Last weekend I joined Senator Chap Petersen over Memorial Day weekend in hosting a constituent booth at the annual Viva Vienna! festival. My family joined me in enjoying the festivities and helped me welcome Governor Mark Warner. Thanks to all the community volunteers, especially the Vienna Rotary, for making this great event a terrific success.During the long weekend, I also participated in observances of the memory of those Veterans who have passed away in ceremonies led by the Town of Vienna and the American Legion. These moving tributes rounded out a great weekend in the district.

It is important to note that while there are issues that engender controversy in the General Assembly, there are also many bills that enjoy broad bipartisan support. House Bill 965 is one such example.

By way of background, prior to the legislative session, I had the privilege of serving on the Governor’s Commission on Sexual Violence in the capacity of chairman of the commission’s Committee on Treatment and Intervention. The purpose of the commission was to identify ways to improve the administration of justice for victims of violent crimes. During the year we met, the committee that I chaired brought together advocates and criminal justice experts from across the Commonwealth.

One of the issues that came to light had to do with victims of stalkers. With many crimes, particularly felonies and violent misdemeanors, victims are able to apply to the Commonwealth’s Criminal Injuries Compensation Fund for partial reimbursement of such expenses as relocation costs and therapy. Virginia is one of two states, however, that does not allow victims of stalkers to apply for such compensation. This is particularly unfortunate when considering that the federal government reimburses the Commonwealth 60 percent for every dollar paid out of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Fund. Moreover, the projected fiscal impact of covering costs for these crime victims would not jeopardize the solvency of the fund.

At the beginning of the legislative session, I introduced House Bill 965. This bill would allow victims of stalkers to apply for compensation under the Criminal Injuries Compensation Fund. We heard eloquent testimony from a woman who was stalked in Fairfax County, and whose case received notable attention in our local media. We also heard testimony from the executive director of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Fund, who provided valuable information about what other states cover and the fiscal impact on the fund.

The House and Senate approved of House Bill 965 by an overwhelming margin, and the Governor signed it into law last week.  Victims of stalkers will now be able to apply for compensation starting July 1, 2008.

The principle of “one person, one vote” in the election law context is an established rule of law. The idea is that each person’s vote should carry the same weight. A corollary of this principle is that every 10 years, legislative district boundaries change pursuant to a redistricting plan. Redistricting is intended, in theory, to reflect demographic shifts within the Commonwealth. In the House of Delegates, for example, the 100 districts are currently designed to contain approximately 72,000 people. After the next census occurs, changes in legislative boundaries also will occur.

The United States Supreme Court and federal law provide guidance on how redistricting can and cannot occur. For example, boundary changes should strive to keep community of interests intact. In contrast, districts cannot be drawn that have the purpose or effect of disenfranchising people on the basis of race.

In Virginia, the political party in control draws the boundaries. This can work fine when there is a power-sharing arrangement, such as when one political party controls one chamber of the legislature and another political party controls the other chamber of the legislature. Distortions tend to arise, however, when one political party controls the entire redistricting process. In such an instance, there tends to be a smaller number of competitive districts drawn, leading to a smaller number of competitive general elections. Likewise, districts tend to be supermajority Republican or supermajority Democrat, which tends to polarize the legislature.

Currently, the House of Delegates is controlled by Republicans, and the State Senate is controlled by Democrats. It would seem that this is an ideal time for the creation of a bipartisan redistricting commission to draw the boundaries immediately after the next census and beyond. Unfortunately, however, the House bills calling for such as commission have been defeated.

The closest chance to having a redistricting bill pass this year was Senate Bill 38. On Feb. 4, the State Senate voted in favor of this bill to establish a bipartisan redistricting commission by a vote of 35-5. On Friday, this bill was considered by a House subcommittee of the House Committee on Privileges and Elections. Given the composition of this subcommittee, three members of the House were able to defeat further consideration of this important bill.

Unfortunately, this was probably the last opportunity this session to establish the creation of a bipartisan redistricting commission. It is an important initiative, and I hope that all members of the House of Delegates are given the opportunity to vote on it in a future session.

