Delegate Jim Scott's Richmond Report

As the fifth week of the six-week 2005 General Assembly session comes to an end, the 40-member Senate is rushing to finish considering the large number of bills approved by the 100-member House of Delegates.

For the first four weeks, the House had the heavier load as it considered bills introduced by its members. Now the Senate must, within a shorter time, act on all the House bills. However, it is not the bills and resolutions that will delay adjournment, if that happens. The separate Budget bills passed by each body will slow the process down. In this second year of the biennial budget cycle the Assembly only considers amendments to the main bill passed last year after the 2004 extended and contentious session. Nevertheless, many differences surfaced Tuesday as the House reviewed the amendments passed by the Senate.

For example, the House increases new transportation funding by almost twice as much as the Senate, in addition to passing separate bill beginning the process of amending the Virginia Constitution to prevent future Assemblies from taking money from the Highway Trust Fund. In addition, the House included more than $3.3 million to increase payments to attorneys who defend indigents. The Senate added virtually nothing for this purpose even though the Commonwealth has not fully funded its fee standard at any time during my service in the Assembly.

Further, the House Budget more than doubled the Senate additional funding for George Mason University. At the same time, the House removed funding proposed by the Governor to increase Medicaid for poor, pregnant women while the Senate approved it, and the Senate added Medicaid funding for hospitals well above the House proposals.

Both the House and the Senate have provided at least $50,000,000 in new money for water quality improvement, and both have funded the reduction in the sales tax on food to 2 ½ cents. Of interest to Northern Virginia the House added approximately $500,000 to support operation of the Center of Innovative Technology while the Senate adds nothing for CIT.

Of particular interest to Falls Church is the bill designed to preempt controversial recent actions by Arlington and Alexandria to increase the supply of affordable housing. Arlington’s actions were specifically overturned by an Arlington Circuit Court Judge. Identical bills introduced by Del. Gary Reese of Fairfax County and Sen. Bill Mims would have reinforced the Judge’s ruling.

And the bills would have had created great problems for Falls Church and Fairfax County although they both operated entirely within the law and were not the subject of the Judge’s ruling. Both jurisdictions affordable housing programs would have been crippled.

As this is written, I am pleased that, with the able assistance of City Attorney Roy Thorpe and Assistant City Manager Wyatt Shields, I have persuaded the proponents of the Reese/Mims bills that Falls Church should be exempted from the bills. Fairfax County is also being exempted.

Therefore, even if no compromise is reached on the bills by Arlington and Alexandria, Falls Church and Fairfax County will be able continue with their efforts unabated by legislative or court actions.

One final note: my House Bill 2722 appears on the verge of passing. It will prevent juveniles over the age of 14 from purchasing firearms if they have committed murder, rape, kidnapping, or robbery with a firearm. Without the bill they will remain eligible to purchase guns at age 29.

Delegate Jim Scott may be emailed at deljscott@aol.com