Constituents contacted me recently about a Richmond Times Dispatch article headline they felt was misleading: “Ken Plum says Pre-K education leads to less crime and welfare.”
Certainly the editor did not mean that I thought that preschool education leads to less crime but more welfare as a quick read of the headline could lead some to believe. An unscrupulous opponent in my progressive district could quote the headline in part to suggest that I thought preschool education leads to welfare. Stranger things have happened.
My constituents’ concerns were enhanced by the fact that part of the headline was a “Truth-o-Meter” symbol indicating “Mostly True.” Reading the article and the pull out of my quote makes clear my position: “We’ve got 40 years of study now that show that, with a good preschool start, you’re less likely to be on public dole. You’re less likely to be in prison. You’re much more likely to be a good productive citizen. That money spent up front saves money in the long haul.”
My statement was based on a 2005 HighScope Educational Research Foundation follow-up report on students who had been in preschool or in a control group without preschool — all of whom had reached age 40. Researchers concluded that those “who had the preschool program had higher earnings, were more likely to hold a job, had committed fewer crimes and were more likely to have graduated from high school than adults who did not have preschool.” There are several other studies that have similar findings but do not cover as long a period of time.
I am pleased with the general knowledge that now exists in the community on the value of preschool education even though it has not achieved the level of support needed in the Virginia General Assembly for expansion to include more children — especially those who are economically disadvantaged.
Business leaders in the Commonwealth recognize its value. Mike Petters, president and CEO of Huntington Ingalls Industries, the largest military shipbuilding company in the world and one of the largest companies in Virginia, said he thinks “raising a child is a lot like building a ship — you have to lay a strong foundation to get it right.”
He says that “preschool development is one of the most critical things we can do for the community,” and he has worked with many other business leaders and the State Chamber of Commerce for expanded preschool programs.
PolitiFact Virginia rated my claim “Mostly True” based on slight variations among research reports. I stand by my conviction that preschool participation does lead an individual to be less likely to be involved in crime. Without sparing words to make for a short headline, it does reduce the likelihood of one being on welfare. Preschool education has proven that it provides a solid return on investment by not only helping individuals get a strong start in life but by saving government dollars down the road.
Ken Plum represents Reston in Virginia’s House of Delegates. His views do not necessarily represent those of Reston Now.
This is an Op-Ed from Carol Molesky, Reston resident and South Lakes High School Tennis and Golf Coach. It does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Reston Now.
An important Reston Association election is in its final days of voting.
The South Lakes District is the one to pay attention to. Why? Julie Bitzer is the only candidate out of the three running that can bring fresh ideas and energy to the position.
She comes without a RA history. She is personally invested in the preservation of Reston’s open space — her home borders the Reston National Golf Course.
I know firsthand Julie’s commitment to the community of Reston in its recreational and cultural offerings, to our youth and to development of new programs for our teenagers, and to Reston’s natural green space and trails. I’ve seen in action her ability to bring people together where there’s a win for all parties.
I endorse Julie Bitzer for the South Lakes District and ask that you do as well by casting your vote for her by March 30. Voting is available on RA’s website.
Something on your mind? Send Reston Now a letter. Email your thoughts to [email protected].
Each year, the Library of Virginia honors women who have distinguished themselves in many different ways in the state’s history. Publicity is given to the women selected who many times may not have gotten much attention during their lifetimes (Virginia Women in History).
One such honoree this year is the late Del. Dorothy Shoemaker McDiarmid with whom I had the honor of serving in her last years in the House of Delegates.
Del. McDiarmid, who preferred to be called Dorothy, in 1959 became the first woman elected to represent Fairfax County in Virginia’s General Assembly. She and her husband Hugh made their home near Vienna, where she was an active member of the PTA. She ran for public office the first time in opposition to the Byrd Machine’s Massive Resistance policy to school desegregation that threatened to close the public schools.
