonwealth as several other delegates introduced similar legislation. HB1214 makes it a Class 6 felony for a person to steal a catalytic converter and someone found in possession of a catalytic converter that has been detached from a car shall be presumed to have stolen it unless they can prove otherwise. As I mentioned, there were several similar bills, one of which was Delegate Rob Bell (the Chair of the Court of Justice Committee). All of the catalytic converter bills, except for Delegate Bell’s, failed to pass. I am chief co-patron of his bill.
How to Participate in the Legislative Session:
For in-person meetings, please review my COVID policies. Basically, please wear your mask and provide proof of your COVID vaccination before your meeting.
Email me your legislative priorities and concerns at delegate.carr@betsycarr.org.
Take my 2022 Legislative Survey
Watch session at noon each day via livestream (as well as committees and subcommittees)
Sign up to speak virtually in a committee or subcommittee through HODSpeak (you can also do it in-person)
Thank You
It is an honor to serve in the House of Delegates. Please never hesitate to contact me if I can be helpful to you. I look forward to hearing from you about your legislative priorities during the 2022 session.
Sincerely,
Betsy