Prior to the House of Delegates convening in Richmond today, Governor Tim Kaine signed David’s first bill into law, strengthening local control for the people of Arlington.
House Bill 1002 will bring more power and local control back to the 45th District by giving the citizens of Arlington the same power as in every other county in Virginia to control the salaries of their county board members. Until now, Arlington was the only county that had to beg permission from the General Assembly to change county board salaries, giving legislators from the far reaches of Virginia, who know nothing about Arlington’s unique needs and circumstances, power over a fundamentally local issue.
“I’m happy to have made a small difference,” said David. “I believe strongly in local control of local issues, and this bill is one more step in that direction for my constituents.”
Since this bill targets a single locality, it was “special legislation” that required a two-thirds majority vote in both the House and the Senate to pass.
“Because of the nature of the issue, the process for this piece of legislation was more complex than the norm, but I enjoyed the challenge,” said David.