When I first announced my candidacy for the House of Delegates in 1973, Dorothy was already well-established as a highly regarded and respected member of that body. Needless to say, I was a bit in awe and highly honored to be elected with her in 1977 as part of the delegation from a multi-member district.
I learned so much from her and Hugh about placing principles above politics, always doing the right thing, and persevering. She was kind and gentle in her approach reflecting in part her Quaker background but steadfast in her resolve on behalf of issues in which she believed. She was the chief patron of the bill to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment. Hugh was likewise a very kind man once you got to know him, but he could be brusk and tough–especially in defending Dorothy. As a constant companion by her side with a seat in the back of the House of Delegates, he was often referred to as the “101st delegate.”
Del. McDiarmid and others with the help of many court decisions were able to defeat and discredit the Massive Resistance effort, and Dorothy set about improving the schools that had been poorly funded under the Byrd Machine. She is most famously known for her successful work to get public kindergarten in the state. She also worked successfully on getting programs for handicapped students in the public schools, and with the revision of the state constitution in 1971 was able to get the right to a public education written into the constitution. She was also instrumental in getting George Mason University and Northern Virginia Community College established.
In her later years as a delegate, she could be especially helpful to these programs when she became the first and to this date the only female chairman of the House Appropriations Committee. In 1989, she won the first ever Outstanding Virginian Award.
Upon her retirement from the House of Delegates in 1989, the Fairfax County Public Schools Board passed a resolution honoring her. In her usual self-effacing and gentle way, she responded that everyone in the room supported education and quoted Aristotle when she said that “…the fate of empires depends on the education of youth.”
The slogan of her last campaign–“The Lady’s Got Clout”–was true, and she used it for good purposes.
Ken Plum (D) represents Reston in Virginia’s House of Delegates. His opinions are not necessarily those of Reston Now.
This is an op-ed by Reston resident John Farrell. It does not necessarily reflect the views of Reston Now.
As was properly described by the first commentator to last week’s letter on Reston Association’s planned purchase of the Tetra building, the RA Board is speculating in land.
A definition of speculation is: “to form a theory or conjecture about a subject with no firm evidence.”
The first reason listed in President Ken Knueven’s powerpoint to justify borrowing $2.65 million is essentially “something bad might happen.” How? What? When? At best, we get vague answers.
Another definition of speculation is: to invest in property with the hope of gain but the risk of loss. We all know what the risk of loss is: at least $2.65 million. What is the quantifiable gain that the RA Board is hoping for?
But wait there’s more.
The second bullet on the powerpoint is that RA would revegetate the property, i.e., plant trees. Except Fairfax County will not allow vegetation to be place in the emergency spillway which covers most of the property because vegetation would block the floodwaters and force the flood levels in Lake Newport and upstream even higher.
The whole point of an emergency spillway is to give the floodwaters from very large storms a way to escape Lake Newport without blowing out the dam as happened to Lake Ilsa (now Audubon) in 1972 during Hurricane Agnes. That’s why the property is covered mostly by parking lot.
But to top it all off (pun intended), there’s this:
I hear our leaders have already secured a loan to buy the land! That’s right, before the referendum even opens for voting in April, someone at RA has been out shopping for a loan. And they got one. From whom? That’s a secret. At what interest rate? That too is a secret. But one term is known and should send shivers down the back of every RA member.
First, the principal and interest payment will equal 8-9 percent of the $15 million budget. That means either our assessment will increase or the services and programs offered by RA will have to be cut. How many life guards camp counselors and grounds maintenance people does this sum represent?
It’s not a mortgage on the property. It’s a pledge of our assessment payments.
What that means is, if there were to be a default, the lender doesn’t take the land and building, they take our RA assessments payments. This is significant on four counts.
First, RA is planning to buy the land on the equivalent of a credit card. The loan is secured by RA’s income, just like your credit card issuer decides the limit on your credit card based, in part, on your income. Would you buy stocks or your house on your credit card?
