Public Comment on HB 487 – § 28.2‑1200.1(E) I oppose HB 487 as drafted, specifically § 28.2‑1200.1(E), because it is structurally incompatible with Virginia’s constitutional public‑trust framework and cannot be cured through clarification or narrowing language alone. State‑owned bottomlands are held by the Commonwealth in trust for the people, pursuant to Article XI of the Virginia Constitution and long‑settled public‑trust doctrine. Local governments possess no inherent authority or property interest in these lands; they may act only as instrumentalities of the Commonwealth and only within powers expressly delegated in a manner consistent with fiduciary trust obligations. The Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC) functions not as a discretionary landowner, but as a fiduciary trustee charged with protecting public rights in navigation, fisheries, and access. Subsection E departs from this framework by providing that certain localities “shall be deemed to hold a legal property interest” in state‑owned waters, bottoms, or subsurface soils. This language does not convey title, grant a lease, or authorize an easement through VMRC’s established statutory processes. Instead, it declares a property interest into existence by legislative fiat—without trust findings, without case‑specific review, and without meaningful judicial oversight. This approach presents multiple constitutional tensions. First, it risks reordering the beneficiaries of the public trust, elevating the operational needs of particular localities over the Commonwealth’s duty to manage these resources for the benefit of the people as a whole. Second, it bypasses VMRC’s fiduciary role by substituting a categorical legislative declaration for individualized trust analysis. Third, by insulating the deemed interest from downstream scrutiny, it functionally undermines separation‑of‑powers principles. Virginia doctrine looks to function, not labels; calling an interest “necessary” for a project does not cure a structural transfer of authority. While the provision could be cured in theory, doing so would require rewriting it into something materially different: eliminating the deemed property interest; limiting localities to eligibility to apply for a time‑limited, non‑possessory easement or lease; requiring written trust‑consistency findings by VMRC; and preserving full judicial review. Those changes would restore constitutional alignment—but they would also defeat the purpose of subsection E as drafted. Accordingly, subsection E is not merely overbroad or imprecise. It is structurally incompatible with Virginia’s public‑trust framework because it attempts to manufacture a local property interest in public‑trust resources without conveyance, findings, or review. For these reasons, I respectfully oppose HB 487. — KJH/Virginian/Veteran/In the Commonwealth

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Invasives should be pulled or killed by herbicide and not be permitted to be sold in nurseries

Vote to help our community!

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Invasives should be pulled or killed by herbicide and not be permitted to be sold in nurseries

Seven generations for the future

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Invasives should be pulled or killed by herbicide and not be permitted to be sold in nurseries

Seven generations for the future

If you’re tired of the 9-to-5 grind or just want a way to put some extra cash in your pocket every week, I have something for you. Companies are currently looking for remote writers to handle: Article Writing Blog Posts Social Media Content Live Chat Support No experience is necessary and full training is provided. But before you apply, you need to see which role you’re best suited for. Go here to take the Writing Job Quiz. ---> http://PaidToWrite.Online/ Once you finish the quiz, you’ll get a breakdown of the best opportunities available for you right now. Visit -----> http://PaidToWrite.Online/

Invasives should be pulled or killed by herbicide and not be permitted to be sold in nurseries

Please vote YES on this.

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Invasives should be pulled or killed by herbicide and not be permitted to be sold in nurseries

Menhaden are a foundational species in the marine food web and essential to the long‑term health of the entire Chesapeake Bay. Their populations have been dramatically reduced over many decades, destabilizing the broader ecosystem and accelerating the decline of the Bay’s natural resources. Current management practices have not been sufficient to protect this species, and decisive action is now required to safeguard the remaining population. As an aquatic ecologist with decades of experience studying and managing Chesapeake Bay programs, I can state unequivocally that this bill represents a necessary step forward and should be approved.

