On behalf of the NAACP Virginia State Conference, we urge you to support SB 21. This bill transfers oversight of the Department of Juvenile Justice from the Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security to the Secretary of Health and Human Resources and establishes a stakeholder work group to guide the transition. Youth in the juvenile justice system often have significant behavioral health needs, trauma histories, and unmet social supports. A health and human services framework is more appropriate for addressing those realities than a public safety lens alone. SB 21 signals a commitment to rehabilitation over punishment and aligns Virginia’s approach with evidence based practices that reduce recidivism and improve long term outcomes. The inclusion of a stakeholder work group also helps ensure that the transition is transparent and informed by those directly impacted. We believe this structural change is an important step toward a more equitable and developmentally appropriate juvenile justice system for Virginia.

I would ask that you would stop passing bills without considering the time it will take away from school personnel by adding another task to their already full plate. It is also not helpful to burden taxpayers in local communities with all the unfunded mandates. Also, why would we allow any Virginia students replace Virginia history and civic requirements with International Baccalaureate coursework? If they are students in Virginia, they should know the history of their state and their civic duties as a citizen of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Thank you for your consideration. Karen M Wirsing

The government decided to make all title one school lunches, free. Plenty of parents are able to pay. Go back to the pay as you go system and those on welfare can get school lunches for free.

No child should go hungry, but SB42 shifts responsibility for unpaid meal debt onto local school boards, creating a costly mandate that diverts limited education funds away from classrooms. School boards do not control family income, federal meal eligibility rules, or participation in assistance programs. Requiring divisions to absorb uncollectible debt effectively forces local taxpayers to cover costs that should be addressed through federal nutrition programs or targeted state support. This mandate could mean fewer resources for teachers, instructional materials, and student services, all to backfill a systemic funding gap. A better solution is to expand direct assistance to families and improve enrollment in free and reduced-price meal programs.

Please pass this important bill

While there was significant support for this bill in the Senate, there is no explanation for the choice of the brown-belted bumble bee as state native pollinator. There are nearly 500 bees known to occur in Virginia. Seventeen of these bees are in the genus Bombus. Of the latter species the brown-belted bumble is one of the most widely distributed in North America, ranging from the east coast to the Pacific coast states and into Canada. Why were the common eastern bumble bee, yellow-banded bumble bee, or the rusty patched bumble bee not presented or discussed. These are common eastern bumble species. Were any of the other bumble bees or other 400 plus bees considered? Were any other pollinators such as butterflies considered? The patron commented earlier in the Senate committee that the state pollinator, the western honey bee, is not native to Virginia. Neither is the Chincoteague pony. Shakespeare never wrote about Virginia or set foot on her soil. Yet the General Assembly designated a Shakespeare Festival in Williamsburg among the state emblems and designations. The close ties of the pollinator, pony, and festival to the state's heritage, culture, and economy warrants their inclusion among the Commonwealth's emblems and designations. Such ties between Virginia and the brown banded bumble bee do not exist. In fact, the species is not even unique to East Coast states like the striped bass. The patron and other supporters referenced buzz pollination, sonication, in the reason for designating the brown-belted bumble bee. Sonication is important for pollination of a number of native plants, blueberries in particular. But it is not unique to the brown-belted bumble bee or bumble bees in general. Solitary bees demonstrate sonication. The emergence and pollination activities of many of the solitary bees are closely tied to the blooming of specific native plants. Before designating a species as the state's native pollinator, the members of the General Assembly should be more diligent in determining the most acceptable and appropriate native pollinator in the Commonwealth. Look at all native pollinators before making a determination. If a bumble bee, why not Sanderson's Bumble Bee (Bombus sandersoni), Yellow-banded Bumble Bee (Bombus terricola), or Confusing Bumble Bee (Bombus perplexus). These are at least known to only occur east of the Mississippi River.

