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1997 SESSION
WHEREAS, in 1992, the General Assembly enacted legislation authorizing the Department of Motor Vehicles to issue special "Friend of the Chesapeake" license plates; and
WHEREAS, $15 from the sale of each plate is deposited into the Chesapeake Bay Restoration Fund for environmental education and restoration projects related to the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries; and
WHEREAS, through June 30, 1996, approximately 67,000 sets of these special plates have been purchased by Virginians, generating in excess of one million dollars; and
WHEREAS, in 1995, the General Assembly established the Chesapeake Bay Restoration Fund Advisory Committee to develop guidelines for the use of the moneys in the Fund; and
WHEREAS, the Advisory Committee decided that, in keeping with the intent of the legislature, a program of competitive grants should be instituted that awards funds in the form of grants to organizations submitting the best Chesapeake Bay restoration and environmental education projects; and
WHEREAS, more than 70 nonprofit conservation organizations, schools, soil and water conservation districts, localities, and state agencies have received grants; and
WHEREAS, many of the projects which have been implemented involve citizens taking direct action to monitor water quality, restore riparian forested buffers, create additional habitat and restore wetlands, and construct and operate much needed fish hatcheries; and
WHEREAS, in the area of environmental education, grants have not been simply awarded for the development of environmental course curriculum in our schools, teacher training, or sponsorship of conservation conferences, but, in many instances, the projects offer a "hands-on" experience in which a site outside the classroom is used to demonstrate conservation techniques; and
WHEREAS, these projects have been successful in providing a greater appreciation of the resources of the Chesapeake Bay and the role that citizens can play in ensuring that these resources are preserved for future generations; and
WHEREAS, each year the amount of funds requested by the various organizations and agencies far exceeds the moneys available; and
WHEREAS, the Advisory Committee has limited resources with which to promote the availability of the special Chesapeake Bay license plates; and
WHEREAS, even now, four years after the issuance of the first plates, not all of the Department of Motor Vehicles' offices display the plate or provide information on its availability; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That it is the sense of the General Assembly that the success of the Chesapeake Bay license plate program be recognized and the Department of Motor Vehicles be requested to publicize more widely the availability of the plates and the uses of the funds derived from them; and, be it
RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate transmit a copy of this resolution to the Commissioner of the Department of Motor Vehicles that he may be apprised of the sense of the General Assembly in this matter.