General Assembly Week 5 Recap: Approaching Crossover Day

With the midpoint of session (“Crossover” day) coming up next week, legislators have been working feverishly to hear as many bills as they can in committee so that they have the chance of being voted on by the full House or Senate.  At Crossover, any bills that have not been passed by each chamber of the legislature are considered dead for the year.  Because of the all-time high number of bills this year, some committees are even meeting this weekend to finish up their work.  

Here are the highlights for the week, which include some things to celebrate and others that are of grave concern, especially for religious liberty. Note, once again, that most of the bad bills that elevate “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” to special protected classes had bi-partisan support. Please keep an eye on your own Delegate and Senator to see how they're voting. 

Things to Celebrate….

Passed Senate (unanimously) – Prohibit Forced Abortions - SB 920 (R-Peake), a bill we initiated, makes void and unenforceable any clause within a surrogacy contract that requires the pregnant mother, at the request or discretion of the other party, to have an abortion or “selective reduction” to reduce the number of children she is carrying. It passed Senate unanimously 40-0.

Carried Over to 2021 – Physician Assisted Suicide – HB 1649 (D-Kory) would have allowed a so-called medical doctor to prescribe an adult diagnosed with a terminal condition medication that ends the patient’s life.  All it would require are two consent forms, one for each dose of medication, signed by the patient, and only one witness.  Click HERE to read more.

Defeated – Expanded Video Game Gambling Machines - SB 1063 (D-McPike) would have allowed gambling video game machines to be placed in virtually every convenience store, bar, and gas station in Virginia.  The Senate Finance Committee voted 12-3 against the bill.

Now the disappointing news….

Gambling Expansion (Casinos) – Legislators and lobbyists for the gambling industry worked behind closed doors to work out the regulatory and taxing details for HB 4 (R-Knight) and SB 36 (D-Lucas) that allows casinos in up to five localities (Bristol, Danville, Richmond, Virginia Beach/Norfolk, and Portsmouth) if approved through a local referendum.  These bills will usher in an avalanche of gambling that exploits those who can least afford to lose, increase crime, and lead to more addictions. HB 4 passed House General Laws 11-8 and Appropriations 17-4, while SB 36 passed Senate General Laws 13-0 and Senate Finance/Appropriations 14-2.  Both bills will be voted on by the full House and Senate next week.

Gambling Expansion (Sports Betting, Internet Lottery, Video Game Machines) – The House passed HB 1383 (D-Bulova) by a vote of 77-21, which allows lottery tickets to be sold over the internet, dramatically expanding the Lottery that hurts poor people the most, while the Senate version SB 922 (R-Norment) will be voted by the full Senate next week.  SB 384 (D-McPike), which legalizes sports betting at both a central location and online, passed the Senate 24-13, while a similar bill in the House, HB 896 (D-Sickles), passed in House Appropriations 19-2 and will head to the House floor for a vote next week.  Also to be voted on in the Senate is SB 971 (D-Howell), which allows the VA Lottery to regulate and tax the so-called “games of skill.”

Legitimizing Suicide – HB 1063 (D-Kory) abolishes the common-law crime of suicide.  It passed the House Courts of Justice committee 15-7.

Prohibition Against Talk Therapy for Children in Need – HB 386 (D-Hope) prevents parents from seeking counseling for their child who may be struggling with their sexual identity or is experiencing unwanted same-sex attractions, by prohibiting licensed counselors and therapists from helping them in this way.  An identical bill, SB 245 (D- Surovell), passed the Senate 21-18. Click HERE to read more.

SOGI Nondiscrimination – HB 1663 (D-Sickles) and SB 868 are two giant bills that incorporate “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” as specially protected statuses in public and private employment, public accommodations, housing, appointments, credit, and the Virginia Human Rights Act. It also creates new civil and government-initiated causes of action to sue people claimed to be in violation. And it adds draconian and far-reaching powers to the Attorney General to prosecute and fine anyone in relation to any claims of such discrimination. This is clearly designed to target and destroy any dissenters from the sexual revolution. HB 1663 passed the House 59-35, and SB 868 passed the Senate 30-9.  Click HERE and HERE to read more.

SOGI Nondiscrimination Targeting Religious Organizations – HB 1049 (D-Levine) specifically targets all faith-based organizations who contract with the state by adding “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” as special protected statuses. It also adds SOGI in employment, public accommodation, apprenticeship programs, housing, banking, and insurance, as well as the Virginia Human Rights Act. It passed the House 59-39.

Sex Change on Birth Certificate By Request – HB 1041 (D-Simon) allows anyone to legally “change” their birth sex on their official birth certificate by doing nothing more than make a simple request to the State Registrar using a form, along with a simple doctor’s note. It passed the House 52-44.  An identical bill, SB 657 (D-Boysko), passed the Senate 24-15. Click HERE to read more.

Mandated Health Coverage for “Transgender” Services –  HB 1429 (D-Roem) would prevent any health carrier from denying or limiting coverage or imposing additional costs for coverages to any person (including children) for “transgender” health related treatments including “gender reassignment surgeries.”  It also defines "Gender identity" as “an individual's internal sense of gender, which may be male, female, neither, or a combination of male and female.”  It passed the House 54-41.

Required Training on “LGBTQ” Cultural Competency – HB 581 (D-Guzman) requires the Dept. of Human Resource Management to “develop an online training module addressing lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) cultural competency” and mandates all state employees to take the training.  It passed the House 55-44.

Decriminalization of Recreational Marijuana – SB 2 (D-Ebbin) would decriminalize (effectively the same thing as "legalizing") marijuana in Virginia. The Senate Committee on Finance & Appropriations passed the bill 12-3, and will voted on by the full Senate next week.  The House version HB 972 (D-Herring) passed the House Courts of Justice Committee 13-9 and will be voted on by the full House next week.

Please continue to pray for The Family Foundation Policy team as we approach the second half of session, and for our legislators to exercise good judgment when they are voting on bills that have significant consequences for the sanctity of life, religious liberty and parental authority.