Today is Valentine’s Day at the General Assembly, and folks
here take the holiday very seriously. I have included some photos at the end of
today’s blog for you to see.
Legislators showed some love to the VEA teacher
salary bill today in Senate Finance. HB2332 unanimously reported from Senate
Finance today. The bill passed the House unanimously, Senate Education
unanimously, and Senate Finance unanimously, so the last stop is the Senate floor.
It looks like this may be the year that we finally get language that sets a
state policy that teacher salaries should be competitive with the National
Average! The bill will appear on the Senate floor calendar for first read
tomorrow.
Interestingly, the ONLY nay vote the teacher salary bill has
received was in the House Education Committee from Delegate Mark Cole. He voted
in favor of the bill when it came to the floor of the House, but he has the
honor of being the only no vote, so far, on our bill. I mention that because Delegate Cole is
on the House Privileges and Elections (P&E) Subcommittee on Elections. This committee seems to have a mission to kill any and all redistricting bills. Today they took out the Senate versions of these good bills. This is the committee that killed the House versions of the bills earlier in session, and, today, they didn't let a packed room of Virginians who supported the bills deter them. All week legislators
have been bombarded with phone calls urging support of a fair
redistricting process in Virginia, that didn't matter to this committee. The other interesting point is that there was not a single word of opposition to any of these bills today. That didn’t matter to this committee, either. What seems
to matter to this subcommittee is keeping a system in place where legislators
draw their own districts. Each of these bills had already passed the Virginia Senate and each passed out of the Senate P&E Committee 12-2. The House is unwilling to move on this bipartisan effort. The committee moved to pass the bills by indefinitely
(kill them). A NAY vote was the right vote.
SB
846 Virginia Interim Redistricting Commission; criteria for remedial
redistricting plans.
02/14/17 House: Subcommittee recommends passing by indefinitely (5-Y 2-N)
02/14/17 House: Subcommittee recommends passing by indefinitely (5-Y 2-N)
YEAS--Ransone, Jones,
Fowler, Adams, Cole--5.
NAYS--Sickles, Torian--2.
ABSTENTIONS--0.
NOT VOTING--0.
SJ 231 Constitutional amendment; Virginia
Redistricting Commission, criteria to redraw certain districts.
02/14/17 House: Subcommittee recommends
passing by indefinitely (5-Y 2-N)
YEAS--Ransone, Jones, Fowler, Adams, Cole--5.
YEAS--Ransone, Jones, Fowler, Adams, Cole--5.
NAYS--Sickles, Torian--2.
ABSTENTIONS--0.
NOT VOTING--0.
SJ 290 Constitutional amendment; criteria
for electoral districts (first reference).
02/14/17 House: Subcommittee recommends
passing by indefinitely (5-Y 2-N)
YEAS--Ransone, Jones, Fowler, Adams, Cole--5.
YEAS--Ransone, Jones, Fowler, Adams, Cole--5.
NAYS--Sickles, Torian--2.
ABSTENTIONS--0.
NOT VOTING--0.
In case that vote has left you
feeling unloved, I share some photos from the General Assembly Office Building
this morning.
