Dear Friend,
The fourth week of Session has come to a close. Below is an update on some of the past week’s work in the legislature.
The Fourth Week of Session
The General Assembly is barreling towards Crossover, which is the last day each body can act on legislation that originates from its own members before sending them to the other body. Committee dockets have been long, but efficient. Floor Sessions have stretched for long hours. Monday and Tuesday are expected to be long days on the Floor. Crossover marks the beginning of the time when the two distinct bodies of the General Assembly will work together to find a consensus package of legislation to send to the Governor. The House has passed two bills of high priority to our Democratic majority; HB1 to increase the minimum wage and HB2 to ban assault weapons.
In the busy lead-up to Crossover, the committees I sit on considered many important and interesting pieces of legislation. In General Laws, we worked through the 187 bills docketed to us since the start of Session to report 130 bills out. These bills include: edits to the Virginia Public Procurement Act and the Freedom of Information Act, which came from the subcommittee I chair; regulation of skill games; a cannabis retail market; regulation over nicotine vape products that are posing a daunting health crisis for Virginia’s children; tenant protections and affordable housing measures; and even considerations and discussions around licensure for automated systems used to replace human professionals, to name a few of the topics discussed.
In Transportation, we received 97 bills from the Speaker and reported 60. These bills include some of my own that reinforce local authority to lower speed limits, limit predatory towing, and implement bike safety measures, but they also include topics such as local authority to regulate towing; toll policy updates; manufactured housing property rights; transportation infrastructure streamlining; transparency for gig-workers in transportation network companies (like Uber); as well as many other diverse topics. We finished with a presentation from the Virginia Spaceport Authority, which you can watch here.
In Appropriations, we received 259 bills and reported 152. This reflects the unique role of the Appropriations Committee, which is tasked with reporting the House Budget Bill. Appropriations, like other committees, considers policy when deliberating legislation, but only fiscal policy. Other Committees vet the consequences of legislation in terms of their topic area, whether it be Transportation, Health & Human Services, General Government, or others. If legislation has an associated cost to the State, it will come before Appropriations who consider if the State can afford said cost and if that action is consistent and not in conflict with other State funding obligations. The result is very tough decisions and members often have to lay bills on the table that in other committees they would vote to report. This year that was especially the case; innovative ideas for state healthcare and housing, as well as economic drivers for the film and creative industry, were left in committee.
The General Assembly has taken action on numerous bills and issues such as; skill games regulations; authorizing a Northern Virginia Arena state authority; authorizing medical-aid in dying; ending tax-breaks for Confederate related organizations; marijuana law expansions; as well as many other topics. For a final note of further reading, you may enjoy this eclectic round-up of bills from the previous week.
I am expecting to pass 19 pieces of my own legislation from the House; ranging from administrative housekeeping to impactful conservation and affordable housing bills. For a list of all my bills, visit this link. Below, I will briefly highlight some of my legislation.
Urban Tree Canopy preservation is an issue of much interest in Richmond. Dr. Jeremy Hoffman, studied the environmental injustice of urban heat islands. These studies connect the wide differences in how heat waves impact Richmond with larger issues of formerly redlined neighborhoods, economic disparities, and consequences for our environment at large. Slightly related, a VPM article from late last summer highlighted the staggering amount of bus stations that lacked shelters and the insurmountable costs and barriers to building more. In this spirit, I introduced HB1100 which would make available statewide, an ordinance to preserve trees during land development. This legislation, along with a proposal from Delegate Delores McQuinn (HB285) to streamline the regulatory framework for building bus shelters, helping to right some environmental injustices and to promote a healthier and environmentally resilient Richmond.
Affordable Housing is a pressing need in our City and statewide. I am expecting to pass HB1105, which creates an incentive grant program for localities to adopt zoning ordinances to promote affordable housing. Grants can go to a wide array of public needs, creating a win-win for affordable housing production and common good infrastructure build-out. I had introduced HB1122 to make a further affordable housing statue available to Richmond. After discussions with relevant stakeholders, this bill has been continued to 2025 to arrive at a policy proposal that can be more expediently deployed with greater impact.
Transportation Safety is another issue of paramount priority in Richmond. I am expecting to pass HB1071 which reinforces the authority of localities to lower their own speed limits. HB1073 will prevent predatory towing in Richmond for those who have a wrecked or disabled vehicle. An added benefit is that this will curtail tow-truck operators who drive recklessly to arrive first at the scene of an accident. Additionally, HB1077 implements the safety stop for bicyclists, a practice that promotes bicycling and reduces traffic incidents. I had also introduced HB1072 to allow institutions of higher education to implement school zone crosswalk measures such as additional signage and photospeed monitoring. This was in memory and reflection of the traffic tragedies on VCU’s campus last year. This bill did not pass subcommittee, but I remain dedicated to mitigating traffic fatalities.
In addition, members of the General Assembly can rise on the floor to give recognition to visitors watching from the gallery. This past week I had the privilege of introducing the Virginia History Day winners, Jewish Community Federation advocates, and Richmond Public School advocates.
During the past week of Session, my staff and I met various representative individuals and groups including:
Rural Caucus of Virginia
Virginia Economic Development Partnership
Department of Professional & Occupational Regulation
Arc of Virginia
Virginia Film-workers
Christopher Newport University Leadership
The Nature Conservancy
Affordable Energy Coalition
American Society of Suicide Prevention
League of Women Voters
Institute for Advanced Learning & Research Leadership
Virginia Poverty Law Center
Swipe Out Hunger
Virginia Space Grant & NASA Langley
James Madison University Student Government
Richmond SPCA
Jewish Community Federation of Richmond
Virginia Commonwealth University Pauley Heart Center Leadership
Virginia Forever
Stratford Hall and Menokin
Special Olympics of Virginia
Virginia Beer Wholesalers
Virginia Maritime Association
Brain Injury Awareness Association
Judicial Candidates
Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy Student Advocates
Hollins University Leadership
It is my goal to keep my constituents informed of the work happening at the General Assembly. There are several websites which provide troves of helpful information. Livestreams and past recordings of Session, as well as committee meetings can all be found at this link. Legislation, as well as meeting calendars and committee information can be found here. A searchable database of legislation can be found here.
If you have legislative priorities, questions or concerns to share with me, email me at delegate.carr@betsycarr.org or call my office at 804-698-1078.
Virginia Governor’s Fellow Applications
Applications are being accepted until March 4 for the 2024 Governor’s Fellow Program. This prestigious program offers rising college seniors, graduating college seniors, and enrolled graduate degree candidates an opportunity to get first-hand experience in government administration.
More information including applications and qualifications can be found here.
Thank You
It is an honor to serve in the House of Delegates. Please never hesitate to contact me at delegate.carr@betsycarr.org or 804-698-1078 if I can be helpful to you.
Sincerely,
Betsy