RichmondLiberty.org

GA110207.odt – General Assembly
11 FEB 07

[Warning: Very long. Hope it reads more quickly than it was
written! -- Roy]

ERRATA:

I seem to have misidentified two lobbyists -- sorry, I mean "legislative liasons" -- in at least one of my recent reports.

Hope Amezquita works with ACLU-VA, while

Mira Signer works with Planned Parenthood.

In my last report, I wrote:

'HB2954 (Bell) deals with Eminent Domain, addressing the
“Hilo” decision'
That was a
mistake on my part; I should have referred to the “Kelo” decision,
properly known as “Kelo v. New London”. Sorry about that.

HB1969 (Albo) is included below; Some previous references were to HB1769.
HB2622 (Reid) likewise. Some previous references were to HB2662.

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This week has been lacking in significant Committee action -- which is
good, because I've been laid up at home nursing what I hope is only a
cold. I've gotten some email and phone business done, and also this
will be a good time to write up an overview of Assembly action.

The short version is that every change in the law starts with a bill in either the House or Senate. Each bill is assigned to a committee, and usually to a subcommittee. The public is invited to testify on the bill, and the committee either kills it, or reports it (often with amendments) to the floor (the full House or Senate). On the floor, the bill is considered again, and again may be killed or amended. If it survives this process, it goes to the other chamber, where it has to go through the same process. (For more detail, see .)

We're now just over halfway through that process. (Procedurally, not timewise; the session is set to end on the 24th.) As of this past Wednesday, each body can act only on bills that originated in the other chamber. Many bills have dropped by the wayside since the Assembly convened on January tenth. Here's the status of all the bills I've mentioned in these reports so far, plus a few that are important but that I wasn't able to get to.

Note that I've reported which committee each bill is before. Find when these meet online at < http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?071+oth+MTG>.

The following bills have not been previously reported here. You may find them important.

SB 1242 (Whipple) would allow self-insured localities to extend coverage under their health care program to any class of persons that may be mutually agreed upon by the locality and the policy holder [Being translated, this means that localities could offer benefits to unmarried domestic partners of their employees.] It passed the Senate easily, but is likely to be in trouble in the House.

[Equality Virginia says: "This bill passed the Senate by a vote of 36-4. It passed the House Committee of Counties, Cities and Towns by a vote of 11-10 on Friday, February 9. Please write to your Delegate today and urge them to support thi[s] bill when it is debated on the House early next week."]

HB1727 (Lohr) and HB3047 (Cole) are attempts to stifle controversial school groups such as Gay-Straight Alliances -- although the patrons deny any such motive, of course.

At present, local school boards may adopt pretty much whatever policies they find appropriate for their localities in dealing with "non-curriculum-related" student clubs and activities in middle and high schools. These measures would require that every school board notify parents of details on each and every such club, and either require written permission from parents, or give parents an opportunity to deny such permission for any group.

[EV says: "Designed to suppress participation in Gay-Straight Alliances (GSAs), this bill could prevent at-youth risk from being able to participate in a critical support network, and would provide an unnecessary and costly bureaucratic burden on school boards and educators."]

At first, HB1727 was defeated by a tie vote of the House Committee on Education, but then five days later it was reconsidered. The two bills were combined into a substitute bill, which was reported to the House. This was then argued about for a week, before yet another substitute was adopted by the full House. This was passed, 82-15, and is now before the Senate Committee on Education and Health. The Subcommittee on Public Education met Friday morning, and (by a 3-2 vote) passed yet another version, which I have not yet seen. This should be considered by the full Committee on Thursday at 9am in Senate Room B.

HB3047 (Cole), anti-GSA, was incorporated into HB1727.

HB3157 (Waldrup) imposes prohibitive fees on independent and third-party candidates for public office, in order to make the elections safe for Demlicans and Republicrats.

This bill was rewritten by the House Privileges and Elections Committee, and passed the House 70-29. It's been referred to the Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections, subcommittee on Campaigns and Elections.

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These bills have been previously reported.

SB754 (Miller) mandates child-friendly visiting rooms in state correctional facilities. Amended to remove provisions for toys and breastfeeding, then passed without opposition. Now before House Committee on Militia, Police and Public Safety.

SB767 (Locke) would allow localities to prohibit carrying
firearms into libraries.
We killed
it in Senate committee, 9-5.

SB773 (Miller) child-friendly visiting rooms. Dropped in favor of SB754.

