Richmond Tea Party » General Assembly

Senate chairmen breaking their own rules

JoeGuarino — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 21:53:48 +0000

(As discussed on WRVA’s Doc Thompson Show, Friday, Feb. 4) Is it OK for state senators to break the rules when conducting General Assembly business? More specifically, does a Senate subcommittee have the authority to take final action on a bill referred to it by a committee chairman? Last year and this year, bills in the General Assembly that were heard by a few Senate subcommittees were not allowed to rise to the full committee to be heard, per the Senate rules. To understand why this is a problem, first you have to understand how a bill works its way through the General Assembly. The General Assembly is the law-making part of our government and has two parts called houses: the House of Delegates and the House of Senate (or just the Senate). For efficiency, each house is then broken down into committees to consider the bills. Most committees are then broken down into subcommittees. Every bill, which is basically an idea or plan ostensibly to improve government, must be introduced in one house or the other. The bills are then assigned to a committee. The chairman of each committee then has the discretion to send a bill to a subcommittee or not. Once a bill is heard in a Senate subcom., the subcom. can only make a recommendation on whether or not the full Senate should hear the bill. It is non-binding. Even if a bill receives a negative recommendation, Senate rules state that a bill must rise to the full committee for consideration. Then, if the full committee desires to kill a bill, it may, and the vote would be final. On the other hand, it could “report” the bill, and thus allow it to rise to the full Senate for its vote. The problem this year and last year occurred when certain bills went into subcoms. of the Senate Courts of Justice Committee last year and the Senate Privileges & Elections Committee this year. There, they received negative recommendations, i.e., the subcoms. voted that the bills should not rise to the full Senate. Then the chairmen of these committees would not allow the bills to rise to the full committees. The full committees, however, are the only ones in the Senate with the authority to decide whether a bill should be heard in the full Senate, not the subcoms. The reason we even know about this is because my fellow citizen lobbyists from the Richmond TEA Party and I have been monitoring these committees as closely as our free, volunteer time will allow us. We watched this happened. And we knew it was wrong. Then, last year, toward the end of the session, Sen. Jill Holtzman Vogel of Winchester submitted a request to the Lieutenant Governor, Bill Bolling, who is the president of the Senate, asking for guidance on the rules of the Senate. Specifically, he was asked to give guidance on whether or not a Senate subcommittee has the authority to take final action on a bill referred to it by a committee chairman. Last March, he issued a memorandum citing all the applicable rules and concluding in an objective manner that “Senate subcommittees do not have the authority to take final action on any bill or resolution referred to them.” He went on to say that “the subcommittee is only empowered to make recommendations to the full Committee. The ultimate authority of taking final action on such bills and resolutions rests solely with the full committee.” This memo is not law, and it’s not a ruling like from a judge. But the lieutenant governor is the president of this supposedly collegial body of men and women that We the People of Virginia entrust with making the laws that govern our lives in the Commonwealth. As part of that collegiality, they have written rules that they reintroduce every session of the General Assembly by which they agree to abide. When certain chairmen of committees begin ignoring those rules, it creates a lot of tension in the Senate and for us citizens. How can we trust the process when they won’t live by the rules? If they are breaking this rule, what other rules might they be breaking but we don’t know about? Dozens of bills have been affected. They include several resolutions such as the Repeal Amendment resolution; a VA Constitutional Amendment dealing with eminent domain, the right to work, and the right to a secret ballot; a bill calling on the General Assembly to post its bills for 72 hours; and others. The subcommittees where these bills are waiting include one in Senate Privileges & Elections, another in Senate Privileges & Elections, one in Senate Rules, one in Senate Courts of Justice, and another in Senate Courts of Justice. To correct this, I would suggest that people call upon the leaders of the Senate, specifically the chairmen of the committees, and demand that they obey the rules they themselves have set. And if it means that they must call an additional full committee hearing to hear those bills that have not risen to the full committee before next Tuesday when all bills in each house must have been heard before they go over to the other house, then so be it. Leaving a voice mail and sending an e-mail over the weekend would be best. The three problematic Senate committees and chairmen this year are:

Senate Privileges & Elections chairman Janet Howell
Senate Courts of Justice chairman Henry Marsh
Senate Rules chairman Mary Margaret Whipple

You should also contact the Senate Majority Leader Richard Saslaw. These days, calling will get more immediate attention. And if you really desire to get their attention, call their local district offices. Enough calls there and the chairman will pay attention. And remember it’s the chairmen of the full committees, not the subcommittees, whom we’d like to address.

Immigration Policy Note: Our Goal is NOT to be D.C. or California!

JohnPride — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 02:34:08 +0000

On Friday January 28, I spent several hours in a packed General Assembly Committee Room. Members of the Immigration Subcommittee listened to numerous supporters and opponents, often commenting themselves as they considered 16 separate pieces of immigration-related legislation. The general intent of these bills pertains to 1) taking meaningful steps to address the rapidly growing problem of illegal immigration in the Commonwealth by requiring confirmation of legal presence, and 2) assuring that Virginia’s increasingly scarce resources are accessible to citizens and legally present aliens. Mechanisms proposed by these bills included the mandatory use of the Federal E-Verify system in employee hiring, collecting data on the immigration status of K-12 students and their parents, enabling Virginia law enforcement personnel to help federal authorities enforce immigration laws, and denying illegal aliens admission to state institutions of higher learning by determining the immigration status of applicants. I listened to opposing commentary with interest, and have added my own thoughts: 1. One person, an attorney no less, stated that the admission of non-citizens to state colleges has no adverse impact on a) taxpayers or b) legally-present applicants applying for increasingly limited available slots. a. Asserting that tuition paid by illegally present non-citizens covers costs is, at best, misleading. Over and above tuition revenues, Virginia taxpayers pay over $10,000 per full-time student enrolled in four-year colleges. b. Each semester, great numbers of legally present, academically qualified Virginia applicants are denied limited slots at state-funded schools. One current issue is the limiting of out-of-state students to 25% of slots, allowing in-state students more access to the state-subsidized colleges. Each of these groups consists of legally-present persons, period. There should be no slots available for non-citizens. It must be mentioned that this same attorney-witness was asked to comment on the logic of adding non-citizens to the Commonwealth’s fiscal obligations. He actually responded that a national Hispanic attorney’s organization had lauded California for legislating that any person attending a California high school for three years will be given in-state preference when enrolling at state-funded schools. California, the world’s eighth largest economy, owes a staggering $365 billion and outspends annual revenues by $150 billion. Is this an example for Virginia to emulate, or are Virginians best served by acting upon facts clearly in evidence? 2. Most cited the plight of college-aged students brought to America as toddlers, making clear their view that Virginia taxpayers must take responsibility for their dreams, hopes and humanity. These individuals are referred to as “The Dreamers,” innocents who do not deserve to suffer as a result of decisions made decades ago by others. Virginia is not obligated to underwrite past willful actions of parents who placed their own children in untenable future circumstances. Illegally-present individuals took a calculated risk in coming to America. Ignoring the legal processes available, they placed themselves and their loved ones in very real jeopardy. Public fiscal policy is not a mechanism for offsetting individual consequences, and ignoring this reality will bring to Virginia the same outcome currently faced by Greece, Spain, California and economies the world over. 3. Opponents to using E-verify objected to the clerical burden of reporting requirements, as well as the limitations of Federal databases. Several business groups seemed to assert that, given the hassle and imperfections of proposed remedies, they were unwilling to take part in any effort to reduce Virginia’s investment in illegally present non-citizens. This argument cannot be taken seriously at any level. These very individuals and groups are silent when these same concerns are raised regarding Obamacare. Federal law enforcement strategy is clearly based upon a political strategy aimed at garnering the Hispanic vote. For Hispanic illegal aliens to cite this very neglect as a reason to expect increased preference over Americans is beyond brazen. Businesses need to be made aware that, as politicians court this demographic by spending public dollars, it is Virginia taxpayers that truly live the more complex burden of over-regulated lives. The revelations of recent years have taught us that ignoring fact and acting on fact are not equally responsible courses of action. Adroitly finessing legal and fiscal realities to suit some current purpose is neither clever nor caring. Taking this path for decades has passed to our children and grandchildren a crushing burden of shameful consequence. Virginia has colossal fiscal issues building, many of which involve heart-wrenching individual needs. Our current obligations require harsh measurement against actual necessity, and many will face deep cuts not only in the near future, but for many decades to come. Our budgetary consequences have now met with the past expectations of those who assumed ideal outcomes from past risky decisions. We are now told that we are required to absorb increasingly more of others’ consequences, following the lead of numerous failed experiments across America. My support of increased consideration for legal citizens is not based upon any disregard for those who risked much with no assurance of a good outcome. My support of these bills is based upon my responsibility to those whose futures I am obligated to consider first. There are not sufficient resources to meet these primary needs, not even close. Yet, I am responsible for acting on fact, accepting the consequences of past poor decisions and asking my children and grandchildren to share in those consequences. I fully expect others to do the same.

