Things got off to a fast start in Richmond last week with the opening of the 2009 session.  On the minds of everybody is the budget that we must revise through cuts to almost every area.  The Governor presented his plan on Wednesday night.  All in all, with some exceptions, I believe that what he is putting forth is fairly reasonable.  At a very minimum it should provide a basis for us to work out a resolution to the budget.  

Unfortunately, this is exactly what I had feared would happen.  This is the reason that I voted against the budget in 2008.  It was very obvious to me that the income projections were way overly optimistic and that we would find ourselves in this situation.  This is one of those times that I wish that I had been wrong.  However, regardless, we find ourselves in this situation.  The most important thing is for us all to work together to get the budget done and to get it done in the time frame allotted to us.

I have put in quite a few bills this year.  Two were taken up last week - Senate Bill 916 which would increase the court fees for filing civil law suits in Virginia.  As many people realize, the general fund has to subsidize the court system in our state because the filing fees do not nearly cover all the costs associated with holding court.  I believe that this is wrong.  I believe that the court system should be financially self-sustaining.  It can be with an increase in the fees.  In general district court, it cost just $27to sue somebody.  I have asked that that be raised to $100.  The fees would still be much lower than other states.  It just appears to me that the people of the Commonwealth should not be subsidizing the court system.  In fact, the people who use the court system should be paying for it.  That would free up other monies for us for schools, our children, roads, and the long list of other things that we need to take of here in Virginia. I will also tell you that this bill was not received well.  The special interest groups heavily opposed it because it would cost them more to sue people.  They like the way it is now where you and I subsidize their law suits.  I was very disappointed that special interest won out over the good of the citizens of the Commonwealth.  A committee of five made a recommendation to kill the bill.  It is not over with yet, but it looks like the bill is not going to go.

Also, I put in a bill to charge a $10 fee to citations that a local sheriff’s office or town police division writes.  This $10 would come directly back to the locality to allow our local police departments to buy fuel.  As you know, they have been hit hard by budget cuts and the high cost of fuel.  In a time of declining economy, they are forced to respond to more calls and more problems and they have to do it with less money.  Our public safety is one of the most important things in our community.  We have to support our law enforcement so that they can help us when we need them.  I hope that this bill will be well received.  I am remaining cautiously optimistic.  The bill was voted from Courts of Justice to go to Local Government for a hearing.

Finally, I am very proud to tell all of you that I have joined with three other Senators (two democrats and one other republican) to form the Commonwealth Caucus.  For those of you who don’t know what a caucus is, it is essentially a group that you identify with and have like ideas and you vote alike.  However, in politics, this translates to your party.  The democrats caucus amongst themselves and the republicans caucus amongst themselves.  They often times come up with positions and even pressure legislators to vote the same way they do for what they call the good of the caucus or the party.  

The four of us saw very quickly last year in our first year of the senate that too many times a caucus or party position was being placed above the good of the citizens of the Commonwealth.  We began to get together this summer and we worked on this idea until we finally came up with how we wanted to go forward to try and force the legislature to put the people of the Commonwealth ahead of partisan interest.  It is my sincere belief that you elected me to go to Richmond and represent your best interest.  Often times that means I will disagree with my party or caucus.  We saw this last year in the election of judges where politics caused the inability to get judges on the bench.  We have seen it in issues of the environment and redistricting after redistricting – the lines are drawn to give one party a majority over the other.  The four of us believe that that is simply wrong and we are going to vote our conscience to make sure that the people of the Commonwealth are well represented and their interests are put ahead of any party’s.  

This is a very difficult thing to do and we have already felt the wrath of some of the party members, although subtly with regard to our caucus.  I can tell you that will not stop us and we will press on so that we can represent you in the best possible manner.

As always, I appreciate the opportunity you have given me to serve you in the State Senate.  If I can be of any service, I can be reached at my senate office, 804-698-7528, P. O. Box 396, Richmond, Virginia 23218 or my district office, 804-493-8892, P. O. Box 1146, Montross, Virginia 22520, or by email at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .