Commentary 

Drama at the State Capitol

Delegate Kenneth R. "Ken" Plum

The General Assembly is nearing adjournment sine die as I write this week's column.  Major issues involving the budget and transportation funding remain unresolved by conference committees.  But this final week of the session has not been without drama.

An important bill to extend the timeframe during which a victim of sexual abuse can bring a suit against a perpetrator from the current two years to twenty years passed and has gone to the Governor who is expected to sign it.  The current law was never fair to sexual abuse victims who often suffer from repressed memory for many years.

My bill to limit phosphorus in lawn fertilizer was incorporated into another bill that passed as part of an effort to clean up the Chesapeake Bay.  Reston Association had endorsed my bill as an important step to improving water quality in our local lakes as well as the Chesapeake Bay.  Phosphorus will continue to be a component in starter fertilizer for new lawns, but it is not needed for established lawns.  It runs off into streams, lakes, and the Bay to cause excess nutritients and the decline of water quality.

The drama did not always produce positive results.  A bill that I vehemently opposed and voted against extended the offering of car title loans to persons who own cars titled in other states.  Currently, car title lending is legal in Virginia, but the car offered as collateral must be titled in Virginia.  Neighboring states including Maryland, West Virginia, and North Carolina have effectively eliminated the business by capping interest rates at 36 percent.  Rates in Virginia exceed two hundred percent.  There is a real fear that Virginia will become a destination for people who need some quick cash but who have little or no awareness of the excessive interest they will have to pay.

The Senate of Virginia in recent years has been the filter that stops anti-abortion, anti-immigrant, and other ultra-conservative bills from passing.  The Senate served that role again this year with one dramatic exception.  Through a successful use of the legislative rules, abortion foes were able to get a bill to require hospital-like standards for abortion clinics to the Senate floor for a vote where it passed with the Lieutenant Governor casting a vote to break a tie.  While described by its proponents as a bill for women's safety, there is concern that the effect of the bill will be to close 17 of the 21 abortion clinics in Virginia, returning us to a time of unsanitary and unsafe pregnancy terminations for women.  The clinics also offer a variety of other health services for families, particularly in areas that are medically underserved.  I voted against the bill.

The closing days will no doubt provide additional drama that I will describe to you in future columns and in community meetings.

Virginia Performs website, www.VAPerforms.virginia.gov, is a portal to information about the quality of life in the Commonwealth.  Nearly 50 indicators provide information on the economy, education, health and family, public safety, natural resources, transportation, and government administration at the local, regional, and state levels with comparisons to other states.

The State Corporation Commission (SCC) has added another feature to its SCC eFile website.  Now customers can electronicfally file certain Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) forms and pay fees associated with these filings.  SCC eFile allows the electronic submission of UCC-1 and UCC-3 documents.  The UCC-1 form is a financing statement and serves as notice to the public of a lender's security interest in the borrower's assets identified in the statement.  UCC-3 is a financing statement amendment.  SCC eFile will also acept electronic payment of fees for filing these UCC documents.  Check out the system at https://scccefile.scc.virginia.gov.

Are you a caregiver who would like to join a support group without having to leave home?  Get helpful information, share your experiences, and gain emotional support from others on the phone.  The support group meets on the second Tuesday of each month from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m.  Below are upcoming topics:

March 8:  Setting Limits and Boundaries in Caregiving

April 12:  How Are You?  Let's Talk About Caregiver's Impact on Your Health

May 10:  Using the Internet to Help Your Caregiving Journey

To register or for more information go to www.fairfaxcounty.gov/dfs/olderadultservices/caregiver.htm or call 703.324.5484, TTY 711.