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Dear Friend,
We adjourned our regular session at 5pm last Saturday and more than 800 bills are now on their way to the Governor. The Governor may sign a bill into law, send the bill back to the General Assembly with amendments or veto a bill. Most bills will go into effect on July 1st, if not indicated otherwise.
Update on the Budget: My last newsletter outlined just how far apart the House and Senate budgets started in the process. The Senate dedicated $1 billion to school funding to give our teachers raises, hire additional instructional positions, remove the cap on state funding of school support positions, and more. The House budget instead dedicated $1 billion to tax cuts to corporations and top earners. Conferees were unsurprisingly unable to reach an agreement on the budget before we adjourned. We passed a stopgap measure on Saturday to fix the Youngkin Administration’s calculation error that would have cost our school divisions more than $200 million that they had been promised. Given that school systems are undergoing their own budget processes, it was critical to give them the assurance they would have this funding to avoid harmful cuts. The General Assembly will reconvene on April 12th to consider the Governor's amendments to bills and vetoes. We may also have a special session to consider any budget compromise that is reached. Legislative Update: Below is an update on the status of my bills, as well as some of the other bills that are being sent to the Governor.
I’m pleased to share that both of my bills that passed the House also passed the Senate unanimously and are on their way to the Governor.
HB2424 - This bill will increase access to interpreters in civil proceedings for people who are deaf and hard of hearing. I am happy to announce that it unanimously passed the State Senate on Wednesday. Companion legislation originally introduced in the State Senate unanimously passed the House of Delegates on Thursday, meaning that this bill is well on its way to becoming law!
HB2492 - Ensures that Virginia's Disability Board remains in compliance with federal law so that Virginia doesn't lose out on millions of dollars in federal funds. This bill passed the Senate unanimously last Tuesday, meaning that it will also be headed to the Governor’s desk for signature!
SB852 - I was proud to be Chief Co-Patron to Senator Barbara Favola's bill to protect menstrual health data from being used against Virginians in the push to criminalize abortion. While the bill passed the Senate in a bipartisan vote, it died in the House. This bill has garnered national attention including an article in The Washington Post and a segment on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
SB1467 - I spoke on the House floor last week in defense of this bill sponsored by Senator Chap Petersen. This bill would require land developers to restore tree canopy in Vienna sooner after completion of their projects, and has the support of the Town Council. Unfortunately, this bill failed along party lines. I will always continue to fight for my constituents and their trees.
As a reminder, the status of all legislation can be checked at https://lis.virginia.gov/.
Updates:
On Monday, we celebrated the life of Michael Gene Rhodes. Michael was a long time resident of Vienna - a business owner, community leader, coach & friend. We are grateful that Michael’s wife, Michelle, was able to join us today as we adopted HJ711, a Memorial Resolution honoring his life. Please check out the video here.
Other resolutions submitted this week include commending the 2022 James Madison High School Softball State Championship Team and commending the Vienna Girls Softball League for their contributions to the community.
I was proud to submit a resolution commending Ilia Malinin, a figure skating champion who became the first figure skater to successfully land the quad axel in international competition. A senior at George C Marshall High School, Ilia won the gold medal at the Toyota U.S. Figure Skating Championships last month!
Lastly, I submitted a resolution to commend Alejandro Buxton, a twelve-year old entrepreneur, and classmate of my son at Thoreau Middle School, who owns and operates a candle store in Tysons Corner Center. We were happy to have Alejandro and his family join us in the House gallery for this presentation.
Check your mailboxes! This week I signed letters to new voters while waiting for our final votes on the floor… So grateful to my community for the opportunity to represent the 35th district in Richmond!
Last week, my friend Jennifer McClellan was elected to Congress! Although I will miss her here in Richmond, I know that she will do great work representing the people of Virginia’s 4th District in D.C.
Contact Me: If my office can be of any service to you, please send an email to delhseibold@house.virginia.gov or call us at 804-698-1035. Make sure to also follow us on social media to receive updates throughout the year!
With Gratitude,
Holly Seibold Delegate, 35th District www.HollySeibold.com Find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram
To learn more about Holly, visit hollyseibold.com Holly Seibold for Delegate PO Box 2304 ​Vienna, VA 22183
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