The partial federal government shutdown is nearing the two-week mark with no immediate end in sight.

Parts of the federal government shut down on Saturday, Dec. 22, after Congress and the White House failed to reach a spending deal. It remains unclear if or when the White House and congressional Democrats could negotiate a deal as President Donald Trump keeps a firm stand for $5 billion to pay for a border wall.

Yesterday (Jan. 2), Smithsonian museums and the National Zoo closed, joining National Parks around the country, according to news reports. Even though people got very concerned very quickly after the zoo’s beloved live “panda cam” went dark, the pandas and other animals will continue to get fed.

One place not affected by the shutdown — the Newseum — is offering federal workers who show their badge free admission.

Trump’s third government shutdown is impacting locals and visitors in the Washington, D.C.-area from furloughed federal workers to surprised tourists. (The longest government shutdown was 21 days during Bill Clinton’s presidency, in case you were curious.)

Now, on day 13, let us know if your work or D.C. plans have been affected by the shutdown.

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This is an opinion column by Del. Ken Plum (D), who represents Reston in Virginia’s House of Delegates. It does not reflect the opinion of Reston Now.

Four hundred years ago colonists representing each of the 20 or so plantations in Virginia met together in the church at Jamestown Island to take care of the business of the new colony. The upcoming meeting of the General Assembly which will convene in the Jefferson-designed Capitol in Richmond at noon on Jan. 9 is likely to be historic as well with the enormity of the issues before it. These issues will be taken up in view of the election in November of this year when all members of the House of Delegates and State Senate will be on the ballot.

Ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment illustrates what I mean. For 40 years, the Virginia General Assembly has refused to pass a resolution supporting the ERA. This year is different in that Virginia would be the 38th state to ratify the amendment and barring court challenges would be the final state needed for making the ERA a part of the Constitution. Some public opinion polls show popular support of the amendment as high as 80 percent, and supporters of the amendment have never been better organized. A large demonstration of supporters has been planned for the opening day of the session.

A recent story posted on www.fauquier.com about three delegates who spoke before the Fauquier Chamber of Commerce about the issues in the upcoming session illustrates the challenges facing the legislature. The story reported the ERA score as “one for, one against, and one undecided.” The one against is Del. Mark Cole who chairs the Privileges and Elections Committee to which the bill has been assigned and which has defeated or refused to hear the resolution in past legislative sessions. There is little surprise that Cole, who is one of the most conservative members of the House, would continue his opposition. Whether he can refuse to have the resolution taken up to keep vulnerable delegates from having to vote on it will be part of the drama of the session.

Supporting passage of the ERA is Del. Elizabeth Guzman who is in her first term and who was part of the defeat of 15 Republicans in the last election. She has shown herself to be a progressive and effective leader who will not allow opponents a way to duck the issue.

Attempting to stand in the middle as undecided is Del. Michael Webert who in the past would have been counted as an opponent. The report says, “he needs to study the proposed ratifying legislation.” More likely is that he needs to study the changing demographics of his district to see if he could be re-elected after voting against the ERA. Webert also has a record of helping defeat commonsense bills to prevent gun violence as part of a subcommittee that defeats all such bills. He will need to explain his votes to the new constituents in his changing district.

All 140 members of the legislature will be measuring their re-election prospects after voting on the ERA. Constituents need to continue to let legislators know their support of the ERA. As for me, I will be supporting the ERA as I always have in the past.

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Timothy Chapman, the managing member of Reston-based Chapman Development LLC, entered the race to become the next chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.

On Dec. 6, Chairman Sharon Bulova revealed her plans to retire after her term ends Dec. 31, 2019. That same day, Lee District Supervisor Jeff McKay, a Democrat, announced his intention to succeed her, the Fairfax County Times reported.

Now, Chapman has joined the race to become the county’s next chair with a Facebook post on Tuesday (Dec. 18) indicating that he plans to run as a Democrat.

