Press Releases

Richmond — The General Assembly has convened a Special Session to consider HB 5001 that will redraw all 140 voting districts throughout Virginia. Every state must redraw its political districts to reflect population changes found in the 2010 Census. Virginia must move more quickly than other states because it holds state elections in odd-numbered years. We will use 2010 Census data to remake General Assembly and House of Delegates districts before November elections, when all 140 seats in the state legislature are up before the voters. The maps we produce must be approved by Gov. Bob McDonnell and pass an extra step of oversight from the U.S. Justice Department.

The following link will take you to the Virginia Redistricting webpage. Through the inter-active maps that are provide by the Department of the Legislative Services, you can review the proposals that are before the Special Redistricting Session. Unfortunately, because my district is the second largest in growth, I must shed 33,000 plus voters. Please review the maps and give me a call if you have comments or suggestions.

It is hard to imagine but this is the final week of the 2011 General Assembly Session. Delegates and Senators are working overtime to ensure the final passage of their bills through both chambers. Sometimes it is as easy as simply accepting changes made by the other chamber, or it can be as hard as having a conference committee meet to work out a compromise version of the bill that suits both chambers.

As of this morning over 400 Senate and House Bills have passed both chambers and have been sent to Governor McDonnell’s desk for his approval. Governor McDonnell has already approved two bills and has reportedly made amendments to several other bills. Read More »

With crossover week behind us there are only two weeks left in this year’s General Assembly Session. The biggest issue remaining before both the House of Delegates and State Senate is the state budget.

Budget Update:

The House and Senate have vastly different view as to what the budget should look like. In the House, we have approved our plan to revise the state budget, and the State Senate has approved their plan. When one compares the House and Senate budgets, it is clear that there is a vast difference in the approach each body took to meet the long-term needs of Virginia.

On the House side, our primary objective was to restore fiscal discipline by limiting new spending, reducing the amount of authorized debt, setting aside money in the state Rainy Day Fund, and reducing the burdens on small businesses.

In particular, the House budget sought to address the overall structural imbalance by rolling back the accelerated sales tax for 98% of affected retailers, increasing our reserve payment to the Rainy Day Fund by an additional $64 million above the required $50 million payment, and reducing the state’s authorized debt by $120 million. The House budget has reduced or eliminated funding for a number of programs such as public broadcasting.  In contrast, the Senate budget spends every dollar available and more with almost $335 million in deficit spending as we enter the next biennium. Specifically, the Senate budget:

-Does not reduce the accelerated sales tax for a single retailer

-Provides only an additional $20 million payment into the Rainy Day Fund, $44 million less than was approved in the House budget

-Authorizes nearly $700 million in new state supported debt, including nearly $300 million to pay for the construction of a new government building in Richmond

When you add it all up, the Senate’s budget equals more spending, more debt, and no relief for Virginia small businesses. As both budgets have passed their respective chambers, it is now up to members of the House Appropriations and Senate Finance committees to work together to put forward a final budget that both the Republican-controlled House and Democrat-controlled Senate can agree upon. Read More »

Today is Crossover day in the General Assembly officially marking the halfway point of the 2011 General Assembly Session. Crossover is the last day that the House of Delegates can act on a House Bill. On Wednesday, all bills that have passed the House will be sent to the Senate for their consideration, and we will begin to consider all Senate Bills that have passed the Senate. If a bill hasn’t passed the House by the end of today that particular bill will not pass the General Assembly this year.

With this year’s session at the halfway mark I wanted to update you on a few of the most important issues: Read More »

The wintery weather here in Richmond wasn’t enough to stop us from doing the people’s business. Among committee meetings, presentation of bills to committees, longer floor sessions, and the number of groups that are visiting us, the days seem to be flying by very quickly now that we have gotten into the thick of the 2011 General Assembly session.