The halfway point of the legislative session is known as “crossover,” whereby all House bills still being considered must cross over to the Senate, and vice-versa. Practically speaking, this means that each respective chamber of the state legislature is completing its vetting process of those bills that began in their respective chamber. The one major exception is the budget bill, which receives more time for deliberation in the respective chambers.Outside of the ongoing budget deliberations, two significant events occurred at the end of last week that I would like to mention.

On Friday morning, I was pleased to join House colleagues from both sides of the aisle to announce a $1.2 billion higher education bond package. This bond package will allow our institutions of higher learning to begin construction as soon as the bill is signed into law, serving as an immediate economic stimulus for the Commonwealth. Many of the capital projects included in the package focus on research and high-tech workforce development, which are critical investments that will produce long-term economic growth. The bond package is designed to limit cost overruns by allocating sufficient funds for pre-planning designs. The Senate is expected to introduce a comparable bond package, and I am looking forward to working with the senators to harmonize the two bills. It is important to recognize that the catalyst for these bills was Governor Kaine convincing legislators last year that this higher education investment is critical to sustaining and growing Virginia’s economy.

On Friday afternoon, the House Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources Committee made significant changes to House Bill 1332.  Many of my constituents and newspaper editorials were critical of the original version of the bill, which would have significantly weakened the authority of the Air Pollution Control Board. The substitute, which has received praise from the environmental community, preserves the board’s full power and authority and actually strengthens financial conflict of interest rules for board members. I expect this revised bill to pass the full House in short order.

As always, please contact me at DelSShannon@house.state.va.us or at 703-281-5200 to provide me with input on the many bills we are considering this legislative session

By: Delegate Steve Shannon

A fair amount of press coverage this past week focused on a heated debate that occurred on the floor of the House of Delegates.  The debate began over a request of a legislator to have one of his bills withdrawn from consideration by the House.  This fairly routine request was denied along political party lines, and the debate quickly shifted to a greater discussion of changes to the Rules of the House that include no longer having recorded votes in subcommittees, allowing as few as three legislators to prevent a bill from going forward, and limiting the number of bills a legislator can introduce.  The following is an excerpt of my remarks on the floor of the House last week encouraging greater civility in public life.   

“In its rich history, the Virginia General Assembly has experienced both highs and lows.  Our members have gone on to do great things.  They are responsible for drafting the Declaration of Independence and for a major contribution to the United States Constitution.  This Legislature took great steps to promote religious freedom, as demonstrated by the Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom, patroned by Thomas Jefferson when he was a member of our House.  This Legislature played a major role in teaching America that politics is not designed to invite public participation one day out of every two years, but rather that government requires citizen participating every day.

The late 1700’s and early 1800’s arguably was the low point of civility in public life.  That was a time in which America’s permanent two party structure was forming—a departure from the previous ad hoc majorities that tended to rule.  It was a time in which elected officials would deal with slights to their reputation by challenging other elected officials to fight to the death through the infamous duels.  It was a time in which dissenters of the party in power had to fear prosecution under the Alien and Sedition Act for speaking out against the government.  It was a time in which judges were the subject of impeachment not due to malfeasance but rather due to the party that put them in power.  I am sure that many elected officials at the time must have thought that the unabated political warfare would never end.

It is important to remain conscious of the fact that political parties and the political party caucus structure at times can have the effect of inciting passions to the point in which the most amiable of people are at each others throats.  We have to be conscious of that because of the importance of today’s issues and the recognition that these issues can only be solved if we are capable of working together.   

We are in a time of war.  Our economy is volatile.  We have parts of Virginia that experience prosperity and other parts of the Commonwealth where people struggle to find a job.  We realize that the world is more competitive than ever before, and we see other states making major investments in their higher education systems in order to compete for jobs.  Most importantly, we come to the General Assembly this year following a trail of tears left by the loved ones of the children who senselessly were murdered at one of our finest institutions of higher learning.  We recognize that at worst our mental health system is broken, and at best it is in dire need of repair.

There are two paths we can take.  We can let the political parties, so focused on what happens every two years rather than what happens in between, direct our attention to who can gain an upper hand on a daily basis.  Alternatively, we can commit ourselves to exercise restraint, not as a sign of political weakness, but rather as a reflection of wisdom and a recognition that the issues of today require that politics not operate as “business as usual.” 

