The only thing predictable about a “short” session is that the days will be full and pass by quickly. We are more than a third of the way through the 46 day session and had real fireworks this past week. On Monday, the nation celebrated Martin Luther King Day and the second inauguration of President Barack Obama. Nevertheless, since the Virginia Constitution calls for the General Assembly to be in session, we were hard at work considering bills and resolutions. All legislation has importance to someone, but overshadowing those bills was a tactic that was sprung on the Senate at the close of business on Monday afternoon.

The Virginia Constitution stipulates that redistricting occurs every ten years. In fact, the Constitution was amended in 2004 to provide specifically that redistricting is to occur in 2011 and every ten years thereafter. So, you can imagine the surprise of every Democratic Senator in the chamber on Monday afternoon when the Republicans put forward a new redistricting plan. The plan dramatically redraws the state, thrusting about 45 percent of Virginians into new Senatorial Districts. Under the auspices of the creation of a new African-American majority district stretching from Danville to Petersburg, Republic Senator John Watkins of Powhatan offered the plan. What he didn’t tell the body in specific terms, but what we soon learned, is that the plan also packed African-American votes even more tightly into other minority- majority districts, diminished Democratic strength in districts that are represented currently by Democratic state senators, strengthened Republican support in most of the districts currently represented by Republicans, and paired me and Senator Emmett Hanger in the same district.

The new Republican plan cuts the 25th Senatorial District into four pieces. Senator Hanger and I would share a district that would include Bath, Highland, Staunton, Waynesboro, Augusta, western Albemarle, and Charlottesville. The bulk of Albemarle County would be represented by Senator Tom Garrett; Nelson would be represented by Senator Steve Newman; and the Alleghany Highlands and the Rockbridge area would be represented by Senator Ralph Smith. The plan was a premeditated, deliberate attempt to circumvent the Constitution of Virginia and public input. Since the Republicans were unable to garner Lt. Governor Bolling’s support, they waited until a day when a Democratic Senator would be absent.

Senator Henry Marsh was the first African-American mayor of the City of Richmond. He is one of the founding members of the Martin Luther King Commission in Virginia and is a revered leader in the civil rights movement. Each member of the Senate knew that Senator Marsh would be in Washington, DC to attend the inauguration. The Republicans used his absence to ram their unconstitutional redistricting plan through the Senate by tacking the proposal onto House Bill 259, which made minor adjustments to the House districts. That bill has now gone back to the House, where the Speaker is considering whether the Senate’s amendments are germane to the bill’s original purpose. If the Speaker rules the amendments germane, the full House will likely approve the amendments. The bill will then go to the Governor for his consideration. As he does with every bill, the Governor may sign, veto, or amend the legislation.

This effort at redistricting raises significant Constitutional issues, and the bill has a long way to go before it takes effect. For now, at least through 2015, I will continue to represent my constituents in the 25th District. The only thing this bill did to me is force my hand on whether to run for reelection. I thought I had at least another year before making a decision. I have told my Republican colleagues that they can beat me if they will, but they are not going to redistrict me out of the Senate. I will be a candidate for reelection somewhere in Virginia. I have tried to maintain a sense of humor about the whole process.

Another Virginia tradition was caught up in the redistricting tactic, thanks in part to significant national media attention. The 21st of January is the birthday of Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson. Traditionally, the Senator who represents Lexington offers words of remembrance and makes a motion to adjourn in General Jackson’s honor and memory on that day. Similarly, on the birthday of Robert E. Lee, the Senator from Arlington makes the same sort of recognition and motion. My colleague, Senator Barbara Favola, made her speech recognizing General Lee last week. Also last week, my colleague, Senator Marsh paid tribute to Dr. King on his birthday recognizing his tremendous contributions. Because of the notoriety of what the Senate Republicans did this past Monday, a typically unnoticed tradition in the Senate has garnered scrutiny. My remarks on Stonewall Jackson were in a similar vein to those made by every Senator whose district has included Lexington for as long as I can remember. The timing was pure happenstance and not meant in any way to take away from the celebration of Martin Luther King Day.

