Become a Legislator...Outside of the Box!

The 2013 Virginia Legislative Session convened last week, on January 9^th.  The Virginia House of Delegates and staff will be extremely busy in the months to come, presenting, discussing and voting on proposed bills that will have an effect on the way you and I lead our lives.

Since visiting the state capital last week, I have been busy sifting through the calendar of the 2013 session and setting up my “Lobbyist in a Box” account.  For those who may not be aware, “Lobbyist in a Box” is a FREE automated service that allows you to create an account to track up to five bills being presented, during the current session.  Here is a list of the bills I’m following:
 

·        HB-1609: Involving mental health care for students at four-year universities.

·        HB-1310: Involving individual school systems to determine when they start after summer break.

·        HB-1614: Involving making HPV vaccinations mandatory.

·        HB-1934: Involving In-state tuition for non-citizens of the United States of America.

·        HB-1470: Involving the Charter Schools application process.

·        HB 2172: Involves making a means to finance a future Metro Line in Prince William County.

·        HB-2013: Involving Early Voting for registered voters, without reason.

·        HB-1905: Involving the restoration of civil rights (to vote) after a prison sentence is completed.

OK, so you noticed that I mentioned more than five, I’ll be following some of these on my own accord.  There are too many bills being proposed to select just five!

Many voters showed up and showed out for the last election.  Prince William County had 79.75% active voter turnout for the November election. (Virginia State Board of Elections)  Prior to the November 2012 election, I posed the question, “What are you doing on November 7^th?”  Staying involved in the political process is a proactive answer to the question.  Create a Lobbyist in a Box account, campaign for the candidate of your choice, in an upcoming election, take your children on a trip to the capital or a local office, write politicians in your district about proposed bills, join a local committee…whatever you do, do not lose the energy you had on November 6, 2012!  Keep the momentum going!