Second, the lender apparently doesn’t believe the property is adequate security for the loan. Translation: even the lender doesn’t think the land and building is worth $2.6 million.
Third, the amount of money available to pay for lifeguards and cut the grass in the medians will be reduced because the lender will get paid out of our assessments first.
Fourth, RA’s credit capacity will be reduced by the full amount of the $2.6 million, thus reducing borrowing capacity that might be used for other essential capital expenses like replacing a dam or spillway at one of Reston’s lakes or buying the Reston National Golf Course.
It’s like taking your kid’s college savings account and buying Yugoslavian war bonds.
I asked Knueven at the first District/Community Meeting at North Point if someone at RA knew what RA’s borrowing capacity was. They didn’t know and haven’t answered that question in the two weeks since that meeting. Maybe that’s why no questions were taken during the next District/Community Meeting at Lake Anne.
How does any of this make any sense? Who or what is the driving force behind this scheme? I’ve been asking everyone I can find since I first heard about this idea and it too is a closely guarded secret.
Something on your mind? Email an op-ed to [email protected]. Reston Now reserves the right to edit all submissions.
This is an op-ed by Reston resident John Farrell. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of Reston Now.
I went to the March 2 Reston Association Candidates Forum prepared to vote by computer that night for two of the candidates up for election, but I also wanted to be convinced on the remaining candidates.
In addition to the expected platitudes and generalities, I was stunned to hear each one of the seven candidates tell us they thought borrowing $2.6 million to buy 3+ acres of parking lot, emergency spillway and the 32-year-old Tetra building was just a swell idea, and RA ought to spend $30,000 to submit the question to a RA members referendum.
That’s equal to two bocce courts, for those keeping count, just to hold the referendum.
Not one of these worthies mentioned the RA parking easement that covers most of the property and significantly inhibits any redevelopment. Not one mentioned that the property had its fair market value set by Fairfax County at $1.248 million — or less than half of the proposed $2.6 million purchase price.
The county says the building is only worth $400,000 and the land is worth $800,000. Did any of these candidates believe that the county would voluntarily forego the $10,000+ in real estate taxes that such a difference in value would cause?
Reston Now ran a song and dance from an appraiser (Thomas Kirchner, who is not involved in the Tetra project) as to how county assessments are not a true reflection of fair market value. Except the Virginia Constitution requires real estate to be assessed/appraised at fair market value.
Kirchner explained that the the county appraisal was performed as a mass appraisal. But those magic words are not going to make a $1.4 million dollar discrepancy go away. First, unless you look at the county records, you can’t know if the county used a mass appraisal. Second, there is no magic in a mass appraisal that explains a discrepancy of more than 112 percent.
Mass appraisal simply means averaging the changes in sales prices over dozens and hundreds of transactions. Have there been dozens and hundreds of sales of three-acre lots with 30-year-old, 3,000-square-foot offices buildings in Fairfax subject to extensive parking easements containing an emergency spillway for a lake the size of Lake Newport. Are there even a dozen such parcels in Fairfax?
I do know that there are 19 million square feet of vacant office space in Fairfax, which would suggest a very low value on a 30-year-old building of 3,000 square feet. Maybe that high level of vacancy should suggest that even $1.2 million is too high a price.
Not one candidate at the forum mentioned how much of RA’s budget would be devoted to debt service on the loan for this albatross and diverted away from camps and pool maintenance. Not one offered that they had personally inspected the inside of this derelict to determine if $250,000 would be enough to satisfy ADA requirements and correct 30+ years of wear and tear. Not one had seen a construction estimate. Not one mentioned that 60-80 percent of the three acres is paved for a parking lot or covered by building.
