This bill is another government boondoggle that has all the right catchphrases and doom and gloom on "the climate disaster." It purports to solve a problem that supposedly is wracking our state (zero evidence provided), and is written to scare the population into believing in a problem that clearly doesn't exist. It's comical to read the comments from the Sierra Clubs, Climate Coalitions, and other charlatan groups claiming to be the "experts" on global warming push the claim that electric vehicles will somehow do anything to slow or stop the so-called warming of the planet. Every single prediction on "climate crisis" since the 1970s have been wrong, on every level. The United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the same agency that has promoted the lie of global warming (sorry, now it's "Climate Change"), predicted in their first assessment of global warming in 1989 that entire nations would be "wiped off of the earth" if drastic action against global warming wasn't taken by the year 2000 (11 years). The public was told that coastal flooding and crop failures would create an exodus of ″eco- refugees,′ ′ threatening political chaos. We were told governments have “a 10-year window of opportunity to solve the greenhouse effect before it goes beyond human control." Sound familiar? June 29, 1989: https://apnews.com/article/bd45c372caf118ec99964ea547880cd0. Well, here we are, almost 32 years later, and none of these doomsday predictions have even come remotely true. How many more times are Virginia legislators going to try to keep peddling the same lie, over and over again, and expect hardworking families to believe (and pay) for this nonsense? While the rest of the Commonwealth struggles to recover economically from a real issue (Coronavirus unconstitutional Governor imposed lockdowns), the legislature is considering giving tax rebates to mostly rich, suburban Northern Virginia Democrat voters (who seriously don't need a tax rebate) to purchase an electric car?? Are you people really that stupid? According to EPA's own US Greenhouse Data data, https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/inventory-us-greenhouse-gas-emissions-and-sinks, emissions in 2018 (latest available data) are lower than they have been since 2005 and are on a downward trend, in spite of record economic growth from 2017-2019 under the Trump Administration. Even US emissions from the transportation sector now are lower than they were in 2005. Where exactly is the "crisis"? As further evidence of this folly of electric cars, former EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy was forced to admit during Congressional testimony about the nonexistent impact that the Obama administration's Clean Power Plan would have had on global greenhouse gas emissions. The Clean Power Plan was thankfully ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. After questioning from Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-KS) at the Sept.18, 2013 hearing of the House Subcommittee on Energy and Power, McCarthy admitted that the CPP will have essentially no impact on climate change. Further testimony stated if all coal-fired generation in the US were eliminated, according to the UN and the IPCC, this would reduce CO2 levels globally by merely 0.2 percent. If "expert" testimony during this hearing proved a near total $1 trillion takeover of the entire US electricity sector by EPA regulation was shown to have no impact on climate change, what does this legislation accomplish then?

Please support HB 1979, to initiate a rebate program for the purchase of new and used electric vehicles. • To address the climate crisis, we need to accelerate EV adoption, by making them more AVAILABLE, as HB 1965 (Bagby) will do, and by making new and used EVs more AFFORDABLE, as HB 1979 will do. • A November 2020 DMME report concluded that EV rebates are FEASIBLE and will produce significant ENVIRONMENTAL and HEALTH benefits, as well as significant ECONOMIC benefits, by using “less expensive, local, homegrown electricity instead of out-of-state oil” and keeping “Virginians’ fuel dollars circulating in the state’s economy through the consumption of electricity and other goods and services purchased with the savings from the switch to electricity.” (https://rga.lis.virginia.gov/Published/2020/HD9/PDF) • Rebates increase sales, a proven concept that works well at the federal level and in many other states. • To help make Virginia cleaner, healthier, more prosperous, and more attractive to families and businesses, please vote YES on HB 1979. Thank you.

HB 1979 As you know, Transportation accounts for close to half of all carbon emissions in Virginia. We simply cannot seriously address climate change without tackling the transportation sector. As we look to reduce these emissions, we must consider transit, zoning, and transportation electrification. Electrification will require the adoption of clean car standards, increased infrastructure, and initial incentives to spur adoption. HB 1979 represents an appropriately narrow, temporary financial incentive that will help us bridge the gap between current EV prices and the point price parity. It is an equitably structured rebate to ensure that MORE Virginians can enjoy the advantages of EV ownership. This bill is part of a larger package aimed at reducing transportation related emissions, protecting public health, and increasing consumer choice. CCAN Action Fund supports this bill and we hope you will too.

It is vital that you support HB 1979 because it will incentivize the purchase of electric cars.... Additionally: -The motor vehicle dealer where the vehicle is purchased or leased would receive a refund for the amount of the rebate and a $50 incentive payment for each rebate processed -A purchaser or lessee of an electric vehicle would receive a $2,500 rebate at the time of purchase, and a purchaser or lessee with an annual household income that does not exceed 300 percent of the federal poverty level would be entitled to an additional $2,000 rebate. -The bill also establishes an Electric Vehicle Rebate Advisory Council to oversee the Electric Vehicle Rebate Program and to make recommendations regarding its implementation. The Director of the Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy is required to report annually to the Governor and the General Assembly regarding the Program I hope you take time to consider these facts. This bill is essential for combating climate change.

Sierra Club supports HB1979 and the electrical vehicle rebate program. We believe that EV Rebates are critical to increasing the adoption of electric vehicles in Virginia. Increased EV adoption will help Virginia reduce carbon emissions from the transportation sector. The rebates in this program will make it affordable for a wide variety of Virginians to be purchase an EV. In addition, Virginia consumers will discover that operating electric vehicles is significantly cheaper than gas- or diesel-powered vehicles.

I urge the Committee not only to forward HB 1979, but to also recommend that sufficient funds be allocated to make it happen. The FY2021 Budget, in HB 1800 and SB 1100, filed prior to the Legislative session starting, calls for an overall Transportation budget of $9.4 Billion. Of this amount, $5.7 Billion is allocated for Highway Construction Programs, and Highway System and Maintenance. (Sections 447 and 448). So an allocation of $50 million per year for an EV Rebate program would equate to 0.53% of the amount being spent on highways. That is, one half of 1 percent. We can’t wait the few years remaining before the upfront cost of EVs is equal to gasoline cars if Virginia is to reach its carbon emissions reduction goals and have an immediate beneficial impact on the health of our citizens; Several studies, including rep[orts in peer-reviewed journal publications, have shown rebates to be the most effective method for increasing the number of EV purchases; The FY2021 Budget, in HB 1800 and SB 1100, filed prior to the Legislative session starting, calls for an overall Transportation budget of $9.4 Billion. Of this amount, $5.7 Billion is allocated for Highway Construction Programs, and Highway System and Maintenance. (Sections 447 and 448). So an allocation of $50 million per year for an EV Rebate program would equate to 0.53% of the amount being spent on highways. That is, one half of 1 percent. To say that there is no money for a program that would have such an significant impact on carbon emission and health-damaging pollution program is unreasonable. Especially when you read the monthly reports of the FY 21 State Revenues received which have been well over forecasts. Thank you.

EVgo is the nation's largest EV charging network . We support HB 1979 without reservation.

Environment Virginia strongly supports HB 1979 and HB 2118. Both of these bills will advance electrification and transform transportation across Virginia. HB 1979 creates an EV Rebate program Virginia very much so needs. Transportation accounts for most of Virginia's carbon emissions and personal vehicles makes up the most of the sector. EV Rebates would address this issue by not only incentivizing EV purchases but for many, making it an option for the first time. EV cost less over the lifetime of the vehicle so not only will people be able to buy an affordable, clean vehicle, they will be saving money each month. An EV Rebate would be a good thing for Virginia, our climate and public health. HB 2118 would establish an electrification fund. This is necessary in Virginia. We need to replace thousands of school buses, transit buses, fleet vehicles, etc. in Virginia with clean, electric vehicles. It is dirtier in a school bus than it is outside of one. They are among the dirtiest vehicles on the road and we send our children to school on these buses. Making this transition has up front cost barriers while in the long run being more cost effective. Schools want to provide a safe, healthy option. They want the lifetime savings. They want to be stewards of the environment. This fund makes that happen and ensures electrification projects will be prioritized based on need. We need to move forward with clean transportation and this fund will give Virginia the boost it needs to do so.

