As we end our 2014 Legislative session, I will share the current status of all of my bills for this session and give an overview of a number of bills on which I received significant input.
I introduced a total of 13 measures this session. Two of them were for special license plates at the request of local groups. Unfortunately, neither of these groups had secured enough pre-buys for the plates in order to meet the required threshold for consideration.
Two of my measures that attempt to address campaign reform in requiring political donations by out of state interests and requiring candidates to be held responsible for deceptive campaign tactics were both carried over in their respective committees for further study. This means that the committee saw merit in what the bills are trying to accomplish, but needed more time and input in order to get the language correct.
Further, I had another bill carried over that would make additional Federal resources more available for some of our neediest families. However, because the potential financial impact was not fully known, this measure was carried over in the Appropriations Committee.
I introduced 3 bills regarding liability for and abandonment of private dams. Two of these bills have passed and are awaiting the Governor’s action. The third bill was not necessary with the passage of the other two. These bills will help to protect the land owners’ of the dam and the citizens below the dam.
Three of my bills have passed that made minor changes to our laws relating to our Board of Pharmacy practices and our required immunizations for our school children. At the request of a work group on the care of dogs and cats in animal shelters, I had a bill passed that will make it easier for citizens to adopt these animals and try to reduce the number of animals that are destroyed.
The most significant bill that I successfully carried was one that will make it easier for farms to directly sell their home grown and related products and will increase the opportunity for consumers to visit and enjoy the entertainment value of the farm experience.
I received a large number of comments on several measures during this session. I have listed below a summary of the bill and its current status.
1. Fox Penning: this bill would have outlawed the current practice of using foxes in pens to train hunting dogs. The bill has been changed to not allow any more of these pens and to require the current ones to cease operations within the next 40 years. This bill has passed with my vote.
2. Sunday Hunting: this bill will allow hunting every Sun. for whatever game or nuisance animals that are in season on private property. I received the most contact on this bill of all of the legislation before us, overwhelmingly to oppose. This bill passed, but I voted no.
3. Hybrid Car Tax: this bill amended the Transportation act of last year to remove the annual surcharge that all owners of hybrid vehicles are currently paying. I opposed it being a part of the bill last year, but supported the rest of the bill. I was glad to vote to remove this unfair provision and am glad to report that it has passed and been signed by the Governor.
4. Pet Shop Disclosure: this bill will require pet shops to post the name and contact information of the breeder. It also makes certain changes as to what remedies the consumer is entitled to if they have a sick animal. I supported this measure which has passed.
5. Training Center Closures: directs the Department of Behavioral Health to ensure that a comparable level of care will be provided either in a community placement or alternative training center prior to reassignment. I supported this measure which passed.
6. When The Attorney General fails to represent the Commonwealth: this bill would have created a mechanism whereby, in the event the Attorney Gen. refused to defend the laws of the State, that the Speaker of the House could appoint counsel to represent the States’ interest. I supported this bill which was killed in the Senate.
7. Mental Health Reform: Several bills addressing some of the problems in the mental health delivery system were introduced this session. The specific details are still being worked on in the conference committee. I am certain that we will pass legislation providing better care for individuals who are dealing with acute mental problems.
Of course, the single biggest item of the session is always the two-year budget. Our proposed budget this year was, $37.8 billion in general fund revenues and $53 billion in non-general revenues, making it a total of $90.8 billion.
The House budget includes some of the following:
Jobs and economic growth continue to be a top priority in our budgeting process. To support this effort the House budget includes an additional $1.4 million each year for the Virginia Tourism Corporation to advertise Virginia’s attractions in key markets. The goal is to expand online advertising and continue our substantial support for regional and local tourism grant programs.
College tuition has become incredibly costly. Tuition increases are pricing out the middle class families who are trying to send students to Virginia’s top public universities. Our House budget adds an additional $20 million to further moderate the growth of in-state undergraduate tuition and fee increases. This investment continues our efforts over the last 2 years that resulted in decade low tuition increases at around 4.5%.
K-12 education will see nearly a $531 million net increase in the House budget. This additional funding for students, teachers, and our school systems accounts for approximately 25% of the new spending in the budget. A majority of the funds will help cover increased contributions to teacher retirement funds and teacher health care benefit premium rates.
We are also including $6.2 million to add 1,700 additional in-state undergraduate slots at the College of William and Mary, James Madison University, the University of Virginia, and Virginia Tech. We want Virginia students to be able to afford and have access to Virginia’s world class colleges and universities.
Keeping our communities and neighborhoods safe creates a better quality of life for all Virginians. To that extent, we’ve added $7.1 annually for our local police departments.
In maintaining our strong commitment to Virginia’s veterans, two key budget amendments will assist veteran hiring. The first amendment provides for an Advanced Manufacturing Advisory Council to make recommendations to the Governor and General Assembly on how to use veterans’ special knowledge and skills. The second budget amendment provides additional dollars to expand the Virginia Values Veterans (V3) Inter-Agency Working Group. The funds will be used to develop an integrated approach to recognize veterans’ job skills and experience that meet business needs and to encourage business access for veteran hiring.
We’re working to meet the Commonwealth’s responsibility to our state employees by fully funding the state pension system at 100% of the required rates by 2016, three years earlier than required. In addition, if Virginia’s economy remains strong, and we meet current projections, a revenue reserve will be used for a 2% state employee pay raise in July of 2015.
Both the House and Senate have approved their budgets and any differences between the two will have to be ironed out by the conferees from both sides.
The single most difficult issue is that the Senate has inserted in their budget the requirement that we would have to expand Obamacare by the expansion of Medicaid. The House and Senate last year agreed that this issue would be best addressed by a bi-partisan legislative commission that would also be able to find ways to make the program more effective and efficient. Unfortunately, this year the Senate and the Governor have so far said that they will hold the budget hostage unless we agree with their position. This is clearly “Washington style” politics and a breach of faith on last years’ agreement. I find it irresponsible to delay action on providing the necessary funding for education, public safety, transportation, social programs, and all other areas of the budget, just to cave in to their “my way or no way” tactics. All of the members of the assembly understand that we have to assist those who have medical needs without the finances to pay for them. Many of us feel this has to be addressed outside of Obamacare.
As of Monday March 10th, my local office will be open Monday, Wednesday, Friday from 9-12, and Tuesday, Thursday from 9-5 (540-891-1322). My e-mail is, [email protected] or you may contact me by regular mail at, P.O Box 458, Thornburg, VA 22565. You can visit my webpage https://bobbyorrock.net.
As always, I welcome your input and will be glad to try to assist you with any state government issues you may experience.