I support HB1048 (Delegate Carr). It is simple common sense to have the information you need in place to determine if the menhaden reduction fishing in the Bay is sustainable. Virginia is operating blind and keeping the status quo with no supporting data that is Bay-specific. Pause the fishery and get the facts. I also support HB1049 (Delegate Carr) to develop a quota management system for the same reasons as stated above. Trained observers to document actual menhaden catch on at least 10% of the reduction fishery’s trips is warranted to keep everyone honest. If the industry is complying, they have nothing to fear. I do not know what our local representative thinks about these bills. But I and many other Eastern Shore folks - across party lines - can tell you that protection of menhaden is very important to us. Thank you for your honest consideration of these bills.

The implementation of a moratorium is crucial to prevent further ecological collapse among our Bay ecosystems.

The Cape Henry Audubon Society, which works in the Hampton Roads area, supports - HB1048 - to pause the menhaden reduction fishery in the Chesapeake Bay until the necessary science has been conducted to make sure this large scale reduction fishery is not having negative impacts on the many other fish, bird, and terrestrial species dependent on menhaden at the base of the food chain, and - HB1049 - to direct the Marine Resources Commission to develop and maintain a quota period management system for the menhaden reduction fishery to mitigate the aforementioned negative impacts of concentrated, high volume menhaden removals from the Bay. In the birding community, we are alarmed at the studies showing a severe decline in the success of osprey nests across the Chesapeake Bay. Osprey, also known as fish hawks, are entirely dependent on catching fish and Osprey chicks are starving to death. The 2025 breeding survey found the reproductive rates for osprey nests across most of the Chesapeake Bay were below replacement rates. (See report from the Center for Conservation Biology at William and Mary - https://ccbbirds.org/2025/10/01/deficit-in-breeding-performance-expands-for-chesapeake-bay-ospreys/) Feeding on menhaden is essential not just for osprey and other birds, but for many species, including striped bass, bluefish, summer flounder, and other popular fish targeted by commercial and recreational fishing industries. A new stock assessment released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission this past October indicated the Atlantic Coast menhaden population is about 37% smaller than previously thought. We must take a cautious stance and protect the remaining menhaden population until additional studies by the Virginia Institute of Marine Science are completed. A healthy menhaden population is important to both ecological and economic interests throughout the state. We urge you to vote yes on both HB1048 and HB1049.

Scientists at William and Mary, say ospreys in the Bay Area and other parts of the Chesapeake Bay are not able to feed their young to adulthood at a sustainable rate. Their main food there, Menhaden, are caught by trawlers who use huge nets to catch the schools as they enter the bay for the first ten months of the year. Other States have required these trawlers to leave state waters because they have caused great depletion of Menhaden in these states. Menhaden also feed Rockfish for charter boat workers. Rockfish will eat crabs when they can’t get Menhaden which hurts the crab harvest. Bluefish eat Menhaden. They will eat shad and herring if they can’t get Menhaden which hurts shad and herring fisheries. Many watermen will depend on these fisheries for years to come, and they may all be depleted if the Menhaden are fished out. Please Recommend HB1048.

A case for ending reduction fishing. The reduction industry claims any changes to their fishery will cause them to close. Let’s make a case for that outcome. In 1878, the menhaden reduction fishing industry was founded in Virginia as a source of cheap oil to replace decimated whale populations. America has a long history of wiping out wildlife on an industrial scale; whales, buffalo, birds, beavers, seals, and more. Reduction fishing is our last holdout of outdated 19th century ideals and technology. The species key to abundance in the Chesapeake is more important than supplying industrial protein pellets to foreign owned salmon farms. There is currently one indisputable scientific fact. The end of reduction fishing would allow half a billion wild animals to survive every year, and serve the purpose nature intended for them.

I'm writing in opposition to both HB 1048 and HB 1049. The pause in Menhaden fishing in the Chesapeake Bay is, not only unwarranted, but could be a potential death knell to the economic survival of Northumberland County. Omega provides employment for approximately 260 people, making it one of our county's most important employer. They pump an estimated $10 million into our economy annually. Omega also contributes a significant amount of money to charitable causes in our community. But, the important facts here are that pausing menhaden fishing is not necessary. Let's follow the science and not just hear say or antidotal information. The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) states that the "striped bass declines have been driven primarily by recreational overfishing, environmental changes, and disease, not by menhaden harvest levels". Furthermore, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources released its 2025 Young-of-Year Striped Bass Survey results, and for the third year a row, THE NEWS IS CLEAR: Atlantic menhaden remain widespread and abundant throughout the Bay. Concern for Osprey, and Striped Bass populations are clearly a concern but how to address this problem, based on the science, the answer is not halting menhaden fishing in the Chesapeake Bay. So, shutting down Omega, even for a little while, will very likely cause them to close up shop here in Northumberland County which would, very likely, plunge our county into an economic collapse. VOTE NO ON BOTH HB-1048 and HB-1049