This bill is needed to incentivize adoption of electric vehicles. 70% of GHG emissions from the transportation sector (the largest single source of GHG emissions in VA) is from personal vehicles. Justice components included. This is especially needed in NoVA which is a non-attainment zone for Air Quality.

Investing in a rebate program for electric vehicles will broaden access to a technology that will yield significant, quantifiable benefits to the Commonwealth of Virginia and its citizens: (1) driving an EV in Virginia will save a driver ~$3,511 in fuel costs, freeing up dollars for consumer spending that creates local jobs and supports Virginia’s economy instead of going outside of the state and the country to oil suppliers and refiners; (2) using the Social Cost of Carbon, each EV on the road in Virginia prevents ~$1,616 in damages from carbon in the atmosphere; (3) transportation accounts for more than half of all the air pollution in the United States, so every EV on the road prevents health damages of ~$1,144; (4) dependence on imported fossil fuels for transportation results in risk and costs associated with fuel security and national security, amounting to $2,269 that can be avoided by encouraging someone to go electric for their next car; and (5) each EV can provide about ~$1867 in benefits to the electric grid. For more details, see this two pager: https://evadc.wildapricot.org/resources/Documents/EVInfo/Virginia-Benefits-Chart-2021-30.pdf.

Sierra Club supports HB1979 and the electrical vehicle rebate program. We believe that EV Rebates are critical to increasing the adoption of electric vehicles in Virginia. Increased EV adoption will help Virginia reduce carbon emissions from the transportation sector. The rebates in this program will make it affordable for a wide variety of Virginians to be purchase an EV. In addition, Virginia consumers will discover that operating electric vehicles is significantly cheaper than gas- or diesel-powered vehicles.

Chair Sullivan, and members of House Finance Subcommittee #3, I’m Nathan Soules, and I’m speaking on behalf of Zero Carbon Virginia in support of Delegate Reid’s HB1979 and Delegate Keam’s HB2118. Zero Carbon Virginia is a group of scientists, engineers, economists, public health experts, and concerned citizens who seek a path towards a zero-carbon future. We feel that these bills support our mission. There is a growing consensus that cleaning the electric grid while “electrifying everything” is an effective strategy for overall decarbonization. While the VCEA was an important first step toward cleaning the electric sector, electrifying the transportation sector, which accounts for 48% of emissions, is a vital next step. HB1979 According to the department of energy, in Virginia, EVs (electric vehicles) generate 1/3rd the emissions of ICE (internal combustion engine) vehicles. According to the EV Rebate Report written by the working group created for this bill, a high adoption scenario of EVs would result in a total reduction of 8.8 million short tons of greenhouse gas emissions by 2027 - the equivalent of shutting down an average coal plant for 2 years. Auto manufacturers plan to introduce 100 EV models by 2024. Consumers will have a range of choices, however, the up-front purchase costs of EVs remains an obstacle for many. EVs tend to cost more than similar ICE vehicles up front, but have lower fuel and maintenance costs. This bill will give consumers a point of sale discount, accelerate the adoption of EVs in Virginia, and enable a wider range of consumers to reap their benefits. HB2118 Electric school buses are a win-win-win-win: lower greenhouse gas emissions for the state, students are exposed to fewer brain-stunting diesel emissions, lower fuel and maintenance costs save school districts money, and the batteries from these buses can be used to store excess electricity from the grid. According to a study by the Union of Concerned Scientists, electric buses in Virginia emit about 1/3rd the greenhouse gas emissions of equivalent diesel-powered buses. This number will improve as the electricity fueling these buses gets cleaner. Funding this program by levying a tax on diesel may also result in further greenhouse gas emission reductions. Direct exposure to diesel emissions has an impact on students. A Georgia State University study found that standardized test scores were higher for students who rode buses that were retrofitted to filter out harmful pollutants. Electric school buses are cheaper to fuel and maintain than diesel buses. The EV Grant Program would enable school districts to benefit from lower operational costs without paying a penalty in capital. V2G, vehicle to grid, presents another potential financial benefit for school districts. The large batteries in these vehicles can store power from the grid, which can then be sold back to the grid. With more storage on the grid, utilities are able to add more renewable energy. There is a notable synergy between the school schedule and solar output. After school buses drop off students at school in the morning, they are free to top off their batteries by soaking up extra solar-generated electricity during the hours of peak sunlight. Solar intensity is higher in the summer and daylight is longer - just as buses are freed up during summer vacation. Thank you for your time.