Good afternoon. My name is Joseph Dzierzewski. I am a sleep clinician, a sleep researcher, a parent of young school‑aged children, and the Senior Vice President of Research at the National Sleep Foundation, which supports permanent Standard Time. I previously served on the faculty at VCU, where I directed the Behavioral Medicine program in the Department of Psychology. I’m asking you to support SB541. Permanent Standard Time is the healthiest and safest choice for Virginians. Aligning our clocks with the sun year‑round strengthens sleep, alertness, mood, learning, and public safety. These benefits are backed by extensive scientific evidence and reflect fundamental human biology. SB541 includes a delayed effective date to support regional coordination, and while logistics may present complications, they should not keep Virginia tied to the current, unhealthy practice of biannual clock changes. Our responsibility is to protect the health and well‑being of all Virginians. Even if neighboring states hesitate, it is time for Virginia to stand up, do the right thing, and lead. For the health and safety of our communities, please vote yes on SB541. Thank you.

Dear Committee, please approve SB541, from Senator Stuart. This bill would ditch Daylight Saving Time, as most voters want done. It has a delayed effective date, to ensure regional coordination. Permanent Standard Time aligns clocks to the sun year-round, for natural health and performance. The National Safety Council, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, and over a hundred nonprofits endorse this. Hundreds of scientific studies support this. Countless historical examples prove this. And it’s pre-approved by federal law. Congress is waiting for states to lead on this. Please ditch DST. Vote yes on SB541. Thank you!

Dear Committee, please approve SB541, from Senator Stuart. This bill would ditch Daylight Saving Time, as most voters want done. It has a delayed effective date, to ensure regional coordination. Permanent Standard Time aligns clocks to the sun year-round, for natural health and performance. The National Safety Council, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, and over a hundred nonprofits endorse this. Hundreds of scientific studies support this. Countless historical examples prove this. And it’s pre-approved by federal law. Congress is waiting for states to lead on this. Please ditch DST. Vote yes on SB541. Thank you! Wendy Briskman

Please vote yes on SB541.

On behalf of the Virginia Association of Broadcasters, we oppose this bill. Virginia has media markets that cross state lines other than Maryland and D.C. ( NC, TN, WV) and this could cause scheduling and programming issues, particularly with regard to live news, weather and sports.

Yes on SB541 (Stuart). Dear Honorable Representatives, please support SB541 (Stuart), a bill that will permanently end daylight saving time in favor or permanent standard time. As a neurologist, sleep clinician who has had a sleep clinic in VA for over 20 years, and a sleep researcher, I believe strongly that the Commonwealth will be best served by the adoption of permanent standard time. It has been shown to benefit circadian health, improve immunity, longevity, mood, alertness, and performance in school, sports, and work. Standard Time protects start times and preserves the morning sunlight that is essential for schoolchildren, commuters, outdoor laborers, and service personnel. It lets most people sleep naturally past dawn year-round, and it makes bedtimes easier for families. It has been observed without incident in Arizona, Hawaii, all US territories, and most nations for many decades. The global community is moving in this direction, and for these and many more reasons, I home Virginia will too. Please follow the science and the will of Virginians and vote to end the harms of daylight saving time. Vote an enthusiastic Yes on SB541. Sincerely, W. Christopher Winter, MD, Charlottesville Neurology and Sleep Medicine.

Please approve SB51 (by Senator Stuart). This bill can ditch Daylight Saving Time in coordination with nearby states, as most voters want to be done. It is pre-approved by federal law. Its policy is endorsed by over a hundred nonprofits. Science supports it as naturally best for sleep health. Please vote YES on SB51 to ditch DST. Thank you!

Yes on SB541

Honorable Delegates: Many of us want to stop changing clocks, and year-round standard time is the safe and healthy way to do it. It does not darken winter mornings as in 1974. It preserves fair shares of the morning light and evening darkness we need for a regular sleep/wake cycle, as recommended by the American Medical Association. It exercises the same option under 15 USC §260a as Arizona and Hawaii did. Until 1966, North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, and part of southwestern Virginia also observed standard time year round. The effective date condition of SB541 avoids splitting the DC metro area. Advancing this bill would help break the deadlock of state and federal legislators waiting for the other to move first. Please take this positive step for our health, safety, and sanity.

I support year round standard time because it aligns better with our natural circadian rhythms. Research shows this improves sleep, mood, cognitive performance, and long term heart health. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends permanent standard time based on this evidence. Aligning our clocks with the sun is a simple, science based step that supports public health and safety.