They were all deathly afraid the property might be redeveloped. Exactly what it could be redeveloped was left to the fervent imagination of the audience. The fact that it’s been available for resale for a decade ought to staunch the nightmares of the innocent. The parking easement held by RA ought to be a source of comfort to the wobbly-kneed. Read More
Previous columns have focused on major legislation passed in the 2015 General Assembly session, but this column will describe other legislation that passed.
Implications for these bills may be more limited in the number of persons affected, but you can be sure that for those persons these bills may be the most important. For example, Gov. Terry McAuliffe has already signed legislation to decriminalize the use of oils derived from the marijuana plant to treat persons with severe epilepsy.
I had introduced one of the bills to accomplish this purpose. A bill was also passed that allows terminally ill patients under physician’s supervision to take investigational drugs that have been cleared for the first phase of clinical trials before getting final FDA approval.
Legislation already signed by the Governor allows transportation network companies like Uber and Lyft to operate in Virginia when they have met licensing requirements including appropriate insurance and background checks for drivers.
The threshold for expanded state licensing and regulation of day care providers was reduced from the current six to five or more children unrelated to the owner in a home. A national background check with fingerprinting will be required, and unlicensed providers must advise parents in writing. This crackdown comes amidst problems in some homes that resulted in the death of a child.
Another measure requires health insurance providers to include coverage for the diagnosis and treatment of autism spectrum disorders in children aged two through 10. Current law only requires coverage through age six.
In response to concerns about heroin and prescription drug abuse, legislation was passed to encourage persons to report another person’s overdose and remain on the scene without fear of prosecution for minor possession or intoxication. Under a pilot program, use of the prescription drug naloxone to counteract the effects of heroin or opioid overdose was expanded.
All common sense gun safety measures were defeated in a subcommittee of five in the House of Delegates, but a bill that would require Virginia to recognize the right to possess firearms of out-of-state felons whose gun rights have been restored in their home state passed without my vote. Hopefully the Governor will veto the bill. A bill that would have allowed state government the ability to keep secret information about drugs used in executions and the drugs’ manufacturers was defeated in the House of Delegates.
Legislation to limit the warrantless collection of personal information by law enforcement when there is no reasonable suspicion of criminal activity passed as did legislation to restrict to seven days the retention of information gathered by license plate readers that is unrelated to an ongoing criminal investigation. A bill passed that requires law enforcement and regulatory agencies to get search warrants before flying drones except in emergencies or training activities.
A bill to repeal the King’s Dominion law that requires school systems to start school after Labor Day failed with my voting again to repeal it. School calendars should be set by school boards, not the legislature. An ethics bill passed but with I believe glaring deficiencies that I will address in a future column.
Ken Plum represents Reston in Virginia’s House of Delegates. His opinions do not necessarily represent those of Reston Now.
Under a bill passed by the General Assembly in the 2015 session and signed by the Governor, the cost of electricity in Virginia will go down next month, and the base rate of electricity will be frozen for the next five years.
Critics of the “Dominion bill” seem to have not read the provisions of the legislation as it passed or do not understand it. With State Corporation Commission approval, electric bills for consumers will go down 5.5 percent on April 1. For a typical residential customer who uses 1,000 kilowatt hours per month, the electric bill would be $109.55 per month or $6.40 less than before.
Virginians already have some of the lowest electric rates in the region with rates that are 18.8 percent below the national average. The freezing of base rates to 2019 will create regulatory and rate stability for the utility as it faces stricter federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations on carbon emissions that are likely to force the company to close some or all of the coal-fired power plants it continues to operate and will provide lower bills for consumers.
I like the fact that the utility is moving forward to meet EPA standards rather than resisting or fighting the regulations in court. The stability provided by the bill will allow the investor-owned utility to move forward on what are necessary and expensive steps to clean up the air. Beyond the rate issue, new legislation declares up to 500 megawatts of solar energy to be in the public interest.
