Category: General Assembly
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Dueling Fiscal Impact Statements
by Dick Hall-Sizemore Providing a fiscal impact statement (FIS) for legislation is a positive aspect of the legislative process. The statement can alert the legislators to the possible fiscal implications of a bill under consideration and its estimated cost. Thus, legislators are in a position to make a more informed decision about supporting the bill.…
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Biting the Hand that You Need
by Dick Hall-Sizemore If you are a Virginia governor entering the last two years of your term with your party in the minority in both houses of the legislature and are depending on the other party to help you put in place a major project which would be part of your legacy, why would you…
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Will Dominion Fool Us Again with SMR Cost Bill?
By Steve Haner Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. A utility-backed bill to stick electricity ratepayers with the high-risk costs of developing small (modular) nuclear reactors, approved by a Senate committee Friday, is a “fool me twice” example. Shame on the General Assembly if it falls for it.
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Only Tax Increases Still Pending at Assembly
By Steve Haner Governor Glenn Youngkin’s package of proposed tax changes is now stalled in both the Virginia Senate and the House of Delegates. A House subcommittee spiked it Feb. 5 and then dashed other bills imposing major tax increases on higher income Virginians. A full Senate committee refused his bill on Feb. 6. Of…
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The General Assembly’s Gift to Virginia’s Students
by Matt Hurt During the 2024 General Assembly session, two bills were introduced which have the potential to provide two additional weeks of uninterrupted learning that Virginia’s students in grades three through eight haven’t had in a few years. Specifically, HB 1076 and SB 435 are two very concise sister bills which simply intend to…
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General Assembly Committees Approve Bill That Would Allow Even Serial Killers to Seek Release
from Liberty Unyielding When Virginia abolished the death penalty in 2021, Virginians were assured it wasn’t needed, because the worst killers could be given life sentences without the possibility of parole. But now, even the worst killers could eventually be released. Committees in Virginia’s Democratic-controlled legislature have approved bills to allow all inmates serving long…
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Rare SCC Deadlock Sinks Dominion’s Energy Plan
By Steve Haner The year long debate over Dominion Energy Virginia’s proposed integrated resource plan, which threw climate catastrophe activists into a frenzy because it added a new natural gas plant, is ending with no decision. Two State Corporation Commission judges split on whether to approve it, basically a win for the anti-fossil fuel forces.…
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Mea Culpa, Bills Targeting UDC Should Fail
By Steve Haner Racial animus and revenge are always bad policies. It is now very clear those are the motivations for the bills advancing to strip tax exemptions from legitimate historical and charitable institutions, simply because of connections to the Southern Confederacy. They should die. The beeping sound you hear is me backing up my…
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NJ Greenmailed Into Massive Wind Energy Costs
By Steve Haner New Jersey just agreed to two ocean wind projects with astronomical guaranteed power prices. The price demanded and received by independent competitive suppliers shows there is at least some upside to the utility-owned, captive ratepayer-financed model behind Dominion Energy Virginia’s massive offshore wind facility. In late 2023 the news was full of…
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Dems Want to Block a Tough-On-Crime Parole Board Chief
by Kerry Dougherty Virginia Democrats are audacious. You’ve got to give them that. During the lawless McAuliffe-Northam years, Virginia’s Parole Board was headed by bleeding hearts, who specialized in releasing criminals. They were rewarded for their soft-hearted approach with judgeships. Because that’s how Democrats roll. You’d think the party that favors criminals over victims wouldn’t…
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The Aggressive Progressive Democratic Agenda
By Steve Haner The Democrats now running Virginia’s General Assembly are not just more progressive, but far more ambitious than their predecessors. To fully understand how ambitious you must compile the entire list of progressive bills advancing in the 2024 session and consider their total impact on the cost of living and cost of doing…
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Rent Control Legislation Passes House Committee
from Liberty Unyielding Legislation to allow rent control ordinances has passed a committee in Virginia’s House of Delegates. On a party-line, 11-to-9 vote. The Committee on Counties, Cities and Towns passed HB 721, which defines rent gouging to include raising rent to keep up with inflation, if inflation exceeds 7 percent. This vote reflects the leftward…
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Great Judges Can’t Fix Bad Energy Laws
By Steve Haner The General Assembly has now filled the two open seats at the State Corporation Commission (SCC), ending two years of gridlock. Unfortunately, the same legislators, on both sides of the aisle, are still working overtime to dictate and micromanage the state’s energy policy, reducing the discretion and authority of the independent, non-partisan…
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Email Your Delegate: Kill the Unconstitutional Affirmative Action Bill
by Jock Yellott As a follow-up to “US Constitution Calling Jason Miyares,” published here January 15, 2024: the Virginia Legislature now is considering a bill, HR 1404, mandating “Disadvantaged Business Enterprise” affirmative action in all state government contracting. It’s before the House Committee on Rules. H.R. 1404 presumes people are “disadvantaged” based on their origins;…
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Right to Life March Falls on Deaf Ears as Dobbs Makes Abortion Issue More Difficult for Republicans
by Ken Reid The 50th annual pro-life march took place in DC January 19; it has been held every year since 1974, the year after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Roe v. Wade, that women had a constitutional protection for abortion, and thus negated 50 state laws regulating the procedure. It was cold and…