James City County’s Board of Supervisors sat down with state legislators to discuss its 2014 legislative priorities in advance of the General Assembly session.
On Tuesday night, the supervisors were joined by Sen. Tommy Norment (R-3rd District), Del. Brenda Pogge (R-96th) and Delegate-elect Monty Mason (D-93rd) and Alexandra Stephens, who is legislative aide to Senator John Miller (D-1st).
County Attorney Leo Rogers discussed each proposed item on the legislative agenda with the supervisors and then repeated information for the legislators. There are six pieces of legislation the county wanted introduced on its behalf, so the legislators voiced their opinions about the items and let the supervisors know what they would carry.
Norment and Pogge both offered to take up the first piece of legislation, which would remove the Greater Williamsburg Chamber and Tourism Alliance from serving as the fiscal agent for the Williamsburg Area Destination Marketing Committee. Rogers said this piece came from the Alliance.
“We are in agreement with it. We don’t believe that at this stage, after almost 10 years, that WADMC should be bound to a specific fiscal agent, nor should the Alliance be bound to be the fiscal agent,” said Alliance President and CEO Dick Schreiber. “That’s not at all an indication of any lack of interest on our part, rather just an indication that we think it more proper for WADMC to be able to have its choice, should it choose to make a choice other than the Alliance. We have absolutely no intention of trying to avoid that responsibility.”
The county is also seeking a change to the Freedom of Information Act that would prevent county employees’ names and salary amounts from being released if the employee makes under a certain amount. Pogge and Norment were hesitant due to citizens supporting transparency in government, but Pogge said she would see what happens in the House of Delegates.
Norment offered to pick up two items dealing with hybrid canines. The first was providing a method for determining when a canine is considered a hybrid and the second would allow localities to prohibit citizens from keeping hybrid canines.
Following the board’s meeting with the legislators, it enacted a hybrid canine ordinance for the first time.
None of the legislators offered to support allowing localities to advertise public meetings through phone calls or electronic means as opposed to advertising in newspapers.
“You know this has been filed about three years in a row and it’s failed every year,” Pogge said. She said someone would likely bring it back this year.
“Even in our 21st century mindset … I’m a little slow coming around,” Norment said.
Since the legislators didn’t pick up the item, the board agreed to move it to the list of items it supports rather than items it wants introduced on the county’s behalf.
On the drafted list of items the county supports are:
- Increasing state funding to the Virginia Tourism Corporation in order to promote Virginia tourism, and specifically tourism in the Historic Triangle;
- Maintaining new and existing secondary roads with adequate state funding, rather than transferring the fiscal responsibility to localities;
- Applying the $2 per night hotel tax to all rooms booked online and through travel companies;
- Enhancing rail services on the Peninsula to Richmond;
- Providing adequate state funding to: the Medicaid waiver program, providing services to children with serious emotional disorders and to covering reasonable administrative costs through the Comprehensive Services Act. Additionally, providing adequate state funding and services to prevent the mentally ill from living on the streets, going to jail, being inappropriately placed or being released early from treatment;
- Maintaining state funding for mental health and substance abuse treatments in jails and juvenile detention facilities;
- Equally taxing cities and counties;
- Restoring funding cuts to pre-K and K-12 funding as well as cuts to higher education;
- Maintaining state funding to public libraries;
- No new unfunded mandates and a reduction of existing unfunded mandates;
- Providing state funding to support mitigating Joint Base Langley-Fort Eustis encroachment; and
- Supporting the Virginia Municipal League, Virginia Association of Counties and Virginia Coalition of High Growth Communities legislative programs.
The board opted not to vote to finalize its legislative priorities, instead asking to read the legislative programs of other committees and councils prior to voting which to support. Rogers was instructed to begin work on the legislation the county wants introduced on its behalf to meet the filing deadline.
The board is expected to consider the legislative priorities draft at its Dec. 10 meeting.