Spotlight on: The Repeal Amendment passes the House of Delegates

On Tuesday, the House of Delegates took a major step in our efforts to re-balance the role of the federal government when we passed the Repeal Amendment, HJ 542. The Repeal Amendment, co-patroned by a total of 51 delegates including myself, is legislation that enables two-thirds of the States to convene an amendment convention pursuant to Article V of the United States Constitution. The convention would then consider a constitutional amendment allowing the repeal of any federal law or regulation by a vote of two-thirds of the state legislatures acting in unison.

Simply put, the Repeal Amendment would give states the ability to overturn highly unpopular laws like mandatory health care; however, as the Repeal Amendment would require two-thirds of all states to call for a convention and ratify proposed amendments, only particularly unpalatable laws and regulations would likely be acted upon.    I believe that giving states a limited check on federal power will reign in the scope of the federal government, increase efficiency, and encourage an atmosphere in Washington more closely aligned with the intent of our founding fathers.  The House of Delegates passed the Repeal Amendment on a 59 to 34 vote, and now this legislation will go before the State Senate. Currently, a Senate version of the Repeal Amendment has been stalled in the Privileges and Elections Committee. I hope that our colleagues in the Senate will see the wisdom in passing this bill and give it the serious consideration it deserves.

First Tele-Town Hall of 2011:

Last week I conducted my first tele-townhall of 2011. Over 2,000 people participated during the town hall! It was great to hear what’s on the minds of my constituents. Everything from power lines to Virginia’s right-to-work laws was covered.

In case you missed the tele-town hall here is a quick summary of my legislation for 2011:

I have submitted fifteen bills this session which cover a broad range of issues that I believe will both improve the everyday lives of my constituents and save the Commonwealth millions of dollars.  These bills range from making power lines to be built in our community much less obtrusive, to studying how we can grow Virginia’s manufacturing sector, to reducing the time our citizens spend getting emission tests done on their vehicles.

HB2026 Commercial Vehicles; Persons required to register with Sex Offender and Crimes against Minors Registry:  This bill prohibits persons registered with the Sex Offender and Crimes Against Minors Registry from (1) driving school buses and passenger-carrying commercial vehicles and (2) being issued commercial driver’s licenses and instruction permits to drive school buses and passenger-carrying commercial vehicles.  HB 2027 Underground Transmission Lines; Pilot Program:  This bill extends to July 1, 2014, the pilot program created to build four underground transmission lines.  The extension will allow two additional lines to be considered.

HB 2029 Remote Sensing:  This bill provides that a percentage of our vehicles in Northern Virginia will be emissions tested using existing remote sensing roadside test equipment.  This will eliminate a trip to the test station for those vehicles found non-polluting.  For time-starved NOVA citizens, this will save many hours.

For information on all fifteen of my bills for the 2011 Legislative Session, please go to the Virginia General Assembly Legislative Homepage: http://leg1.state.va.us/lis.htm

As always, my staff and I are here in Richmond to serve you. We want to hear what you think about the legislation pending before the House, or if there’s anything we can do to help you in dealing with a state government agency. My office can be reached at (804) 698-1033 or via the Internet at  Deljmay@house.virginia.gov.

Please do not hesitate to contact me with questions, concerns or comments.

Regards,

Joe

Midway through the second week of session, we have started to make some progress in tackling over 1,300 house bills and resolutions that have been introduced in the House for this 46 day “short” Session.

While it sounds like a large number of bills, we have fewer bills introduced this year thanks to an important rules change put in place by House Republicans. During short sessions, a delegate can introduce a maximum of 15 bills. In years past, there were some delegates who would introduce upwards of 40 bills. I believe this rule change allows us to give more thoughtful consideration to the bills and resolutions that are before the General Assembly during the short time we are in Richmond.

Most bills are still being debated in committees, but there are a few important measures that passed the House of Delegates that I would like to bring your attention to in this week’s newsletter.