Please get rid of daylight savings time. It’s simple evolution. Humans evolved to sleep when it gets dark and wake up when the sun rises. Standard time is the healthiest time for all humans. Do it for your family, your friends, and those you love. Everyone will be healthier if we live on standard time. Please.

Dear Members of the House Rules Committee, I am a constituent writing to ask you to oppose SB541, which has passed the Senate and would make standard time permanent in the Commonwealth. While I understand the desire to eliminate the twice-yearly time change, I am concerned that permanent standard time would significantly reduce evening daylight and negatively affect community life. My husband and I walk most evenings during Daylight Saving Time. We get exercise, sunlight, and fresh air after work. Our walks also allow us to talk with neighbors, many of whom have become friends. Earlier sunsets would make these walks much less feasible and reduce interactions that help build community. Building community is especially important in today's polarized and fractured country. In addition, I have difficulty driving after dark and limit my activities when it is dark outside. Earlier evening darkness would restrict my participation in community and civic activities, and I know many older Virginians face even greater challenges driving at night. For these reasons, I respectfully urge you to oppose SB541 and consider the impact that permanently earlier sunsets would have on safety, community connection, and quality of life in Virginia. Respectfully, Julie Atwater

Permanent standard time via SB541 endangers Virginia far more than clock changes. Urge House Rules to continue to 2027, or kill all together. Safety Risks Evening commutes (4-7 PM) already deadliest. NHTSA peaks here with 2-3x morning crashes from volume/fatigue. Standard time darkens sunsets: 5 PM or before from Dec-Feb, spiking pedestrian deaths +13% (IIHS), +195 nationwide yearly. Deer collisions would increase by over 70,000 and cause an extra $2.39B (Prugh study). Crime +7-11% evenings (Stanford). Economic Losses JP Morgan: 3.5% spending drop post-DST end proves evening light drives sales. Tourism (Va Beach) empties; NoVA misaligns DC/MD. Retail Q4 tanks 3-5%. Health Toll SAD +11% chronic dark (Danish); obesity +5-10% melatonin delay (CDC). Evening activity cuts depression 8-15%—standard kills it. Virginia Mismatch DC/MD triggers fail; HB9 continued Feb 6 after opposition rout. Referred Rules Feb 24—no docket, ~14 days to sine die. 95% die here. Better Path Federal DST or status quo + later schools/flex work. ALSO Permanent standard time via SB541 endangers Virginia far more than clock changes—and personally, I find it outrageous how it wastes precious daylight hours. Why force sunsets at 5 PM when most Virginians are just getting off work, eating dinner, or heading out for evening activities? That early gloom squanders the sun's peak usability during our awake hours, compressing life into rushed mornings nobody fully exploits while evenings—when families play sports, shop, or relax outdoors—turn dark and dead. It's unnatural for modern schedules. "Getting up earlier" is not an option most people in school, work, or those with fixed schedules get. DST effectively does make us wake up an hour earlier to maximize daylight usage. You guys continued HB9, give the same treatment to this bill. Clock changes are fine the way they are, I also oppose permanent DST due to dark mornings and safety issues. Current system works fine. Oppose SB541.

Dear Committee, I write to you as a constituent, a sleep clinician, a sleep researcher, and a parent of young school aged children to urge you to APPROVE SB541. As, I cannot overstate how beneficial permanent Saving Time would be for the health, safety, and daily functioning of Virginians. My perspective comes not only from lived experience as a parent, but from a career spent studying sleep, circadian rhythms, and their impact on public health. I have published over 160 peer-reviewed scientific manuscripts (the majority focusing on sleep health), worked directly with patients struggling with sleep disorders, contributed to national conversations on evidence based sleep policy, and am the former Director of the Behavioral Medicine Clinical Psychology doctoral program at Virginia Commonwealth University. The scientific literature is unequivocal: permanent Saving Time would be beneficial for healthy sleep, cognitive performance, and safety. For the wellbeing of our children, our workforce, and our communities, I respectfully and strongly urge you to vote YES on SB541. Thank you for your consideration.