B827 (Devolites-Davis) so-called “gun-show loophole”.
Killed in
committee, 10-4.

SB835 (Devolites-Davis) allows continued TANF (family aid) after drug
possession.
Substitute
version incorporates SB934 (Ticer) and is contingent upon an
appropriation of funds. (See HB2612) No opposition in senate,
referred to House Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions.

SB858 (Reynolds) -- anti-SLAPP -- Incorporated into SB1250.

SB876 (McDougle) includes first-offense drug distribution as a
"predicate crime" in establishing membership in a
"criminal gang". Marijuana distribution/manufacture will
still not be included in these “predicate offenses” except for a second
felony offense.) Estimated cost over the next five years is over a
quarter-million dollars.
No
opposition in Senate, before House Courts of Justice subcommittee on
Criminal Law.

SB879 (Deeds) Electronic logs of methamphetamine precursors (seeSB978).
Dead in
Senate Courts.

SB905 (Rerras), says that it is not child abuse/neglect if the parent of
a mature child, in agreement with the child, chooses some medical
treatment which is against the recommendation of the medical
establishment. (See HB2319).
Much
fooferaw in committee and Senate, multiple substitute versions.
Finally passed, now before House Committee for Courts of Justice, Civil
Law subcommittee.

SB934 (Ticer) -- continued TANF after
drug possession. Incorporated into SB835. (See HB2612)

SB978 (Edwards) Electronic logs of methamphetamine precursors (seeSB879).

Dead in Senate
Courts.

SB1007 (Saslaw) bans firearms from secure areas of police buildings and
other law enforcement establishments.
Substitute
version reported after our objections in Committee; no opposition in
Senate. Now before House Committee on Militia, Police and Public
Safety.


SB1071 (McDougle) addresses child
pornography and the Net (See HB2749).
Multiple
substitute versions, from different committees, in an effort to reduce
costs from originally-estimated $1.5 million. Does not include
half-hour registration of email accounts inserted in HB2749 at my
recommendation. Substitute version passed with no Senate
opposition, now before House Committee for Courts of Justice,
subcommittee on Criminal Law.

SB1079 (Puckett) would have established a “Therapeutic Incarceration Program”.
Died in Courts, 9-7.

SB1168 (Stolle) removes the limit on compensating court-appointed attorneys. (See HB2361.)

Amended in Senate Courts, no opposition in Senate, now before House Committee for Courts of Justice, subcommittee on Criminal Law.

SB1234 (Obenshain) increased penalties, mandatory minimums, for distribution of either one ounce or eight ounces of methamphetamine.

Finance Committee dropped maximum penalty from "life" to 40 years for an ounce, and substitute bill was reported, and passed, without opposition. Estimated cost $705,140; will not become effective unless funds are appropriated. Now before House Committee for Courts of Justice, subcommittee on Criminal Law.

SB1237 (Obenshain) increases penalties for violation of protective orders, with mandatory minimum sentences for repeated offenses.

Finance Committee rewrote this as a substitute to lower the costs. Reported, no opposition, now before House Committee for Courts of Justice, subcommittee on Criminal Law.

SB1250 (Herring) -- Anti-SLAPP.

Courts substitute version incorporates SB858. Protects those who speak out at public hearings from being sued. No opposition, now before House Committee for Courts of Justice.

SB1364 (Howell) would ban all private firearms from child day care facilities.

Killed in Senate Courts, 8-5.

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HB1626 (Janis) is a self-defense bill, allowing deadly force
against an unlawful intruder who actually done something that puts the
lawful person in imminent danger. The lawful occupant is also
shielded from civil liability for such actions.
Substitute
version incorporates HB2458; the language is unchanged from the
subcommittee version. It was reported to the House 20-1, passed
91-6, then was reconsidered and passed again 95-4. Now beore Senate
Courts of Justice.

HB1632 (Morgan) would have lowered prices imposed on prisoners' phone
calls.
We got it
passed from Commerce and Labor (13-1), but Appropriations killed it
because the state makes millions of dollars each year from these
extortionate charges.

HB1665 (Marshall) would have made it a crime to force or coerce a woman
to have an abortion.
House
substitute has the objectionable language and concepts from the original
bill removed, reported 11-5, passed House 71-27, and was referred to
Senate Committee on Education and Health, where it died on a 9-6 vote.

