Setback for Disabled Veterans Exemption Reimbursements
Senator Jeremy McPike’s SB 1312, which sought supplemental payments for localities heavily impacted by real estate tax exemptions for disabled veterans, has died in committee. On January 23, the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee voted 7-6 to pass the bill indefinitely, effectively halting its progress this session.
The bill aimed to support communities like Stafford in maintaining essential services while accommodating a growing veteran population.
Fair Education Funding
Delegate Josh Cole’s HB 2164 proposes adjustments to the Local Composite Index (LCI) to account for tax-exempt property values. The measure would ensure education funding better reflects a locality’s true financial capacity. The bill was effectively defeated when the House Appropriations Subcommittee recommended laying it on the table on January 20, 2025, with an 8-0 vote. Alternative approaches, including budget amendments by Delegate Paul Milde and Senator Tara Durant, remain under consideration.
1% Sales Tax Referendum for School Construction
The county also supports SB 1307, which would allow localities to hold voter referendums to enact a 1% sales tax increase dedicated to school construction. The full Senate has passed the measure with a substantial majority. It now moves to the House, where it faces further scrutiny.
A similar bill passed both chambers last year but was vetoed by Governor Glenn Youngkin. Advocates are cautiously optimistic about its prospects this session.
As Stafford pushes for these legislative measures, the General Assembly approaches crossover, the session’s midpoint when each chamber must finalize and send its bills to the other chamber for review. This year, crossover falls on February 4, adding urgency for Stafford’s legislative team to gain traction on key bills.
The county also addressed concerns about panhandling regulations and roadway safety. A proposal from Delegate Milde would impose fines on exchanges between motorists and pedestrians in medians. While the majority of board members supported the measure as a public safety tool, Aquia Distirct Supervisor Monica Gary raised concerns about its potential impact on vulnerable populations.
A debate over proposed legislation targeting panhandling in road medians sparked a spirited discussion among Stafford County Supervisors during their January 21 meeting. The proposed bill, sponsored by Delegate Paul Milde (R-64, Stafford County), seeks to impose fines on motorists and pedestrians who exchange items in roadway medians to improve safety and reduce traffic disruptions.
The legislation was also a topic of discussion on the Potomac Local News Podcast, where Milde elaborated on his rationale behind the bill in an interview with Publisher Uriah Kiser.
Safety and Traffic Flow Concerns
During the podcast, Milde emphasized the safety and traffic issues posed by panhandling in medians.
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In this episode of the Potomac Local Podcast, Uriah Kiser interviews Delegate Paul Milde, a Republican representing Stafford County in Virginia’s 64th District. Delegate Milde discusses his reelection campaign, his work on transportation funding, data center growth, land preservation efforts, and revitalizing blighted areas like Aquia Town Center.
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On November 13, the House Privileges and Elections Committee convened to discuss House Joint Resolution 9, a proposed amendment to the Virginia Constitution that seeks to safeguard marriage equality. Delegates Michelle Maldonado (D-Manassas), Rozia Henson (D-Lorton, Woodbridge), and Paul Milde (R), representing parts of Northern Virginia, participated in the proceedings, which underscored Virginia's ongoing evolution in its approach to civil rights and marriage laws.
The resolution, introduced by Delegate Mark Sickles (D-Fairfax), aims to remove outdated language defining marriage as solely between one man and one woman. It also establishes protections ensuring that marriage rights are granted equally, regardless of sex, gender, or race. Sickles highlighted the growing public support for marriage equality, citing polling that shows a significant shift in attitudes since the original constitutional ban was enacted in 2006.
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On Tuesday, the House Privileges and Elections Committee in Virginia voted to advance House Joint Resolution 2 (HJ2), a proposed constitutional amendment that seeks to restore voting rights for individuals with felony convictions upon release from incarceration and strengthen voting protections for individuals with disabilities. The resolution, introduced by Delegate Elizabeth Bennett-Parker (D-Alexandria), was passed by the committee in a narrow vote of 12 to 9.
Under this amendment, individuals who have completed incarceration for felony convictions would automatically regain their voting rights, eliminating the current requirement for rights restoration by the governor.
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In a rare move, following Donald Trump’s re-election to the presidency, the Virginia House of Delegates Privileges and Elections Committee has scheduled a surprise meeting to review three proposed amendments to the Virginia Constitution.
The meeting, set for 11 a.m. tomorrow, November 13, 2024, will take place in House Committee Room C—206. It will catch the public’s attention ahead of the General Assembly’s regular session in January 2025.
The proposed amendments aim to codify rights around convicted felons voting, abortion, and gay marriage. Notable committee members include bipartisan voices such as Paul Milde (R-Stafford), Joshua Cole (D-Fredericksburg), Rozia Henson (D-Woodbridge), and Michelle Maldonado (D-Manassas).