With the current cost of solar energy generation the utility would not have been able to get regulatory approval for the expansion because it costs more than conventional sources of electricity generation. This will be a 15-fold increase in the authorized amount of solar energy in the Commonwealth and will be enough solar to power 125,000 homes. Additionally, the Assembly approved creation of the Virginia Solar Development Authority to promote expansion of solar energy in the Commonwealth.
Other notable actions by the General Assembly this session related to electricity include a provision for the first time that utilities fund an energy efficiency program for low-income, elderly and disabled customers. Eligible customers will be able to get one-time financial assistance for energy efficiency improvements plus long-term benefits of lower energy bills. A bill passed this session directs the Department of Mines, Minerals, and Energy to establish underwriting and other guidelines for local government-financed loans for energy efficiency improvements. Energy efficiency is the cheapest way to meet future demand.
Dominion Foundation is a major contributor to non-profit organizations in our community and throughout the state. Its political action arm is a significant supporter of political candidates of both parties. While I fully acknowledge both these facts, I vote for legislation related to electricity generation only when it will ensure reliable, low-cost, and cleaner electricity for my constituents.
Ken Plum represents Reston in Virginia’s House of Delegates. His opinions are not necessarily those of Reston Now’s.
This is an op-ed by Lake Anne resident John Lovaas.
By the time you read this, your ballot for the 2015 Reston Association Board election has arrived. It’s easy to vote, with a maximum of three blocks to check.
Does it matter? I think it does. RA Board decisions affect us all. While staff generally is solid, there are questions about the leadership. Recently, questions have surfaced about transparency, internal communications, and ethics, for example.
In December 2013, leadership and members of the Environmental Advisory Committee resigned to protest board leadership’s secretive and questionable handling of the Lake Anne “land swap.”
Later, I learned board members were filing incomplete financial disclosure forms — but, no one even bothered to review them until a homeowner made a FOIA request and saw them. It took months to get missing information partially completed.
The flow of information is so tightly controlled internally that Board members cannot answer constituent questions by simply picking up the phone and asking RA staff for needed information. Every communication must be channeled through the CEO, where bottlenecks occur and responses are delayed. Read More
I voted for the Conference Committee Report on the FY2016 budget even though I did not particularly like it. Earlier, I voted against the House version of the budget.
There were some major provisions I did not like about either one. Neither accepted the more than $1 billion dollars available for Medicaid expansion that would have insured nearly 400,000 working poor Virginians and would have freed up state monies for other programs.
Neither version did enough for education. The conference report did expand mental health services and left some funds for preschool and for state employee and teacher raises. My conclusion was to vote for the conference committee report for it was the best we were going to be able to get.
Voting in the legislature is like that. You fight all you can for the issues in which you believe, but in the end state government has to continue so you vote for the best compromise you can get.
I did not think the ethics bill reported from a House committee was strong enough, and I voted against it. The conference report improved it somewhat, and I voted for it as being better than current law and a beginning on which we can make improvements in the future. I voted for the several bills that are making incremental improvement in reducing testing and other mandates in the public schools, but we need to continue in that direction in future years.
Most bills are voted on several times: in subcommittee and full committee, with amendments or a substitute, for engrossment and passage to third reading, maybe with amendments from the other house and a conference committee report, and sometimes amendments or a possible veto from the Governor.
Virginia legislators vote hundreds of times. You can follow the tortured path some bills take before passage as well as legislators’ votes at lis.virginia.gov. During the course of the legislative trail, bills get amended in sometimes small and other times major ways. Legislators sometimes are criticized for voting both ways on bills, but that happens as bills are modified. While bills may keep their same number, they can through amendment be changed significantly. Obviously persons not familiar with the process can become confused as to one’s stand on the issue, and political operatives can misuse voting information to confuse voters.
While bills may change in their specifics, they must remain consistent with the purpose as found in the bill’s title. All amendments must be germane to the purpose, and a bill can address only one purpose or object.
Hence there are no “Christmas tree” bills in the Virginia legislature. The meaning of a vote can only be discerned within the context of which it is cast. The process is fast in order for more than 2500 bills and resolutions to be considered in less than 45 days.
