December 22nd Newsletter
We are fortunate to have so many dedicated healthcare workers in Virginia who have stepped up repeatedly to take care of those of us in need during the COVID pandemic. The taxing nature of that work, however, has combined with the economic factors that pre-date COVID and created a critical shortage of healthcare workers across the Commonwealth.
I serve as vice-chair of the Virginia Health Workforce Development Authority (VHWDA) and have been part of ongoing discussions to find more ways to encourage people to pursue careers as nurses, doctors, therapists, and other health professionals. At a meeting earlier this year of the VHWDA, we heard from former Virginia Secretary of Health and Human Resources Bill Hazel who now is the senior deputy executive director of the Claude Moore Charitable Foundation. That foundation’s Scholars Program provides opportunities to encourage high school students to pursue high-demand, entry-level healthcare careers.
Former Secretary Hazel shared with us an inspiring outgrowth of that program that features a collaboration between government, the private sector, educational institutions, and nonprofits to create the Blue Ridge Partnership for Health Science Careers. That partnership includes educators, employers, and economic development professionals who are committed to aligning health sciences education to meet the employment needs of the health and life sciences ecosystem. The group has started addressing key issues, focusing concurrently on curriculum, policy, and encouraging students and adult learners onto the healthcare profession “highway.”
My House colleague Delegate Terry Austin recently joined Secretary Hazel in publishing an op-ed piece in the Washington Post and Richmond Times-Dispatch that highlights the Blue Ridge Partnership as a potential model for similar efforts across Virginia.
I am hopeful that other legislators will join Delegate Austin and me in working with the Youngkin administration to consider how to replicate the success of the Blueridge Partnership as we look for solutions to our health workforce issues. Addressing those issues is one of my highest priorities for the 2022 legislative session and I believe that many other legislators and Governor-elect Youngkin share those concerns.
If you have any questions or need assistance with a state agency, please contact my office at delrwillett@house.virginia.gov or phone at 804-698-1073, and a member of my staff will be happy to assist you. I also will continue to keep you informed with relevant, accurate information via Twitter, Facebook, and my website. Please stay well and stay in touch.
Best wishes to you and your family for happy holidays!
Sincerely,
Rodney
New Information
January 15th Town Hall with Schuyler VanValkenburg at Libbie Mill Library
Please join me on January 15th for a Town Hall with Delegate Schuyler VanValkenburg (HD-72) on Saturday, January 15th from 4:00 - 5:00 pm at Libbie Mill Library. We are looking forward to seeing you and speaking with you about our legislative priorities for the 2022 session. We will also take time to hear about the issues that matter most to you and answer any questions that you may have.
This is an in-person event and there will be no virtual component. Please join us in the Libbie Mill Meeting Room located on the first floor between the Circulation Desk and the lake-facing side of the library. The event is free and open to the public, but we ask that all participants register in advance at bit.ly/11522townhall
Thermometers and questions are provided for health self-screenings at the entrance of Libbie Mill Library. Face coverings are required for all patrons five and older per Henrico County’s and HCPL's policy that all individuals are required to wear a face-covering inside Henrico County buildings and facilities. This requirement is for visitors as well as employees, regardless of their vaccination status.
Governor Northam Proposes Final Budget — Investments in Working Families, Law Enforcement, Education, and More
Last week, I met with fellow members of the House Appropriations, House Finance, and Senate Finance Committees for remarks from Governor Ralph Northam on his proposed budget for the 2022-2024 biennium. Virginia operates under a two-year (biennial) budget cycle. Each year, the Governor prepares the proposed budget bill for introduction by the General Assembly. The bill is initially adopted in even-numbered years and amended in odd-numbered years. This is Governor Northam’s fourth and final proposed budget of his term.
Virginia has seen incredible economic growth over the past few years. We ended the fiscal year 2021 with a $2.6 billion surplus — the largest in the Commonwealth’s history. This record economic growth and Virginia’s fiscal responsibility have allowed Governor Northam to build on the priorities of his last four budgets: education, equity, and investments in working Virginians.
See below for highlights of the Governor’s proposed budget. You can see the full budget online at budget.lis.virginia.gov, and a copy of the Governor’s remarks online here.
Investments in Reserves, Upcoming Expenses, and Infrastructure
$1.1 billion of the $2.6 billion surplus is constitutionally required to be deposited into our Revenue Stabilization Fund. The Governor’s budget also includes a voluntary deposit of another $564 million. This would bring our total reserves to more than $3.8 billion — 16.8% of total state revenues; more than double the goal of 8% Northam set four years ago.
