NEWSLETTER
January 14, 2021
Neighbors,
The 2021 legislative session has started! I am honored to represent our community in the House of Delegates, and I look forward to working with my colleagues to make sure that we continue to advance opportunities for all Virginians to thrive.
Below please find information on:
My 2021 legislative agenda
Ways that we can stay in touch
How you can provide input to legislation
Best, Kathy
My 2021 Legislative Agenda
In the House of Delegates, we are limited to 7 bills this session. I have worked with constituents and a wide range of stakeholders to introduce the following bills and budget amendments, which you can also find here: https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?211+mbr+H305C
Strengthening Workforce Programs
House Bill 2035: Expands employment opportunities for Virginians receiving TANF benefits.
House Bill 2036: Makes it easier for the Virginia Employment Commission to use emails and other electronic communications to get in touch with Virginians about their unemployment benefits.
House Bill 2037: Allows unemployed Virginians to keep their unemployment benefits and protects them from returning to work if they have a COVID-19 diagnosis, is caring for a family member with COVID-19, or believes their workplace is not complying with Virginia’s COVID-19 workplace safety standards.
Item 52 #5h: Establishes a workgroup to develop recommendations on helping refugees fully participate in Virginia’s workforce.
Item 52 #2h: Prioritizes workers from the fossil fuel industry for employment services under the federal Workforce Innovations and Opportunities Act programs.
Enhancing Consumer Protections
HB 2160: Eliminates 30.7% in automatic profit bonuses given to Dominion Energy and Appalachian Power on top of the profit margins that have been set by the State Corporation Commission. This would return $246 million in overcharges to Virginians since 2017.
HB 2163: Protects all customer data provided to the DMV by requiring written agreements to be in place for the sharing of DMV data, restricting how third parties can access DMV data, and requiring a lawful judicial order, subpoena, or warrant to obtain information for civil immigration enforcement.
Support for Individuals with Disabilities
HB 2162: Establishes a right for individuals with disabilities to be able to have a designated support person provide them assistance at hospitals, outpatient surgical hospitals, and hospice facilities licensed by the Virginia Department of Health.
Item 66 #1h: Requests a workgroup to identify and disseminate model policies and resources to make teleworking more inclusive for people with disabilities.
Item 313 #15h: Provides funding, upon approval from the federal government, to allow Virginians receiving a Medicaid waiver to be accompanied by their personal care attendant for up to 30 days when hospitalized.
Creating a Welcoming Virginia
HB 2161: Protects military service members, military spouses, and their dependents from discrimination in public accommodations, employment, and housing.
Item 52 #4h: Requests recommendations on how to improve language access across state government.
Item 355 #1h: Requests $7.5 million to improve translation and interpretation services for the 2-1-1 hotline and to provide grants to organizations serving immigrants in Virginia to respond to COVID-19 and meet other needs.
Supporting Our State Parks
Item 374 #6h: Requests $1.5 million to connect Mason Neck State Park to the public water system.
Relief for Taxpayers
Item 282 #1h: Eliminates the $275 filing fee currently required for taxpayers to request a ruling letter or opinion from the Virginia Department of Taxation.
Item 3-5.22 #1h: Requests $11.8 million to refund taxpayers the interests and penalties they incurred by following the federal tax timelines and fully paid their 2019 taxes between June 1-July 15, 2020.
Stay in Touch
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the House of Delegates is convening virtually to protect the health of members, our staff, and everyone who would otherwise visit Richmond for the legislative session. While you cannot visit us in person, you can stay up-to-date on all the current legislative developments through many virtual options.
As always, please let me know if you have any questions or need assistance. You can reach me by email at DelKTran@house.virginia.gov or call my office at 804-698-1042.
Provide Input to Legislation
You can see all the bills, resolutions, and budget amendments in the General Assembly that have been introduced here.
To provide your input to me regarding specific legislation that is under consideration by the General Assembly, either call or email me with your input or to schedule a time to meet. My email is DelKTran@house.virginia.gov and my office number is 804-698-1042.
To track the progress of a bill and know when it will be heard in Committee, use the “Track a 2021 Regular Session Bill” feature on the Virginia General Assembly Homepage.
You can see the daily General Assembly schedule here. All committee meetings, which include bill hearings, are open to the public and can be accessed live here.
If you would like to speak live during a hearing or provide a written comment, you can use this site. (Note: The speaking queue closes one hour before the committee meeting starts.)
You can watch the daily floor proceedings for the House of Delegates here.