Virginia’s legislators met in Jamestown for the
first day of the 2007 legislative session on
Wednesday, January 10, 2007. This
first-time event marks the beginning of an exciting
General Assembly. We look forward to working with
our legislators and presenting home education in a
positive light!
If you have made a reservation, but find you will
not be able to attend, please call our office at
804-278-9200 so we can include a family on the
waiting list.
Last year was a banner year for positive changes in
the homeschool statute. This year, based on our good
relationship with the Department of Education, we
will be working closely with the DOE and
superintendents to implement policy changes rather
than pursue legislative changes.
Ben is a homeschool graduate and graduate of the
University of Richmond. During his homeschool years,
Ben participated in TeenPact and
later worked as an
intern with former Senator George Allen. Ben is the
founder, owner, and artist for Lansing Advertising
and is the creator of a national, award-winning
cartoon panel, Out of
Order. Ben’s strong knowledge of state
government and successful homeschool experience will
enhance his credibility when discussing homeschool
issues with legislators.
Caroline Barnes will continue to serve as HEAV’s
bill researcher. Caroline is a former homeschool mom
and an experienced legislative bill analyst. She has
previously served as an HEAV board member and as an
elected local school board member.
HEAV’s legislative team is here to help you
understand the legislative process and answer your
questions. We value your input on all homeschooling
issues. Please contact us with your questions and
comments at legislative@heav.org.
We are carefully monitoring bills related to the
following topics:
Visit the General Assembly Home Page
Lobbyist in a Box
Call in Your Viewpoint
At the present time, organizations are not required
to report grassroots lobbying such as requesting
citizen action or passing on information by letter,
e-mail, or phone. However, if Section 220 of S. 1
remains as part of the legislation, all groups that
spend money to reach more than 500 people asking
them to contact their congressman would have to
comply with federal lobbying laws. That would
include registering with Congress, complying with
disclosure laws, and filing quarterly reports.
Although lobbying reform is needed, Section 220 of
this bipartisan legislation forces advocacy groups
to submit to tremendous government regulation.
Senator Robert Bennett (R-UT) and Senate Republican
Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), have offered an
amendment to strike the grassroots lobbying
provisions included in S.1.
HEAV supports the Bennett amendment. A vote on the
amendment may take place as early as next Tuesday.
Please call your senators immediately asking them to
vote "YES" on the Bennett amendment. You can reach
your senators by calling the U.S. Capitol
Switchboard at 202-224-3121.
For more information, please read other alerts
written by Homeschool
Legal Defense Association and Eagle
Forum.
Sincerely,
Your response has been tremendous! I know we’ll have
an exciting Day
at the Capitol on February 13 with Lt. Governor
Bill Bolling and “Patrick Henry” among other special
guests. If you haven’t made your reservations yet,
please call our office. We are now taking names for
a waiting list. If we have enough response, we will
plan another Day at the Capitol later in February.
Our core legislative team is made up of
knowledgeable individuals with solid homeschool and
legislative experience. As HEAV’s director of
government affairs, I will continue to direct HEAV
legislative activities. Working closely with me is
Anne Miller, president of HEAV, who has been
a behind-the-scenes legislative advisor and bill
reader for more than 13 years. Martin Brown will
take on a
new position as HEAV’s legislative consultant.
Martin was policy advisor to Gov. Jim Gilmore,
Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Resources,
and former executive director of The Family
Foundation. He
will also work closely with HEAV’s new lobbyist,
Benjamin Lansing.
We will provide analysis and information on bills
related to these topics when, and if, they are
introduced.
2. Pray for our legislative team.
3. Support the work of HEAV through volunteering,
membership,
and financial contributions.
4. Join us February 13, in Richmond for Day
at the Capitol. This is an excellent way to
learn about our
state government. Over the years thousands of
homeschool families have joined us to express their
support for homeschooling to their elected and
appointed representatives in Richmond.
We will keep you up-to-date on legislative issues as
they develop. Watch for our Legislative Updates.
Sign-up
to receive your free subscription!
Go to the General
Assembly's home page to find out the status of
specific bills, committee meeting schedules, who
your legislators are, or the progress of the Capitol
restoration project. You can even search for a bill
by topic if you don’t know the number!
The Virginia General Assembly has given citizens the
ability to track up to five bills with the bill
tracking software Lobbyist in
a Box. It’s user-friendly and makes bill
tracking a breeze!
The General Assembly has set-up a “Constituent
View-Point” for citizens to leave a voice message
for legislators. You must leave your name, address,
and phone number. Call the “Constituent View-Point”
at 800-889-0229 between 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. to
register your opinion.
Yvonne Bunn, HEAV Director of Government Affairs
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Home Educators Association of Virginia, 2248 G Dabney Road, Richmond, Virginia, 23230
PHONE 804-278-9200, FAX 804-278-9202
Committed to helping parents fulfill their God-given right and responsibility to educate their own children
This page last edited: 20 October 2009
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