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ACROSS SESSIONS
- Subject Index: Since 1995
- Bills & Resolutions: Since 1994
- Summaries: Since 1994
Developed and maintained by the Division of Legislative Automated Systems.
2007 SESSION
Devolites Davis (Chairman), Houck, Whipple
Clerk: Susan Clarke Schaar
Staff: Cheryl Jackson, Brenda Edwards
Date of Meeting: January 29, 2007
Time and Place: 2:30 p.m. -- 3rd Floor East Conference
Patron: Puller
Official fruit. Designates the Ginger Gold Apple as the official fruit of Virginia.
Patron: Marsh
Legislative agencies reports. Requires the Clerk of the House of Delegates, the Clerk of the Senate, and all legislative agencies, including legislative statutory commissions, councils, and collegial bodies authorized to employ personnel, to report annually to the General Assembly the number of persons employed and appointed categorized by race, gender, and national origin. Under this bill, information pertaining to race, gender, and national origin will be compiled for statistical purposes and will be based on self-identification after employment or appointment. Records and data containing personally identifiable information are confidential and exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act. The provisions of this bill parallel the current requirements that apply to the executive branch of state government pursuant to § 2.2-406 of the Code.
Patron: Quayle
Virginia Commission on Incarceration and Reentry. Establishes the Virginia Commission on Incarceration and Reentry to study and make recommendations for dealing with the impact of incarceration and prisoner reentry on society and related policies of the Commonwealth.
Patron: Deeds
Secure Commonwealth Panel; membership. Increases from 29 to 30 the membership of the Secure Commonwealth Panel by adding the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia.
Patron: Potts
Alson H. Smith Teachers' Day. Designate August 28th, in 2007, and in each succeeding year, as Alson H. Smith Teachers' Day.
Patron: Locke
Study; high school dropout and graduation rates. Requests the Board of Education to study high school dropout and graduation rates in the Commonwealth. In conducting its study, the Board of Education shall (i) evaluate the relevancy of the current process and procedures for defining, counting, and reporting school dropout statistics and consider the need for revisions in such process and procedures and compliance by school divisions; (ii) determine the number of students who dropped out of school before the seventh grade and the reasons therefor and the number of students who graduated annually, for school years 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006; (iii) ascertain whether, by whom, and the manner in which students at risk of dropping out are counseled to remain in school; (iv) identify local school division initiatives and efforts to retain and retrieve students at risk of dropping out, particularly student populations with low high school graduation rates; and (v) recommend such policy, statutory, fiscal, or regulatory changes as the Board may deem necessary to increase the high school graduation rates, particularly among student populations with high dropout rates. The Board must submit its executive summary and report to the 2008 Session of the General Assembly.
Patron: Marsh
Resolution; Atoning for the involuntary servitude of Africans and calling for reconciliation. Expresses the General Assembly's atonement, on behalf of the Commonwealth, for the slavery of Africans, and calls for racial reconciliation. This resolution notes the history of the American slave trade and the subsequent legal and social structures throughout the nation that deprived African Americans of their inalienable rights and states that healing and reconciliation are possible with the acknowledgement of past grievous indignities and injustices.
Patron: Marsh
Resolution; Commending Native Americans and African Americans on their contributions to the Commonwealth and American life. Commends and recognizes the many achievements and contributions of Native Americans, particularly of Virginia, and African Americans to the Commonwealth, nation, and the world, upon the commencement of the commemoration of the 400th anniversary of the first permanent English settlement in Jamestown in 2007.
Patron: Ruff
Financial Aid Awareness Month. Designates February, in 2007 and in each succeeding year, as Financial Aid Awareness Month in Virginia.
Patron: Devolites Davis
Constitutional amendment (first resolution); legislative sessions. Provides for an organizational session of the General Assembly beginning on the second Wednesday in December or on another day that may be designated in accordance with a joint rule of the General Assembly and lasting no longer than three days. The business of the organizational session would be limited to administrative and procedural matters, the confirmation of gubernatorial and other appointees, and the election of judicial officers. This resolution reflects recommendations of the Joint Subcommittee to Study the Balance of Power Between the Legislative and Executive Branches pursuant to HJR 707 (2005).
Patron: Reynolds
Designating the third week in September, in 2007 and in each succeeding year, as Civics Education Week in Virginia.
Patron: Potts
Farm-to-School Task Force; study. Requests the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry and the Secretary of Education to establish a farm-to-school task force to develop a plan for implementing a Farm-to-School Program in Virginia.
Patron: Miller
Resolution; "65 percent Solution". Recognizes the problems with and implications of the "65 Percent Solution," a proposal to urge states to amend their laws to require that at least 65 percent of the operating budget for public schools must be spent on classroom expenses, or to enact legislation that supports this goal. This resolution also expresses opposition to the implementation of the "65 Percent Solution" and cautions that the plan should be carefully considered.