On Wednesday, the House voted to pass House Joint Resolution 500, an amendment that would add our right-to-work law to the Virginia Constitution. For decades, Virginia has placed a premium on the freedom of workers to decide whether or not they want to join a union. Our laws ensure that employees can’t be forced to join a union as a condition of employment. Virginia has the distinction of being the northernmost right-to-work state east of the Mississippi River, giving us a major competitive advantage when it comes to recruiting new companies from northeastern states to the Old Dominion. Additionally, our current right-to-work law is one reason Virginia consistently ranks as one of the best states for business.

Although our economy here in Virginia is stronger than most other states, it’s not nearly as strong as it should be. Adding our right-to-work law to the Virginia Constitution would give us another advantage to help attract new businesses and jobs to the Commonwealth. It would also send a message to Virginia businesses that our right-to-work rules aren’t going to change on a dime and encourage them to grow and expand here in Virginia.

In addition to working hard to strengthen Virginia’s right-to-work law, I have submitted fifteen bills this session which cover a broad range of issues that I believe will both improve the everyday lives of my constituents and save the Commonwealth millions of dollars.

These bills range from making power lines to be built in our community much less obtrusive, to studying how we can grow Virginia’s manufacturing sector, to reducing the time our citizens spend getting emission tests done on their vehicles.

Here is a sampling of the bills I have submitted:

HB 2024 Electrical Transmission Lines; Impact:  This bill requires that applicants seeking to build power lines must submit, as a part of their application, an impact minimization plan which details how the visual, environmental, and economic impacts of the transmission line will be reduced.

HB2026 Commercial Vehicles; Persons required to register with Sex Offender and Crimes against Minors Registry: This bill prohibits persons registered with the Sex Offender and Crimes Against Minors Registry from (1) driving school buses and passenger-carrying commercial vehicles and (2) being issued commercial driver’s licenses and instruction permits to drive school buses and passenger-carrying commercial vehicles.

HB 2027 Underground Transmission Lines; Pilot Program:  This bill extends to July 1, 2014, the pilot program created to build four underground transmission lines.  The extension will allow two additional lines to be considered.

HB 2029 Remote Sensing:  This bill provides that a percentage of our vehicles in Northern Virginia will be emissions tested using existing remote sensing roadside test equipment.  This will eliminate a trip to the test station for those vehicles found non-polluting.  For time-starved NOVA citizens, this will save many hours.

For information on all fifteen of my bills for the 2011 Legislative Session, please go to the Virginia General Assembly Legislative Homepage: http://leg1.state.va.us/lis.htm.

As always, my staff and I are here in Richmond to serve you. We want to hear what you think about the important issues facing the Commonwealth, or if there’s anything we can do to help you in dealing with state government. My legislative assistants, Nancy Duke and Memory Porter, are staffing my office, Room 504 if the General Assembly Building. You can contact us by sending an e-mail to  Deljmay@house.virginia.gov or by calling us at (804) 698-1033.

Friendly faces from home are always a welcome sight in Richmond, so if you are in the Capitol  please be sure to stop by our office.

Please do not hesitate to contact me with questions, concerns or comments.

Regards,

Joe

Dear Friends,

Last Wednesday marked the beginning of the 2011 General Assembly session. This year, the legislature will meet in Richmond for 45 days. During that time, we will re-evaluate the state budget for the upcoming fiscal year and consider over a thousand pieces of legislation. As your representative, I will do my best to keep you up-to-speed with the work that we are doing in Richmond to help make Virginia a better place to live, work, and raise our families.

In his State of the Commonwealth address last week, Governor McDonnell set out a bold agenda. Of his many proposals, I believe the most important and pressing issue is job creation and the economy.

We have worked hard in the House of Delegates to advance policies that grow and protect jobs in Virginia. Our low tax rates, strong right-to-work law, and our fair regulatory structure have made Virginia a jobs-friendly state. Since February 2010, over 67,000 new jobs have been created in Virginia. Our unemployment rate, at 6.8 percent, is below the national average. While that may be good compared to other states, I know that more work needs to be done. Like Governor McDonnell said, I believe it is unacceptable that more than 280,000 Virginians remain out of work. That’s one reason I was so excited to see what Governor McDonnell has proposed in his “Opportunity at Work” agenda.

