161st Virginia General Assembly

The 161st Virginia General Assembly, consisting of members who were elected in both the House election and Senate elections in 2019, convened on January 8, 2020. It is the first time that Democrats have held both houses of the General Assembly and the governorship since the 147th General Assembly in 1993.

161st Virginia General Assembly
←160th 162nd→
Overview
TermJanuary 8, 2020 –
Senate of Virginia
Members40
President of the SenateLt. Gov. Justin Fairfax (D)
Senate Majority LeaderDick Saslaw (D)
Senate Minority LeaderTommy Norment (R)
Party control
Virginia House of Delegates
Members100
Speaker of the HouseEileen Filler-Corn (D)
House Majority LeaderCharniele Herring (D)
House Minority LeaderTodd Gilbert (R)
Party control
Sessions
1stJanuary 8, 2020 – March 12, 2020
Special sessions
1stAugust 18, 2020 –

A special session was called by Governor Ralph Northam for August 18, 2020 to make budget cuts and pass bills for criminal justice reform, racial justice, affordable housing and COVID-19 protections.

Membership
Main articles: 2019 Virginia House of Delegates election and 2019 Virginia Senate election

On November 9, 2019, Eileen Filler-Corn was nominated by the Democratic majority caucus for Speaker of the House of Delegates, and upon election by the House on January 8, she became the first woman and first person of Jewish descent to be elected Speaker. Concurrently, Charniele Herring was elected as Majority Leader, making her the first woman and first African-American to serve as Majority Leader.

In addition, Ghazala Hashmi became the first Muslim woman to be elected to the Senate. Incumbent Danica Roem became the first transgender legislator to be re-elected to office in U.S. history.

In total, the 161st General Assembly has the highest number of women elected to both bodies, with 30 in the House and 11 in the Senate.

Speaker Filler-Corn selected Del. Luke Torian to be the first African-American House Appropriations Chair in state history. This is the first time that an African-American delegate will chair a House committee since William P. Robinson Jr. (D-Norfolk) chaired the Transportation Committee in 1998 and was co-chairman of the panel in 1998, according to House Clerk G. Paul Nardo.[1]

Leadership

Senate

Committee chairs and ranking members

The Senate of Virginia has 10 Standing Committees and a Committee on Rules.[2]

CommitteeChairRanking Minority Member
Agriculture, Conservation and Natural ResourcesChap PetersenEmmett Hanger
Commerce and LaborDick SaslawTommy Norment
JudiciaryJohn S. EdwardsTommy Norment
Education and HealthLouise LucasStephen Newman
Finance and AppropriationsJanet HowellTommy Norment
General Laws and TechnologyGeorge BarkerFrank Ruff
Local GovernmentLynwood LewisEmmett Hanger
Privileges and ElectionsCreigh DeedsJill Vogel
Rehabilitation and Social ServicesBarbara FavolaEmmett Hanger
RulesMamie LockeTommy Norment
TransportationDave MarsdenStephen Newman

House of Delegates

Committee chairs and ranking members

The House has 14 standing committees.[3]

Committee Chair Senior Minority Member
Subcommittee
Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural ResourcesKenneth R. PlumR. Lee Ware
AgricultureWendy Gooditis
ChesapeakeAlfonso H. Lopez
Natural ResourcesKathy Tran
AppropriationsLuke TorianM. Kirkland Cox
Capital OutlayCliff Hayes Jr.
Commerce, Agriculture and Natural ResourcesDavid Bulova
Compensation and Central GovernmentRoslyn Tyler
Elementary and SecondaryDelores McQuinn
Health and Human ServicesMark Sickles
Higher EducationBetsy B. Carr
Transportation and Public SafetyPaul Krizek
Communications, Technology and InnovationCliff Hayes Jr.Kathy Byron
CommunicationsDanica Roem
Technology and InnovationHala Ayala
Counties Cities and TownsKaye KoryCharles Poindexter
Ad HocKathleen Murphy
ChartersDanica Roem
Land UseSteve Heretick
Courts of JusticeCharniele HerringTerry Kilgore
CivilJeff Bourne
CriminalMichael P. Mullin
JudicialJoseph C. Lindsey
EducationRoslyn TylerMark L. Cole
Post-Secondary and Higher EducationMark Keam
Pre-K-12Lamont Bagby
SOL and SOQSchuyler VanValkenburg
FinanceVivian E. WattsRobert D. Orrock, Sr.
Subcommittee #1Mark Keam
Subcommittee #2Steve Heretick
Subcommittee #3Rip Sullivan
General LawsDavid BulovaThomas C. Wright, Jr.
ABC/GamingPaul Krizek
Housing/Consumer ProtectionMarcus Simon
Open Government/ProcurementBetsy B. Carr
Professions/Occupations and Administrative Process SubcommitteeChris Hurst
Health, Welfare and InstitutionsMark D. SicklesRobert D. Orrock, Sr.
Behavioral HealthMarcia Price
Health ProfessionsDawn Adams
HealthPatrick Hope
Social ServicesElizabeth Guzman
Labor and CommerceJeion WardTerry Kilgore
Subcommittee #1Lamont Bagby
Subcommittee #2Steve Heretick
Subcommittee #3Rip Sullivan
Privileges and ElectionsJoe LindseyRobert D. Orrock, Sr.
Campaign FinanceDavid A. Reid
Constitutional AmendmentsMarcus Simon
ElectionsSchuyler VanValkenburg
Gubernatorial AppointmentsKelly Convirs-Fowler
RedistrictingMarcus Simon
Public SafetyPatrick HopeThomas C. Wright, Jr.
FirearmsJeff Bourne
Public SafetyMark Levine
RulesEileen Filler-CornM. Kirkland Cox
Joint RulesEileen Filler-Corn
Standards of ConductN/A
StudiesMark Sickles
Subcommittee #2N/A
TransportationDelores McQuinnRobert B. Bell
Motor VehiclesJay Jones
Transportation Innovation and General TopicsKarrie Delaney
Transportation SystemsBetsy B. Carr
Subcommittee #4N/A