I oppose bill HB1396. This bill is just another way to “tax” the people. The permitting system that is in this bill will cause some people to stop hunting which will result in even lower license sales in the state.

Please support both of these bills. The menhaden population is critical to the health and life of the Chesapeake bay. Allowing commercial fishing by omega/Cooke with no regulation is destroying the bay and its entire ecosystem. They are blatantly and arrogantly destroying the waters for their own financial gain.

Vote YES on HB1048 and HB1049 to ban menhaden fishing in the Chesapeake Bay and limit catches. Industrial vessels don’t belong in our Bay. They are destroying menhaden and harming countless other species—often for out-of-state or foreign profit. Protect our Bay now.

Please enact legislation that limits to a prohibitive level, or flat prohibit large operation menhaden fishing in the Chesapeake bay. It directly impacts the ecosystem when large quotas are fulfilled in our waters to satisfy demand across the world. It’s unnatural.

Please vote yes to prohibit the fishing for menhaden withing the chesapeake bay and its tributaries (HB1048) and to limit its catch (HB1049). Those fishing vessels have no business fishing inside the bay and the negative effects are obvious to anyone that doesnt have a financial benefit of the vessels fishing within the bay. No vessel should be in the bay destroying the menhaden population and the population of all the bicatch especially those owned by an out of state or foreign nation.

Please vote yes to prohibit the fishing for menhaden withing the chesapeake bay and its tributaries (HB1048) and to limit its catch (HB1049). Those fishing vessels have no business fishing inside the bay and the negative effects are obvious to anyone that doesnt have a financial benefit of the vessels fishing within the bay. No vessel should be in the bay destroying the menhaden population and the population of all the bicatch especially those owned by an out of state or foreign nation.

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I support HB1048 and 1049 to reduce or eliminate the menhaden reduction fishery in the Chesapeake Bay. As a fisherman, I'm concerned with large-scale population declines that menhaden have experienced in recent decades. Menhaden sit towards the bottom of the food chain, and are a staple food of fish that I fish for, like striped bass, cobia, and spanish mackerel. They are also important to support osprey and eagle populations. If menhaden continue to experience population declines, we will (and are) seeing it in lower populations of fish that many of us like to try to land too. We need to protect these fish from the harmful reduction industry that takes these fish from the bay at the expense of everyone and everything else. Please support these bills to protect menhaden in one of their last refuges on the Atlantic Coast, the Chesapeake Bay.

Invasives should be pulled or killed by herbicide and not be permitted to be sold in nurseries

Menhaden are a publicly owned fisheries resource of the Commonwealth public that is being exploited to the extreme detriment of the resource by an intensive reduction fishery owned by Omega Protein, a Canadian firm. As I understand it, modeling efforts that assess the health of the menhaden population are based on regional, coastwide data and do not address stock depletion at the local level. So to assign conclusions based on regional data to local impacts can be very misleading. Nonetheless, a 2025 ASMFC stock assessment report for Atlantic coast populations suggest that menhaden biomass is lower than previously indicated; this conclusion is likely exacerbated at the local level where extremely heavy exploitation occurs within the confines of the Chesapeake Bay. The population is particularly vulnerable to over exploitation through the use of spotter planes that target dense schools of menhaden concentrated by the geographic constraints of surrounding land masses. This population is in dire need of protection from overexploitation because of its extreme ecological importance as plankton feeders and a food resource for a multitude of species within the Bay from whales to ospreys to predatory recreational and commercially important fisheries species. I urge this committee to vote to eliminate the intensive reduction fishery of this important species within the Chesapeake Bay until scientific data indicate that the Chesapeake Bay population is deemed to be stable. Otherwise, the cascading effects of local menhaden stock depletion will lead to unknown consequences for food webs dynamics within the Chesapeake Bay. Please vote YES on HB 1048! Thank you for the opportunity to comment on this critical issue.