The Nature Conservancy supports Delegate Reid’s HB 1979. Rebates will make electric vehicles more affordable to more customers, resulting in fewer new gas-powered cars on the road. Society will benefit from the reduced carbon dioxide pollution, and people who live in high traffic areas will breathe cleaner air as a result of faster adoption of electric vehicles.

In 2018, I bought a used EV. I bought an EV because I understand that we are on a path to disastrous climate instability of our own making. I understand that we, humans, especially US, and our arrogant, extravagant way of life are the primary cause of the existential threat we now face. I understand that successful modification of our behavior at a societal level is necessary if we hope to avoid runaway warming in our children's lifetime. I understand that people are reluctant to change, if that change is not demonstrated positively by others. So, I chose to be that change, so others could see it in action. I don't view the purchase of my used EV as something that was a more expensive option than its combustion engine alternatives. There were plenty of 'pricey' CEs offered, as well. As I see it, price and value are very subjective and I've always preferred gently used vehicles to new. All that said, having the financial backing, support, encouragement of the recognized authorities of our Commonwealth in this effort to decarbonize my means of personal transportation sure would have been nice.

I am writing to request your support for HB1979 (Reid). This Bill creates state incentives for the purchase of electric vehicles (EVs) in VA. Currently, if you buy an EV, you can get a $7,000 federal tax credit. HB1979 would allow EV purchasers to receive an additional $2,500 rebate at the time of purchase. States that have implemented EV rebates have seen a significant impact. Therefore, states that have these programs get priority from manufacturers. We all know we need to move to EVs given the climate crisis. This program will help VA get there faster. Thanks! Annette Lang, Arlington

Please support HB 1979. This bill will help encourage EV sales and thereby reduce carbon emissions. And note that this bill calls for a higher rebate for low income purchasers. As an owner of an EV for more than 4 years, I can attest that these cars save considerable money over the long term, since maintenance is minimal and fuel (electricity) is much cheaper than gasoline or diesel. Plus they're fun to drive -- once you drive one you won't want to go back to a standard car! Thank you for your time and consideration.

Please support HB1979 which would create a rebate program for the purchase or lease of new and used electric vehicles. My husband and I are the proud owners of a Chevy Bolt, which is totally electric. We purchased it in August of 2019. We were able to take advantage of a federal tax credit, which was an added incentive, even though we felt passionate enough about reducing our carbon footprint that we would have purchased an electric vehicle regardless. However, from talking to our friends, we find that there are many people who are receptive to the idea of buying an electric vehicle but may need a little more incentive. This would certainly help! There is also a clause that would provide an additional rebate for certain households based on income. A major portion of carbon emissions comes from vehicles. Virginia needs to do more to make electric vehicles more attractive to consumers.

