At a time when quality reviews and accountability measures result in more activities being given a letter grade, it is appropriate that legislative sessions receive the same treatment. At the risk of seeming to cop-out, I give the session an "I" for incomplete because we have not yet completed the basic requirement of passing a biennium budget in the even-numbered years. We are back in Richmond in special session now to meet that requirement.

Taking the budget out of the equation, I would give the session a "B"-a higher grade than I would have given sessions in recent years. Some important work got done. Growing out of the recent tragedy of Senator Deed's family and with lingering memories of Virginia Tech, mental health laws were strengthened. Legislation extends the time a person can be held involuntarily under a temporary detention order from 48 to 72 hours. The state will maintain a "real time" online registry of available psychiatric beds in public and private hospitals. Emergency custody orders will be extended from six to 12 hours with the state assuming responsibility to find a bed for a patient after eight hours. A four-year study will be undertaken to determine what other reforms are needed.

In significant reform of ethics laws that will continue to be debated as to whether or not they go far enough, a cumulative cap of $250 was put on gifts that elected officials can accept. Gifts given to spouses and immediate family members must be disclosed, and all disclosure forms will be accessible online for public viewing. Disclosure will be required twice rather than once each year. An ethics council will be established to provide oversight to the process.

In the area of education, the General Assembly restrained itself from passing the latest reform fad as it had been doing the last several years and even took a second look at recent reforms by delaying for a couple of years the idea of giving each school a grade, until it can be determined how such a system might work and whether it would be meaningful. State take-over of failing schools will also be delayed. SOL (Standards of Learning) testing that in recent years has come to dominate the school year will be reduced from 22 to 17 in K-8, giving more time for instruction.

The hybrid car tax was repealed, but efforts to roll back other provisions of last year's transportation bill were rejected. The sodomy law was repealed as court action had already effectively done. A small step forward on bike safety increased from two to three feet the distance cars must leave to pass bicycles. Posting pornography on social media without a person's consent was made an offense. Sunday hunting will be legal on private lands.

What would have given the session an "A?" Full committee debate on background checks for gun purchases, raising the minimum wage, and repealing the marriage amendment rather than such limited debate and defeat of these measures in subcommittees would have made for a better grade.   

Saturday, March 22, 9:00-11:15 a.m., Forum on Poverty and Inequality, American Legion Post 180, 330 Center Street North, Vienna. Hear from our state legislators what happened during the 2014 General Assembly. Legislators will be present to answer questions. For more information or for directions, contact John Horejsi at jhorejsi@cox.net or 703-938-9535 or visit the SALT website: http://www.S-A-L-T.org.  

Sunday, March 23, 11:00 a.m. - 5:30 p.m., the second annual Grow Your Health Festival, an event that celebrates gardening, local food and wellness. Woodson High School, 9525 Main Street, Fairfax. Details at Grow Your Health. 

Sunday, March 23, 4:00 p.m., Join the Reston Chorale in Celebrating Reston's 50th: the Vision and the Visionary, at South Lakes High School, 11400 South Lakes Drive, Reston.  This special performance will feature the world premiere of Donald McCullough's The Essential Life, a work for chorus and orchestra  commissioned by the Chorale to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Reston and founder Robert E. Simon, Jr.'s 100th birthday. Tickets: $30 Adults; $25 Seniors (62+) and Youth (13-17). Tickets are available online at www.restonchorale.org  For more information, call 703.834.0079, ext. 4.  

Tuesday, March 25, Community Collaboration for Disaster Resiliency 2014 Summit, 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Mount Olivet Baptist Church, 6600 Old Centreville Road, Centreville. Community groups that participate in disaster response and recovery will come together at the Resiliency Summit to discuss their organization's roles and learn other's roles in community disaster resiliency. More information is at Volunteer Fairfax.  

Meet the Artists, Thursday, March 27, 2:15 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Reston Community Center Hunters Woods, 2310 Colts Neck Road, Reston. Free, all ages. Meet Beverly Cosham, one of Washington's favorite popular song stylists.