The 2011 Virginia General Assembly session convened Wednesday, January 12th, and adjourned Sunday, February 27th.

• Regular Session
  The General Assembly meets annually, beginning on the second Wednesday in January, for 60 days in even-numbered years and for 30 days in odd-numbered years, with an option to extend annual sessions for a maximum of 30 days.
• Special Sessions
  The Governor may call a special session when it is deemed necessary or advisable, and must do so when petitioned by two-thirds of the members of both houses.
• Reconvened Sessions
  A reconvened session is held on the sixth Wednesday after adjournment of each regular or special session for the purpose of considering governor’s recommendations and vetoed legislation.

Lee District is represented in the General Assembly by four Delegates (Englin, Sickles, Surovell and Watts) and three Senators (Barker, Puller and Ticer). Each has done a tremendous job during this term, and here are their reports:

• Virginia House Democratic Caucus
  • Del. David Englin
  • Del. Mark Sickles
  • Del. Scott Surovell
  • Del. Vivian Watts
• Virginia Senate Democratic Caucus
  • Sen. George Barker
  • Sen. Toddy Puller
  • Sen. Patsy Ticer

Did You Know

from the VA General Assembly Visitor’s Guide

The Virginia General Assembly dates from the establishment of the House of Burgesses at Jamestown in 1619. It is heralded by Virginians as the “oldest continuous law-making body in the New World.”

The 1776 Virginia Constitution confirmed our bicameral legislature, which consists of the House of Delegates and Senate of Virginia. The present state Constitution, adopted in 1970, provides that the House of Delegates shall consist of 90 to 100 members and the Senate shall consist of 33 to 40 members. All members of the General Assembly are elected by qualified voters within their respective House and Senate districts. The terms of office are two years for members of the House and four years for members of the Senate. Members may not hold any other public office during their term of office.

The General Assembly’s chief responsibilities are to represent citizens in the formulation of public policy, enact laws of the Commonwealth, approve the budget, levy taxes, elect judges and confirm appointments by the Governor.

About House Members

from about the House, General Information

The House of Delegates consists of 100 members. Each member represents approximately 71,000 citizens. The term of office for a member of the House of Delegates is two years. Each member receives an annual salary of $17,640.

The Speaker of the House is the presiding officer of the House and is elected by the House in even-numbered years for a two-year term. The Speaker’s duties are dictated by the Rules of the House. Among these duties are the assigning of bills to committee and appointing the membership of the 14 House standing committees.

The Clerk of the House is elected by the House in even-numbered years and continues in office until another is chosen. The Clerk is responsible for the administration of the House under the direction of the Speaker.

About Senate Members

from about the Senate, General Information

The Senate of Virginia consists of 40 members. Each member is elected for a term of four years and receives an annual salary of $18,000. A Senator represents approximately 176,000 citizens of the Commonwealth.

The Lieutenant Governor is the presiding officer of the Senate and is elected in a statewide election for a four-year term. In the event of his absence, the President pro tempore carries out the duties of the presiding officer. The President pro tempore is elected by the Senate for a term of four years.

The Clerk of the Senate is elected by the Senate. The Clerk’s duties are overseeing the daily operations of the Senate, maintaining all Senate records, keeping the daily Journal, and referring bills to committees.

• Virginia Retirement System Lock Box Amendment (HJ 680): Protects the future solvency of the Virginia Retirement System by preventing the General Assembly from raiding the pension trust fund as a way to balance the budget, as it did earlier this year.
• Accelerated Sales Tax Repeal (Budget Amendment 3-5.08 #2h): Budget amendment to repeal the “Accelerated Sales Tax” gimmick that falsely inflates state revenue by requiring small businesses to remit sales taxes to the state that they have not yet collected from customers so the state may shift revenue between fiscal years.

Watch the video below or click here.

If you make it to Richmond during the session, please drop by my office — room 707 in the General Assembly Building — to say hello. As always, if you have a problem with your state government and don’t know where to turn, don’t get frustrated, just email me at DelDEnglin@house.virginia.gov or call my office at 703-549-3203 and let my aide and I see how we can help.

Thank you for the opportunity to serve.

Sincerely,

• Details of his legislative agenda for the 2011 General Assembly session
• David announces legislation to ensure Virginia students have accurate textbooks
• Telephone Town Hall Meeting engages thousands in discussion of Virginia’s finances (MP3 of event)
• David and colleague team up to introduce anti-bullying legislation

The Virginia House of Delegates annual art contest is open to public, private, and homeschooled students ages 4-12. The goal is to provide students with an opportunity to be creative, explore new ideas, and share his/her vision on a topic that is related to Virginia’s rich heritage.