Chapman wrote in the post that he wants to offer an “alternative path” to bring changes to one of the country’s wealthiest counties.

“[The county] has settled for effectively ignoring a crisis in affordable housing, sending its children to school in trailers, for not paying our teachers and firefighters and police officers what they deserve, and for the horrific traffic that imprisons us in our cars and steals away precious moments with our children and families,” he wrote.

The post also says the following:

As far as my political views, through the years I have voted for and donated to Democrats, Independents and Republicans. Now, I am so disgusted by today’s out of the mainstream Trum-publicans that I realize the only successful path forward is the compassion of a strongly progressive Democratic platform. It’s essential that we fight for the little guy against often rigged politics which seem to benefit the wealthy and well connected, while leaving those hard working families who are the backbone of Fairfax County to struggle to make the everyday choices that many of us take for granted.

My own life experiences have taught me to have an overwhelming, unwavering compassion for the less fortunate. I know what it feels like to be judged rather than understood, to experience the pain, fear and anxiety of being homeless. But I have also enjoyed, and continue to enjoy, an inherent privilege which afforded me the opportunity for a second chance and another second chance. Without question, I have worked hard for every step forward I have accomplished, and I own every step backwards I have caused myself, but to ignore or deny this privilege would be like denying climate change. I am living proof that with grit and determination, one, if provided the opportunity, can overcome obstacles and succeed beyond their wildest dreams. I now live in Vienna with my wife and our 5 children. I’ve built a successful affordable housing development company. I chaired the Virginia Housing Development Authority at the request of Governor McAuliffe.

Records from the Virginia Public Access Project show that Chapman has indeed donated to politicians from both sides of the aisle. He gave $50,000 last year to Democrat Tom Perriello and $15,000 in 2013 to Republican Kenneth Cuccinelli for both men’s unsuccessful gubernatorial campaigns.

Other donations include $15,000 to Ralph Northam’s gubernatorial campaign and then $25,000 to Northam’s 2018 inaugural committee.

Back in 2005, he gave $4,000 to Republican Sean Connaughton’s unsuccessful bid to become the state’s lieutenant governor.

His Chapman Development bio says he has “an extensive background in multi-family development and tax-credit communities” and that he served in the 3rd U.S. Infantry’s Presidential Honor Guard.

Previously, Chapman chaired the Virginia Housing and Development Authority, according to a Bloomberg profile.

The upcoming election for the county’s Board of Supervisors will take place on Nov. 5, 2019.

Photos via Fairfax County/Facebook and Tim Chapman/LinkedIn

The special election on Jan. 8 will determine who will replace the State Senate seat of Congresswoman-elect Jennifer Wexton.

Democrat Del. Jennifer Boysko, who currently represents the 86th District, will face former state Del. Joe May, a Republican who is the chairman of the board and chief technology officer for Leesburg-based tech firm EIT.

The deadline to register to vote is 5 p.m. in person and 11:59 p.m. online on Jan. 2. For locals who want to absentee vote via mail, the registration deadline is 5 p.m. on Jan. 2. Absentee ballots must be returned by 7 p.m. on Jan. 8.

Absentee voting in person will take place on Saturday, Jan. 5, at the Herndon Fortnightly Library (786 Center Street) from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. If Fairfax County Government Offices close due to inclement weather, absentee voting will get canceled.

Herndon residents can vote on election day from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 8.

Voters located in Herndon’s first precinct, which stretches from Park Ave and Elden Street to Grant Street, will vote at Herndon Elementary School (630 Dranesville Road).

Voters in the second precinct, which is west of Elden Street and between Monaghan Drive and Park Ave, vote at the Herndon Community Center (814 Ferndale Ave).

Herndon Middle School (901 Locust Street) is the polling place for voters in the third precinct, which is southeast of Elden Street and above the Dulles Access Road.

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Updated at 9:52 a.m. — United Airlines said that it does not receive a special jet fuel tax break. 