$1 billion to the Virginia Retirement System to reduce unfunded liabilities and make sure we can meet our retirement obligations for state employees.
$42.5 million each year has been allotted for payments we expect to make under our deal with Amazon—payments that are contingent on Amazon meeting its promises on investments and job creation.
$2 billion for capital projects, including maintenance needs in state government and higher education buildings.
$60 million for cybersecurity upgrades across state government to project our I.T. systems.
Total of $2 billion in general funds, federal pandemic aid, and matching funds from localities and private industry for broadband and high-speed internet.
Investments in Workers
10 percent pay increase for teachers over the next two years (5 percent each year). With matching funds from localities, this will bring the average Virginia teacher pay up to the national average.
Pay raises for law enforcement officers and corrections officers to combat pay deficiencies and compression (when we raise starting salaries so junior officers are earning nearly as much as senior officers). The proposed pay structure raises both starting salaries and those of officers with more experience.
10 percent pay raise for all state employees (5 percent each year). Our state workforce is what makes government function, and we need to make sure that we can continue to recruit and retain top talent to state government jobs.
Tax Cuts and Rebates
Virginia has had a tax on groceries since 1966. Currently, the tax is made up of a 1.5 percent state tax and a 1 percent local sales tax. The Governor’s proposed budget eliminates the 1.5 percent state portion of the tax.
One-time tax rebates to Virginians — $250 for individuals; $500 for married couples.
Under Northam’s proposed budget, 15 percent of the earned income tax will be refundable for eligible families, which will give a tax break to working families who need it the most.
Eliminating the accelerated sales tax — a budgeting move that currently requires retailers to pre-pay a portion of their sales tax.
Education
Overall $2.3 billion in direct aid for education.
$268 million to increase support for at-risk students. This is more than double the $140 million proposed in 2019.
New investment of $225 million for early childhood education, including an additional $73 million each year for the Child Care Development Fund.
An additional $38 million for the G3 Program, which covers the cost of training and education for high-demand fields at community colleges.
$150 million to increase undergraduate financial assistance at our schools, and $10 million to increase graduate financial aid.
$297 million for capital improvements and student support at Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Increase in the level Tuition Assistance Grants to students at private colleges and universities to $5,000 per student over the next two years.
Healthcare
$560 million to address our behavioral health challenges, including $164 million to give pay raises to direct care staff in our state hospitals and training centers, along with discharge assistance.
$263 million for community-based services. This includes fully funding STEP VA services at our community services boards, enhancing crisis services, and expanding permanent supportive housing.
$33 million to expand access to community-based addiction treatment
$675 million to strengthen community-based services and allow more people to be eligible for Medicaid waiver services. This includes revising rates to providers for the first time since 2016 and adding 1,200 new waiver slots for community services.
$424 million of American Rescue Plan Act funding will be set aside to address future impacts of the pandemic.
Governor-Elect Youngkin Names first Cabinet Nominees
This week Governor-elect Glenn Youngkin announced his first cabinet nominees for the Secretaries of Education, Commerce and Trade, and Finance. In Virginia, cabinet officers are nominated by the Governor and then presented to the General Assembly for confirmation. Each Secretary is appointed for a four-year term but may be removed at any time by the Governor.
Youngkin selected Aimee Rogstad Guidera, a data consultant and founder of the Data Quality Campaign, for Secretary of Education. Guidera led the organization for over a decade focusing on improved quality, accessibility, and use of education data to increase student achievement. Before founding the Data Quality Campaign, she served as director of the National Center for Educational Achievement and worked on education policy at the National Governors Association.
Youngkin also announced his nominee for Secretary of Commerce and Trade will be Caren Merrick, a venture capitalist who also serves as the CEO of the Virginia Ready Initiative, a nonprofit organization focused on workforce training that Youngkin founded in June of 2020. Merrick is an entrepreneur who ran for the 31st Virginia State Senate in 2011. Merrick also served on the board of directors of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, which oversees Washington Dulles International and Ronald Reagan National Airports.
This morning the Governor-elect announced he has chosen Stephen Emery Cummings to serve as the next Secretary of Finance. Cummings was most recently the President and CEO of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) in the Americas. Prior to his role at MUFG, he served as Chairman of UBS’s Investment Banking division in the Americas, served as Global Head of Corporate and Investment Banking at Wachovia Bank, and at Bowles Hollowell Conner & Co. where he was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.