Patron: Ticer
Northern Virginia; study. Requests the Department of Conservation and Recreation and a task force to develop a plan to obtain undeveloped land in Northern Virginia for parks and the protection of potable water resources.
Patron: Whipple
Resolution; school divisions of the Commonwealth. Encourages the school divisions of the Commonwealth to strengthen their commitment to childhood obesity prevention by increasing opportunities for participation in healthy activities and emphasizing good nutrition in the public schools.
Patron: Whipple
Humane Education Week. Designate the first full week in February, in 2007 and in each succeeding year, as Humane Education Week in Virginia and encourage the Department of Education to advise all public school divisions in Virginia to participate in the week.
Patron: O'Brien
Study; financial incentives in other states to support adoption; report. Requests the Department of Taxation to examine current financial incentives in other states to support adoption. The Commonwealth currently does not offer any tax assistance to promote adoption. Cites prior studies that reveal the pressing need to find homes for children, but conclude that financial costs are a barrier to adoption.
Patron: Miller
Resolution; "65 percent Solution". Recognizes the problems with and implications of the "65 Percent Solution," a proposal to urge states to amend their laws to require that at least 65 percent of the operating budget for public schools must be spent on classroom expenses, or to enact legislation that supports this goal. This resolution also expresses opposition to the implementation of the "65 Percent Solution" and cautions that the plan should be carefully considered.
Patron: Lambert
Department of Medical Assistance Services; managed care. Encourages the Department of Medical Assistance Services to expand the use of managed care to new regions of the state and additional eligibility groups.
Patron: Wagner
Study; fuel efficiency and transportation funding; report. Creates a 12-member joint subcommittee to study long-term funding solutions for transportation that do not depend on the motor vehicle fuels tax. The development of alternative fuels and fuel-efficient vehicles has many benefits for the Commonwealth, but will inversely affect the revenue generated by the motor vehicles fuels tax due to decreased consumption. The joint subcommittee would also be directed to study ways to encourage and promote the use of alternative-fuels and fuel-efficient vehicles.
Patron: Blevins
Study; health insurance public subsidy; report. Requests the Department of Medical Assistance Services to study the effects of modifications to the health insurance public subsidy program. In conducting its study, the Department shall examine the potential for program expansion with consumer protection mechanisms and the impact of switching from mandatory to voluntary enrollment and shall accept input from stakeholders throughout the process.
Patron: Newman
Study; health care provider liability; report. Establishes a joint subcommittee to study the feasibility of offering liability protections to health care providers rendering aid during a state or local emergency. The joint subcommittee shall examine the estimated benefits to the citizens of the Commonwealth of enhanced liability protections for health care providers during emergencies as well as determine how many other states provide these kinds of liability protections.
Patron: Watkins
Energy Conservation Awareness Week. Designates the first week in October, in 2007 and each succeeding year, as "Energy Conservation Awareness Week" in Virginia in support of the national initiative.
Patron: Ticer
Study; Northern Virginia parkland; report. Requests the Governor to establish a task force to work with the Department of Conservation and Recreation to study land preservation, water supply protection, and the availability of large parks to serve future generations in Northern Virginia.
Patron: Whipple
Study; Department of Medical Administrative Services; cost of insulin and human growth hormone to the Commonwealth's Medicaid program; report. Describes the epidemic of diabetes, the resulting pharmaceutical expenses, and the potential cost savings to the health care system with the advent of generic biologic medications. Requests the Department of Medical Administrative Services to collect and report data on the current costs of insulin treatment and human growth hormones to Virginia's Medicaid program. The resolution also calls for transmission of the report to the FDA requesting it to release guidelines to facilitate the production of generic biologics to treat diabetes and other diseases.
Patron: Quayle
Hampton Roads: America's First Region. Recognize "Hampton Roads: America's First Region" as the brand for Southeast Virginia.
Patron: Hanger
Recognizing the 60th anniversary of the Marshall Plan for European Economic Recovery.
Patron: Devolites Davis
Korean American Day. Designating January 13, in 2007 and in each succeeding year, as Korean American Day.
Patron: Edwards
Rules of the Senate; nominations for justices and judges. Amends the Rules of the Senate to provide that the Courts Committee may nominate persons on the floor of the Senate for election as a justice or judge of the Commonwealth, and requires that public hearings be held before the Courts Committee on the qualification of any candidate for justice or judge at least seven days prior to election on the floor of the Senate.
Patron: Stolle
Rules of the Senate. Amends the Rules of the Senate requiring the Chairman of the Courts of Justice Committee to set deadlines for forwarding candidates for the Supreme Court and Court of Appeals to the Committee.