HB 1048 & HB 1049 The Menhaden Needs to be protected NOW from overfishing. This species has already been overfished. The Menhaden are a Keystone species and vital to the health of the Chesapeake Bay. Limits on their harvest need to be put in place an enforced. The osprey population is suffering as are other species that depend on a healthy Menhaden population. HB 1091 Solar Energy is the most cost effective clean source of energy we can install right now. I totally understand residents not wanting industrial solar arrays installed too close to where they live, but with that said it is better to install these solar panels on agricultural land that is not being used rather than deforest more land in order to install these solar arrays. HB 129 Why should you be able to kill deer out of season on your property if they are damaging your fruit trees, crops, or personal property..? The land owner should be made to better secure their fruit trees, crops, and personal property rather than be allowed to kill deer because they are unwilling to invest the time to better secure their property from deer. HB1396 Hunting with dogs and allowing them to run over others personal property Needs to be prohibited! Why the leash laws do not pertain to hunters using dogs makes Zero sense. This has Nothing to do with tradition, and that is not an argument that should be used in support of hunting with dogs. If Sportsman hunting with dogs want to continue using dogs to hunt, they should be made to fence in the property before releasing their dogs. HB45 All fees associated with hunting, fishing, and trapping in the commonwealth should be collected. For what reason should people be allowed to do these activities for free, partially discounted, or get reimbursed. The wildlife they are hunting, fishing, and trapping belong to all the residents of Virginia. Therefore they should pay the associated fees when engaging in an activity that removes them from the wild spaces all residents have a right to enjoy.

Please stop hound hunters right to retrieve on private property. We have multiple where incidents every year where hunting dogs attack our pets on our private property causing harm, loss of life, and vet bills. Private property should remain private year around.

Listen, your most important job on this planet should be to protect and preserve whatever still wild places we have left. Our legacy is in our natural resources. The disappearance of our native menheden fish, will impact our wildlife across the board. Protection, and preservation is key! Likewise, my right to offer sanctuary to wildlife should not be trampled by another's sport of hunting with dogs allowing them to run wildlife and terrorize livestock. Hunting with dogs is a bad idea. It is cruel, it is certinally not a sport , nor does it take skill, and often dogs are poorly kept and abandoned when they are no longer useful. My property rights shall not be thought-less of. My sports, my dogs, none of it is carried on through their property. Wouldn't they be shocked. Again! Preservation is key! And this can Garner tax revenue! Just please use your brain, have some foresight and compassion! That is what your legacy can be.

Vote yes on this bill

I ask yall respectfully vote no on this bill dog hunting has been in Virginia since Virginia started as a state to loose our heritage would be would be crippling to our families. Please vote No on these bills.

Menhaden are a prime food source for many fish within the Chesapeake Bay including but not limited to striped bass, bluefish and other marine life. The commercial overfishing in Virginia and Maryland has had a noticeable impact on stripd bass and other fish populations. The catch numbers have reduced leading to stricter limits on these fish, without any restriction on the men Haden that these fish eat to survive. Maryland implemented stricter harvest/commercial fishing regulations. Virginia did not and those commercial vessels are indeed taking advantage of Virginia's lack of response to their over fishing. There needs to be more inspections of boats while fishing from USCG, Virginia Marine Police and Virginia Dept. of Wildlife Resources. The dangerous unregulated, unchecked and unimpeded commercial harvesting of these menhaden that are a food source for other fish including sport fish is an ecological disaster waiting to happen. When those menhaden are depleted the ecosystem will have longterm damage that will cost billions to restore and we will lose more species than the manhaden and stripers.