HB1772 (Cosgrove) would allow police officer to pull over a car for
speeding, even when out of uniform and in a private car, by displaying a
badge.
Killed in
House Courts.

HB1857 (Wittman) would have increased the penalty for possession of
marijuana on school property, even for first offense.
Killed in
House Committee for Courts of Justice.

HB1866 (Wittman) would have made it a felony to possess a BB gun on
school property.
Died in
House Committee for Courts of Justice.

HB1914 (Ward) HPV vaccination (Incorporated into HB2035)

HB1960 (Hargrove) would have abolished the death penalty.
Died in
House Courts.

HB1969 (Albo) outlaws false ads for concerts, using the name of a band
without justification.
Amended
version passed House 95-3, now before Senate Commerce and Labor.

HB2035 (Hamilton) requires vaccination against HPV (Human Papilloma
Virus) for school girls.
Substitute
version incorporates HB1914, reported 19-2. Amended on House floor
to allow parental opt-out for personal choice; passed 80-17. Now
before Senate Committee on Education and Health.

HB2106 (Carrico) attempts to eliminate some red tape associated with CHP
permits.
Substitute
version much weaker, passed without opposition, now before Senate
Committee for Courts of Justice.

HB2110 (Carrico) would restrict use of deferred judgement. Incorporated into HB2481.

We killed this in
House Courts.

HB2173 (BaCote) would have allowed localities to ban legal weapons in libraries. (See SB767.)
Killed in House Committee on Militia, Police and Public Safety.

HB2279 (Watts) rewrites the law dealing with sexual offenses
against children, increasing some penalties and attempting to make the
law easier to understand and enforce.
Substitute
version reported from House Courts, but killed in Appropriations.

HB2300 (Cole) would establish uniformity across State institutions on gun
laws.
Died in
House Militia, Police and Public Safety.

HB2319 (Welch) allows alternative medical choices for mature children (See SB905), even when this is against the advice of the medical establishment.
We got this through the House Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions 15-7, then it was amended on the floor (might be a major loophole, nullifying the bill), and passed 87-9-1. Now before Senate Committee on Rehabilitation and Social Services

HB2324 (Gilbert) would have increased methamphetamine penalties (See SB1234).

Died in House Courts.

HB2337 (Gilbert) would make drug use by a pregnant woman felony child-abuse, and specified blood tests as sufficient proof.

Killed in House Courts.

HB2361 (Putney) removes the present limit on compensation of court-appointed attorneys. (See SB1168)

Substitute version passed House 96-1-1, now before Senate Committee for Courts of Justice.

HB2404 (Athey) Imposes, on registered sex offenders whose victim was a minor, a lifetime ban on moving into a place within 1,000 feet of [a laundry list of places where kids might be].

Substitute version was reported from House Courts 19-1, passed House 98-0, now before Senate Committee for Courts of Justice.

In my opinion, this bill needs amendment. As passed, it would apply to people who were convicted, even as a minor, of having had oral sex with someone their own age, as well as an 18-year-old who had oral sex with a 17-years-and-11-months-old partner.

HB2405 (Athey) would allow law-abiding citizens to carry
concealed weapons without a permit, if they followed procedures designed
to protect law-enforcement officers.
Died in
House Committee on Militia, Police and Public Safety.

HB2406 (Athey) would allow carrying
weapons in locked compartment of vehicle.
Died in
House Committee on Militia, Police and Public Safety.

HB2410 (Athey) expands the reach of the Amber Alert system to include
young adults who are still enrolled in school.
Substitute
reported from two committees, passed 97-1, now before Senate Courts of
Justice Commttee.

HB2456 (Cline) would require a physician to offer to anesthetize the
fetus before terminating a pregnancy, and to inform the pregnant woman of
certain things that are alleged to be facts. Applies only where
gestational age of fetus appears to be 20 weeks or more.
Reported
from House Courts 15-5, passed House 69-29, now before Senate Committee
on Education and Health.

HB2458 (Cline) is a self-defense
bill. Has been combined with HB1626 as a substitute, which has been
reported.

HB2481 (Crockett-Stark) would restrict use of deferred judgement.
(See HB2110)
We killed
this in House Courts.

HB2520 (Iaquinto) would allow and require medical records to be made more
available to police and other authorities.
House
Courts Committee reported a substitute version of this bill which expands
the circumstances where information must be released. This was
passed by the House, and is now before Senate Committee on Education and
Health.