Legislation

Pre-filing of bills for the 2020 session began November 18, 2019. 828 bills were passed by the House by crossover day on February 12, 2020, an increase from the 603 bills passed under the Republican majority in the 2019 session.

Enacted
  • January 27, 2020: HJ 1/SJ 1: Resolution to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment to the United States Constitution
  • February 24, 2020: HB 35/SB 103: Restores parole eligibility to those serving 20 years of a sentence for crimes committed as a juvenile and for which they received a lengthy sentence
  • March 4, 2020: HB 245: Repeals the crime of fornication
  • March 2, 2020: HB 61: Provides that an adult sentenced for a juvenile offense can earn good conduct credit at the rate of one day for each one day served.
  • March 2, 2020: HB 386: Prohibits the performance of conversion therapy by state-licensed counselors on juveniles under 18
  • March 2, 2020: HB 587: Requiring the inclusion of space and equipment for changing babies during plans for new state government buildings
  • HB 277: Allowing currently-incarcerated individuals to earn credit towards paying off fines and fees through community work
  • HB 1490: Repealing statutory bans on same-sex marriages and civil unions.
  • HB 696: Provides that localities may prohibit discrimination in housing, employment, public accommodations, credit, and education on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity
  • HB 1071: Repeals the crime of profane swearing
  • HB 973/SB 600: Repeals several laws enacted from 1901 to 1960 which encoded racial segregation of students in elementary and secondary schools and institutions of higher education in Virginia
  • HB 1514/SB 50: Protects hair texture, hair type, and protective hairstyles such as braids, locks, and twists from discrimination (see also: CROWN Act)

Other legislation

Notable bills filed include:

Equal Rights Amendment

HJ 1, prefiled by Jennifer Carroll Foy, and SJ 1, filed by Jennifer McClellan, will make Virginia the 3rd state since 2017 and the 38th overall necessary to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment (counting the five that have since voted to rescind their ratifications).[4] Both bills were given initial approval, with SJ 1 being approved 28-12 in the Senate and HJ 1 being approved 59-41 in the House, and were passed by the other chamber on January 27. All Democrats and several Republicans in both chambers voted in favor of the resolutions. However, experts and advocates have acknowledged legal uncertainty about the consequences of Virginia's potential ratification, due to the expired deadlines and the five states' purported revocations.[4]

Events

A peaceful protest opposing gun control legislation occurred outside the Virginia State Capitol on January 20, 2020.[5]

See also

References
  1. Vozzella, Laura (14 November 2019). "Incoming Va. House speaker makes top committee picks". Washington Post. Retrieved 2019-12-31.
  2. "Legislative Committees". Legislative Information System. Virginia General Assembly. Retrieved 2016-01-14.
  3. "Virginia House of Delegates Committees List". virginiageneralassembly.gov. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
  4. Astor, Maggie (2019-11-06). "The Equal Rights Amendment May Pass Now. It's Only Been 96 Years". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-11-12.
  5. "Virginia pro-gun rally: Despite anger, threats of insurrection, massive rally is carried out peacefully outside state Capitol". Washington Post. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
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