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I have often heard it said in the course of discussions about arguably heavy-handed tactics by the party in power that Democrats treated Republicans unfairly when the Democrats controlled the House of Delegates.  My own view is that history will not look favorably upon our predecessors who focused on daily political gamesmanship at the expense of addressing the important issues of the day.  In fact, I do not think history will view these individuals at all.

When historians look back over the past fifteen years, I think they will observe a few things.  First, in the late 1990’s, Republicans took control of both the House of Delegates and the State Senate for the first time since Reconstruction.  Second, we lived in a time of uncertainty.  Third, a mass murder occurred at Virginia Tech.  The rest of our story remains to be written, as it will focus on how we responded to the challenges of today. 

No matter what we do, every person privileged to serve in the Virginia General Assembly can say that they served in a great legislative body.  Whether we are able to say that we served in a great legislative body during a great period in this Legislature’s history depends upon whether we can collaborate to meet the needs of our citizens, and our ability to do so rests upon how we choose to treat one another.”

Last fall, I invited a delegation of state legislators to tour several of Northern Virginia’s major technology companies. At each site, company representatives impressed upon this delegation the importance of having a quality system of higher education in Virginia from the perspective of attracting companies to Virginia. The ability to equip our students with marketable skills is a major component of how we can continue to grow Virginia’s economy and bring high paying jobs to Virginia.

Virginia finds itself in a more competitive environment than ever before. Our competitors are international as well as domestic. While Virginia is recognized for its fiscal health in terms of maintaining a AAA rating, having a business friendly regulatory environment, and passing fiscally responsible budgets, Virginia cannot afford to remain complacent from an economic perspective.

This year the Virginia General Assembly is considering a $1.5 billion bond package for capital projects at our public universities and colleges. This bond package would need to be approved by the voters. Many of the capital projects focus on building or renovating educational facilities that focus on instruction in the sciences, technology development and engineering, as well as research and development in these fields.

As a member of the Higher Education Subcommittee on the House Committee on Appropriations, I have spent the past week meeting with Virginia’s public university and college presidents to discuss the bond referendum package. I have observed three consistent themes in these discussions.

First, our higher education institutions are making significant efforts to expand student enrollment and are engaging in innovating ways to create more capacity. Our public institutions are developing articulation agreements with one another so that students who graduate from a two-year college with a solid grade point average can matriculate to our four-year institutions. Likewise, our schools are developing innovative ways to instruct students through long-distance learning to eliminate geography as a barrier to equipping our students with necessary skills.

Second, Virginia recently has experienced significant success in attracting companies to Virginia because of our schools. For example, Rolls Royce relocated a major facility to Virginia after entering into an agreement with the engineering programs at the University of Virginia and Virginia Tech to provide the company with a steady stream of engineers. Likewise, we were able to attract SRI to relocate to Virginia based on a research-based agreement with James Madison University. It is important to realize that when major companies relocate to Virginia, their suppliers often do as well, thus further strengthening our economy.

Third, other competitor states also recognize the need to invest in higher education for purposes of growing their economies. North Carolina recently passed a $3 billion bond package for higher education, and North Carolina, Maryland and Georgia, by way of example, make a relatively large investment in research and development at their public institutions.

The bond referendum package is one of the most important initiatives Virginia will consider this year. As we deliberate upon how best to make this capital investment, we must recognize that this investment is vital to sustaining and growing Virginia’s economy.

On December 4, I traveled to Williamsburg to receive the annual Legislator of the Year Award given by the Virginia Association of Soil & Water Conservation Districts. This Award is recognizes the conservation benefits of House Bill 2568, which I sponsored in the last session of the General Assembly

The legislation gives local government more authority to sanction developers who do not comply with the provision in building permits that require steps to prevent sediment runoff from development sites. Currently there are 166 local Erosion and Sediment Control Programs throughout Virginia

Sediment erosion from construction activities can be particularly harmful to our communities without proper protections in place. Polluting our waterways, flooding, and damaging downstream properties are a few examples. As a State Delegate representing a geographic area within the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, I believe we need to do everything we can do minimize otherwise avoidable runoff into our waterways.

