Archive for February, 2011

Herring Bill to Protect the Virginia Tuition Assistance Grant Program Passes General Assembly

Thursday, February 24th, 2011

Senator Mark Herring’s (D-Loudoun & Fairfax) legislation to protect Virginia’s Tuition Assistance Grant Program (TAG) passed the General Assembly today with wide bi-partisan support.

The TAG program was authorized as an amendment to the Virginia Constitution in 1974 and since its inception has been interpreted to mean that only students attending Virginia private institutions of higher education are eligible to receive the grants.  Currently, over 22,000 Virginia students attending institutions are awarded TAG grants each year.   Recently, this historically understood interpretation has come under attack, leaving the TAG program vulnerable to applications by out-of-state institutions with satellite or branch campuses located in Virginia.

The bill clarifies the current TAG program eligibility requirements in order to ensure that Virginia tax dollars are awarded to Virginia students attending Virginia private colleges and universities.

“All Virginians can take great pride in our system of public and private colleges and universities,” Herring stated.  “Strategic investments in higher education, such as the Tuition Assistance Grant program, not only help Virginia students achieve their dreams of attaining a graduate or undergraduate degree at one of Virginia’s private colleges or universities, they help strengthen our economy by making sure our workforce is fully prepared and can successfully compete in the global economy.”

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Posted in Education | 3 Comments »

Two Key Pieces of Herring Agenda Pass Virginia Senate on Crossover Day

Wednesday, February 9th, 2011

Two key pieces of Senator Mark Herring’s (D-Loudoun & Fairfax) legislative agenda passed the Virginia Senate unanimously, 40-0, today at the halfway point of the 2011 General Assembly session:

SB 1338- The Virginia Responsible Budgeting and Spending Control Act of 2011

“Last November, voters in Virginia and around the nation sent a message to lawmakers reminding us that it is our responsibility to be careful stewards of their tax dollars,” Herring stated.

“The Virginia Responsible Budgeting and Spending Control Act provides that the Governor submit a financial plan annually to the General Assembly that includes projections for total state debt and projected future expenditures over periods of six and ten years.  We need to know precisely the fiscal consequences that spending and borrowing decisions will have on our state budget over the long term.”

SB 1485- Expanding the Commonwealth Research and Commercialization Fund

“This bill expands the Commonwealth Research and Commercialization Fund to include three separate programs to accelerate technology research and commercialization throughout Virginia,” Herring stated.

Those programs are: a new “Eminent Researchers Program” to help attract the best and brightest technology researchers to Virginia universities, a new “Commercialization Program” to help companies commercialize promising technology projects in Virginia, and an expanded “Research Matching Funds Program” to help Virginia research institutions match and leverage federal and private research and technology commercialization funds.

“This legislation elevates Virginia’s profile as a global technology center,” Herring stated.

Legislation passed by Senator Herring in 2009 established the Commonwealth Research and Commercialization fund.

“I am pleased that these two important measures have passed the Senate unanimously, and I am optimistic that the House of Delegates will see fit to pass them as well and send them to the Governor’s desk for his signature,” Herring concluded.

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Posted in Economic Development, General Session | 1 Comment »

Herring Releases Statement on the Senate’s Passage of McDonnell’s Transportation Plan

Monday, February 7th, 2011

Senator Mark Herring (D-Loudoun & Fairfax) today released the following statement after the Virginia Senate passed Governor McDonnell’s transportation plan. The plan, calls for accelerating $1.8 billion in transportation bonds approved in 2007 and the issuance of an additional $1.1 billion in bonds backed by anticipated federal revenue.  The nearly $3 billion will be spent on over 900 transportation infrastructure projects across the Commonwealth over the next three years:

“Today, I voted in favor of, and the Senate passed, Senate Bill 1446 which is an important first step in addressing Virginia’s long-term transportation needs.”

“The plan will allow Virginia to take advantage of historically low interest rates in order to accelerate the construction of desperately needed transportation infrastructure projects across the Commonwealth over the next three years.  Among these are Loudoun County’s most pressing transportation infrastructure needs: the construction of the Route 7/Belmont Ridge Road interchange and the construction of the Sycolin Road overpass.”

“Governor McDonnell is fond of saying, ‘There are no Republican or Democratic roads,’ and I could not agree more.  Our constituents expect us to come down to Richmond and to work together, members of both parties in both houses, to find solutions to our most pressing issues, and transportation is certainly at the top of that list.”

“For too long, Virginians have been spending too much of their time stuck in traffic, away from their families, and away from their jobs. This means lost productivity for our businesses and a lower quality of life for our citizens.  It is my hope that by passing this legislation, we have taken a meaningful step forward that will improve the lives of the residents of our Commonwealth.”

Additionally, SB 1446 includes Senator Herring’s legislation, SB 1329, to amend the state’s highway “revenue sharing” program with localities to make more state matching funds available to localities that wish to undertake their own road construction projects.  Senator Herring is a chief co-patron of SB 1446.

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Posted in General Session, Transportation | Comments Off

Herring Announces Support for McDonnell’s Transportation Plan

Wednesday, February 2nd, 2011

Senator Mark Herring (D-Loudoun & Fairfax) today announced his support for Governor McDonnell’s transportation plan. The plan, which passed the Senate Finance Committee yesterday, calls for accelerating $1.8 billion in transportation bonds approved in 2007 and the issuance of an additional $1.1 billion in bonds backed by anticipated federal revenue.  The nearly $3 billion will be spent on over 900 transportation infrastructure projects across the Commonwealth over the next three years.

“As the Governor has repeatedly acknowledged, this plan is a first step in addressing Virginia’s long-term transportation infrastructure needs.  All of the experts, including the Governor himself, are in agreement: Virginia needs over $1 billion dollars per year to adequately meet those needs,” Herring said.  “While I do have concerns about relying on borrowed money, Virginia does have significant short term needs that these funds can immediately address.”

“Among those are Loudoun County’s top transportation infrastructure projects,” Herring said.  “Through my efforts and the efforts of County officials, my Route 7 Task Force, and the business community, I am pleased that Transportation Secretary Sean Connaughton has pledged that the state will fully fund the construction of the Route 7/Belmont Ridge Road interchange and the Sycolin Road flyover in Leesburg, if the package passes the General Assembly.  The Governor’s bond package will also include state funding for several other projects of great importance to eastern Loudoun and western Fairfax County.”

In addition, Senator Herring’s legislation, SB 1329, to amend the state’s highway “revenue sharing” program with localities to make more state matching funds available to localities that wish to undertake their own road construction projects, was merged into the Governor’s transportation bill, SB 1446, making Senator Herring a chief co-patron of the legislation.

“Throughout this process, I pledged to keep an open mind and work constructively with the Governor and his administration. As the Governor himself is fond of saying, ‘There are no Republican or Democratic roads,’ and I could not agree more,” Herring continued.  “Our constituents expect us to come down to Richmond and to work together, members of both parties in both houses, to find solutions to our most pressing issues, and transportation is certainly at the top of that list.”

“For too long, Virginians have been spending too much of their time stuck in traffic, away from their families, and away from their jobs. This means lost productivity for our businesses and a lower quality of life for our citizens,” Herring stated. “It is my hope that with the passage of this legislation, we will take a meaningful step forward that will improve the lives of the residents of our Commonwealth.”

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Posted in Transportation | Comments Off