Sierra Club supports HB1979 and the electrical vehicle rebate program. We believe that EV Rebates are critical to increasing the adoption of electric vehicles in Virginia. Increased EV adoption will help Virginia reduce carbon emissions from the transportation sector. The rebates in this program will make it affordable for a wide variety of Virginians to be purchase an EV. In addition, Virginia consumers will discover that operating electric vehicles is significantly cheaper than gas- or diesel-powered vehicles.

I write in support of both HB1979 and HB2118. One of the biggest barriers of ownership to EVs is cost. While this will not all be the case forever, right now, we still remain in the nascent phase of Electric Vehicle adoption. This has been made even harder with the registration fees places on EVs which are by a factor of two more expensive for Electric Cars relative to an equivalent Hybrid. Further, as I testified last year, ones first car is often the car we get in university. But, as a starving college student, there's no way we can afford an expensive new EV. That's what makes HB1979 so revolutionary, as it provides the rebate to even used electric cars, bringing such starter vehicles in the price range of a College student. Finally, greenhouse gas emissions are a danger to all Virginias and there is no greater source of those than among Virginia's less advantaged. If you're barely scraping by, there's no way you'd be considering a new Electric Car. You're limited to used vehicles, and those cheap used vehicles are mostly the most polluting vehicles available. This rebate would rectify that situation. It would put a used LEAF or Chevy Volt in the price range attainable to those less affluent. As a consequence, this rebate will go a long way to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by taking some of the dirtiest cars off our roadways. I entreat you to support this bill. I also write in support of HB2118. Last year, this General Assembly defeated 4 (FOUR) great Electric School Bus bills. I'm thankful Fairfax County, VA, has agreed to consider Electric School Buses for its next purchase, but it will be hard for other, less affluent counties to follow suit without this bill. We need to give localities the helping hand they need to take some of the most polluting vehicles off our roadways. I urge you to support this bill.

On behalf of clean energy nonprofit Generation180 and our network of electric vehicle owners and ambassadors across Virginia, we ask for your support for HB 1979. As the Commonwealth transitions away from fossil fuels and works to address carbon emissions from the transportation sector, policies that advance vehicle electrification are crucial. While electric vehicles (EVs) have a significantly lower total cost of ownership than comparable gasoline-powered cars, their upfront purchase price is currently a barrier to widespread adoption. Financial incentives can accelerate our transition to electric mobility until EVs reach price parity, which is critical to tackling climate change and protecting the health of Virginians. Low to moderate income communities can particularly benefit from the savings electric vehicles provide, and this bill has been crafted with them in mind. Delegate Reid’s proposal includes one of the most aggressive enhanced rebates of any state’s financial incentives, and is careful to preserve significant funding for Virginians who need help the most. The proposed program also applies to used vehicles, which are considered to be more accessible. The racial justice nonprofit the Greenlining Institute agrees that bringing down the upfront cost of electric vehicles is "the most effective purchase incentive tool in giving low-income drivers real, meaningful access to EVs,” and we wholeheartedly concur. The additional price cap component of this legislation ensures this is a targeted program, working to help the Virginians who need it most. We ask you to help Virginia join ranks with the 15 other states that have implemented EV incentives and support this bill.

My name is Dr. Shelley Francis and I represent EVNoire and EVHybridNoire. Our national 501c3 non-profit, EVHybridNoire, is the largest organization of African American and Latin X EV Owners and Enthusiasts in the country, including right here in Virginia. I am a proud graduate of the Medical College of Virginia and the University of Richmond. My professional background is in public health work, including leadership roles at the Georgia Department of Public Health and faculty positions at Ohio State University and Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. As an EV owner who is passionate about public health, I urge you to support policies that help accelerate our transition to electric mobility. The transportation sector, powered by fossil fuels used in cars, trucks, and buses, are major contributors to air pollution and are the number one cause of climate change. Numerous research studies have confirmed that exposure to these toxins poses significant risks to public health. Right now, COVID-19 is shining a light on the health disparities throughout our country. We've seen so clearly how this virus disproportionately affects communities of color, and transportation emissions do just the same. Communities of color right here in Virginia breathe 66 percent more air pollution from vehicles than white residents on average. The Harvard School of Public Health found that transportation-related PM2.5, ozone, and nitrogen dioxide emissions led to 750 premature deaths in Virginia in 2016, and this trend is on the rise. For this and so many other reasons, it is critically important that we move forward with policies that will help accelerate the number of EVs on our roads. Transitioning away from fossil fuels to electric transportation is a proven strategy to mitigate air pollution, helping tackle climate change and improve public health at the same time. We need to move towards electric mobility as fast as we can, and we particularly need policies that help make EVs more accessible for low-to-moderate income communities. I urge you to support legislation, including this bill, that can help make these goals a reality.

