2020 Legislative Accomplishments
I have been honored to be a part of a historic class of legislators for the 2020 session.
We have accomplished so much together this year.
The Environment
In 2020, we made historic progress in the promotion of clean energy and combating climate change. We passed the Virginia Clean Economy Act, which puts Virginia on the path toward a 100 percent renewable-energy electricity supply by 2050. The law creates schedules for Dominion Energy Virginia and American Electric Power to retire their fossil fuel plants and ensure generating capacity powered by sunlight or onshore wind by 2045 and 2050 respectively, while also setting requirements for Dominion Energy Virginia’s investment in offshore wind energy projects.
We also became the southernmost state to join the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a market-based collaborative effort among several Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic states to fight climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the power sector while driving economic growth. We entered into the initiative by enacting the 2020 Clean Energy and Community Flood Preparedness Act. Joining the RGGI is estimated to create nearly $1 billion in revenue for our commonwealth by 2030, which will be invested in flood protection for vulnerable Virginia residents and energy efficiency gains for low-income populations.
Common-sense Gun Violence Prevention
Throughout my campaign for Delegate, I spoke with thousands of constituents from across the political spectrum who overwhelmingly support gun violence prevention measures. Seven House bills establishing stronger gun safety measures — all introduced in response to the Virginia Beach tragedy in May 2019—were signed by the governor. These laws implement universal background checks for sales of firearms, require gun owners to report lost and stolen firearms, increase the penalty for recklessly allowing children to have access to loaded firearms, allow localities to ban firearms at certain public facilities or events, establish substantial risk protective orders, prohibit persons subject to domestic violence protective orders from possessing firearms, and restore a limit on the number of gun purchases a person may make per month.
Education
Early childhood education was a key issue during my campaign. I am pleased to report that this year we added $94.8 million in new funding for Virginia’s early childhood education system to increase access for at-risk three and four-year-olds. This funding will go towards increasing the amount of per-pupil dollars, boosting incentives for private providers, ensuring class size flexibility, and helping to eliminate waiting lists.
Civil Rights
We passed The Virginia Values Act, making Virginia the first Southern state to pass anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ individual. This legislation creates protections in hiring, housing & public accommodations not just for LGBT people but also outlaws discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, disability and, status as a veteran in public accommodations. We also became the 38th state to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, passed legislation to ensure equal pay regardless of sex or race, and outlawed discrimination based on pregnancy.
Sponsored Legislation
Seven of my bills passed this session and were signed by the Governor into law. Below is a brief description of each bill.
HB 232 - Requires the Department of Elections to proactively provide voter registration forms to college students who receive the Virginia Tuition Assistance Grant fund.
HB 375 - A consumer protection bill that restricts the use of forced arbitration clauses at predatory, for profit higher education schools.
HB 376 - Expands the data that the Department of Education collects to include instructional support staff, type of teacher by locality, and number of higher ed students that complete a university teacher prep program. This data will provide more insight into how many teachers we are losing from the state and the true shortage we need to solve.
HB 935 - Streamlines reporting required for the Virginia Economic Development Partnership.
HB 967 - Expedites occupational and professional licenses for military spouses and veterans who are stationed in Virginia.
HB 1553 - Gives the SCC authority to license and regulate the debt settlement industry and sets a fee cap on the amount of money those companies can charge a consumer.
HB 1681 - Increases the number of gaming machines allowed at social charitable clubs (VFW, Ruritan Club, American Legion, etc.). These machines are already allowed and are heavily regulated by the state, and increasing the cap on the number of machines will help these social clubs maintain their memberships and support of charitable causes, such as Massey Cancer Center, Wounded Warrior Project, Special Olympics, and Alzheimer’s research among many.
Resolutions
This year I was fortunate to carry several resolutions to recognize businesses or individuals in our community and commend them for their great work. This year I recognized the Faison Center’s 20th Anniversary, CrossOver Healthcare Ministry’s 15th Anniversary, the Next Move Program, the Douglas Freeman HS ‘We the People’ Team, and the Glen Allen HS JV Girls Basketball team. The 73rd district is an incredible community and I am so glad to be able to recognize the hard work of those who live, work, and attend schools here.
See a full list of my bills and resolutions online here.
Committee Assignments
House Agriculture, Chesapeake, and Natural Resources
Health Welfare and Institutions
Legislative Appointments
Virginia Small Business Commission