Virginia Bills to Watch in the General Assembly
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Bills I’m Watching During the 2023 Legislative Session
The Virginia General Assembly, the old continuous governing body in the New World, will convene for a 30-day session (or 45-day one, if extended) in Richmond starting today, January 11th.
With many bills already pre-filed ahead of session, I want to analyze a couple for my fellow Virginians.
For starters: Let’s not rid of the Department of Wildlife Resources please. And I didn’t see Delegate Amanda Batten (R-Williamsburg)’s House Bill 529 to protect independent contracting reintroduced yet since it was left in Committee last session. (Learn about Virginia Committee Stages here.)
But here are some bills to watch—especially some that may garner national attention.
Menhaden
If you reside in the Mid-Atlantic, chances are you’re familiar with Atlantic menhaden (Brevoortia tyrannus).
I’m aware of them because I’ve fished the Chesapeake Bay and some rivers/tributaries that feed into it. It’s a primary food source for striped bass (rockfish) and sought-after by the likes of Omega Protein.
Omega Protein has operated in the bay for over 140 years and harvests menhaden for omega-3 fish oil. And it’s often responsible for fish kills and net spills— including red drum, of late. Anglers have documented numerous instances of “dead reds” washing ashore. A horrific sight. The most egregious instance occurred last July. Shore Daily News noted:
According to a press release from the VMRC, they received reports from Omega Protein that a reduction fishing vessel caught numerous large red drum while harvesting menhaden. The vessel released some of the net contents containing the red drum and menhaden back into the waters. The combination of net stress and water temperatures resulted in large numbers of dead fish to wash ashore.
Omega Protein responded with additional resources and cleanup crews to remove the dead fish from the water and beaches. The total number is still unknown.
The release further states VMRC and Omega Protein are working together to find solutions that prevent or mitigate harmful impacts of fish spills on the public. The Virginia Marine Police is investigating the incident to determine if any violations occurred.
Captain Shawn Shapiro of Sea Mee Sportfishing, who took me and my dad on a memorable fishing last August, described the toll of the July fish spill. He said captains like him just want reasonable limits on menhaden harvests without displacing people from their jobs.
The Youngkin administration crafted regulatory amendments “to limit future spill incidents while reducing user conflict and strengthening the stewardship of shared natural resources and water areas amongst all user groups.” But the VMRC didn’t accept these recommendations and, instead, opted for a narrowly-passed memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the menhaden fishery last month. Some conservationists weren’t satisfied with the conditions laid out by MOU and said they don’t hold Omega accountable. From Virginia Mercury:
In a 5-4 vote, the commission voted to approve a memo of understanding stating the Bay’s lone reduction fishery, Omega Protein, and two bait fisheries agree to not fish in state waters of the Chesapeake Bay around Memorial Day, July 4 and Labor Day, as well as on Saturdays and Sundays between Memorial Day and Labor Day and within a half-mile of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel.
The agreement also calls for the whole fishery to work collaboratively with the governor’s office and the General Assembly to maintain a buffer where fishing will not occur in waters along the densely populated areas of the Eastern Shore, Chesapeake Bay and Virginia Beach region.
This is where legislation comes in. Since 2020, menhaden conservation has been managed by the VMRC—not the General Assembly.
Republican Delegate Tim Anderson has two pre-filed bills to address the situation. One is House Bill 1383 to prohibit menhaden fishing for two years, and another, HB 1381, “removes the restriction preventing the Marine Resources Commission from adopting regulations for the management of menhaden outside of the time period between October 1 and December 31.”
Action is expected here since this is a longstanding problem. There’s also interest from both Democrats and Republicans to conserve menhaden, prevent unnecessary fish kills, and permit responsible harvest.
School Choice
The Commonwealth of Virginia would benefit from school choice. With the War on Merit and “Parents Matter” movement center stage here, there’s an appetite for education reform.
Virginia only boasts seven public charter schools. According to National School Choice Week, Virginia “spends on average $12,905 per public school student each year.” Its School Choice Rank is 42 out of 50 states.