Dear Committee, please approve SB541 (by Senator Stuart). This bill can ditch Daylight Saving Time in coordination with nearby states, as most voters want to be done. It is pre-approved by federal law. Its policy is endorsed by over a hundred nonprofits. Science supports it as naturally best for sleep health. And history shows that it lasts for decades when done. Please vote YES on SB541 to ditch DST. Thank you!

Yes on SB541 (Stuart). Dear Honorable Representatives, Please support SB541 (Stuart), a bill to ditch Daylight Saving Time (DST) in coordination with nearby states, as is federally pre-approved, widely endorsed, supported by most voters, and shown by history and science to be most beneficial and lasting. Permanent Standard Time (natural time) is the only federally permitted way to end disruptive clock changes, as most voters wish to do. Standard Time aligns clocks more honestly to the sun, which balances morning and evening sunlight for everyone. Its benefits to circadian health improve immunity, longevity, mood, alertness, and performance in school, sports, and work. Standard Time protects start times and preserves the morning sunlight that is essential for schoolchildren, commuters, outdoor laborers, and service personnel. It lets most people sleep naturally past dawn year-round, and it makes bedtimes easier for families. It has been observed without incident in Arizona, Hawaii, all US territories, and most nations for many decades. Mexico restored permanent Standard Time in 2022. Canada is now considering it, as are DC, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Kentucky, South Carolina, and many more. Congress is waiting for states to lead on permanent Standard Time. Government should set clocks objectively to the sun, then let the public set schedules from there. Gallup finds plurality public support for permanent Standard Time (48%), not for permanent DST (24%), and not for the status quo (19%). Countless organizations and advocates on the left and right oppose DST and endorse permanent Standard Time. Among these are the Southern Sleep Society, National Safety Council, American Academy of Sleep Medicine, Sleep Research Society, Society for Research on Biological Rhythms, National Sleep Foundation, American Academy of Neurology, American Thoracic Society, American College of Chest Physicians, American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Canadian Sleep Research Consortium, Canadian Sleep Society, Canadian Society for Chronobiology, editorial boards of Bloomberg, Orlando Sentinel, Minnesota Star Tribune, Oregonian, contributors to Daily Wire, PragerU, Human Events, Cato, Breaking Points, and more. More details, including polls, endorsements, and visuals, are in the attached PDF. Please hear the nonpartisan consensus of history and science. Save time, money, and lives. End the harms of artificial DST, and restore naturally healthful permanent Standard Time. Yes on SB541. Sincerely, Jay Pea, Cochair, Coalition for Permanent Standard Time, DitchDST.com

On behalf of the NAACP Virginia State Conference, we respectfully urge you to support SB 636. This legislation directs the Department of General Services to remove Confederate monuments and memorials from Capitol Square and store them until the General Assembly determines their final disposition. For our organization and the communities we represent across the Commonwealth, this issue is not abstract. It is about whether Virginia’s most visible seat of government reflects the constitutional principles of equality, justice, and inclusion. Capitol Square is a place of civic honor. It communicates the values of the Commonwealth to residents, schoolchildren, advocates, and visitors alike. The continued presence of Confederate monuments on state grounds elevates a legacy rooted in the defense of slavery and racial hierarchy. That symbolism stands in direct tension with Virginia’s stated commitment to equal protection under the law and to the dignity of all its residents. Supporting SB 636 is not about erasing history. History remains in our archives, scholarship, and public record. This bill simply addresses what the Commonwealth chooses to commemorate in a place of state-sanctioned recognition. Public monuments are policy decisions. They reflect contemporary values as much as historical events. The NAACP Virginia State Conference believes that our public spaces should affirm the full humanity and citizenship of all Virginians. Removing Confederate monuments from Capitol Square is a necessary step toward ensuring that our civic landscape aligns with that principle. We respectfully ask that you vote in favor of SB 636. Thank you for your time and consideration.

There is no need to spend two million in taxpayer dollars as currently budgeted to move these statues. Their are historic organizations that would be happy to take them for free and place them in appropriate ballfields and/or museums. I know that the Shenandoah Valley Battlefield Foundation who owns several battlefields and many artifacts would take them and could assure that theses historic statues and any others or artifacts in possession of the Commonwealth are displayed in their proper historical context on a battlefield or in museum. Please save the taxpayers two million dollars that could be used in schools or for many other worthwhile causes.