« December 2008 | Main | February 2009 »
From www.freepauljacob.com
Free at last! Oklahoma AG Drew Edmondson today dropped all charges against the “Oklahoma 3″—Paul Jacob, Susan Johnson, and Rick Carpenter—in response to the 10th Circuit Court of Appeal’s refusal to approve his request for a rehearing.
Full Story at http://www.freepauljacob.com/2009/01/22/oklahoma-3-are-free-ag-dismisses-charges/
From www.votors.org
The Constitutional Subcommittee of the House Privileges and Elections Committee met on Monday, but they ran out of time and your bill, HJ709, was not discussed. It has been rescheduled for this coming Monday, Feb. 2nd, again at 7:00 am. This gives us more time to make additional calls and send additional emails and for you to forward this email to more of your Virginia friends and neighbors. That is very important, because it will increase the number of calls and emails the Delegates get, adding pressure on them, before their November re-elections, to support our bill and limit your real estate taxes.
Please read the status report below and take the requested action by calling and emailing the list of Delegates before Monday, politely and firmly asking them to vote for HJ709. Please call and email all of the Delegates listed, not just your own. We have had a very favorable response to our previous requests for calls and emails...but we need far more. Thank you to those who took the time to send emails and make calls; please do so again.
IMPORTANT!
Please do these three things before Monday morning:
1. Click on the "Forward email to a Friend or Neighbor" link at the bottom of this email and send it to everyone on your email list who resides in Virginia. This is very important!
2. Send an email to each of the Delegates below. You can use the sample text provided below, modify it to personalize it or write your own. Please keep it short and respectful. Just click on the "blue" Delegate's name and enter or paste your request text. Please use the Subject Line: "Please Vote for HJ709".
3. Call each Delegate's listed phone number and ask the Delegate or the staff member to "Vote for HJ709". Leave a voicemail if necessary.
Legislative Update and Call to Action
Property Taxes
HJ 709 Constitutional amendment (first resolution); assessments of real property and tax rates.
Patron: Delegate Jeffrey M. Frederick
Constitutional amendment (first resolution); assessments of real property and tax rates. Provides that assessments of real property shall not increase annually by more than one percent plus the percentage increase, if any, in the rate of inflation. Increases in the rate of taxation on real property are limited to one percent per year.
Status:
Referred to Committee on Privileges and Elections and assigned to P & E subcommittee: Constitutional which will meet on Monday, February 2, at 7:00 a.m. in the 5th floor West conference room. This bill was on the docket for the January 26 meeting but was not discussed. The docket has not yet been released for Feb. 2 meeting, but HJ 709 is very likely to be on the docket.
Action to be taken: Call and email Delegates in the Committee on Privileges and Elections now and urge passage of this Constitutional Amendment.
House Committee on Privileges and Elections Membership:
Delegate Mark L. Cole (R) (chairman) - House District 88 (804) 698-1088
Delegate David B. Albo (R) - House District 42 (804) 698-1042
Delegate Kenneth C. Alexander (D) - House District 89 (804) 698-1089
Delegate Robert B. Bell, III (R) - House District 58 (804) 698-1058
Delegate Robert H. Brink (D) - House District 48 (804) 698-1048
Delegate John A. Cosgrove (R) - House District 78 (804) 698-1078
Delegate Rosalyn R. Dance (D) - House District 63 (804) 698-1063
Delegate David L. Englin (D) - House District 45 (804) 698-1045
Delegate Frank D. Hargrove, Sr. (R) - House District 55 (804) 698-1055
Delegate Riley E. Ingram (R) - House District 62 (804) 698-1062
Delegate William R. Janis (R) - House District 56 (804) 698-1056
Delegate Johnny S. Joannou (D) - House District 79 (804) 698-1079 (no e-mail)
Delegate S. Chris Jones (R) - House District 76 (804) 698-1076
Delegate R. Steven Landes (R) - House District 25 (804) 698-1025
Delegate Jackson H. Miller (R) - House District 50 (804) 698-1050
Delegate Joseph D. Morrissey (D) - House District 74 (804) 698-1074
Delegate John M. O'Bannon, III (R) - House District 73 (804) 698-1073
Delegate Clarence E. Phillips (D) - House District 2 (804) 698-1002
Delegate Lacey E. Putney (I) - House District 19 (804) 698-1019
Delegate James M. Scott (D) - House District 53 (804) 698-1053
Delegate Mark D. Sickles (D) - House District 43 (804) 698-1043
Sample Email Text
Subj: Please Vote for HJ709
Dear Delegate (Place Delegate's Name Here),
I'm writing to ask for your support of HJ709, a bill calling for a Virginia Constitutional Amendment changing Virginia's real estate tax system to one based on "Acquisition Value" and limiting annual increases in real estate property taxes. This bill is very important to me and my family here in Virginia.