Each participant should create an original, two-dimensional artwork that illustrates what makes living and/or going to school in your district special and/or what contributions your district has made to the Commonwealth of Virginia.

What is your district, click here.

Entries must be postmarked by December 3, 2010. 

Note: There is a file embedded within this post, please visit this post to download the file.

Please RSVP online or holiday@DavidEnglin.org or call 703-549-3203, to let David know you’ll be there.

Alexandria – Delegate David Englin (D-45) issued the following statement today in response to Gov. Bob McDonnell’s appointment of Fred Malek to chair the Governor’s Commission on Government Reform and Restructuring:

While I support the effort to create a top-level commission to recommend policies to reform government, it is deeply disturbing that Governor McDonnell would appoint as its chair Fred Malek, whose history in “reforming” government includes creating lists of Jews serving in government to track and remove from government service. Was there really no more qualified individual in Virginia to lead this panel? Has he done anything to disavow and make amends for his previous anti-Semitism? Otherwise, it’s one more slap in the face from McDonnell to Jewish state employees, coming right on the heels of allowing uniformed state police chaplains to proselytize to Jewish troopers and their families. These continued missteps from the McDonnell Administration are distractions from the competent and effective governing Virginians expect and deserve.

A graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy, Delegate David Englin is Vice Chairman of the House Democratic Caucus and is serving his third term in the Virginia House of Delegates, where he represents the 45th District, which includes parts of the City of Alexandria, Fairfax County, and Arlington County. He serves on the Finance Committee, the Health, Welfare, and Institutions Committee, and the Agriculture, Chesapeake, and Natural Resources Committee. For more information, visit http://www.davidenglin.org.

39th, incumbent Vivian Watts
Of her challengers: “None is the equal of Ms. Watts, a former state secretary of transportation.”

43rd, incumbent Mark Sickles
“A savvy, productive lawmaker.”

44th, open seat Scott Surovell
“An energetic, creative-minded lawyer who knows state and local issues in depth. He’s clearly the best choice for this open seat.”

45th, incumbent David Englin
“Is in a cakewalk against a former Bush administration appointee whose knowledge and experience regarding state and local issues are tissue-thin.”

With the summer flying by, I hope you have been able to enjoy a little down time, and that you and your family were able to take advantage of last weekend’s back-to-school sales tax holiday.  Between the special session of the General Assembly, working with constituents on a variety of issues, and ramping up Team Englin’s efforts to elect Barack Obama and Mark Warner, I’ve been keeping busy.

As you know, Virginia is a critical battleground in this year’s presidential election.  I wanted to share two articles with you.  This one demonstrates how our grassroots efforts here in Virginia can change the course of our country.  And this one — revealing the Bush administration’s quiet effort to de-facto outlaw most birth control and John McCain’s quiet complicity — gives just one example of why we must do everything possible to elect Barack Obama.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to serve.  Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you need assistance or if there’s anything I can do to serve you better.

Del. David Englin

Last week, I traveled to Richmond for the beginning of yet another special session attempting to address transportation funding.  Both Governor Kaine and Senate Democrats offered reasonable plans that make good-faith attempts to alleviate traffic gridlock, invest in public transit, and protect public safety by maintaining our bridges and roads.  For my part, I have been pushing to offset any gas tax or general sales tax increase with a reduction in the remaining 1.5% state sales tax on food to reduce the impact on people struggling in this tough economy.

Unfortunately, House Republicans killed Governor Kaine’s plan in committee last week and apparently intend to kill the Senate plan on the House floor on July 9.  Candidly, I am not optimistic that any plan will pass as long as Republicans control the House, but I will certainly keep you apprised.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to serve.  Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you need assistance or if there’s anything I can do to serve you better.

Del. David Englin

On June 23, I will travel to Richmond for another special session attempting to address transportation funding.  While House and Senate Democrats and a handful of moderate Republicans work together towards a solution, the House Republican leadership has indicated that they will not allow a vote on any plan that raises the revenue necessary to alleviate traffic gridlock, invest in public transit, and protect public safety by maintaining our bridges and roads.  So that I can represent you better during this process, please take a moment to complete my latest constituent survey, which outlines several transportation funding options.

My good friend Del. Brian Moran, Chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, is preparing to run for Governor.  There is a reception in his honor in Old Town tomorrow evening.  Click here for the details, and help Brian continue to make progress for all Virginans.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to serve.  Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you need assistance or if there’s anything I can do to serve you better.

Sincerely,

Del. David Englin