I have been pleased to work over many years to make the legislative process transparent in order that citizens can understand what is behind a single vote.
Ken Plum represents Reston in Virginia’s House of Delegates. His opinions are not necessarily those of Reston Now.
At the time of this writing, the General Assembly seems to be on course for an earlier than scheduled Feb. 28 adjournment date.
For a part-time legislature that in recent years has found it difficult to stay within its 60-day session in the even-numbered years and 45-day session in the odd-numbered years, finishing work ahead of schedule would be unprecedented.
The good news for the Commonwealth would be savings in the money it costs to run the legislature; for many members who have employment obligations and for all who leave their families, an early adjournment would mean a return to normal living. For legislative members running for re-election — all of us this year because all House of Delegates and State Senate seats are up for election this November — adjournment of the General Assembly would mean an early start to fundraising prohibited during the legislative session and campaigning.
Among those who believe the old adage that “the Commonwealth in its persons and property is never safe when the legislature is in session” there is probably a collective sigh of relief when the legislature adjourns sine die (without a future date set).
Adoption of various forms of technology over the past several years has sped up the law-making process. For most members, the process is now essentially paperless. Mammoth bill binders have been replaced with laptops and iPads. The floor voting system that was a series of electric switches when I first went to the legislature is now electronic. Citizens have complete access to bill texts and histories, including member voting records at http://lis.virginia.gov.
A serious question remains as to whether the push for efficiency and early adjournment is in the best interests of constituents. While more than 2,500 bills and resolutions were considered in record time, did the work of the people get done? In too many major instances it is clear that important work was put aside in the interest of efficiency that represents a serious loss to constituents.
Certainly the refusal to take up Medicaid expansion reduced debate, but it meant the loss of health care coverage for nearly 400,000 working poor Virginians and the loss of billions of dollars paid by Virginia taxpayers that will not be returned to the state. Lost, too, is the economic stimulus that would have come from the provision of more health care services in the state.
I am not sure that advocates of the state ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment, establishing an independent redistricting commission, or passing common sense gun safety measures will be too impressed with the efficiency of the legislature that came at the expense of their issue not being adequately addressed. Nor will local governments and school boards and colleges and universities that are being severely pinched by reductions in state assistance.
A more significant metric that should be applied to the General Assembly is not how few or how many days the members were at the Capitol but rather how many significant issues faced by Virginians were effectively addressed.
Ken Plum represents Reston in Virginia’s House of Delegates. His opinions are not necessarily those of Reston Now’s.
Home-schoolers in Reston and other Virginia locations are closer than ever to getting the right to play for their local high school teams.
After several years of failed attempts, the Virginia General Assembly this week passed legislation to allow home-schooled students to participate in public-school sports.
The measure is commonly known as the “Tebow bill.” It is named for Tim Tebow, the former NFL quarterback who was home-schooled and allowed to play football for his local high school.
The idea has been repeatedly passed by the Republican-heavy Virginia House of Delegates in recent sessions before being killed in the state Senate.
The Senate, which flipped from Democratic to Republican control last year, approved the bill Tuesday on a 22-13 vote. The bill now heads back to the House.
However, the bill leaves it up to local school boards whether to implement the policy.
Gov. Terry McAuliffe has not said whether he will sign it.
The House and the Senate have penned similar but competing mid-point versions of the 2014-2016 biennial budget. These budgets will now go to a conference committee to work out differences in time for a Feb. 28 adjournment of the annual legislative session.
With both houses being under the same political party control, the differences are not great and will likely be easily reconciled.
Gov. Terry McAuliffe had proposed revisions to the Commonwealth’s budget, but his recommendations were ignored in one significant way: his budget proposal included the expansion of Medicaid for the working poor, but the majority party in both houses adamantly oppose it.