Repeal Amendment resolution passes House

JoeGuarino — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 21:59:25 +0000

By a vote of 59-34, the State Repeal Amendment resolution (HJ 542) passed the House of Delegates Tuesday. The resolution calls upon Congress to convene a convention for the purpose of passing an amendment to Constitution that would allow states to repeal any federal law or regulation if two-thirds of them agree to it. Speaker Bill Howell, the first state lawmaker to come out in favor of this resolution last year, issued a press release stating, “Checks and balances are at the heart of the U.S. Constitution and The Repeal Amendment is a timely and thoughtful check on the threat to American liberties posed by our presently out-of-control federal Congress and federal government.” Patroned by Delegate James LeMunyon, the resolution is co-patroned by a total of 51 delegates. Three Democrats–Dels. Johnny Joannou, Joe Johnson, and Onzlee Ware–joined 54 Republicans and two Independents in passing the measure. Two Republicans–Dels. Bob Marshall and Brenda Pogge–joined 32 Democrats in voting against the measure. One seat is vacant in the 100-seat House of Delegates. The resolution will now go to the Senate. If the Senate passes it, the resolution will be sent directly to Congress because the governor does not have to sign resolutions.

Hear Cuccinelli urge the Repeal Amendment

LibertyJon — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 19:20:00 +0000

For your viewing pleasure, in case you weren’t able to make the Lobby Day rally yesterday, here’s keynote speaker Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli: Pay close attention to his discussion of the Repeal Amendment (starting at 5:53), which he strongly supports and has been publicly promoting, including even on Chris Matthews’s show. Cuccinelli addresses some of the major concerns of the amendment’s opponents, particularly the legitimate fear of a Constitutional Convention among many Tea Partiers. I urge you to listen to him personally on this, but here’s the gist: (a) because Congress fears losing power through a Convention, it won’t allow one to go forward and will instead pass the Repeal Amendment themselves if states get close to one; and (b) even if a Convention were to happen and turn into a circus, no amendment can be added to the U.S. Constitution without the ratification of three quarters of the states. Also, keep in mind that Conventions have been regularly pursued since the original over 220 years ago, and a grand total of zero have come to pass – yet the Constitution still has been successfully amended numerous times. Here’s a great FAQ on this topic. “Ah, but wait,” some of you say. “Wouldn’t simply repealing the Seventeenth Amendment be the better route to restoring the appropriate power to the states?” Excellent point – I’m glad you asked. My answer is this: Find ten people in Richmond you don’t know, explain why they shouldn’t be allowed to directly elect their Senators, and see how many you are able to convince to take action to support your cause. I’m guessing you’re scoffing at this exercise, because you already know the results. Repealing the Seventeenth Amendment is something that indeed should be done and I fully support, but that requires a long-term, herculean educational effort that we don’t have time for right now. The Federal Government is growing so huge so rapidly that soon the states will no longer have any power left to push back with. Which brings us to the beauty of the Repeal Amendment. It’s easy to understand how this restores power to the states, and the collective ill will toward Washington is so intense right now that we have a rare opportunity to connect with the general public in a way that we could actually get this thing passed. As a side-benefit, we can continue to educate a captive public about the critical role the states were intended to play in checking their Federal Government and how that has been lost over the last century. So there’s my pitch for the Repeal Amendment. But in case the endorsement of some random blogger you’ve never heard of doesn’t cut it for you, and you think AG Cuccinelli has uncharacteristically gone off the rails on this one, check out this list of other prominent supporters, including Tea Party friend Judge Andrew Napolitano. We need all the support we can get for this to make it through the Virginia General Assembly. Please research the topic and give serious consideration to the idea that this may be the fastest and most effective way to finally shackle an out-of-control government.