Del. Elizabeth Guzman unveiled a bill yesterday that would lower the tolls on Dulles Toll Road, one month after the toll hikes were approved for next year.

The bill would offset some of the upcoming toll increases by ending what Guzman calls United Airlines’ “jet fuel tax exemption” and directing that roughly $4 million per year toward the Silver Line project, which is currently funded largely by tolls.

That revenue could cancel almost 9 percent of the scheduled 2019 toll increase, according to a press release from UNITE HERE Local 23.

“United Airlines does not receive a special tax break and pays the same jet fuel tax as all other airlines that serve airports in the Commonwealth,” Kimberly Gibbs, a spokeswoman for United Airlines, said.

Gibbs added that the second phase of the Silver Line “will benefit residents, employers and businesses throughout the Dulles corridor.”

In Virginia, larger airlines like United Airlines pay less per gallon in taxes on most of the jet fuel they use, the press release says.

The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Board of Directors voted Nov. 14 to increase rates on the Dulles Toll Road for the first time since 2014 to fund the Silver Line extension project and improvements on the Dulles Toll Road, according to the MWAA. Starting in January, the hike will raise the toll from $2.50 to $3.25 at the main toll plaza and from $1 to $1.50 on ramps.

The bill responds to community concerns about the increasing tolls, which are expected to rise to more than $11 by 2043 without alternative funding, the press release said.

“Virginia continues to face a transportation infrastructure funding crisis,” Guzman said. “But Virginia commuters should not be asked to accept higher tolls to fund transit projects that benefit United Airlines, while the airline receives millions in state tax breaks.”

Dels. Kaye Kory and Lee Carter, Virginia AFL-CIO, UNITE HERE Local 23 and CASA in Action, joined Guzman by the windows outside the United Airlines ticketing counters on Wednesday (Dec. 12) at 5 p.m. for the announcement about the bill.

Supporters of the bill argue that the Silver Line project will redirect more of the consumer air traffic market to Dulles International Airport, bringing an additional $66 million to United Airlines with 1 percent more of the regional passenger airline market.

Similar efforts in New Jersey are also underway. In September, the New Jersey Senate passed similar legislation to end United’s jet fuel tax break there to fund aviation-related transit projects.

“Commuters and every other business along the Dulles Corridor are already paying their fair share for the Silver Line. United Airlines should too,” Doris Crouse-Mays, president of the Virginia AFL-CIO, said.

Tonight I proudly stand with @unitehere23, @NovaLabor, @CASAinAction, and my colleagues in the House of Delegates as I introduce legislation for the 2019 session that will reduce tolls on the Dulles Toll Road. Thank you @NBC4DC for the coverage tonight. https://t.co/Vry7w3vjUP pic.twitter.com/WN9PPkz0yV

— Delegate Elizabeth Guzman (@delegateguzman) December 13, 2018

No more tax breaks for @united while we get toll hikes! @delegateguzman pic.twitter.com/F7ZGGE6Gnz

— UNITE HERE Local 23 (@unitehere23) December 12, 2018

Photo via Nova Labor/Facebook

This is an opinion column by Del. Ken Plum (D), who represents Reston in Virginia’s House of Delegates. It does not reflect the opinion of Reston Now.

Thomas Jefferson’s election as President of the United States is referred to as a “bloodless revolution” because in the major shifts of power in world history it occurred without the violence that marked previous changes in who controlled government. While electing a president has caused some consternation over time, the rule of law has been followed rather than having a resort to physical engagement determine the outcome.

While I and others had hoped for a giant blue tsunami wave to occur with the outcome of the 2018 mid-terms elections, a more apt description of the outcome might be that a wave of blue change came upon the land. Leading that change was the first outcome announced by the media with the election of Democrat State Senator Jennifer Wexton to the House of Representatives defeating incumbent Republican Barbara Comstock by a landslide and flipped a district that had been Republican for nearly forty years. Not only did Congresswoman-elect Jennifer Wexton get an overwhelming share of the popular votes, but she assembled an army of volunteers like that seldom seen in elections. She won in the best tradition of the bloodless revolution with volunteers who carried her message door to door.

