Virtual legislating is a challenge. Instead of being able to roam the halls of the Pocahontas Building and Capitol to meet with constituents who visit, fellow legislators, and experts, we’re separated from one another. But just as those of us who’ve been fortunate enough to have the option of virtual workplaces have discovered, there can be some upsides. The situation has caused us to modernize in some ways and make ourselves more accessible to the public. Virtual participation by the public and the ability to submit written testimony in advance is certainly something I hope we can keep in the future. I also appreciate all of you who reach out regularly with ideas, concerns, and challenges and help me be more effective in serving our community.
If you’ve tuned in to the House of Delegates recently, you’ll also notice I’m using a white board and some favorite photos as my background. I appreciate all those who have suggested quotes for the white board in line with our aspirations and hopes for the future as well as lessons of the past.
Some of my favorites from the past couple weeks have been:
– “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” –Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
– “To heal, we must remember” –Joe Biden
– “Just don’t give up what you’re trying to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don’t think you can go wrong.” –Ella Fitzgerald
As our regular legislative session nears its halfway point, I would love to hear some of your suggestions for quotes to ground us each day in our efforts on behalf of community, Commonwealth, and country. And as always, please reach out on anything else of concern or interest.
On Monday, I had the chance to virtually chat with constituent members of the Virginia Education Association. As the husband of a public school teacher, I know how hard our teachers are working during this pandemic as we work hard to get our schools open. Even during these challenging times, educators remain committed to providing a quality education for our kids, and I appreciated hearing about the ways we can help our schools and students in the General Assembly.
On Wednesday, Pastor Eung Yul Ryoo of the Korean Central Presbyterian Church (KCPC) in Centreville delivered an opening invocation for the House floor session. During his invocation, Pastor Ryoo emphasized governing towards unity and service to the communities we represent. As the Senior Pastor of KCPC, Pastor Ryoo is no stranger to community service himself. KCPC actively engaged in a number of impactful community service projects, including senior education programs, home-delivered meals, and support programs for families with individuals with special needs. I am so glad that Pastor Ryoo could join us on Wednesday, and you can watch his invocation here.
Looking towards the weekend, I am hoping to donate blood through Inova Blood Donor Services. Inova recently announced that their blood supply has hit critical levels and that blood donors are needed immediately. If you are able to give blood, you can contact Inova through https://www.inovablood.org/ or by calling 1-866-256-6372.
Legislative Updates
On Tuesday, the House passed emergency COVID vaccine legislation on a bipartisan basis. House Bill 2333 will authorize more qualified health care workers and volunteers to administer the vaccine, including recently-retired health practitioners, medical students, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners. I co-patroned HB 2333 because we need to remove unnecessary barriers to vaccine distribution as our supply begins to increase and help more Virginians receive the vaccine faster. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any concerns related to the vaccine rollout — I will continue to work to improve this process any way I can.
This week, we saw our bills take some exciting steps forward. HB 1820, which would expand access to food assistance through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to 25,000 Virginia families and more than 70,000 post-secondary students, passed out of the Appropriations Committee unanimously on Wednesday. During a time where the pandemic has caused an uptick in food insecurity, I am glad that members on both sides of the aisle are joining in this bold action to fight hunger in our Commonwealth. I recently authored an op-ed detailing the many ways that this legislation would help Virginia families, which you can read here.
Both of our bills to drive down taxpayer costs while simultaneously reducing emissions and protecting the environment, House Bills 1811 and 2001, passed the House this week. HB 2001 in particular helps our efforts to further electrify our transportation infrastructure. I look forward to working with the Senate to ensure these fiscally smart, clean energy priorities make their way towards becoming law in the coming weeks.
Another one of our bills, HB 1862, passed out of the General Laws committee on Tuesday. HB 1862 ensures that when employees are legally prescribed cannabis oil, they are able to treat their condition off the clock without the risk of being fired. This is a particularly important issue to our firefighters, who came to me about the issues as they may be prescribed CBD oil as a treatment for PTSD. Those protecting all of us on the front lines shouldn’t lose their job for treating a health condition. You can follow all the bills we’re working on here.
This week, Virginia continued to vaccinate those in the 1A and 1B groups. To find out which vaccine phase you are included in, you can use the questionnaire here. Eligible Prince William County residents can schedule a vaccine appointment here and Fairfax County residents can schedule an appointment here.
As of this week, there are now over 500,000 Virginians who have received at least one vaccine dose and 78,261 who are fully vaccinated. Virginia’s current 7-Day positivity rate is now at 11.8%, and while that number is still very high, it represents a 12.1% decrease from last week. Virginia also reached a significant milestone this week: the number of people who have received their first vaccine dose has now surpassed the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Virginia since the beginning of the pandemic.
I have heard from many of you about difficulties securing vaccine appointments, which has been caused by a vaccine supply shortage. There will be a major push this weekend to get our teachers vaccinated as we begin to receive more doses. Supply shortages, as well as changes in distribution, have created a lot of confusion and frustration around the vaccine rollout. There is still a lot of work to be done to improve this process, and I am committed to doing everything I can to help. I am in contact with health officials, and if you have any concerns you would like me to raise with them please do not hesitate to reach out to our office.
Favorites of the 40th
Healthy Families Greater Prince William Area, a program of Northern Virginia Family Service, provides voluntary home-visiting services to vulnerable first-time parents residing in the greater Prince William area. Established in 1996, the program is affiliated with Healthy Families America, an initiative of Prevent Child Abuse America, and is an active member of the 33-site Healthy Families Virginia network. Their primary goals are to promote positive parenting, improve child health and development, promote school readiness, and prevent child abuse and neglect. Those who would like assistance can reach Healthy Families Greater Prince William Area here, and those who would like to donate can do so here. For more information, Prince William County residents can call (571) 748-2699 and Fairfax County residents can call (571) 748-2500.
For those looking to get involved with our team, I wanted to let you know that we have a number of new volunteer opportunities. Next Saturday, we are hosting a drive-through petition signature event at Battlefield High School at noon to help get on the ballot for re-election. We are also currently conducting community check-in calls to provide residents of the 40th with up-to-date vaccine information. If you are interested in helping us out, you can fill out the form here or email kenneth@danhelmer.com.
Thank you for your partnership in our work this week. If our office can be helpful to you in any way during this time, please let us know. I hope you have a happy and healthy weekend.
Warm Regards,
Dan Helmer