As a small business owner I know that small businesses are the lifeblood of our economy.  Whether they are a dental office, the lawyer down the street, or the new restaurant trying to find its place on Main Street, our friends and neighbors who are out pursuing the American dream are what makes Virginia’s economy strong.

In his speech this week, the Governor asked legislators to make further investments in small business job creation — investments that will be paid for with spending cuts in other areas. These investments in job creation couldn’t come at a more critical time.  The economy may have improved, but job creation continues to be far less than what we need. Just this week, the Federal government announced that more than 445,000 Americans filed for unemployment benefits.

My Republican colleagues and I are also working to enshrine Virginia’s status as a right-to-work state in the Commonwealth’s Constitution. Virginians everywhere should have the freedom to join a union if they so choose. They should also have the freedom to choose whether or not to form a union through a secret ballot.

I am looking forward to supporting these and other important job creation measures this year.

In addition to working hard to protect Virginia jobs and doing everything in my power to improve the economy I have submitted fifteen bills this session that cover a broad range of issues that I believe will both improve the everyday lives of my constituents and save the Commonwealth millions of dollars. One of my top priorities during the 2011 session is to get House Bill 2030: Strategic Manufacturing and Jobs Repatriation Act passed. This bill requiresthe Secretary of Commerce and Trade to create a comprehensive manufacturing strategy designed to create jobs and grow the manufacturing industry in the Commonwealth.

You can track the progress of my bills by visiting the General Assembly’s website at http://legis.virginia.gov.

As always, my staff and I are here in Richmond to serve you. We want to hear what you think about the important issues facing the Commonwealth, or if there’s anything we can do to help you in dealing with state government. My legislative assistants, Nancy Duke and Memory Porter, are staffing my office, Room 504 if the General Assembly Building. You can contact us by sending an e-mail to  Deljmay@house.virginia.gov or by calling us at (804) 698-1033.

Friendly faces from home are always a welcome sight here in Richmond, so if you are in the Capitol between now and early March, please be sure to stop by our office.

Please do not hesitate to contact me with questions, concerns or comments.

Regards,

Joe

By James Heffernan

As a lifelong engineer, Joe May’s influence on American life can be felt in any number of areas, from gas pumps to signatures to football games on television.

With nearly two dozen patents to his name, May, a state delegate representing Clarke and western Loudoun counties, is often compared to another Virginia politician, Thomas Jefferson, who is credited with scores of practical innovations in agriculture and machinery. May, 73, tends to shy away from such distinctions, though he admits his professional background serves him well in Richmond.

“For one thing, I can do arithmetic in my head,” he says, a skill that comes in handy as both a member of the budget-writing Appropriations Committee and chairman of the House Transportation panel.

May, who grew up on a farm near Broadway, has always had “a healthy curiosity” when it comes to technology.

His first invention came in 1959, when, while on leave from his studies at Virginia Tech and working at a poultry plant in Rockingham County, he developed a circuit that would automatically start his car in the morning and turn on the heater when his alarm clock went off.

“It was a case of necessity being the mother of invention,” he says. “I had to be at the poultry plant at a quarter to six. After getting up in a cold house and eating a cold breakfast, the last thing I wanted to do was get into a cold car.”

May’s first patent came as a young engineer with DuPont in the early 1960s. The company was looking for a means to better measure the octane rating of gasoline. The formula that May developed, R+M/2, became the basis for the yellow stickers on gas pumps that identify fuel grades such as regular, plus and super unleaded.

It’s gratifying, he says, to have developed a system to “help people avoid paying any more than they have to at the pump and still operate their car efficiently.”

In 1973, May patented an electronic device used by railroads to measure the curvature of their tracks. Prior to that time, the measurements were done by hand using a crew of four people and a length of rope.

