General Assembly update

Tuesday marked the Virginia General Assembly's "crossover day," the deadline for each chamber to pass its own bills and advance them to the opposite chamber.

BILLS THAT SURVIVED:

$4 billion debt-financed transportation project

Gov. Bob McDonnell's $4 billion transportation financing proposal cleared the state Senate Thursday despite concerns that the project will be financed by nearly $3 billion in debt. The 34-6 vote cleared the last remaining hurdle for the governor's plan to jump-start mothballed highway projects. The proposal passed the House of Delegates last week with a huge majority.

Sex education mandated in schools

The House is considering a bill that would require public schools to teach students about reducing unintended pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases, and teenage substance-abuse problems. The Senate voted 24-16 last week to approve the measure, which was sponsored by Sen. Ralph Northam (D-Dist. 6). The bill, SB 967, would require each school division to adopt the state's Standards of Learning for sex education. Northam, a physician, noted that the curriculum would still emphasize abstinence.

Current Virginia law requires the state Board of Education to issue grade-level guidelines for sex education, but each school division chooses whether to teach such courses. The law allows parents to review the curriculum and excuse their children from sex education classes.

Anti-discrimination in state hiring

The Senate approved a bill last Wednesday to prohibit discrimination in state employment based on a person's "actual or perceived heterosexuality, bisexuality, homosexuality, or gender identity or expression." The measure, SB 747, was sponsored by Sen. A. Donald McEachin (D-Dist.9) and passed with a vote of 22-18. A nearly identical bill cleared the Senate last year, but failed in the Republican-dominated House.

Autism insurance coverage

The Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor is considering a bill that would mandate insurance providers to cover up to $35,000 per year for autism treatment. HB2467, sponsored by Del. Thomas A. Greason (R-Dist. 32) and backed by Speaker William Howell, cleared the House by a vote of 74-24.

According to a statement by the Department of Planning and Budget, the annual cost would be $1.2 million; however, Greason asserted that costs would range from $590,000 to $820,000 a year. The Virginia Tea Party attacked the bill for its expenses and expansion of government power.

The Washington Post asserted that the vote all but guarantees the bill's passage through the General Assembly. Gov. Bob McDonnell has not yet stated whether he would sign the bill.

High school anti-sagging campaign commendation

Both the House and the Senate approved a joint resolution commending a high school student's campaign to get his classmates to pull up their pants. At Kecoughtan High School in Hampton, senior class president Rasheed Parker was "tired of watching his classmates waddle... and looking at their undergarments."

The resolution, sponsored by Del. Algie Howell (D-Dist. 90), states, "Students who wear sagging pants find it difficult to walk or carry things as they must use their hands to hold up their pants or allow their pants to fall down."

The assembly praised Parker for his initiatives to promote "peer education to help students think about dress choices they make."

Harsher penalties for illegal immigrants

The Senate will consider a legislative package that would crack down harder on illegal immigrants across the state. Last week, the House of Delegates approved measures that would require Virginia's public colleges and universities to delineate their policies against enrolling illegal immigrants, compel the Virginia State Police to enforce federal immigration laws, require public contractors to verify that their employees are legal U.S. residents, and require police to check the immigration status of everyone arrested in Virginia. The Senate is not expected to pass the measures.

Extended filing time for sexual abuse cases

A House subcommittee will hear a bill to increase the amount of time to file civil claims of child molestation to 20 years. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Frederick Quayle (R-Dist. 13) passed the Senate 37-3 last week.

The Charlottesville Daily Progress reports that the Catholic Church has expressed opposition to the bill, claiming the law would increase the number of suits raised against the church and that lost or outdated evidence would complicate a defense. Proponents argue that the memories of an abuse are often suppressed long into adulthood. The current time limit to file a molestation claim is two years.

BILLS THAT FAILED:

Privatization of state liquor stores

Gov. Bob McDonnell's initiative to privatize state liquor stores died in the General Assembly Tuesday without receiving a hearing or a vote. The bill's failure marked a major defeat for the governor, who launched a large public campaign to promote the plan this fall. The Washington Post reports that the Senate Democrats refused to hear the bill until the House version was debated; however, House Republicans declined to hear the bill because it was expected to be killed. A Democrat had introduced the House bill without McDonnell's approval. McDonnell is expected to attempt another compromise next year.

Retaining 'Don't ask, don't tell' in Va. National Guard

A bill that would have kept the "don't ask, don't tell" policy in place in the Virginia National Guard was effectively killed in a House committee last week. Del. Robert Marshall (R-Dist. 13) sponsored the highly controversial bill.

Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli issued an advisory opinion stating that maintaining "don't ask, don't tell" might spark a complete withdrawal of federal funds from the Virginia National Guard. The Virginia National Guard received about $221 million in federal funds and $9.2 million in state funds in the last fiscal year, according to Cotton Puryear, spokesman for the state Department of Military Affairs.

"Should the General Assembly wish to evade the conditions attached to federal funding, the General Assembly can raise, equip and fund an independent Virginia militia entirely from state revenues," Cuccinelli said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.