It is important you understand that HJ709 is not a tax cut but rather merely imposes limits on real estate property tax increases that now are increasing faster than my family's income.
I urge you to vote for HJ709.
(Your Name Here)
(Your Town), VA
Actual Text of HJ709
VOTORS Logo
The following text of HJ709 amends Section 2, Article X of the Virginia Constitution:
"However, for the tax year beginning on January 1, 2012, and each tax year thereafter, the assessed value of real property shall be no greater than the assessed value of such property in the preceding tax year plus an increase of one percent and an increase equal to the percentage increase, if any, in the rate of inflation. When real property is sold, transferred, improved, or rezoned at the owner's request, it shall be assessed at fair market value for the tax year in which such event occurs. The rate of taxation on real property shall not be increased by more than one percent each year. The General Assembly shall enact such laws as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this section."
This may seem redundant to send more emails and make more calls but it is very important to keep your desire for HJ709 in the forefront of these Delegates conscience as they begin to discuss it on Monday morning. A little more work now could save you hundreds or thousands of dollars in the years to come.
I urge all of you to act again before Monday morning!
Sincerely,
Al Aitken
Chairman
www.votors.org
chairman@votors.org
540.825.1057
540.729.0536
This little video demonstrates the magnitude of the current financial crisis:
Please note we are not endorsing itulip.com
A News Release from Sen. McDougle:
Senate Democrats Defeat Right to Work Amendment
Richmond, January 28, 2009: Democrats on the Senate Privileges and Elections Committee yesterday defeated a proposed amendment to the Virginia Constitution that would have added Virginia’s right to work law to the state Constitution. The proposed amendment, sponsored by Sen. Ryan McDougle (R – Hanover) was defeated on a party-line 9-5 vote.
“Our right to work law is a credit to Virginia,” McDougle noted while presenting his bill. “It makes our business climate better than that of our surrounding states, allows businesses to flourish, and aids in the creation of new jobs. It is because of our right to work law that Virginia has been consistently recognized as the best state in the nation in which to do business.”
McDougle introduced the legislation, Senate Joint Resolution 347, in an effort to better protect Virginia’s right to work law against encroachment by the federal government. He expressed concern about proposed federal legislation that would make it easier for unions to organize in Virginia, particularly the unions’ impact on state and constitutional officer employees.
“The federal government should not be allowed to have authority over the operations of state offices,” McDougle stated. “Should the federal government attempt to undertake such changes, it will no doubt lead to litigation. The passage of this amendment would have provided courts deciding such cases with a clear direction as to where Virginia stands on the importance of the right to work law. It would provide Virginia stronger ground on which to stand in defending its right to work status.”
The joint resolution, supported by the whole Senate Republican Caucus, would have been the first step towards granting Constitutional protection to Virginia’s right to work law. To amend the Virginia Constitution, identical legislation must be passed during two separate General Assembly sessions with an election in between. It must then pass a statewide voter referendum. McDougle noted this fact in arguing that it is worthwhile to keep this possibility alive until the direction of federal legislation becomes more clear.
“We must take this calculated risk,” McDougle noted in his testimony before the vote was taken. “If it turns out not to be necessary, we will not go further in the process. However, if we do not act now, we will not be able to institute this amendment until 2012 at the earliest. We must act now and act decisively on this important issue.”
# # #
From www.valibertydefense.org
ACTION ALERT!!!
There are two bills being considered in the General Laws and
Technology Committee today in Senate Room "B" convening at 2PM.
Senator Emmett Hanger's SB1023
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?ses=091&typ=bil&val=sb1023
Senator Cuccinelli's SB1431
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?ses=091&typ=bil&val=sb1431
CALL, CALL, CALL...the legislators on this committee this morning.
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?091+com+S12
Tell them you want them to support SB1431 & SB1023 to opt Virginia
out of Real ID.
For those of you who can make it to the committee meeting, please do
so.