Please support HB 1048, to protect the menhaden fishery in the Chesapeake Bay. The bill would direct Virginia Marine Resources Commission to pause the menhaden reduction fishery in the Chesapeake Bay until studies show that the menhaden reduction fishery is not harming other fisheries and menhaden-dependent species, such as the osprey. The osprey decline is alarming. Osprey depend on the nutrient rich menhaden fish, and we are aware that the osprey chicks are starving. Thank you kindly, Tyla Matteson, Chair, York River Group Sierra Club

Menhaden are a natural resource for all Virginians and users of the Chesapeake Bay. They are the primary keystone species that feeds almost all the other animals in the ecosystem. Their primary function should not be as an industrialized food pellet for Canadian fish farming. Canadian owned Omega Protein takes our resource at pennies on the dollar, lining their pockets at the expense of tens of thousands (not just a couple hundred) of Virginians who require a healthy abundant Chesapeake Bay to make a living.

Menhaden is a public resource for ALL Virginians. I love the Bay and its inhabitants -from the seabirds, marine mammals and predatory fish. Menhaden is vital to the Bay and to the tourism and game fishing industry. Omega Fisheries is a Canadian company feeding our resource to their salmon and destroying jobs in our Virginia. We need a scientific study that determines the state of the menhaden. For years we have asked the legislature to fund a study and every time they have refused. A study only makes sense ! We are allowing blindly Omega to overfish our waters. This has a detrimental effect on all of the Bay! As a Virginian I am asking you to protect our resources as you should. Thank you!

I strongly support this proposed pause on menhaden harvesting until studies can determine its effect on the food web and the ecology in the Chesapeake Bay, including most notably the osprey and the striped bass. Ospreys depend on menhaden, and osprey populations are in danger of collapsing. Please vote yes on this bill

Please pause menhaden harvesting until further studies can determine the impact on other fish and birds such as the Osprey. Osprey populations are dwindling around the Chesapeake Bay and menhaden fish are a primary food source for the young "fish-hawks". Please take action on industrial menhaden fishing until science can prove there is no disruption to the food web such as for the striped bass. Temporarily halt industrial harvests. Thank you. Judy Hinch-424 Shorebird Lane Chesapeake VA

I support HB1048 (Delegate Carr). It is simple common sense to have the information you need in place to determine if the menhaden reduction fishing in the Bay is sustainable. Virginia is operating blind and keeping the status quo with no supporting data that is Bay-specific. Pause the fishery and get the facts. I also support HB1049 (Delegate Carr) to develop a quota management system for the same reasons as stated above. Trained observers to document actual menhaden catch on at least 10% of the reduction fishery’s trips is warranted to keep everyone honest. If the industry is complying, they have nothing to fear. I do not know what our local representative thinks about these bills. But I and many other Eastern Shore folks - across party lines - can tell you that protection of menhaden is very important to us. Thank you for your honest consideration of these bills.

The Cape Henry Audubon Society, which works in the Hampton Roads area, supports - HB1048 - to pause the menhaden reduction fishery in the Chesapeake Bay until the necessary science has been conducted to make sure this large scale reduction fishery is not having negative impacts on the many other fish, bird, and terrestrial species dependent on menhaden at the base of the food chain, and - HB1049 - to direct the Marine Resources Commission to develop and maintain a quota period management system for the menhaden reduction fishery to mitigate the aforementioned negative impacts of concentrated, high volume menhaden removals from the Bay. In the birding community, we are alarmed at the studies showing a severe decline in the success of osprey nests across the Chesapeake Bay. Osprey, also known as fish hawks, are entirely dependent on catching fish and Osprey chicks are starving to death. The 2025 breeding survey found the reproductive rates for osprey nests across most of the Chesapeake Bay were below replacement rates. (See report from the Center for Conservation Biology at William and Mary - https://ccbbirds.org/2025/10/01/deficit-in-breeding-performance-expands-for-chesapeake-bay-ospreys/) Feeding on menhaden is essential not just for osprey and other birds, but for many species, including striped bass, bluefish, summer flounder, and other popular fish targeted by commercial and recreational fishing industries. A new stock assessment released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission this past October indicated the Atlantic Coast menhaden population is about 37% smaller than previously thought. We must take a cautious stance and protect the remaining menhaden population until additional studies by the Virginia Institute of Marine Science are completed. A healthy menhaden population is important to both ecological and economic interests throughout the state. We urge you to vote yes on both HB1048 and HB1049.

