Week 6: Progressive Bills Crossover
Dear Friend,
This was another exciting week. On Wednesday, the Senate stayed in session until the wee hours of Thursday morning to pass bills that were worthy of House action. The House of Delegates was busy accomplishing the same task. My message to my colleagues was “do not let the perfect be the enemy of the good.” I had many issues where whipping the votes was more of a challenge than expected, but I reminded lawmakers that legislating is a process and passing a bill in the Senate is just the first step.
As you probably know, bills need to pass both bodies of the General Assembly to be sent to the Governor for his signature. If these hurdles are met, the Governor can choose to sign a bill into law, amend the bill, or veto the bill. Thankfully, I predict that legislation designed to improve the lives of Virginia’s families, extend anti-discrimination protections to all Virginians, and address climate change will land on the Governor’s desk. Highlights of key bills that crossed over from one body to the other are noted below:
Gun Safety - I am proud to say that the Senate passed several of the Governor’s eight suggested gun-safety measures, including universal background checks, a red-flag law, and a bill that grants localities the authority to regulate firearms in publics places. It is possible that the Senate may adopt a few more measures, after reviewing the House bills. However, the Senate is struggling to act on an assault weapons ban. Although the House passed such a ban, a few Democratic Senators believe that such a ban on assault weapons cannot easily be implemented. This belief has been effectively reinforced by gun-rights activists with a fear-based message that “the government will come to your door and take your guns away.” The consequences of this campaign have left our Senate offices inundated with threatening messages and the amplification of a few voices over the many who might support such a ban. I remain hopeful that we can ultimately come to a compromise, even if it does not happen this session.
Minimum Wage - Both bodies passed legislation to implement a minimum wage of $15.00 per hour over five years, with study language that requires an evaluation of the cost of living metrics by planning region, over the next two years. The minimum wage requirement may be adjusted by region in year three to avoid negative employment impacts that lawmakers and businesses from the south and south western districts are predicting. I will provide more specifics regarding the minimum wage topic once a bill comes out of conference.
Paid Sick Days - My bill to require employers with fifteen (15) employees or more to provide an annual benefit of five (5) paid sick days to each full-time employee, if the employer’s Paid Time Off policy does not equal or exceed this requirement, passed out of the Senate. This was a tightly crafted compromise among advocates from the faith community, representatives from organized labor, and business interests. Some, who are advocating for the employees I am trying to help, may unintentionally defeat this legislation because they believe they can somehow achieve perfection. Perfection is never the outcome of successful legislation. This session is a learning experience for new lawmakers and many “good-guy” groups who have never had the opportunity to govern before.
Collective Bargaining - The Senate passed a bill that grants authority to local governments to establish, through ordinance, the parameters of a collective bargaining process with employees. The House version of the collective bargaining bill requires that collective bargaining units be established and describes how those units should be created and what protections must be extended to employees, among other things. The conference process will be very tedious on this bill.
Equal Taxing Authority for Counties - I am excited to say that my equal taxing authority bill passed out of the Senate. Myself and Senator Hanger, a Republican and former chair of the Appropriations and Finance Committee, co-sponsored this bill. In an effort to garner bi-partisan support, I agreed to certain caps on the taxes that can be applied to admission tickets and cigarettes. So far, I have been able to avoid placing a cap on the meals tax option. I must continue to remind my colleagues that local officials are elected and must balance any tax burdens they place on residents with the delivery of needed services. I also make the point that the more revenue streams available to local governments, the less localities will have to rely on increasing the real estate tax.
Hate Crimes Bill - My bill to add “gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, and disability” to Virginia’s Hate Crimes law passed out of the Senate with 26 votes! This was a much larger margin than expected, and the margin showed me that bipartisan support is growing on issues related to equality and “equal protection under the law.” I call this progress.
No More Surprise Medical Bills - I have been working with hospitals, doctors, and patient advocacy groups to craft a proposal that will hold patients harmless after they have paid their required deductibles or other co-pays. In other words, the resolution of unexpected medical bills because a provider is out of network cannot involve the patient. Under my bill, the provider and the patient’s insurance company must attempt to reach an agreement or the payment question goes to an expedited arbitration process, managed by the State Corporation Commission. The arbitration process must consider the regional average payments for similar procedures and the impact on insurance premiums, among other factors. Much to my delight, my bill passed the Senate with 32 votes. This has been the most complicated bill I have tackled in my Senate career and now I must negotiate with patrons of a House bill that is not as similar to my bill as I would like.
Climate Change - I was very excited to advocate for Senator McClellan’s bill, a bill that creates incentives for the generation and distribution of clean energy as it relates to the regulation of electric utilities. The energy sources favored in the bill include nuclear power, clean coal powered energy, and renewable powered energy (other than landfill gas). It now appears, however, that some of the progress embraced by this bill is running into enormous opposition. It remains to be seen what, if anything, will actually make it to the Governor’s desk.
Anti-Tethering Bill - My friend and colleague, Senator John Bell, passed an anti-tethering bill that I hope makes it through the House and lands on the Governor’s desk. His bill states that tethering an animal not engaged in agriculture activity does not meet the adequate shelter requirement under the law, if certain circumstances occur. These circumstances cover time frames (between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.), temperature thresholds (32 degrees Fahrenheit or lower, or 85 degrees Fahrenheit or higher), and official warnings of severe weather events in the area. This bill was heard before the subcommittee on companion animals, a subcommittee on which I serve. It was very rewarding to be able to help move this bill to a vote on the Senate floor.
It is a privilege and honor to serve you. Thanks so much for your ongoing support.
Sincerely,
Senator Barbara Favola
31st District - Representing Parts of Arlington, Fairfax & Loudoun