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Virginia’s 16th District delegate is spending the General Assembly’s summer recess working on environmental, cannabis, health care and budget issues while assisting constituents and preparing legislation for the next session.
The General Assembly meets for 45 days in odd-numbered years and 60 days in even-numbered years, but lawmakers continue their official duties between sessions. The delegate, who also holds a full-time job, has made nearly weekly trips to Richmond for meetings involving the Appropriations Committee, Broadband Advisory Council and State Water Commission.
During the annual Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources Committee retreat on the Eastern Shore, legislators visited the Virginia Institute of Marine Science laboratory, the Virginia Tech Agricultural Research Center and several farms. The trip covered oyster restoration, Chesapeake Bay health, flood resilience, commercial shellfish production, saltwater intrusion’s effects on agriculture and emerging Virginia crops.
Additional travel plans include the Virginia Environmental Justice Retreat for Legislators in Charlottesville later this month and the annual NCSL conference in Boston in August.
The delegate also chaired two interim commission meetings in Richmond. The Tribal Code Commission is working to update Virginia law following federal recognition of seven tribal nations. Its planned subjects include the Indian Child Welfare Act, which provides protections for Native children in custody, foster care and adoption proceedings, as well as tribal land easements.
At the first meeting of the Joint Retail Cannabis Transition Commission, created through HJ 497, the delegate was elected chairman. The commission will gather input from stakeholders and the public while developing legislation for the next General Assembly session aimed at establishing an age-restricted adult-use retail cannabis market.
At a Joint Health and Human Resources Subcommittee meeting, lawmakers also examined how federal changes could affect the Virginia Health Benefit Exchange and next year’s state budget.
Constituent services have continued throughout the recess. Recent requests from 16th District residents have involved recommendation letters, Virginia Department of Transportation matters, vital records, utility problems and REAL ID applications.
The delegate’s summer schedule has also included graduation ceremonies for Bryant, Mount Vernon and West Potomac high schools; a lunch with Chesapeake Climate Action Network participants; a Flag Day event at Fort Hunt Park; a Friends of Little Hunting Creek potluck; and a tour of Mount Vernon Library.
Other appearances included a Black Women United for Action event marking the opening of the permanent “Lives Bound Together: Slavery at Mount Vernon” exhibit at George Washington’s Mount Vernon. The delegate also toured The Rose, a new historic horse racing venue in Dumfries, and attended a Northern Virginia Transportation Commission meeting in Arlington.
Work is now underway on legislation for the General Assembly session beginning in January, alongside plans to attend more community events across the 16th District.