I oppose bill HB1396. This bill is just another way to “tax” the people. The permitting system that is in this bill will cause some people to stop hunting which will result in even lower license sales in the state.

Please support both of these bills. The menhaden population is critical to the health and life of the Chesapeake bay. Allowing commercial fishing by omega/Cooke with no regulation is destroying the bay and its entire ecosystem. They are blatantly and arrogantly destroying the waters for their own financial gain.

Vote YES on HB1048 and HB1049 to ban menhaden fishing in the Chesapeake Bay and limit catches. Industrial vessels don’t belong in our Bay. They are destroying menhaden and harming countless other species—often for out-of-state or foreign profit. Protect our Bay now.

Please enact legislation that limits to a prohibitive level, or flat prohibit large operation menhaden fishing in the Chesapeake bay. It directly impacts the ecosystem when large quotas are fulfilled in our waters to satisfy demand across the world. It’s unnatural.

Please vote yes to prohibit the fishing for menhaden withing the chesapeake bay and its tributaries (HB1048) and to limit its catch (HB1049). Those fishing vessels have no business fishing inside the bay and the negative effects are obvious to anyone that doesnt have a financial benefit of the vessels fishing within the bay. No vessel should be in the bay destroying the menhaden population and the population of all the bicatch especially those owned by an out of state or foreign nation.

Please vote yes to prohibit the fishing for menhaden withing the chesapeake bay and its tributaries (HB1048) and to limit its catch (HB1049). Those fishing vessels have no business fishing inside the bay and the negative effects are obvious to anyone that doesnt have a financial benefit of the vessels fishing within the bay. No vessel should be in the bay destroying the menhaden population and the population of all the bicatch especially those owned by an out of state or foreign nation.

If you’re tired of the 9-to-5 grind or just want a way to put some extra cash in your pocket every week, I have something for you. Companies are currently looking for remote writers to handle: Article Writing Blog Posts Social Media Content Live Chat Support No experience is necessary and full training is provided. But before you apply, you need to see which role you’re best suited for. Go here to take the Writing Job Quiz. ---> http://PaidToWrite.Online/ Once you finish the quiz, you’ll get a breakdown of the best opportunities available for you right now. Visit -----> http://PaidToWrite.Online/

I support HB1048 and 1049 to reduce or eliminate the menhaden reduction fishery in the Chesapeake Bay. As a fisherman, I'm concerned with large-scale population declines that menhaden have experienced in recent decades. Menhaden sit towards the bottom of the food chain, and are a staple food of fish that I fish for, like striped bass, cobia, and spanish mackerel. They are also important to support osprey and eagle populations. If menhaden continue to experience population declines, we will (and are) seeing it in lower populations of fish that many of us like to try to land too. We need to protect these fish from the harmful reduction industry that takes these fish from the bay at the expense of everyone and everything else. Please support these bills to protect menhaden in one of their last refuges on the Atlantic Coast, the Chesapeake Bay.

Invasives should be pulled or killed by herbicide and not be permitted to be sold in nurseries

Menhaden are a publicly owned fisheries resource of the Commonwealth public that is being exploited to the extreme detriment of the resource by an intensive reduction fishery owned by Omega Protein, a Canadian firm. The population, while within the confines of the Chesapeake Bay, is particularly vulnerable to over exploitation through the use of spotter planes that target dense schools fo menhaden concentrated within the geographic constraints of surrounding land masses. This population is in dire need of protection from overexploitation because of its extreme ecological importance as plankton feeders and a food resource for a multitude of species within the Bay from whales to predatory recreational and commercial important fisheries species. I urge this committee vote to curb the intensive reduction of this important species within the Chesapeake Bay! Please vote YES on HB 1049! Thank you for the opportunity to comment on this critical issue.

