2025 General Assembly Week One Newsletter!
The General Assembly is in session!
I hope you are keeping warm as we prepare for more snow this weekend. According to Capital Weather Gang, the DMV area can anticipate an additional 1-2 inches of snow late Friday night into early Saturday morning. Please stay safe on the roads!
The first week of the 2025 General Assembly session was something of a false start due to the water outage in the City of Richmond. The General Assembly gaveled in on schedule – on Wednesday, January 8th at noon – only to recess until we reconvene next Monday, January 13th at 9am. It was one heck of a start to the new session–thousands of people without any water at all, schools and small businesses shut down, and a boil water advisory that eventually extended from Richmond out to Henrico and Hanover counties.
With this year's session limited to 45 days, we will likely have to conduct some of our business on weekends in order to ensure that we wrap up our work on schedule. During session, you can keep an eye on the committee goings-on through the House Committee Streaming site. All of the committee rooms in the General Assembly Building have been outfitted with modern audio-video equipment and all of our hearings will be streamed live and archived.
Even with the weather and water setbacks, this week was a flurry of bill review and committee preparation work. I have introduced ten bills so far and one study resolution:
HB2083, establishing a new special enrollment period for pregnancy on the Virginia Health Benefit Exchange;
HB2084, directing the State Corporation Commission to conduct a regulatory proceeding to establish a separate customer rate class for data centers;
HB2085, requiring more payment transparency from health insurance carriers;
HB2086, creating a new tax credit for homebuilders building homes to energy efficiency standards;
HB2087, developing guidelines to accelerate the construction of electric vehicle charging infrastructure;
HB2088, establishing the Virginia Forensic Nursing Advisory Council and creating a protocol for telehealth sexual assault forensic examinations;
HB2089, establishing collective bargaining rights for home care workers;
HB2090, expanding access to community solar programs for Virginians;
HB2091, ensuring that public workforce development dollars are being prioritized for training opportunities that match high demand industries and local job markets;
HB2341, directing the Department of Education to establish culturally responsive and language-appropriate mental health resources for our public schools; and
HJ451, requesting that the Department of Housing and Community Development study the tax implications of allowing localities to implement a land value tax.
If you want to learn about all that’s going on in the Virginia legislature but don’t know where to start, LIS is a wonderful and helpful resource. It stores information about bills, committee assignments, and more.
If you have thoughts you’d like to share on legislation, bills, or even the state budget, please don’t hesitate to give my office a call at 804-698-1008 or email us at delishin@house.virginia.gov. If you find yourself in Richmond between now and the end of session, I hope you will stop by my office in the new General Assembly Building (office #1115)! I am always happy to meet with constituents and advocacy groups. Hearing from you helps me to better understand the issues in our community and represent you in Richmond.
I would encourage constituents in the 8th District to make their voices heard by testifying in front of a committee about a bill. The House of Delegates offers both in person and virtual opportunities. These sites have some basic guidelines and information to register. For any additional guidance, please do not hesitate to contact our team—we are happy to help.
No matter the time of year, my staff and I are available to assist you!
From navigating state agencies such as the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), the Virginia Unemployment Commission, and the Department of Social Services to developing policy that strengthens our community, my team and I are here for you. If you have any questions or need help, please reach out to my office anytime. You can reach us at delishin@house.virginia.gov or (703) 677-8334.