Proposed Amendments on the Agenda:
Voting Rights
One proposed amendment, co-patroned by Prince William and Stafford County Senator Jeremy McPike (D), seeks to expand and clarify voting rights in Virginia. Under this amendment, individuals who have completed incarceration for felony convictions would automatically regain their voting rights, eliminating the current requirement for rights restoration by the governor.
Additionally, this proposal clarifies that mental incompetency can only disqualify an individual from voting if a court has determined the person cannot understand the act of voting. The amendment also includes provisions to allow advanced registration for young citizens nearing voting age, helping to ease their entry into the electoral process.
Abortion
In response to ongoing debates around abortion, the second proposed amendment would establish a constitutional right to abortion. This amendment, also co-patroned by McPike, states that individuals have an intrinsic right to make decisions about all matters related to pregnancy without government interference unless justified by a compelling state interest, such as protecting health per accepted medical standards.
The amendment also protects individuals from prosecution or penalties for seeking an abortion.
Gay Marriage
If adopted, the third amendment, co-patroned by Cole, would enshrine gay marriage in Virginia’s Constitution. It removes the current language defining marriage exclusively as a union between a man and a woman, instead recognizing marriage as a fundamental right.
The amendment prohibits discrimination in marriage licensing based on sex, gender, or race, ensuring equal treatment under state law for all marriages. Religious organizations and clergy would still retain the right to refuse to perform marriages that conflict with their beliefs. This amendment seeks to solidify Virginia’s commitment to marriage equality, further supporting recent shifts in national and state attitudes.
As the General Assembly prepares to meet in full session in January, the Privileges and Elections Committee’s preliminary discussions on these amendments could set the tone for Virginia’s legislative agenda in 2025.
Citizens interested in speaking or submitting comments to tomorrow’s committee meeting may do so online here.
Delegate Candi Mundon King (D-Prince William, Stafford) introduced two bills in the General Assembly Session that deal with transportation.
The first would cap the total amount of tolls drivers pay on the E-ZPass Express Lanes in the state to $200 per month. The bill would also allow disabled military veterans to use the lanes at no charge.
HB811 has been referred to the House Committee on Transportation. Delegates Nadarius E. Clark (D-Suffolk) and Sam Rasoul (D-Roanoke) are co-patrons.
King’s second bill, HB812, would bar the DMV from issuing any license plates that reference the “Confederacy, Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, or any other prominent Confederate leader.”
Virignia offers license plates commemorating Confederate General Robert E. Lee, a native Virginian, and a plate for the Sons of Confederate Veterans.
The House Transportation Committee meets Tuesdays and Thursdays at 9 a.m. during the session through March 10, 2024.
Locally, Delegates Brianna Sewell (D-Prince William) and Paul Milde (R-Stafford) sit on the committee.
King also chairs the House Committee on Counties, Cities, and Towns in the 2024 General Assembly Session.
"The Superintendent and School Board provided tangible ways to improve student outcomes, urging legislators to provide Stafford County with increased funding necessary to support high expectations for student performance, provide a safe, positive learning environment, and provide better conditions to recruit, retain and develop staff. Additional discussion focused on the need for a reduction in the burden of unfunded mandates and inefficient government practices."
"Stafford Schools urged legislators to consider Virginia’s K-12 funding formula to provide a more accurate cost of education in the local area, and to provide for additional local sales and use taxes for school construction or renovation. The School Board encouraged elimination of support position caps to allow an increase in Basic Aid funding. To support the advocation of increased funding, school administrators laid out changes to Standards of Quality caps that would provide for an increase in counselors. psychologists, social workers, assistant principals, English Language Learner teachers, and Work Based Learning coordinators.
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Paul Milde, a Republican running for the newly-drawn House District 64 seat in Stafford County, says GOP voters may decide in June what candidate they want to run in the November General Election.
However, the announcement comes as Milde is, so far, the only Republican to announce a run for the district, which contains central Stafford County, with areas south of Garrisonville Road, south to Route 17, and east to the Potomac River.
“We expect we’ll have a candidate,” Milde told PLN. Milde said a Primary Election will be held on June 20, 2023, should another Republican candidate emerge.
Stafford County Board Chairman Crystal Vanuch, fresh off a Spring 2022 Primary Election for the U.S. House District 7 seat won in November by Abigail Spanberger, is rumored to be considering a run. Vanuch has not responded to questions about her interest in the seat.
Leonard Lacy, a chaplain at the Stafford County Sheriff’s Office and former Virginia State Trooper, also announced his campaign and will run as a Democrat.
“We can’t afford to let far-left Democrats continue blocking the agenda Virginians elected Governor Youngkin and Republican legislators to deliver. I am committed to delivering conservative results for Stafford County,” Milde penned in a press release today.
District 64 is new to Stafford County in 2024, following the Virginia State Supreme Court’s political redistricting process of 2021. According to the Virginia Public Access Project, about 62,000 people live in the district, and nearly 60% are white.
The district has no incumbent.