From verifiedvoting.org:
Two years ago, the Virginia General Assembly recognized the need to move toward a more verifiable voting system. Now the Assembly is considering legislation that would reverse Virginia's progress. Please take action now and pass this on.
House Bill 2422 and Senate Bill 988 would repeal the state's ban on purchase of direct-recording electronic voting machines. If these bills pass, paperless electronic voting machines could be used in Virginia elections for the foreseeable future. This despite the fact that the majority of states, from North Carolina to Ohio, from Florida to Maryland, have adopted paper-based voting systems, and despite years of warnings from top computer scientists of the need for a voter-verifiable paper record of every vote cast. We need your help.
Please take action today! Visit our Action Center to send a message to Virginia lawmakers urging them to oppose HB 2422 and SB 988:
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/199/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=26488
A key House of Delegates committee will vote on House Bill 2422 on Wednesday January 28 at 5pm. Please take a moment to tell your lawmakers that Virginia must act to verify the vote.
Thank you for all you do!
The Team at Verified Voting
From VA-ALERT:
GUN SHOW ACTION ITEM
Some people are having a slow response from the URL to send a message to Senators on opposing Marsh's gun show bill, SB 1257.
Here is a direct link if you have been having such a problem:
http://www2.vcdl.org/cgi-bin/wspd_cgi.sh/vcdl/reflector.html?REF=MySenator&PRE=09-SB1257-2
This is very URGENT as the gun show bill could come up for a vote on the Senate Floor THIS THURSDAY!
A rather disturbing chart:
http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/AMBSL?rid=78&soid=4
Hat tip to David Lively for finding this.
From www.VICFA.net
***ACTION ALERT***
Bill goes to vote Monday morning
IMMEDIATE ACTION NEEDED
Bill # HJ731 Constitutional amendment; regulation of powers of General Assembly
POTENTIAL HELP WITH SCRAPIE REGS!!
WHAT: Constitutional Amendment that authorizes the General Assembly to “suspend or nullify any or all portions of any” regulation, regardless of when the regulations are promulgated. When Assembly is not is session, standing committees would be authorized for same. This promises enormous positive effects for our efforts, as with the Scrapie regs.
The House Privileges and Elections Subcommittee votes on this amendment, HJ731, Monday morning.
ACTION: Please immediately call and email the members of the subcommittee. Ask them to VOTE FOR HJ 731.
House Privileges and Elections Sub-Committee
Alexander, Kenneth C. (804) 698-1089 DelKAlexander@house.virginia.gov
Cosgrove, John A. (804) 698-1078 DelJCosgrove@house.virginia.gov
Frederick, Jeffrey M. (804) 698-1052 DelJFrederick@house.virginia.gov
Hargrove, Frank D., Sr. (804) 698-1055 DelFHargrove@house.virginia.gov
Janis, William R. (804) 698-1056 DelBJanis@house.virginia.gov
Morrissey, Joseph D. (804) 698-1074 DelJMorrissey@house.virginia.gov
Phillips, Clarence E. (804) 698-1002 DelBPhillips@house.virginia.gov
Putney, Lacey E. (804) 698-1019 DelLPutney@house.virginia.gov
Language of the Amendment:
The General Assembly may suspend or nullify any or all portions of any administrative rule or regulation by joint resolution agreed to by a majority of the members elected to each house. When the General Assembly is not in a regular session, the standing committees of each house or the joint legislative commissions as designated by the General Assembly may suspend any or all portions of any administrative rule or regulation until the end of the next regular session.
Link to bill: http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?091+ful+HJ731
NOTE: Constitutional Amendments must pass a regular session of the Assembly following an election of Delegates, so if this amendment passes this session, it will have to pass again next year (there will be elections of delegates this November).
INFORMATION: Kathryn Russell 434.760.5514
Yours for food freedom,
Deborah Stockton, Editor
VICFA Voice
vicfavoice@earthlink.net
www.VICFA.net
Virginia Independent Consumers and Farmers Association
Our purpose is to promote and preserve unregulated direct farmer-to-consumer trade
that fosters availability of locally grown or home-produced food products.
Happy New Year everyone.
There will be lots going on in 2009.
First up is the General Assembly session.
The 2009 Regular Session will convene Wednesday, January 14, 2009. If you have not contacted your Senator and Delegate do so now. It helps to keep correspondence brief and focused on one aspect of freedom.
If you don't know who your legislators are, you can find out at: http://conview.state.va.us/whosmy.nsf/main?openform