But will the General Assembly act this session? Given the makeup of the General Assembly—Republicans control the House of Delegates, Democrats control the State Senate—it will be challenging to pass unless 1-2 Senate Democrats reach across the aisle. Realistically, it’ll be difficult to get movement here.
What is gaining traction, however, is education savings accounts (ESAs). EdChoice notes, “Education savings accounts (ESAs) allow parents to withdraw their children from public district or charter schools and receive a deposit of public funds into government-authorized savings accounts with restricted, but multiple, uses.”
Delegate Glenn Davis (R-Virginia Beach) has reintroduced legislation in the form of HB 1508 to create a Virginia Education Account Program. It also has support from Virginia Lieutenant Governor Winsome Sears. From VPM:
An education savings account, referred to in the bill as a “success account,” is a voucher program. Under a current proposal from Del. Glenn Davis (R-Virginia Beach), a portion of state-funded per-pupil dollars would be deposited into an account managed by the Virginia Department of Treasury.
Parents would be authorized to use the ESA funds in myriad ways: tuition and fees at private schools, tuition at Virginia institutions of higher education, tutoring fees, curriculum materials, after-school or summer school programming and more. Up to 20% of the funds could be used on things like internet access and computer hardware.
During Thursday’s press conference, Davis estimated the average amount deposited would be around $6,300, but the specific amount would vary depending on locality.
This effort, if passed, would draw heavily from Arizona’s sought after Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program. AZ’s program has benefitted over 45,000 students.
Firearms
Of the states that comprise the DMV - D.C., Maryland, Virginia - Virginia is the most Second Amendment friendly despite state Democrats ramming gun control 2020-2021.
There are bills to restore state pre-emption laws (HB 1428 in localities, HB 1427 in parks),and allow concealed carry near the Capital. I expect bills to repeal the one handgun a month ban, restore online qualification for obtaining a concealed carry permit, and others remedies to undo Northam’s mess, will be introduced later.
There’s also the worrisome proposed “assault weapons” ban like this that could ban most modern sporting rifles that aren’t assault (automatic) by nature.
With 25 states now boasting permitless carry, or constitutional carry, Virginia will debate similar legislation. There are a couple pre-filed bills —HB 1391 and HB 1420—on the subject.
Taxes
With the grocery tax cut now law, more tax reforms are on the horizon. Governor Youngkin is eager to deliver on $1 billion in tax relief this year.
Senate Bill 851 would increase the standard deduction, starting in 2023, “from $8,000 to $12,500 for single filers and from $16,000 to $25,000 for married filers” to last until 2026. The Governor reportedly wants to go further: $9,000 for individuals and $18,000 for married couples.
WRIC also reports Youngkin wants to lower the corporate tax rate from 6% to 5%, along with a 10% tax cut for small business owners.
Environment
As Virginia plans its exit from the flawed Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), the General Assembly could pass bills to limit the scope of the disastrous Virginia Clean Economy Act (or Virginia Green New Deal) and related net-zero policies.
SB 1001 would back up RGGI withdrawal. There’s also a bill to unyoke Virginia from California’s emissions standards that call for phasing out gas-powered vehicles.
Abortion
With the Supreme Court overturning Roe V. Wade, Governor Youngkin wants a 15-week ban enacted. This is a reasonable position given the political orientation of our Commonwealth, as stated above.
One proposed bill would ban state funding of abortion, while another would recognize personhood beginning at conception.
Like school choice and guns, uncooperative Democrats and some wobbly Republicans won’t agree to a 15-week ban nor stripping abortion clinics of state funding.
Conclusion
I barely scratched the surface here, but more bills will come down the pipeline during this packed and short session. Stay tuned!
NOTE: 2023 General Assembly elections occur this fall and could decide the fate of Youngkin’s agenda and whether or not Virginia adopts school choice, restores gun rights, etc. going forward.
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—Gabriella