HB2532 – Landes –
Would establish willful misconduct which unintentionally causes the death
of a fetus as a Class 5 felony.
A
substitute version, minus much objectionable language, was reported 16-2
from House Courts, approved by the Appropriations Committee, and passed
the House 90-7. It's now before the Senate Committee on Education
and Health.

HB2547 (Carrico) clarifies current law, that only hunters have to have permission to hunt on both sides of the road if they are carrying a loaded firearm on that road.
HouseMilitia, Police and Public Safety reported the bill 17-4, and it passed the House 79-20. Now before Senate Committee on Local Government.

HB2585 (Janis) would allow adults to ride motorcycles without helmets on scenic byways.

Reported from House Militia, Police and Public Safety 14-7, then defeated 39-59.

HB2586 (Janis) would define looting (stealing during a
declared emergency)

Died in House Courts.

HB2593 (Janis) would let judges carry concealed weapons, without a permit, even after acts that would cancel the permit of an ordinary citizen.

Reported from House Militia, Police and Public Safety 20-1, then killed in House.

HB2596 (Rapp) would have increased the mandatory loss of
driver's license for possession of marijuana or controlled substances
from six months to one year.
We killed
it in House Courts of Justice.

HB2612 (Watts) would amend the law so that families who are receiving
Temporary Aid to Needy Families (TANF) would no longer be kicked out of
the program for drug possession. (See SB385, SB934.)
Reported
from House Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions 21-1, then
killed in House Appropriations because it would have cost some $200,000
next year.

HB2622 (Reid) makes it illegal to move, conceal, or hide illegal aliens.

House Courts crafted a far better substitute, applying only to “commercial enterprise and with intent to violate the immigration laws”, which was reported 15-4, then passed House 89-9. Bill is now before Senate: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice.

HB2648 (SC Jones) specifically includes a pregnant woman in the law against causing an abortion or miscarriage.

House Committee for Courts of Justice approveded it 19-0 with amendment specifically excluding medically approved methods of birth control; Appropriations reported it 17-6. Passed House 72-25, now before Senate Committee on Education and Health.

HB2653 (Lingamfelter) makes it a Class 6 felony to solicit or otherwise entice a firearms dealer to illegally convey a firearm, except fore law enforcement officers. This would appear to apply, in any future instance, to civilians working for the mayor of some big city up north.

House Militia, Police and Public Safety reported with amendments 21-0, passed House 91-5, now before Senate Committee for Courts of Justice.

HB2730 (Englin) requires hospitals to allowing patients to
designate any individual as next of kin for visitation purposes, and to
change the designation at any time.
House
Health, Welfare and Institutions reported substitute 22-0, to specify
that the provision applies only to adult patients. Passed House
97-0-1, now before Senate Committee on Education and Health.

HB2749 (Hurt) is the child pornography, and sex offender registration
requirements bill.

House Courts of Justice wrote a substitute which fixes most of the problems of the original version, and it also incorporated the change in email-reporting that I suggested at the subcommittee meeting.
Unfortunately, it still has the the provision that “possessing” child-porn can be as inadvertent as having viewed an image online even once, and then not having cleared that image from your computer's cache. (I never have any confidence in the idea that the system will not prosecute trivial cases.) It also retains the provision that a teenager who has been in a sexual relationship for several years with a partner just a year – or a few days – younger becomes guilty of a felony if the older teen, a day after turning eighteen, emails the younger partner and suggests the sort of special sex that Virginia still outlaws. It turns out that this is a provision of current law, and is merely re-enacted in this bill. No opposition in Committee or House to the bill; now before Senate Committee for Courts of Justice.

HB2754 (Hurt) would impose a tax on Schedule I and II illegal substances, and marijuana, and illegal booze.

We killed this bill before the House Committee on Finance.

HB2790 (Gilbert) deals with questioning technicians and such in drug cases.

The original bill would have required defendants to give advance notice if they wished to do this. House Committee for Courts of Justice rewrote it as a substitute, saying that if the defendant asked to question such a person, then he or she is entitled to a continuance.

Reported, passed House with only one dissenting vote, now before Senate Committee for Courts of Justice.

HB2808 (Byron) requires that a woman be given the opportunity
to view an ultrasound image of her unborn child before giving informed
consent for an abortion.
House
Courts of Justice crafted a substitute much less onerous (and less
expensive) than the original, which was reported 13-8. Passed House
60-38, now before Senate Committee on Education and Health.