HB 1048 & HB 1049 The Menhaden Needs to be protected NOW from overfishing. This species has already been overfished. The Menhaden are a Keystone species and vital to the health of the Chesapeake Bay. Limits on their harvest need to be put in place an enforced. The osprey population is suffering as are other species that depend on a healthy Menhaden population. HB 1091 Solar Energy is the most cost effective clean source of energy we can install right now. I totally understand residents not wanting industrial solar arrays installed too close to where they live, but with that said it is better to install these solar panels on agricultural land that is not being used rather than deforest more land in order to install these solar arrays. HB 129 Why should you be able to kill deer out of season on your property if they are damaging your fruit trees, crops, or personal property..? The land owner should be made to better secure their fruit trees, crops, and personal property rather than be allowed to kill deer because they are unwilling to invest the time to better secure their property from deer. HB1396 Hunting with dogs and allowing them to run over others personal property Needs to be prohibited! Why the leash laws do not pertain to hunters using dogs makes Zero sense. This has Nothing to do with tradition, and that is not an argument that should be used in support of hunting with dogs. If Sportsman hunting with dogs want to continue using dogs to hunt, they should be made to fence in the property before releasing their dogs. HB45 All fees associated with hunting, fishing, and trapping in the commonwealth should be collected. For what reason should people be allowed to do these activities for free, partially discounted, or get reimbursed. The wildlife they are hunting, fishing, and trapping belong to all the residents of Virginia. Therefore they should pay the associated fees when engaging in an activity that removes them from the wild spaces all residents have a right to enjoy.

Please stop hound hunters right to retrieve on private property. We have multiple where incidents every year where hunting dogs attack our pets on our private property causing harm, loss of life, and vet bills. Private property should remain private year around.

Menhaden are a prime food source for many fish within the Chesapeake Bay including but not limited to striped bass, bluefish and other marine life. The commercial overfishing in Virginia and Maryland has had a noticeable impact on stripd bass and other fish populations. The catch numbers have reduced leading to stricter limits on these fish, without any restriction on the men Haden that these fish eat to survive. Maryland implemented stricter harvest/commercial fishing regulations. Virginia did not and those commercial vessels are indeed taking advantage of Virginia's lack of response to their over fishing. There needs to be more inspections of boats while fishing from USCG, Virginia Marine Police and Virginia Dept. of Wildlife Resources. The dangerous unregulated, unchecked and unimpeded commercial harvesting of these menhaden that are a food source for other fish including sport fish is an ecological disaster waiting to happen. When those menhaden are depleted the ecosystem will have longterm damage that will cost billions to restore and we will lose more species than the manhaden and stripers.

Please support HB 1049 - Menhaden Reduction Fisheries: quota periods, observers. This legislation would direct VA Marine Resources Commission to set up a quota period management plan to allow menhaden-dependent larger fish and other marine life, to include the osprey birds to have year-round access to vital nutrients derived from the menhaden. The legislation also sets up observers on 10% of the menhaden fishing trips which would provide independent data on catch composition and weight. Yours truly, Tyla Matteson, Chair, York River Group Sierra Club

Seven generations for the future

If you’re tired of the 9-to-5 grind or just want a way to put some extra cash in your pocket every week, I have something for you. Companies are currently looking for remote writers to handle: Article Writing Blog Posts Social Media Content Live Chat Support No experience is necessary and full training is provided. But before you apply, you need to see which role you’re best suited for. Go here to take the Writing Job Quiz. ---> http://PaidToWrite.Online/ Once you finish the quiz, you’ll get a breakdown of the best opportunities available for you right now. Visit -----> http://PaidToWrite.Online/

Invasives should be pulled or killed by herbicide and not be permitted to be sold in nurseries

Very much in favor of authorizing this testing so we can begin to address the PFAS forever chemicals , pharmaceuticals, heavy metals, landfill leachate, industrial wastes, etc, that are contaminainants in sewage sludge. I would suggest that this bill be married with Sen Stuarts bill SB 386. Please support this bill HB1072. Once we have testing in place we can begin to determine how best to deal with these toxic wastes and limit appling to farm land where it is contaminating the soil and the crops growing there, and hence animals and people consuming then. Even PFAS is considered "forever" there are biological organisms (extremophiles) that have been demonstrated to be able break it down in soils with in a few months. The organisms can be accessed from Soil Saviors.org . They should be incorporated into any long term management strategies.