In the weeks that remain for the 2013 session of the General Assembly we have major public policy decisions to make. For the first time in a long time, I feel we are close to reaching a compromise on transportation. We will need to get this redistricting business behind us so we can move forward on the issues of importance, such as transportation, education, public health, and public safety. It is my hope that the actions on Monday have not poisoned the atmosphere so much that we will not be able to work together. We have too much to do to let partisan rancor bring Washington-style politics to the Virginia General Assembly.

Thank you for allowing me to serve you in the Senate of Virginia. If I can be of service to you, or if you would like information about this process, please contact us at district25@senate.virginia.gov or (804) 698-7525.

The 2013 Session of the Virginia General Assembly is moving rapidly toward the crossover, the date when each house has to finish work on its respective bills. The short, 46-day session does not leave much time for delay or maneuver. Things move fast, and many issues of importance have already come up for debate.

This past week saw the initial committee consideration of Governor McDonnell’s  appointments. Key among those appointments, at least to many of my constituents, was the reappointment of Helen Dragas of Virginia Beach to the University of Virginia Board of Visitors. Many will recall the drama of this past summer, and I do not need to rehash the events concerning the firing and rehiring of President Teresa Sullivan. The Governor reappointed Mrs. Dragas to the Board of Visitors, and that appointment is subject to confirmation by the General Assembly.

The first leg of the legislative journey toward reappointment occurs in the Senate Privileges and Elections Committee, of which I am a member. The meetings are public, and I was surprised that not one person who had written or called me came to testify against the confirmation this past Monday. Several of my colleagues and I spoke, but we did not have sufficient votes to remove her name from the Resolution. Only Senators Janet Howell and Ralph Northam joined me in opposing the reappointment.

In my comments, I spoke to my belief that this General Assembly ought to be focused on the University’s central position to our mission to provide educational and economic opportunity to young Virginians. I relayed to my colleagues that this issue has resonated with my constituents and has brought great dishonor to the University. Central to that dishonor is the lack of transparency and the secretive manner in which the Board handled the events leading up to and following the President’s dismissal. The public needs to have confidence in its state institutions, and I told the committee that the only way to begin the process of healing, of restoring public trust in the University, was to replace Mrs. Dragas. The resolution will be voted on by the full Senate early next week before heading to the House of Delegates.

Bills I have introduced are working through the process as well. In fact, as of today, six of my bills have been reported out of committee. Those bills are as follows:

• Senate Bill 882 will ensure the state continues providing some level of funding to the public library in Clifton Forge.
• Senate Bill 884, which came about during a discussion with a constituent in Rockbridge County, will require notice be given when the water flow from certain dams increases significantly.
• Senate Bills 885 and 888 limit the number of inoperable vehicles that can be kept in public view on properties in Albemarle County and allow counties to enter into agreements with the Virginia Department of Transportation to not only remove signs in rights of ways but to retain civil penalties that are collected when those signs are placed illegally.
• Senate Bill 886 makes a technical change in the affordable housing statute for the City of Charlottesville.
• Senate Bill 887, which I introduced at the request of a constituent in Highland County, increases the distance a farm use vehicle can travel from 30 to 50 miles.

The votes on two bills have been delayed to allow for input and recommendations from stakeholders.  Senate Bill 880 would require the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries to inventory streams that are open to the public.  Senate Bill 881, which I introduced following meetings with Rockbridge County officials, would allow localities to bill insurance companies directly for emergency services provided to automobile crashes on interstate highways. Both bills have generated visits from state agencies and other interested parties. I am hopeful the language is finalized quickly so that the bills can be heard next week.