The legislation received support across party lines and among legislators from suburban, urban and rural areas. It is an example of legislators coming together to enact a common-sense solution to a common problem affecting all our citizens. I want to thank those local officials from across the state who make sure these local Erosion and Sediment Control Programs are effective, and I want to thank the Virginia Association of Soil & Water Conservation Districts for the Award.

Election day was a tremendous day for Democrats and more importantly for Virginia as a whole. I want to first thank my constituents from Virginia House District 35. In 2003, you gave me a chance to serve as your representative in state government. In both 2005 and 2007, you renewed my term in office with support in every precinct and with over 60% of the vote. Thank you for giving me this opportunity to continue serving our community.

Virginia’s redistricting system gives an enormous advantage to the political party controlling the process. Every victory Democrats made last night was the functional equivalent of carrying a boulder up a mountain. Notwithstanding, we took control of the State Senate and increased our numbers by 10% in the House.

These victories were a message for changing the status quo. They reaffirm our belief that the policies designed to unite us should prevail over policies designed to wedge the electorate. They reaffirm our belief that Virginians want leaders who set a positive agenda for our future, rather than those who simply focus on what they are against. Finally, these victories reaffirm our belief that government policies should provide every family with a well-founded sense of hope that our leaders are looking out for every citizen.

I want to thank the thousands of volunteers and contributors who made our victories last night possible. Your actions are the example for how a representative democracy should work. Over the next two years, please let me know how I can continue to serve you better.

This past weekend my office participated in the Fairfax VolunteerFest, a local program held in conjunction with Volunteer Fairfax and National Make a Difference Day. Throughout the County forty six activities occurred, including a food drive, a children’s winter clothing collection, a book sale, computer recycling and removing invasive plant species from one of our local parks. Over a thousand volunteers mobilized to serve community needs.

For our part, my office staff and our high school volunteers spent Saturday at Oakton Library putting together child safety ID cards for children. Parents would fill out basic information about their children (name, height, weight, hair color, eye color), we would take a headshot of each child and then we would laminate the identification cards for the parents. The result was cards that parents can carry in their wallets that summarizes important data on their children. We started this process at last year’s Volunteer Fest and the program has been a big success.

Every twenty seconds in America, a child is reported missing. One of the most valuable tools for law enforcement when searching for a child is a current photograph. Time spent trying to find a recent photograph is wasted time when police could otherwise be searching for a child.

I want to give thanks to everyone who participated in the events over the weekend, particularly the parents who took time to update their child’s ID card.

Campaign seasons are busy times for many of us. This week consisted of door knocking at night, a couple candidate debates, completing various candidate surveys, greeting people at a local high school football game and a host of other local activities. I had previously accepted an invitation to take a tour of the Northern Virginia Facility of the Capital Area Food Bank in Lorton, Virginia (well outside my legislative district) and thus headed down there one evening after completing all the scheduled events in House District 35. I am glad I did.

At the facility, I was escorted on a tour by the Food Bank’s president, Lynn Brantley and COO, Brian Smith, along with the staff that actually runs the warehouse. Rows upon rows of food, diapers, toiletries and other basic necessities are neatly organized in the warehouse and are provided by food drives, restaurants and supermarkets. The Food Bank then distributes these items to local groups that directly serve those in need.

One of the things about soup kitchens that never ceases to impress me is the diversity of people served. Many show up still wearing work uniforms. Children come with parents and there are seniors. Some are out of work, some are working poor and some are retirees whose fixed income simply does not allow ends to meet. That is why the Capital Area Food Bank is so important—as well as other local groups such as the Committee for Helping Others (CHO), the Fairfax Area Christian Emergency; Transitional Services, Inc. (FACETS) and the many soup kitchens run by local houses of worship. If there’s any question as to the productivity, people were still working at the facility when I called it a night at about 9 p.m.

If you have any time, I might suggest taking a tour of the facility to get a sense of just how many non-profit groups serve the region and the thousands of people who benefit from the selfless efforts of those I met. While I attended many worthwhile events this past week, this one was among the most valuable to me.