HB2811 (Sickles) would require State Police to provide safe storage for
firearms, and require mental health facilities to provide safe storage
brochures.

Died in House Militia, Police and Public Safety.

HB2821 (Sickles) would have exempted individuals' Social
Security numbers from information made available in response to FOIA
requests.
House:
Committee on General Laws killed the bill, but is supposed to ask for a
study of the problem.

HB2842 (Hall) would require that licensed pharmacies sell and dispense
drugs and devices regardless of any owners' or employees' religious or
other personal beliefs.
Died in
House Health, Welfare and Institutions.

HB2844 (O'Bannon) would add Salvinorin A to the list of Schedule I drugs. (“No currently accepted medical use” and heaviest penalties. Salvinorin A is a powerful hallucinogen obtained from the plant Salvia divinorum.
Died in House Health, Welfare and Institutions.

HB2895 (Phillips) would allow county conservators of the
peace assigned to litter control to have access to criminal-history
information.
House
Committee for Courts of Justice made a substitute version, which sailed
through the House with no objections. Now before Senate Committee
for Courts of Justice.

HB2900 (Spruill) would have prohibited firearms in Capitol Square.
Died in
House Militia, Police and Public Safety.

HB2937 (Hamilton) would prevent spending any state or local funds on charitable/nonprofit groups which provide services to people who are not eligible for government funds, specifically people who are in the United States illegally.
House Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions reported the bill with an amendment to allow Medicaid assistance, 13-8. This was rejected in the House, and a substitute version was passed 70-29. Bill is now before Senate Committee on Rehabilitation and Social Services.

HB2943 (Miller) would modify the law regarding police
response to misdemeanors. Virginia law was changed, in
1974, to say that a police officer responding to someone committing a
misdemeanor SHALL issue a summons to the individual, rather than
arresting him, in most cases (there are commonsense exceptions).
The important part of this – as is so often the case, unforeseen when the
law was enacted – is that if an officer makes an “arrest”, he is entitled
to search the subject, while if he merely issues a summons he is not
entitled to do so. A recent Supreme Court decision made this
abundantly clear. This bill would change the law to say that an
officer MAY issue a summons for serious misdemeanors (Class 1 and 2,
which are punishable by time in jail).
This means
that an officer is allowed to search an individual for even very minor
offenses, and use anything found in such a search to bring mre serious
charges. Opponents warn that leaving the arrest/summons decision
completely up to the arresting officers, without even any guidelines,
will inevitably result in discriminatory enforcement. We've seen
this across the country, and across the decades.
[It is
possible that my writeup on this bill may lead some readers to suspect
that I am not an entirely neutral reporter, and that perhaps I have
strong feelings about it. You're absolutely damn tootin' I
do! If this bill becomes law, we go back to the bad old days when a
cop can see you spit on the sidewalk or step outside the dotted lines
while crossing the street, and use that as a pretext to arrest you, and
search you, and use anything found in your pockets to charge you with
other crimes. As evidenced in the Moore case, the arrest may even
allow a search of your residence. (Of course, we're absolutely sure
that not a single one of the many thousands of police officers in the
Commonwealth would ever use such discretion in any sort of a
discriminatory manner. Not a single one of them would ever
specifically target muslims, or gays, or blacks, or Jews, or hippies, or
Hispanics. If that were ever to occur, then in a year or two when
this issue comes back before the Assembly {which it will, I
guarantee!}, we're sure to hear, from the legislators who are now voting
for this measure, that they are “Shocked! -- Shocked!” that
there has been any abuse. (Not that I'm cynical or anything, of
course.) This bill would be a major step backwards for personal
liberty and for freedom in general, in my none-too-humble opinion.]
House
Courts of Justice reported the bill 17-3, it passed the House 74-23, and
is now before Senate Committee for Courts of Justice.

HB2954 (Bell) deals with Eminent Domain, addressing the “Kelo” decision
which held that it was proper for a local government to take one person's
land and home in order to give or sell it to developers, so that there
would be more taxes paid.
House
Committee for Courts of Justice crafted a substitute version of the bill
that seems to prohibit most abuses of this major government power;
reported 17-3, and passed House 87-10. Now before Senate Committee
for Courts of Justice, Eminent Domain Subcommittee.

HB2959 (Bell) would make it quicker and easier for a person to receive an
expungment of criminal records in cases where there's a clear need for
one.
House
Courts of Justice wrote a substitute, which was reported, and passed the
House, without dissent. Now before Senate Courts of Justice.