Had Medicaid expansion been approved, the state would have saved $107,000,000 in state spending in FY 2016 alone and would have picked up $482,300,000 in new federal money. The issue of this column is not Medicaid expansion, however, for which I have made my position known in several columns.
Instead, I want to focus on the paranoia in Richmond over the actions of the federal government that the opposition to Medicaid expansion reflects. That paranoia was reflected among other places in a budget amendment in the House that provided that “no general or non-general funds shall be appropriated or expended for such costs as may be intended to implement any federal program or Presidential executive action calling for ‘free’ tuition at institutions of higher education.”
The amendment passed with my speaking against it, suggesting that we should at least see the new program before we decided to oppose it.
Virginia has a long history of opposing federal action. Going back to 1798, James Madison introduced the concept of interposition – that the state could interpose itself between the federal government and the people when it deemed federal laws to be unconstitutional. Interposition or nullification has been used by many states to oppose federal actions on many issues. The Civil War was the most dramatic statement at attempted interposition.
In the 1950s, Virginia attempted to interpose itself against federal action to desegregate the schools. Its efforts through more than 40 lawsuits became known as “massive resistance,” which of course ultimately failed.
The call has gone out once again for the need to protect ourselves against the federal government, particularly the Obama administration. Several bills, for example, were introduced this session to nullify actions of the Environmental Protection Agency in air and water quality regulations. Our federal system with its checks and balances have worked well for many years to protect citizens from a run-away government. At the same time, it creates challenges for smooth operation. This continuing power struggle diverts attention from the real issues of our economy and society and leads to the frustrations that many feel with the operation or gridlock of government.
The federal government is not always wrong. At the same time, the state government is not always right. The public expects that leaders work through these differences and that issues be resolved.
Del. Ken Plum (D) represents Reston in Virginia’s House of Delegates. His opinions are not necessarily those of Reston Now’s
The General Assembly has reached “crossover,” the point on the legislative calendar when each house must have completed work on bills introduced into its respective chamber.
That point was Tuesday for all bills except for adjustments to the budget that will be considered on Thursday. For the rest of the session until the expected adjournment on Feb. 28, each house will consider legislation passed by the other house. Should legislation on the same subject be passed differently by both houses, a conference committee will be empaneled to attempt to resolve differences between the House and Senate.
The status of legislation described here is at the time of writing this column. There will be no gun safety legislation that will have passed in either house, but a bill passed to make it easier to get a concealed weapons permit if you have one from another state. A bill to limit access to a gun for someone for whom a restraining order has been issued may pass the Senate, but such a bill has already been defeated in the House. My bill and several like it for universal background checks for gun purchases were defeated in both houses.
Concerns about sexual assault on college campuses will be addressed by both houses with important details needing to be resolved. A delicate balance between having someone report an assault to a counselor at the institution and having the police involved is being weighed. There is a commitment to respond to the issue and to do it in a careful way. Two different versions of a bill to legalize the use of marijuana to treat seizures have passed and will be reconciled before the end of the session. A resolution to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment passed the Senate but is likely to be defeated in the House.
Both houses have been adamant about not expanding Medicaid, although it seems that state monies will be appropriated to cover some needs such as in mental health even though Medicaid expansion would have provided money to meet these needs. Both houses have presented revisions to the biennial budget, but many more needs could have been met if the $5 million per day of federal monies had been accepted.
The House refused to pass any legislation for nonpartisan redistricting, and a bill coming over from the Senate is likely to be defeated in the House. There is still time to change the process before the redistricting that will happen after the 2020 federal census. In the meantime, a federal court has invalidated Virginia’s congressional district lines, and the boundaries of the House of Delegates districts are being challenged in court.
Major revisions are being made in the public-private partnership agreement process to enhance transparency and accountability. The Governor’s bill on transportation has passed to make monies available for local roads. Ethics bills will pass both houses, but both need to be strengthened before final passage.