Lobby Day 2011

TonyWhitehead — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 15:24:23 +0000

Another Lobby day has come and gone. The 2011 General Assembly is open for business. Why should you care? Here is a taste of what we are doing in the GA this year. The Repeal Amendment, Property rights, Ending sanctuary cities, Tax reform. That’s only the beginning. We delivered our legislative agendas to all 140 members of the Senate and House on Monday and we need everyone’s help to push these bills through. Call, email, or visit the GA and talk to your representatives. Last November was just the beginning. We must hold them accountable and not let up on the momentum we have gained!

Repeal Amendment resolution hits first bump

JoeGuarino — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 20:00:02 +0000

Democrats put the first bump in the road for the Virginia TEA Party Federation’s marquis measure, the State Repeal Amendment resolution, by voting 4-3 against it in a public hearing. The resolution calls upon the US Congress to convene a convention for the sole purpose of passing only one amendment to the US Constitution. This amendment would, in effect, give the high threshold of two-thirds of state legislatures (34) the ability to overturn federal laws and regulations with which it disagrees. But before that could happen, three-quarters (38) of the states would have to ratify the amendment. The Senate version, SJ280, sponsored by Sen. Ryan McDougle, was heard by a subcommittee of the Senate Privileges and Elections Committee Tuesday morning. After approximately ten minutes of discussion amongst the subcommittee senators, another 30 minutes was spent listening to public comment, mostly from TEA Party supporters, half in favor and half opposed. Democrat Sens. Deeds, McEachin, Northam, and Whipple opposed the measure. Republican Sens. McWaters, Martin, and Smith supported it. The vote is only a recommendation. The measure should come before the full committee next Tuesday, Jan. 25, at 4 pm, in Senate Room A of the General Assembly Building. The House version, HJ 542, sponsored by Del. James LeMunyon, is expected to be heard by a subcommittee of the House Privileges and Elections Committee next Monday, Jan. 24, at 7 am, in the 5th Floor West Conference Room of the General Assembly Building.

Don’t Forget: Attend Town Halls Jan. 4 in Hanover and Henrico and Jan. 5 in Chesterfield

Jill_F — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 05:47:05 +0000

Meet with your Virginia General Assembly representatives at a Town Hall session, Jan. 4 in Hanover and Henrico Counties and Jan. 5 in Chesterfield, sponsored by The Virginia Tea Party Patriots Cooperative Legislative Action Committee. Details are below or go to the events calendar. Topics include current legislative issues and the VA 10th Amendment Revolution Freedom Bills 2011. The meetings will feature questions and answers from the audience and citizens can meet one-on-one with their representatives afterwards. HANOVER COUNTY: January 4 – 6:30pm Where: Life Church, 8378 Atlee Road, Mechanicsville, VA 23116 (near Memorial Regional Hospital) Moderator: Scott Lee, WRVA Confirmed Legislators:

Delegates John Cox and Chris Peace
Senator Ryan McDougle

HENRICO COUNTY: January 4 – 6:30 pm Where: J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College, 1651 East Parham Road, Richmond VA 23228, Richmond VA 23228 (Use parking lot D, enter the Massey Building, auditorium on the left) Moderator: Joe Guarino, Richmond TEA Party Confirmed Legislators:

Delegates Riley Ingram, James P. Massie, Joseph D. Morrissey III and John O’Bannon
Senators Walter A. Stosch and John Watkins

CHESTERFIELD COUNTY: January 5 – 6:30pm Where: James River High School Auditorium, 3700 James River Rd., Midlothian 23113 (off Robious) Moderator: Joe Guarino, Richmond TEA Party Confirmed Legislators:

Delegates M. Kirkland Cox, Riley Ingram, Manoli Loupassi, Roxann L. Robinson and R. Lee Ware, Jr.
Senator John Watkins

Lobby Day 2011 – Jan 17th!

EricM — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 02:09:28 +0000

The Va 10th Amendment Revolution Lobby Day Rally will be on Monday, January 17th at the Virginia Capitol. This is an all day event to promote the full slate of the Freedom Bills 2011 to the state legislature. WE NEED YOU THERE to express your support of these bills to the VA legislature. See the list of Freedom Bills 2011 here. Since this is the Martin Luther King Birthday holiday, we hope that many of you that would not normally attend will be able to do so, due to relaxed work constraints for the holiday. Please make every effort to attend! The day will begin with a tailgate party with free coffee and donuts provided by Richmond 9.12 at the corner of 9th & Franklin Streets. We need volunteers to deliver the legislative packets to each member of the legislature from 9 – 11am. Volunteers will meet at 9:00am in the courtyard of the General Assembly Building located at 910 Capitol Street, Richmond, Virginia 23219. Please email Joe Guarino at joeguarino@richmondteaparty.com to sign up for this lobby committee to deliver the packets. Citizen lobbyists will lobby the legislators from 9:30 – 11am. We’ll break for lunch from 11am – 1pm. Special arrangements are in the works for patriots lunches in local restaurants. Details to come. The rally will be in front of the Capitol Bell Tower from 1 – 2pm. Confirmed Speakers: Parke West, Just Liberty – Invocation & Pledge of Allegiance Angie Parker, CoLA Committee VTPP John Taylor, Tertium Quids Donna Holt, Va Campaign for Liberty Bob Shoemaker, ANCIR Keynote: Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli We encourage you to sign-up for email updates on the main page and to RSVP about your plans to join us on January 17th. Let’s show Washington and the State House that the Va 10th Amendment Revolution is a live and well and we won’t rest until we take back our communities, our state, our country, and our lives. Click here to visit the official VA 10th Amendment Revolution website for up-to-date details!

27th District Candidate Responses to RTP Questionnaire

TJSurvives — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 03:51:12 +0000

On May 21, Richmond Tea Party sent questionnaires to the two candidates running to fill the 27th district House of Delegates seat. Click here to download Roxann Robinson’s response. As of the date of this post, we have not received a response from Dr. William “Bill” Brown.

Protest the 24% Tax Increase on Your Phone

Jamie — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 05:17:31 +0000

Richmond Tea Party will be joining other Virginia Tea Party groups and AFP to protest the outrageous 24% tax increase on your business, home, or cell phone that is being proposed by the State Senate. This is a huge tax increase. We will also use this opportunity to protest the State Senate killing our 10th Amendment bill, Firearm Freedom Act (HB69). You rallied for 10th Amendment rights in January. Now make sure you come back and tell Senator Marsh and the other State Senators you don’t appreciate them ignoring our bill and letting it die. We want an up or down vote! Details of Protest: Monday March 8, 2010 11:00 am Virginia State Capitol 1000 Bank Street Richmond, VA 23219