“After a thousand deep knee bends in the July heat [one summer], I said to myself, ‘there must be a better way.’”

The technology, which is based on the chain rule of derivatives in calculus, is still a federal standard for railroads today.

Another of May’s inventions, the Signa signer, was a precursor to the digital signature pads that companies such as UPS and FedEx use to document deliveries.

“It’s a handwriting machine that allows an individual to write in cursive and have it reproduce,” he explains, adding, “We’ve sold a lot on Capitol Hill.”

In addition, May and his company, Electronics Instrumentation and Technology of Sterling, helped develop many of the computer overlays used in televised sporting events, including the yellow first-down marker in football.

The concept was originally designed by New Jersey-based Princeton Video Imaging, which May said came to EIT in the 1990s to help test and build the technology.

“We picked up the design effort and saw it to its conclusion,” he says.

Princeton Video Imaging went bankrupt in 2003, but has since reformed under the name PVI. May said his company has never owned the intellectual property rights.

The technology seems simple enough, but implementing it is quite complex, May says. “One of the hardest challenges is where to put the yellow line so that it doesn’t run over linemen or officials, but still comes right up to [the marker].”

The overlay technology also can be a big revenue-producer, he says, allowing TV cameras to substitute additional advertising on a football field or the backstop of a baseball diamond during a national broadcast.

As an amateur pilot, two of May’s latest patents cover instruments used in the safe operation of aircraft, including one that measures how high a plane or helicopter is off the ground at any given time. While altimeters are only accurate to within a few hundred feet, May says his device is accurate to within 6 inches.

“During the Gulf oil spill cleanup effort, they had to fly large aircraft near the surface of the water, which is very difficult to do,” he says. “You can only be wrong once.”

Since its formation in 1977, EIT has grown from three employees to 300, with operations in Sterling and Danville. The company plans to open a second manufacturing facility in Southside Virginia in the coming months.

Contact the reporter at  jheffernan@nvdaily.com

Northern Virginia Daily  © 2011

MEDIA ADVISORY
Contact: Olivia Doherty, 301-656-0348

Teenagers Kick Off National Campaign to Get Drivers To Check Their Tires and Keep Them Properly Inflated

What: Loudoun Valley High School students hand out free tire gauges, teach residents about keeping tires properly inflated and calculate gas savings for their community. This event launches enGAUGE It, a national campaign aiming to enlist 2,010 high schools to participate in 2010.

When: Noon, Earth Day, Wednesday, April 22

Where: Loudoun Valley Shopping Center parking lot at the intersection of Main Street and North Maple Avenue, Purcellville, Va.

PURCELLVILLE, Va., – On Earth Day, several dozen students from Loudoun Valley High School will launch the enGAUGE It campaign to teach motorists about the value of checking their tires and keeping them properly inflated. The students will hand out thousands of free tire gauges at various locations around Purcellville after calculating how much gas – and money – would be saved if local motorists kept their tires properly inflated. Students will provide community members with tips and demonstrations on monitoring tire inflation. Elected officials are expected to attend, including Purcellville Mayor Bob Lazaro, and students will teach them about checking their tires.

This year’s Earth Day event launches a national campaign to get 2,010 high schools around the country to participate in 2010 to educate drivers in their communities about tire pressure.

The Newton Marasco Foundation, based in McLean, Va., and dedicated to inspiring the next generation of environmental stewards, is sponsoring the enGAUGE It campaign and is providing students with the tire gauges. The foundation created a Web site where students from other high schools will be able to register for the enGAUGE It challenge, sign up for free tire gauges, find facts and tips on checking tire pressure and download a toolkit to help stage their own enGAUGE It event. Using the site, students across the country will be able to calculate the gas and cost savings in their communities. To find out more, please visit www.newtonmarascofoundation.org.