If you want to check on the fate of a particular bill or read the language of a bill, go to 2015 Session website.
Ken Plum (D) represents Reston in Virginia’s House of Delegates. His opinions do not necessarily reflect those of Reston Now.
As the Virginia General Assembly nears its midpoint for consideration of proposed legislation, the fissures of differences among the many stakeholders who have interests before the law-making body become evident.
The clash of interests is much more complex than House v. Senate, Republicans v. Democrats, or rural v. suburban.
Differences in ideas and ideals make compromise challenging.
Last week, advocates of an Article V constitutional convention to rein in the power of the federal government descended on Richmond to make their case before receptive legislators who like to bash Washington with regularity. Calling on the words of the founding fathers, the advocates of a constitutional convention called by the states promised a balanced federal budget and strict limitations on the powers of Congress and the presidency in their new constitution.
The evening before the hearing on the proposed constitutional convention the members of the Rules Committee of which I am a member received a flurry of emails from Second Amendment gun rights advocates asking that the proposal for a constitutional convention be defeated for “such a convention would surely be a threat to the Second Amendment’s rights.”
Interesting that the gun rights advocates who like to complain about the power of government fear that a debate on the Second Amendment today might limit their rights. The resolution for the convention passed with my nay vote because of my general concerns about turning over the redefining of our government to those who oppose many personal liberties.
There are many examples of the balancing of ideas and ideals that can lead to meaningful discussion and hopefully better solutions. At the same time a discussion of issues can lead to misunderstandings.
In a recent opinion column it was suggested that I insisted “meals and trips be protected from reform” of ethics laws. Nothing could be further from the truth. In a discussion about the complexities of writing an ethics reform law that defines inappropriate behavior I raised a question about invitations to legislators to speak at luncheon or dinner meetings of business or community leaders or trips that were truly educational. I do not want anything left out; I want the grey areas addressed in a way that will not reduce legitimate interaction among legislators and people they represent while sharply defining ethical behavior. I am confident that such a bill will be passed.
In a recent letter to the editor, questions were raised about a member of the House who took an Alford plea to involvement with a 17-year-old girl. I was part of a unanimous Democratic Caucus that expelled him from the caucus and called for his resignation or removal from the House. He subsequently resigned, ran as an Independent, and was re-elected.
Ideally it seems that he should be removed from the House, but there has been reluctance to remove a member who was just duly elected. Further criminal charges related to that individual since his re-election could lead to his removal.
Tough issues come to the legislature for resolution. Too often environmental protections are cast as being bad for business, but they do not have to be in conflict. There are many green job opportunities. New technology with new business models, like Uber, are threatening to the traditional taxicab industry, but there is room for both to succeed.
Ideas and ideals clash in the legislature. That makes the job interesting and at the same time challenging. I am always available to discuss my position on issues or my votes with anyone, [email protected].
Ken Plum represents Reston in Virginia’s House of Delegates. His opinions are not necessarily those of Reston Now’s.
This is an op-ed from Terry Maynard of Co-Chair of Reston 2020, a citizen advocacy group.
(Updated at 6:05 p.m.) Having recovered from the December holidays, I finally read the second draft of the Phase 2 Reston Master Plan last week in preparation for the community meeting this Thursday, 7 p.m., at RCC Lake Anne’s JoAnne Rose Gallery Room. It’s an open meeting with substantial opportunity for public participation. I encourage you to be there because …
What I found in the draft plan regarding Reston’s Village Centers was language that allows virtually unconstrained redevelopment of these critical neighborhood “gathering places.”
First, and maybe most importantly, there are no meaningful constraints on density — the actual amount of building that could be done at the Village Centers. Typically, including the Phase 1 plan for Reston’s urban areas, planning guidance indicates a maximum density measured by floor-area ratio (FAR) that, as the phrase suggests, measures the ratio of the volume of square footage of allowable for development to the area of the property. Read More