1396 Keep dog hunting No solar panels 1091 129 let owners kill deer 1169 leave small farms alone 1072 do not regulate sludge applications

Please vote YES on this.

Re: HB1072 - Local authority to test and monitor the land application of sewage sludge within its political boundaries Virginia's Department of Environmental Quality has put local governments in an awkward position. The Department has incorrectly interpreted state law to say that any locality with a biosolids testing and monitoring program may not test sewage sludge (aka biosolids) for PFAS, no matter who pays for such tests. When local government officials understand that toxic contaminants in land-applied sewage sludge present an urgent issue, they have shown they are willing to test the sludge coming into their jurisdictions. But, as it stands now, local governments are left with two very bad options: one is to defy DEQ's position and test anyway, with unknown consequences; the other is to take DEQ to court. Please support HB1072, which, by clarifying local governments' testing authority under state law, will also: • prevent the state from further usurping local authority • promote transparency to protect a farmer's right to know • protect the health of local residents and the environment • ensure property values are maintained and liability is minimized. The Department has voluntarily restricted its own testing and monitoring of biosolids to the minimum federal regulations issued by EPA in 1993. These regulations cover 4 types of indicator pathogens and 9 heavy metals. But the Department already has the authority (and, in fact, the legal mandate) to do more, evinced in various sections of state law, including Virginia's Water Quality Standards, which require the Department to test, monitor, and regulate sewage sludge land application for "...toxic substances (including those which bioaccumulate)," 9VAC25-260-20. PFAS chemicals are indisputably included in that category, since they were declared hazardous substances under CERCLA in 2024 and they have been proven to bioaccumulate. Underwriters of commercial property owner's insurance, including insurance for farmers, are increasingly issuing policies with PFAS exclusions. These riders leave the property owner responsible for contamination clean-up and lawsuits, with no help from their liability insurance. While the land application of sewage sludge is not the only potential source of farmland contamination from PFAS, the practice is an obvious culprit that needs more scrutiny and better, common-sense management and regulation.

Each year, DWR is spending over $1.25 million dollars responding to hunting dog related complaints with almost no enforcement tools available to address the presence of dogs on properties where they are not wanted. DWR currently lacks the legal authority, financial means, and personnel to adequately address this ongoing conflict. The proposed permit system outlined in HB1396 is purposely designed to respect the subject matter expertise of the DWR staff and its regulatory authority to create a framework allowing the department the ability to address the conflict at the agency level rather than returning to the General Assembly. HB1396 does not impact a single lawful hunter, it simply targets the bad actors. I believe that this permit system will resolve the issues created by the presence of hunting dogs where they are not desired. HB1396 balances the interests of landowners and the hunting community by allowing the tradition of dog hunting to continue while ensuring locations, such as my pastures, aren’t inundated by hunting dogs that have no business being there. I strongly urge you to support for HB 1396 and vote yes. Thank you.

Please support HB1356. Rainfall has changed in the last decade or so and we need to use the latest data.

I am asking you to vote NO on HB1396!! We do not need more restrictions on hound hunting! We already have regulations that have been set forth through the years. Adding more permits to our licenses will only make it more bureaucratic and add to the expense of hunting with hounds! It seems you are determined to remove another part of our heritage in Virginia and I see NO NEED TO FURTHER RESTRICT our right to lawfully run /hunt our hounds. I respectfully ask YOU to VOTE NO on this proposal!!

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I strongly oppose the bill Hb1369

Invasives should be pulled or killed by herbicide and not be permitted to be sold in nurseries

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Invasives should be pulled or killed by herbicide and not be permitted to be sold in nurseries

Seven generations for the future

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Invasives should be pulled or killed by herbicide and not be permitted to be sold in nurseries

Please support HB402. It will allow small cottage foods producers to grow reach a larger consumer base, without the need to upgrade to a commercial kitchen, which is exceedingly expensive and lots of red tape for permitting. This is also a way to make it less restrictive for anyone wanting to get started with home produced uninspected foods which will support independence and community food resilience and keep revenue cycling within the local economy.

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Invasives should be pulled or killed by herbicide and not be permitted to be sold in nurseries