Chief Justice of the Virginia Supreme Court to Step Down December 31
Chief Justice Donald W. Lemons announced this week that he will step down as chief justice of the Virginia Supreme Court effective December 31. His colleagues have elected Justice Bernard Goodwyn to succeed him on January 1st. Lemons, 72, a former Richmond lawyer and judge, has served as chief justice for seven years. He was first elected to the position by his fellow justices on Aug. 18, 2014, to a four-year term that began Jan. 1, 2015.
Chief Justice Lemons earned his J.D. from the University of Virginia, where he worked as an assistant dean and assistant professor immediately after graduation. He worked in private practice in Richmond from 1978 to 1995, before serving as a circuit court judge in Richmond from 1995 to 1998, and a judge on the Virginia Court of Appeals from 1998 to 2000. While on the Circuit Court, Lemons helped pioneer drug courts in Virginia — a special docket within the existing court that allows defendants with substance use challenges to be sentenced to supervised treatment, rather than incarceration.
Justice Bernard Goodwyn will assume the office of chief justice on January 1, 2022. Goodwyn will be the second African American to serve as chief justice, the first, Leroy Hassell Sr., served two four-year terms from 2003 to 2011. See more information on this announcement from the Supreme Court of Virginia online here.
Henrico Schools Opens New Telehealth Clinic at Glen Lea Elementary School
Earlier this month, county officials held a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Glen Lea Elementary School that will help students get better access to health care and reduce missed instructional time. The Glen Lea Telehealth Clinic will use an internet webcam and other tools to enable students at the school in eastern Henrico County to consult with doctors, nurses, dentists, and other health professionals. The clinic, in the works since 2017, is a joint project of Henrico County Public Schools, the Henrico Education Foundation, Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU, and VCU Dental Care.
Any student at Glen Lea is eligible to participate with the permission of their parent or guardian, and there are no out-of-pocket costs for families, thanks to the Henrico Education Foundation (HEF) and local financial supporters. Funding is being provided through HEF with funds from Facebook, the Jenkins Foundation, the Herndon Foundation, the Memorial Foundation for Children, and Dell Technologies. In addition to expanding health care access, the clinic may help cut down on student absences. Because traditional non-emergency medical appointments must often be scheduled during the school day, students can miss valuable instructional time for an in-person appointment.
A new consultation room in the school’s clinic includes technology designed for remote consultations, as well as an examination table built by the HCPS Facilities Department. Health professionals performing remote exams will be able to look inside students’ ears or mouths using specially designed tools. Parents and guardians will also be able to participate in the appointments virtually. See more information on this announcement online here.
Richmond ICNA Resource Center Opens in Henrico
The Richmond Chapter of the Islamic Center of North America (ICNA) recently opened its new resource center at 3009 Lafayette Avenue in Henrico. ICNA is a non-profit organization that works within communities to provide family and health services, hunger prevention, disaster relief, and transitional housing.
The new center opened Dec. 1 – only a year and a half after the Richmond chapter began in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The facility will offer ESL classes, skill courses, counseling services, a food pantry, and more. ICNA often partners with food banks and grocery stores to offer a healthy variety of foods to people in need, according to organization officials. That includes not only basic pantry items but also salads, fruits, bread, and meats like halal and kosher to serve people from all faiths and religions.
To donate to the non-profit or for details, contact Saleem at hamna.saleem@icnarelief.org or visit icnarelief.org/virginia/.
Henrico to accept Christmas trees for recycling Dec. 26 through Jan. 9
Henrico County will accept Christmas trees for recycling into mulch from Sunday, December 26th through Sunday, January 9th. The free service is only available to residents of Henrico County and is made possible through the support of Keep Henrico Beautiful and the Department of Public Utilities. Recycling Christmas trees helps to preserve landfill space and protects the environment.
You can drop off your trees at the following locations:
Henrico Government Center, 4301 E. Parham Road, in the lower parking lot;
Eastern Government Center, 3820 Nine Mile Road, in the front parking lot;
Springfield Road Public Use Area, 10600 Fords Country Lane, near Nuckols Road and Interstate 295; and
Charles City Road Public Use Area, 2075 Charles City Road.
Trees can be dropped off anytime at the Henrico Government Center and Eastern Government Center and from 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily at the Springfield Road and Charles City Road public use areas. Trees must be free of tinsel, lights, ornaments, tree stands, and water bowls. Please wear a face covering and maintain social distancing at all times.
Free mulch is available to Henrico residents at the public use areas. For details, visit henrico.us/services/free-mulch or call (804) 501-7277
