During the session, Roem expressed her ongoing efforts to collect community input to shape her legislative agenda effectively. "I am in my information gathering phase," Roem stated, explaining her approach to understanding the specific needs of the communities she represents, including Manassas Park, the City of Manassas, the town of Haymarket, and Prince William County.
Roem reassured the council of her support for local projects, such as the much-needed streetlight improvements along Manassas Drive. She asked for updates on federal grants applied for and the amount of city money already allocated to the project to determine how much state coverage is needed.
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(The Center Square) — The use of a male pronoun interrupted the Virginia Senate’s proceedings on Monday.
The state’s first senator to openly identify as transgender, Sen. Danica Roem, D-Prince William, addressed Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears, who presides over the chamber, with some questions. Sears seemingly offhandedly referred to Roem as “sir” in her second response to the senator.
Roem quietly and immediately left the chamber. After a few moments, several other senators also rose and left. Sears tried to continue with the agenda but obliged when Sen. Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax, requested a recess. They reconvened minutes later, but the commotion still appeared to be interfering with the Senate’s business, so Sears put the Senate at ease.
“Let it be known, I am not here to upset anyone. I am here to do the job that the people of Virginia have called me to do,” she said.
She softened some as she went on but still demanded that she be shown “respect and dignity,” appearing frustrated with the interruptions from the incident.
“It is never my intention to make anyone offended, and I hope that others would consider that they would try not to offend me, as well.”
She also exhorted the body to show grace to each other in such instances.
The chamber returned to its normal proceedings.
Roem did not make a public statement on Monday and was silent on X, formerly known as Twitter, where legislators sometimes comment on chamber business.
Roem has focused on legislation related to data centers, emphasizing the need for stringent approval processes. One of her proposed bills states that any local government land use application required for the siting of a data center must adhere to specific notice and noise abatement provisions. These provisions include notifying residents within a half-mile radius, scheduling and attending neighborhood meetings, and conducting sound studies to determine baseline and post-construction noise levels.
“I’m isolating at home in Manassas (albeit with my kitties, so not entirely alone). I plan to participate in committee and floor session remotely Monday,” Roem posted to X, formerly Twitter. “If I test negative Tuesday, I’ll mask up and return.”
In addition to her focus on data centers, Roem has filed bills addressing the availability of school meals to students at no cost. The proposed legislation requires each public elementary and secondary school to participate in federal meal programs, making lunch and breakfast available to any student who requests it, regardless of their ability to pay. The Department of Education would reimburse schools for meals served, with a maximum of one breakfast and one lunch per student per school day.
Roem’s bills also touch on the Community Eligibility Provision, aiming to maximize access to federal funds for school breakfast and lunch programs. Schools with a minimum identified student percentage may apply to participate in CEP, ensuring greater federal funding for meals served.
Roem is currently in her inaugural four-year term as a Virginia State Senator. Before her current role, she secured a significant victory in 2017 when she was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates.
During that election year, notable changes occurred as the seats for Prince William County’s General Assembly delegation shifted from a majority of Republicans to Democrats, marking a transformative moment in the county’s political landscape.
Virginia Senator Danica Roem (D-30, Gainesville, Manassas) is encouraged about her bill to reform the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) fees.
Roem, who has been advocating for FOIA reform throughout her four terms in office, first in the House of Delegates and now in the State Senate, highlighted the progress made during a session in the Senate's General Laws committee in a video posted to Twitter on Wednesday, January 17, 2024.
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“As data centers continue to proliferate across Virginia, the General Assembly this winter is poised to take up a host of bills intended to address their impacts, including increased electricity costs and environmental pressures,” reports Charlie Paullin at The Virginia Mercury. “Virginia is home to the greatest concentration of data centers in the world. While the centers can be found around the state, most are in Northern Virginia, which has more than 300. Eastern Loudoun County, where the facilities cover roughly 573 acres, is known as Data Center Alley, and Prince William is increasingly becoming a hot spot after local officials recently approved a campus of 27 centers that would sit on 270 acres.”
The General Election in Virginia on Tuesday, November 7, saw changes in representation for the State Senate.
This was the first election held under newly drawn political districts by the Virginia State Supreme Court in 2021.
Here is the list of winners in Prince William County:
Virginia State Senate — Elections every four years
District 29 (Central Prince William County, Woodbridge, North Stafford)
Winner: Jeremy McPike (D)
McPike has served in the state senate since 2016. He defeated Republican Nikki Rattray Baldwin by 12 points.
District 30 (Manassas, Manassas Park, Gainesville)
Winner Danica Roem (D)
Roem will become the first to serve this newly drawn district. Roem beat Bill Woolf (R) by three and a half points.
District 33 (Lorton, Woodbridge)Â
Winner: Jennifer Carrol Foy (D)
Jennifer Carroll Foy will return to the state legislature after serving nearly two full terms. Carroll Foy resigned to make an unsuccessful bid for governor in 2021.
Carroll Foy beat Republican challenger Mike Van Meter by 25 points.
We’ll have more election recap information regarding the House of Delegates and Board of County Supervisors soon.
Gov. Glenn Youngkin will visit Manassas and Prince William County tomorrow, Tuesday, July 18, 2023.
Manassas Economic Development Department: “The City of Manassas and the Governor of Virginia will host a ribbon-cutting celebration for unmanned aircraft system designer and manufacturer RapidFlight. RapidFlight was located to the City last year and has recently completed extensive renovations to their facility at 9617 Center Street, where the company will create 119 new high-wage jobs over the next several years.”
Manassas Mayor Michelle Davis-Younger, Virginia Secretary of Commerce and Trade Caren Merrick, and RapidFlight executives will join Youngkin on Tuesday, July 18th at 12:30 p.m., at 9617 Center Street, Manassas.
From there, Youngkin will head to Piney Branch Elementary School in Bristow.
Gov. Youngkin’s office: “On Tuesday, Governor Glenn Youngkin will host a Parents Matter conversation to discuss the administration’s ongoing work to empower parents and keep children safe…2:00 PM, Piney Branch Elementary School, 8301 Linton Hall Road, Bristow.”
Politically, both events will take place in the 30th Senate District, which Republicans hope to win in deep blue Northern Virginia. The district has no incumbent and includes Manassas and western Prince William County, Haymarket, and Gainesville areas.
Delegate Danica Roem (D) is running for the seat. Bill Woolf (R) is also running for the seat. Today, Woolf challenged Roem to three debates during the General Election season.
The Virginia Supreme Court created Senate District 30 during the state’s decennial redistricting process in 2021.
Bay Area Reporter: “As she faces a tough election battle this year to become a senator in her home state, transgender [Prince William County/Manassas Park] Delegate Danica Roem will be in San Francisco this weekend to meet with local LGBTQ leaders and raise money for her campaign. It is her latest swing through the Bay Area in recent months as she prepares for the fall election.”
“Now she is seeking her state’s open Senate District 30 seat in November against Republican Bill Woolf, 43, a straight married father of six children. The former police officer has the support of Virginia’s GOP Governor Glenn Youngkin.”
“A key issue Roem has been fighting for several years now is policies around trans youth in the state’s schools. She sits on an oversight panel that last year called out the proposed transphobic rules the state’s education department had issued under Youngkin, with Roem noting they went against state and federal laws.”
Here’s the Virginia Senate 30 seat breakdown in western Prince William County and Manassas. Roem has raised $378,000 so far, compared to Woolf’s $39,000.
