My wife Karen is a public school teacher. I have two sons in our public schools. And, as a member of the Army Reserve, I get to spend a few weeks each year teaching cadets at West Point. My experience as a parent, husband, and sometime teacher myself gets me very concerned when we try to police what students “believe.” That’s exactly what HB 787, a bill introduced by Dave LaRock and passed last week out of the House, would do.
What was its patron concerned about students believing? We had heard quite a bit from the Governor that he had zero interest in banning history, and that the discussion of Critical Race Theory was not a thinly veiled dog whistle. The debate over HB 787 made it clear that’s exactly what it is.
The bill indicates that “certain teaching [is] declared unlawful and discriminatory.” We introduced a number of amendments to ensure that teaching our history or even basic demographic and economic information is protected. These included teaching about:
- Three Fifths Compromise to the Constitution
- Ruby Bridges integration of a school in the South
- Lost Cause mythology and role in the South
- Role of Jim Crow laws in enabling segregation
- Disparate impacts of COVID-19 on people of color
- Economic statistics about the wealth gap and income inequality
- Murder of Vincent Chin and its galvanizing the Asian American rights movement
- Demographics of government
- Legalization of gay marriage as a result of the Obergefell decision
- And even Supreme Court Precedents (not a specific precedent – just teaching them in general)
Republicans rejected all of them and passed the bill. Two Republicans were so ashamed that they walked off rather than vote. They should be. Teaching our history shouldn’t be partisan. We are not China or the former Soviet Union. We teach students how to think instead of what to think. Our history is exceptional, and America has played an exceptional role in the world. If students don’t understand what we’ve needed to overcome to get where we are and how much there is left to do then how can they continue to lead the next generation of advancing America’s ideals both at home and in the world?
Town Hall
Please join me from 7:00 – 7:45 pm this coming Thursday for an online Town Hall conversation about our legislative session.
Register here to join – I look forward to seeing you on Thursday!
Legislative Updates
This week was “crossover” week where the work of the House passes to the Senate and vice versa. I’m proud to share that five of our bills have passed the House with enormous bipartisan support.
Increasing access to higher education
I was pleased to see that our bill, which ensures that low-income students are able to remain in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, passed unanimously. HB 484 ensures that these students are able to continue their education even after they’ve been at school for two years and are in the process of earning a four-year degree; current law boots them off the program halfway through a degree. I believe that college should be an option for every Virginian, and this bill is fundamental in helping Virginians complete an education.
Driving down healthcare costs
Hospitals have increased the costs of care year-over-year, leaving many patients unable to afford basic healthcare. When told to provide transparent pricing by the Federal Government, they sued, and when they lost, continued to ignore the requirement. As of this month most Virginia hospitals continued to not comply. Our bill to require hospitals to post price information on their websites and closing a loophole in the Federal law, passed with a 98-Y 1-N vote. It is now in the Senate legislative process. Transparency drives down the cost of care, and this bill will get us one more step closer to ensuring every Virginian can afford healthcare. You can watch my remarks about HB 481 here.
Promoting healthcare access
Because of the pandemic, many individuals have faced challenges accessing care. I believe that every Virginian should have access to a healthcare provider, which is why I proposed a bill that will make it easier for Virginia providers to offer care and for Virginians to receive it. On Tuesday, it passed unanimously in the House and is now onto the Senate.
Honoring our law enforcement officers’ service
Our current law treats part time and full time law enforcement officers differently at the end of their careers. This is particularly problematic as we face workplace shortages that find full time officers converting to part time toward the end of their career. Thank you to Fairfax County Sheriff Stacey Kincaid for being a fierce advocate for the law enforcement community and highlighting some needed remedies. HB 1130 unanimously passed in the House and has now “crossed over” to the Senate for its consideration.
Recognizing the Tamil poet, Thiruvalluvar
One of the things I love most about our community is its diversity, and House Bill 1238 offers historic recognition to Virginia and America’s Tamil community. This bill passed unanimously in the House, passed out of committee in the Senate, and is on its way to the Senate floor. I am proud to stand with our local Tamil community in advancing this measure.
You can follow and read more about all of the bills we are working on here. I look forward to keeping you informed on the progress we are making in the coming weeks and hearing your ideas and feedback.
Community Connections
This week, I met with George Mason University’s President, Gregory Washington. I enjoyed talking with him about ways that higher education students in the district can thrive academically.
As one of two serving members of the Army Reserve in the General Assembly, I’m especially proud of the work our Military and Veterans Caucus does on behalf of Virginia. As a member of this caucus, I heard testimony from Admiral Quigley about the critical importance of access to affordable childcare and combating climate change. This is key to both national security and keeping the defense industry bases in Virginia.
At least one in ten Virginia couples face infertility, and only 1 in 4 get the treatment they need—with cost being an enormous barrier. This week, I enjoyed meeting with leaders from RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association, the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, the American Society of Clinical Oncology, America’s first IVF baby Elizabeth Carr, and more committed advocates — all who are fighting to ensure Virginians can build their families. I appreciate the work they are doing to ensure access to all individuals who want to build a family and face hardship.
Favorites of the 40th
This week’s Favorites of the 40th is Rosa Bakes. Rosa Bakes specializes in 100% plant-based baked goods and have a wide variety of items from cookies, to cupcakes, brownies, cakes, and donuts.
Rosa Bakes opened in June 2020, and offers a different assortment of treats than one usually sees in bakeries. Their baked goods are more lightly sweetened than traditional bakery items and are made with Whole Food Plant Based (WFPB) ingredients like dates, coconut sugar, oat flour and almond flour. Rosa Bakes also offers a variety of gluten-free desserts like their very popular GF chocolate chip cookie.
Rosa Bakes’ goal is to provide healthy and delicious bakery goods without using animal-based products. Their mission is to help improve the health of its customers, the planet, and save animals’ lives.
Place your order. Local residents may place their order 1-2 days in advance, online on their website here.
Learn more. You can learn more about Rosa Bakes by visiting their social media pages on Instagram, Facebook, Tiktok, and Twitter. Since Rosa Bakes is a relatively new business, they would greatly appreciate it if you followed them on social media to help spread the word about their bakery within our local communities. Rosa Bakes appreciates the community support for its business, and is grateful for its customers.
As always, please don’t hesitate to reach out if my office might be of assistance. I hope you and your family are staying healthy and well.