Downstate in Congressional District Seven an earlier voter revolution had swept the Republican House Majority leader out of office in a primary and replaced him with a true-blue Tea Party candidate. That candidate went on to win the general election only to find himself defeated this year by a first-time Democratic candidate Abigail Spanberger. The incumbent Republican Dave Brat has spent most of the campaign seeming to dodge any engagement with Spanberger who would challenge his right-wing economic theories that had left most people shaking their heads to understand him.

Joining Wexton and Spanberger as winning Democratic candidates was Elaine Luria who won in District Two in the Virginia Beach area against former Navy Seal and incumbent Scott Taylor. In a district that has a strong military presence, Luria was able to flip the district from red to blue.

At the end of the evening of vote counting, Democrats that had been outnumbered in Virginia’s congressional delegation seven to four found themselves in a majority of seven to four. A state that was once considered red has Democrats not only in all of its statewide offices but now as seven of its congressional representatives. A congressional delegation that had only one woman ended with three.

In the Senate, former Governor of Virginia Tim Kaine who represents Virginia along with Senator Mark Warner in the United States Senate easily defeated a strong Trump advocate, Corey Stewart, by landslide numbers. The next step for Democratic gain comes with the state elections in 2019. With the State Senate and the House of Delegates being controlled by a single vote in each, it is reasonable to expect that the blue wave will continue throughout the state.

The shift in power in the U.S. House of Representatives was a bloodless revolution with a major shift in power. Looking ahead, the Senate seats up for election in 2020 could bring the tipping point.

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Town of Herndon Mayor Lisa Merkel severed ties with the Fairfax County Democratic Committee this week in response to “Trump-like” campaign signs that asserted candidates were “pretending to be Democrats.”

Merkel, a Democrat who has been served as the mayor since 2012, resigned from the committee a day after the election.

“I cannot in good faith be a part of a committee that condones such negative campaigning and untrue messaging about its own members, especially at the polls and with my constituents.  I consider myself a Democrat, particularly in the Trump era, but I will no longer be associated with the Fairfax County Democratic Committee,” Merkel wrote in a statement to Reston Now.

She said the signs were divisive in a written statement to the county committee and the Dranesville District Democratic Committee:

I must admit that I was most disappointed to arrive at the polls in Herndon yesterday to see the attached very large committee-approved signs asserting that there were candidates “pretending to be Democrats.”  This is appalling behavior, and I expected better of my party.   Many of the candidates running for town council were still dues-paying members of FCDC and the Dranesville committee on Election Day.  I wonder what our Congressman and Senator would think of seeing their signs seemingly associated with this kind of untrue, Trump-like “Fake News” scare tactic?  My guess is they would not appreciate it, particularly given that I was pleased to receive the personal endorsement of both Gerry Connolly and Tim Kaine, along with every other Virginia Democratic elected official that serves the Town of Herndon.  I think that speaks to years of relationships building and working together on behalf of the residents of Herndon.   

Additionally, I’m not sure if you are aware but  Herndon Voices, a PAC owned by one of your endorsed candidates, distributed materials at the polls endorsing known Republicans along with another non-FCDC endorsed candidate.  Does this set well with the committee and the required-for-endorsement pledge to only support the endorsed candidates?

In a statement to Reston Now, Dan Lagana, chairman of the Fairfax County Democratic Committee, said the signs were not authorized by the committee

“The signs were not authorized nor produced by the Fairfax County Democratic Committee. I wish Mayor Merkel the very best and want her to know that the door is always open. However, I strongly urge both the Mayor and Herndon Town Councilmembers-elect to set aside personal differences and work collaboratively on behalf of the residents of the Town of Herndon,” Lagana wrote.

Photo via Lisa Merkel