Dear Friend,
Week 5 was the final week before Crossover, when all the bills that have passed the House move to the Senate and vice versa. Monday and Tuesday were very long days for the House and Senate as both bodies completed their work. VPAP has a helpful tracker of issue topics and “close votes” for your review.
Below is an update on my bills in subcommittee, important session information (including how to read a bill, definition of common motions), and other important and helpful information.
Fox Elementary School
I was so sad to learn about the fire at William Fox Elementary School in Richmond over the weekend and am thankful for the outpouring of community support. I walked down the street to see the damage and was glad to see so many “love notes” written with chalk on the sidewalks to students, staff, and their families.
The school will remain closed indefinitely and students will be virtual for a while until a plan is made on where to send the students to school.
Fox Elementary was built in 1911. With over 100 years of history, many children and families in Richmond and the Fan neighborhood have wonderful memories and stories to share. If you would like to share your story or memory of the school, you can send it to the Richmond Times Dispatch editor, Colleen Curran, at ccurran@timesdispatch.com.
If you would like to support Fox students and staff, you can donate via the RPS Education Foundation website. Please make sure to select “Fox Elementary Fire Response” in the pull-down menu under “I want my donation to be designated toward.”
Advocacy and Other Important Meetings Last Week:
Virginia Parent Teacher Association
President of William & Mary
University of Virginia
Urban One advocates
Patient Services/Virginia Sickle Cell Patient Assistance Program
Arlington County
Eastern Virginia Medical School
FindHelp Technology
Independent Insurance Agents Association
Children’s Advocacy Centers of Virginia
Chesapeake Regional Healthcare
Virginia Food Access and Nutrition advocates
Virginia Maritime Association
Richmond Crusade for Voters
Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy
St. Joseph’s Villa
Boys & Girls Club
Virginia Hospital Association
Virginia Union University
Woodland Heights Civic Association
Virginia Coalition for Sex Education Reform
Virginia Cancer Caucus
Virginia Sportsman Caucus
General Assembly Military and Veterans Caucus
League of Women Voters Roundtable
Bills in subcommittee
HB646 - Nursing Home Standards
Virginia is one of only 18 states without established staffing minimums in nursing homes. Unfortunately, the pandemic exacerbated long-standing issues in Virginia nursing homes related to lack of staffing and care standards. HB646 established staffing minimum thresholds as well as statewide standards to ensure quality care for residents. The bill was continued to 2023 and there will be a workgroup over the interim to work on this legislation. I am hopeful for its passage in 2023 and thank AARP, Virginia Poverty Law Center, the Department of Aging and Rehabilitative Services, and the Center on Aging for their hard work on this critical issue.
HB649 - Language Acquisition for Children Ages 0-5
HB649 establishes basic principles for tracking the language acquisition and literacy development of deaf and hard of hearing children from birth to age 5. It also identifies language delays early during the critical years for a child’s brain and cognitive development to make sure appropriate support services are provided to these early learners. An annual report on literacy development for deaf and hard of hearing children from age 0-5 will be provided. This bill passed the House.
HB732 - Student Debt Collection; Transcript Withholding
College students across the Commonwealth have direct-to-school debt such as outstanding fees for books, housing, meal plans, and so on. This outstanding debt becomes an issue when they would like an official transcript for either employment or transfer to another institution of higher education. Currently, colleges and universities use transcript withholding as a tool to ensure a student’s debt is paid or to get them set up for a payment plan. I worked with Senator Hashmi and Virginia 21 to introduce HB732 to address this issue. During discussions with all stakeholders, it was determined that there was a lack of holistic and aggregated data to show the extent of the issue in Virginia. HB732 did not pass the Appropriations committee. However, moving toward a positive resolution to inform a bill next session, a study will be included in the budget to determine how much the specific impacts effect certain students and universities.
HJ58 - Long Term Owner Occupancy Program (LOOP)
HJ58 is a constitutional amendment to establish the Long Term Owner Occupancy Program (LOOP). As many of you know, real estate assessments have dramatically increased in the Central Virginia region over the last several years. Escalating assessments are important for the creation of familial wealth, but the accompanying escalation of property tax bills can put long time property owners at risk of displacement. To prevent this and encourage the creation of intergenerational, familial wealth, LOOP caps the property owner’s tax assessment at a specific percentage during the initial application process and locks in the tax assessment of the application year. Constitutional amendments must pass the General Assembly two years in a row and then be considered by the voters in a referendum. HJ58 was not heard in committee because it was on its “first reference” as a constitutional amendment and it did not coincide with an election year. I look forward to introducing it again in 2023.
Crossover Status Update
Six of my bills passed the House of Delegates and are proceeding to the Senate for consideration.
HB632 - Loud Exhaust Systems
HB641 - TNC cash fares
HB642 - Healthcare for certain military service members
HB644 - DGS state surplus property disposition
HB649 - Language acquisition for children ages 0-5
HB1194 - Allowing Economic Development Authorities to support affordable housing
Defending Our Progress
Last week, the House Privileges and Elections subcommittee rejected two constitutional amendments that would have allowed Virginia voters to vote on removing the same-sex marriage ban as well as allowing the automatic restoration of voting rights for returning citizens. The House Democrats want to revive the constitutional amendments to give citizens the opportunity to vote on this issue. The right of the individual to vote is at the core of democracy and it is important to allow our citizens the opportunity to align our Constitution with where both the people of Virginia and the Supreme Court of the United States stand today.
If you would like to share your support of these constitutional amendments, you can sign this petition here.
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)
How to Read a Bill
Regular font shows you what the Code of Virginia already says
Italicized font means that language is being added to the Code of Virginia
Strikethrough means that language will be removed from the Code of Virginia
Bold font indicates a title or headers
Definitions of Common Motions
Patron: The Delegate or Senator who introduced a bill
Co-Patron: The Delegate or Senator who supports the bill
First Reading: The bill is placed on the House floor calendar
Second Reading: The bill is open for discussion on the House floor
Third Reading: The bill is voted on the House floor
Crossover: When all the bills that passed one body (House or Senate) “crossover” to the other body
Sine Die: The House and Senate have completed their work and session adjourns
Committee motions:
Report: This motion is made to vote on the passage of a bill in committee
Refer: This motion is made when a bill is being reported and referred to another committee for review and consideration
Pass by for the Day: When a bill is still up for consideration but the committee or the patron need more time to work on the bill. It is considered again during the next committee meeting. This motion can also be made on the House floor
Lay on the table: This means the bill fails to pass
Pass by Indefinitely: This means the bill fails to pass
Continued: The bill fails to pass but will be considered next year after more research/discussion, often accompanied by a workgroup that convenes between sessions
Celebrating Black History Month
Citywide Book Read Challenge
For the fifth year in a row, Richmond’s First Baptist Church is challenging Richmond residents to a citywide book read during Black History Month. This year’s book is The Color of Compromise by Jemar Tisby.
I encourage you to take up this challenge. The book details the Black experience in America from colonial times to today.
On Monday, March 7th, there will be a live conversation with the author in the fellowship hall of Richmond’s First Baptist Church at 7:00 p.m. Free parking is available in the Mulberry and Robinson Street lots. You can RSVP here and email smith@fbcrichmond.org for a zoom link if you would like to participate virtually. Full press release available here.
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.