As a member of the Privileges and Elections Committee, I often sponsor legislation related to the electoral process. This year, in addition to my continued attempts to establish a redistricting commission in Virginia, I sponsored Senate Bill 883 to require new voter cards be issued every year. This bill acknowledges the success of Governor McDonnell’s initiative in 2012 to send out voter cards prior to the election. In my view, the issuance of the cards limited the number of problems Virginia voters had with the new voter ID law. People move, precinct locations change, and voters would benefit from up-to-date information. I expect this bill will receive significant opposition, but it has not yet come up for a vote.

Senate Bill 906 was brought to me by general registrars and would establish a pilot project for the use of vote centers. Vote centers would combine two or more precincts in low turnout, primary elections, thus reducing costs to local registrars. The bill has made it out of subcommittee and should be taken up in full committee next week. The key, of course, is to ensure vote centers can be utilized without unduly confusing voters.

The situation at the University of Virginia was not just about the personalities involved. At a minimum, we should take the opportunity to review what happened to identify ways to improve governance at our colleges and universities. Senate Bills 1085 and 1086 were developed with the assistance of many constituents in the Charlottesville area and Delegate Toscano. While Governor of Virginia, Senator Mark Warner established the Virginia Commission on Higher Education Board Appointments, which was later codified in 2005. One of my bills would make certain the Commission reviews and makes recommendations for all appointments, not just at the request of the Governor. The other bill makes certain changes to the composition and rules governing the Board of Visitors at the University of Virginia, including requiring a nonvoting faculty representative on the Board and ensuring one of the appointments be a person with experience in higher education. Unfortunately, the bills have been caught up in this polarized situation surrounding Mrs. Dragas and are in trouble.

I have introduced several other bills, but none of the remaining bills have come up for consideration as of this morning. A complete list of my bills is here.

Thank you for allowing me to serve you in the Senate of Virginia. If I can be of service to you, or if you would like information about this process, please contact us at district25@senate.virginia.gov or (804) 698-7525.

Deeds and Toscano Introduce Redistricting Commission Bill

(Charlottesville, VA – January 4, 2013) – Virginia State Senator Creigh Deeds and House of Delegates Democratic Leader David Toscano are introducing a bill to reform the redistricting process. The bill will amend the Virginia Constitution to establish the Virginia Redistricting Commission, a bipartisan group that would create Congressional and State legislative districts which are contiguous, compact, and respect city and county boundaries – and specifically be drawn without favor to a political party or legislator.

“The main reason for political gridlock is legislative districts that have been gerrymandered to overwhelmingly favor an incumbent’s party, resulting in hyperpartisan legislators unable to work together for the common good” said Senator Deeds, who has been championing non-partisan redistricting since 2003. “This bill would result in much more competitive elections, and revive an endangered political species, the political moderate”.

Stated Delegate Toscano, a co-patron of the measure, “Redistricting has become a way by which those in power maintain their control – and both parties have done it. We are in a unique position right now. The next redistricting will occur after the 2020 census. Hopefully this will make it easier for incumbents to put aside narrow self-interest and make a change to help the Commonwealth’s interest.”

Senator Deeds noted how partisan redistricting has resulted in Charlottesville and Albemarle being part of a congressional district that runs from Danville to Fauquier County, a result of incumbent protectionism driving redistricting. “Instead of voters choosing their legislators, legislators are choosing their constituents. That must change.”

The Virginia Redistricting Commission would have 13 members, none of whom could be sitting legislators or employees of the US Congress or the Virginia General Assembly. Six would be appointed by Democrats, six by Republicans, with an independent member appointed jointly, to serve as Chairman.

The Commission would redistrict according to specific criteria to create districts that are contiguous and compact, with an aim of avoiding the division of cities and counties into more than one district. Districts could not be drawn for the purpose of favoring a political party or incumbent legislator or member of Congress, and would not use election results or demographic information except as required by federal law.

The General Assembly will convene on Wednesday, January 9, 2013. The filing period for new bills is underway. You can review all legislation at https://lis.virginia.gov/.  If you have any suggestions or legislative ideas, please send me an email at district25@senate.virginia.gov.