January 19, 2021
The Virginia General Assembly opened its 2021 regular session on Wednesday, but for the first time, we are not in the Capitol. While the Senate convened in a large auditorium at the Virginia Science Museum, the House of Delegates’ Democrat leadership decided that they would stay home and hold their sessions by Zoom.
The space in this new Senate Chamber allows everyone to practice safe social distancing – and then some. Senators wear masks, our temperatures get checked, and each of our desks have our own bottle of hand sanitizer. Every precaution has been taken so that Senators can conduct committee work and meet in-person during Session to fulfill their duties as the Virginia Constitution requires.
You might wonder why the Senate has gone to such great lengths to meet in person, especially since the House of Delegates is meeting remotely. The Senate prides itself on being more deliberative than the House. Our debates and discussions over bills can be longer, often going into detail. And although partisan leanings may lead to some predictable results, it is not unusual for our debates to lead to significant changes to legislation and even bipartisan consensus.
A remote conferencing platform like Zoom simply cannot replicate this process. While individual senators are permitted, for health reasons, to participate in session remotely on occasion, the overwhelming amount of our legislative work is done in person. It makes a real difference.
The Constitution of Virginia sets the length of sessions held in odd-numbered years at 30 days. On Wednesday, we set the schedule for the 2021 at 30 days. Democrats are not happy about this, but the Constitution requires a super-majority to extend session beyond the 30 days. Republicans committed to adhering to the Constitutional session length back in November, a week after the 84-day special session ended.
That special session ended with the General Assembly completing its work on amending the 2020-2022 Biennial Budget, which is the primary purpose of session in odd-numbered years. But since we completed that objective just two months ago, it shouldn’t take so much time to repeat the process. The Democrats disagree.
I must tell you that this Session is not turning out to be “regular” in other ways; the most significant is that the opportunities for constituent input and our local residents’ ability to visit Richmond during session have been seriously curtailed by pandemic safety measures. Although we’ve made several changes to increase the avenues for citizens to weigh in on legislation being considered, COVID restrictions preclude the kind of interactions to which lawmakers and their constituents have become accustomed.
Making a shorter short session more manageable, the House and Senate have placed limits on the number of bills legislators can submit for consideration. Delegates can submit seven bills and senators are permitted twelve. That caps the maximum number of bills under consideration at fewer than 1,200, 40 percent fewer than were permitted in 2019, our last short session.
A shorter session with fewer bills will encourage legislators to focus on issues requiring the most immediate attention. Ending Virginia’s vaccine distribution backlog, getting public schools open and children back in the classroom, and reviving our economy are urgent priorities. Republican senators are committed to making progress on these and other important issues.
Because our Senate office building has been essentially closed to the public, I moved my Senate operations to my law office in Richmond, which has the space to accommodate both my staff and any visitors. You can contact us at the following number, to voice your opinion, or set up a meeting: (804) 225-0528. We are located at 26 N. 8th Street, right across from the Virginia Supreme Court/Court of Appeals building.