HB2964 (Bell) would have made it illegal to enter someone else's vehicle without permission.
House Courts of Justice amended the bill and reported it 18-2, then it was killed on the floor of the House.

HB2971 (Bell) would have restricted the use of Drug Treatment
Courts to cases involving possession of drugs or marijuana, and cases
involving probation violations following conviction of drug or marijuana
possession. At present, the Courts can deal with “drug and
drug-related” cases.
We killed
the bill in House Courts of Justice.

HB2983 (Janis) Sets rules for discovery in drug forfeiture proceedings.
Reported
18-2 from House Committee for Courts of Justice, then died in House.

HB2998 (Scott) prohibits people who have had their parental rights
terminated from owning firearms. It applies only in cases of
"torture, chronic or severe abuse, or chronic or severe sexual
abuse" (although "chronic abuse" can be an elastic term).
Opponents
point out that the termination of rights is a civil matter, and should
not affect the right to keep and bear arms.
Both House
Militia, Police and Public Safety, and House Committee for Courts of
Justice, reported the bill, with amendment, with no dissent. It
passed the House 85-14, and is now before Senate Committee for Courts of
Justice.

HB3013 (Wittman) would have made it a crime to possess a BB gun on school property.
At the patron's request, died in House Committee on Militia, Police and Public Safety.

HB3023 (Fralin) attempts to deal with the purported issue of people attempting to defeat urine analysis; it would make it a crime to use synthetic urine in an attempt to beat a drug test, and would also block an offender from obtaining a Commercial Drivers' License. For a first attempt, the disqualification would be a year; for a second offense, the disqualification would be for life.

House Courts of
Justice made a substitute without reference to synthetic urine or the
life-time disqualification provision. Reported and passed with no
dissent, now before Senate Committee on Transportation.

HB3049 (Albo) would have tightened the test-interpretation procedures for
Virginia's law on DUI law, to remove a potential defense.
House
Committee for Courts of Justice defeated it after much discussion.

HB3077 (Abbitt) changes the penalty for riding a motorcycle without a
helmet to a $25 civil fine, rather than a traffic infraction with a $250
maximum fine.
House
Militia, Police and Public Safety reported the bill 13-7, passed the
House 51-48, now before Senate Committee on Transportation.

HB3082 (Lingamfelter) would protect the free exercise of religion.
The bill broadens the rights of citizens so that if any (state or local)
governmental action places a burden on their exercise of religion, the
burden is on the government to show that the restriction is necessary,
rather than being on the citizen to prove that the burden is
unreasonable. It doesn't apply to institutionalized people, and
would not allow monetary damages, and has penalties for frivolous
claims.
Opponents
say that, without a nondiscrimination clause, the law could be used to
bad ends.
Amended
version reported by House Courts of Justice, 15-4. Passed House
67-30, now before Senate Committee on General Laws and Technology.

HB3108 (Janis) prohibits "inquiring of a minor or mentally
incompetent person as to the exercise of constitutionally protected
rights”.

House Courts made a
substitute version, crafted to allow reasonable statistical information,
which had no opposition. Now before Senate Courts of Justice.

HB3184 (Kilgore) “Spaceflight Liability and Immunity Act" says, in
essence, that space flight is still dangerous, and you take advantage of
efforts at such entirely at your own risk – but you must be warned
first.
House
Courts made a substitute version, which had no opposition. Now
before Senate Courts of Justice.

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HJ683 (that's House Joint Resolution #683) (Landes) would
direct JLARC (the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission) to
“study the actual cost of substance abuse to the Commonwealth to
determine the financial savings available to the Commonwealth as a result
of providing treatment to offenders diverted from incarceration.”
No opposition in the House; now before Senate Committee on Rules.

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DETAILS:
To see the
summary, text, status, estimated cost, votes, or other details on any
bill, go to:
<
http://leg1.state.va.us/>. Click on:
“Bills & Resolutions –
status of individual bills and related information”.
At the text-entry block, enter the bill and type just as I have it listed
above. (Use “SB921”, not “S.B. 921”, for example.)

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REMINDER:
<
http://leg1.state.va.us/> and
<
http://legis.state.va.us/>
These are
the two websites where you can access nearly anything you want to know
about practically anything related to the General Assembly. Use
them!

end

- - Roy B. Scherer