Peace Progress
May 2015
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art students 

Don't forget that May is Military Appreciation Month

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Message from Chris

Peace speaks at last Thursday's
annual New Kent Town Hall meeting

We finished the 2015 "veto session" on Friday, April 17, where the General Assembly took up Governor McAuliffe's 17 vetoes and other amendments. Because an override requires a 2/3 vote in both chambers (66 votes in the House and 27 votes in the Senate), ultimately there were no successful overrides - which means the vetoes killed the bills. Vetoed and impacted legislation includes:

Tebow Bill: I supported this bill to allow homeschoolers to participate in high school sports. Although we got 60 "yes" votes in the House, this was a few short of an override.

 

Voter Fraud: The Governor vetoed HB 1318, which would have required a copy of a photo ID be sent in with any absentee ballot application. The House override vote fell one vote shy, at 65 votes. On a related measure, the House rejected the Governor's attempt to water down HB 1315, which would allow comparison of those who refuse jury duty (as a felon or noncitizen) with voter rolls - to help identify voter fraud. McAuliffe has since vetoed the now-unamended bill.

 

Common Core: As a co-sponsor of this bill, I was truly disappointed the Governor vetoed HB 1752, which would prohibit the Board of Education from implementing common core, unless authorized by the General Assembly. The veto was overridden in the House 70-28, but not in the Senate, where the vote was 22-18.

 

New Kent Town Hall

Privacy: HB 1673, which addressed government retention of records by photographic license plate readers, was watered down by the Governor. The House rejected several of his amendments, and the bill went back to the Governor, who vetoed the bill.

 

If you would like to share your thoughts with the Governor about these vetoes, you can do it here. 

 
Peace chairs COY meeting

Del. Peace, Chair of the Virginia Commission on Youth (COY)

 

Since December of 2011, Delegate Peace has served as Chairman of the Virginia Commission on Youth, he was re-elected today to serve for another year. Over the past several years, the Commission has worked closely with the executive branch, local government officials, and other impacted stakeholders to identify best practices, engage families, and identify policies that research reveals yield the greatest returns. Recent Commission accomplishments encompass many important topics of importance to Virginia children, youth, and families.

 

Such topics include: Early Childhood Education - Workgroup on Quality (2014), Unlawful Adoption of a Child (2014), Seclusion and Restraint in Schools (2014), Three Branch Institute on Child Social and Emotional Well-Being for Foster Care Youth (2013 & 2014), Mental Health Assessments for Juvenile Offenders (2013), Restoration of Parental Rights (2012), Barriers to Kinship Care (2010), School Enrollment Practices for Informal Kinship Caregivers (2011), Definitions of Kinship Care (2012), successful efforts to restore $500,000 in cuts to the Public Guardianship program (2015), and continued efforts to expand foster care to 21.   

 

 

VDOT Seeks Citizen Input 

 

The Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB) will conduct a public hearing in your area to give citizens the opportunity to review and provide comments on projects and programs to be included in the Fiscal Year 2016-2021 Six-Year Improvement Program (FY2016-2021 SYIP), including highway, rail and public transportation initiatives. These projects and programs represent important improvements to address safety, congestion and preservation of Virginia's transportation network. 

 

Your input is also needed on a how transportation projects should be scored through a new prioritization process that is being developed under House Bill 2.  This process will help determine critical transportation needs through a fair and objective analysis. The draft Policy Guide describing the process for the new prioritization process has been made available for public comment and can be found by clicking here.

 

The public hearing for citizens in the Richmond District (Hanover and New Kent) will start at 6:00 p.m. on May 5, 2015 at the Thomas J. Fulghum Conference Center Chesterfield Career & Technical Center at 13900 Hull Street Road, Midlothian, VA. Written comments may also be submitted during the hearing, or they may be mailed or e-mailed afterwards.

 

I encourage you to attend the public hearing in our region, or one of the other hearings listed on the attachment if it is more convenient for you.  If you cannot attend the hearing, you may send your comments to Infrastructure Investment Director at 1401 E. Broad Street, Richmond, VA 23219 or e-mail them to Six-YearProgram@vdot.virginia.gov.  Comments on the Draft SYIP will be received until May 22, 2015.

 
 Sign Up to Attend Delegate Peace's Upcoming Re-Election Event 
 
Please Contact Me
 
My office takes the responsibility of serving seriously. My staff is available during the week to assist you with your concerns; I am also readily available. I encourage you to contact us. Please continue to contact me whenever you have concerns or issues of importance to our community and the Commonwealth.
  
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District Office:
Physical Address:
Battlefield Commons Building
8101 Vanguard Dr, Suite 150
Mechanicsville, VA 23111
 
Mailing Address:
PO Box 819
Mechanicsville, VA 23111
 
Phone: 804-730-3737

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PO Box 819
Mechanicsville, VA 23111

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