The U.S. Department of Energy has estimated that 1.2 billion gallons of gas are wasted annually due to under-inflated tires. When tires are properly inflated, fuel economy can improve by as much as to 3 percent, and motorists can save up to six cents per gallon. Tires should be checked monthly. For more information, visit http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/maintain.shtml. The California Air Resources Board recently adopted a resolution requiring auto repair shops to check tire pressure every time drivers bring in their cars for maintenance and smog checks.

“During the presidential campaign, Barack Obama made the suggestion that we all should check our tires regularly and keep them properly inflated,” said Amy Marasco Newton, president of the Newton Marasco Foundation. “He’s absolutely right. Drivers who keep their tires properly inflated can improve their fuel economy, reduce harmful emissions, spend less on gas and prevent auto accidents. It’s a simple thing we all can do.”

The Earth Day enGAUGE It event is cosponsored by the Town of Purcellville, Loudoun Valley High School and the Newton Marasco Foundation.

####

The Newton Marasco Foundation’s mission is to inspire responsible environmental stewardship. NMF designs innovative programs that foster learning, appreciation and caring for our natural environment through education, consulting, and celebration. For more information, visit www.newtonmarascofoundation.org.

State support for modeling and simulation research at Old Dominion University has had its ups and downs, but this year the program may get help from President Obama, an inventor and an urban myth.

The inventor is Joe May, a Republican delegate from Loudoun County who heads up an electrical engineering and manufacturing firm. He’s best known for devising the technology that creates that digital, yellow, first-down line football fans see in televised games, but he’s also developed a variety of medical and manufacturing devices.

“Some people uncharitably say I’m in charge of harebrained ideas,” May said.

He had one of those last year while watching “MythBusters” on the Discovery Channel. The show tested whether motorists could improve their gas mileage by driving in the wake of tractor-trailers. Turns out that urban myth is true – if you don’t mind risking a sudden and excruciating death.

May realized the vacuum pulling those lunatic tail-gaters down the highway was also putting a strain on the truck’s engine. He was still thinking about that TV show when he arrived at the state Capitol this winter for the legislative session.

May is chairman of the House Transportation Committee, and he’s a senior member of a panel that oversees science and technology legislation. That puts him in contact with trucking industry representatives as well as scientists at ODU. He soon discovered that he wasn’t the only one in Virginia worrying about how to streamline big trucks. He found his aerodynamic soulmate in Bob Ash, a professor of aerospace engineering at ODU.

“We are consuming, in my view, alarmingly large quantities of fuel to move products on highways,” Ash said.

That translates into more costs for trucking companies and more smog for the rest of us to breathe. Because heavy trucks tend to get only six or seven miles to the gallon, there’s a lot of room for improvement.

May and Ash started brainstorming ideas to streamline existing trucks by adding finlike attachments and other doohickies. May also kept finding other folks working on the same problem. He facilitated meetings between ODU, NASA’s Langley Research Center and SOLUS Solutions and Technologies, a Virginia Beach firm. Del. John Cosgrove, an engineer and ODU alumnus, joined in the huddles.

The collaboration has resulted in plans to design aerodynamic improvements for trucks and to test them using modeling and simulation technology. The group hopes to do initial tests at the giant wind tunnel at Langley Air Force Base before it is demolished this summer. Discussions are under way for using a 9,000-foot runway at NASA’s Wallops Island site for final, real-life tests.

All of this is going to take money, and it just so happens the state is getting $70 million from the federal stimulus plan for energy projects. May, who is also a pilot, flew in the state’s senior energy policy adviser last week to hear about the project. Steve Walz has $15 billion in requests for the stimulus funds, but Team Truck’s impressive lineup has gotten his attention. Gov. Tim Kaine will announce his proposal for spending the stimulus money this week.

May said he has no financial interest in the project. He just likes coming up with harebrained ideas. It turns out one of those ideas could bring a welcome boost to one of ODU’s most under-appreciated research programs.

Christina Nuckols is an editorial writer for The Virginian-Pilot. E-mail her at christina.nuckols@pilotonline.com