I am writing to support HB 1979. As an electric vehicle owner and advocate for the last seven years, I have talked to a lot of people who are interested in transportation electrification because of its economic, environmental, and technological benefits. But they often mention that EVs cost more, and price matters even more those in LMI communities. ¶ Indeed, electric vehicles do cost more than their gasoline powered counterparts — $7,500 as of August 2020, according to Kelley Blue Book. This is primarily due to the cost of their battery. ¶ Studies have found that incentives aimed at reducing that price differential are a significant driver for increased EV adoption. It’s not necessarily because consumers whip out their calculator to see how much the rebate will reduce their total cost of ownership. It’s because they will perceive EVs as a better value than gasoline cars — they’ll pay less of a premium to get all of the benefits of EV ownership. ¶ Rebates are generally more effective than tax credits, and those that are provided at the point of sale are the most effective. People tend to discount the value of rewards they receive in the future versus the present. In addition, not every consumer earns enough income to have a tax liability to apply a credit towards. Finally, a point-of-sale rebate applied to the manufacturer’s suggested retail price would incentivize both the purchasing and leasing of EVs. ¶ A rebate program should be as agnostic as possible about which electric vehicles are eligible. This has several benefits. First, it is simpler for car buyers and sellers to understand and for the program manager to implement . Second, broad eligibility would maximize the impact of the program and minimize market distortions. Consumers should be able to pick the car that is right for them, whether it is a plug-in hybrid or all electric, is new or used, is purchased or leased, or has a large battery or a small one.

On behalf of NRDC's nearly 10,000 paying members here in the Commonwealth, we SUPPORT passage of this much-improved, and much-negotiated bill. The most important reason is to ensure passage of Virginia's single-BIGGEST action on climate change yet ("Clean Cars"), which will yield more than TRIPLE the pollution reductions of last year's Clean Economy Act, but at ZERO cost to the Commonwealth.

Dear Committee Members: I am writing to support HB 1979, Electric Car Rebate. Because so much of Virginia’s Carbon emissions come from personal vehicles, this bill is a critical step in reducing those emissions. • The Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy reported in November 2020 report that EV rebates are indeed feasible, and will produce significant environmental and health benefits, plus significant economic benefits, by using “less expensive, local, homegrown electricity instead of out-of-state oil” and keeping “Virginians’ fuel dollars circulating in the state’s economy.” • That study just confirms what the U.S Congressional Research Service found in its February 2020 Report on Electric Car Policies: “incentives given closer to the point of sale, such as a rebate given at the time of purchase, are more effective in stimulating vehicle sales than tax credits.” Please Report this bill to the Full House for a vote. Thank you.

I write in support of HB 1979 and its Electric Vehicle (EV) rebate program. The transportation sector is a major producer of CO2 and other pollutants, so the elimination of Internal Combustion Vehicles (ICVs) must be an essential component of our effort to get a handle on the climate change crisis. While many advances have been made in EV development and a greater number and variety of EVs will be released in coming years, the purchase price of EVs is still more expensive than comparable ICVs. The point-of-sale rebates in HB 1979 can help to offset this difference and make EVs more attractive to Virginians when they shop for their next vehicle. I further appreciate the additional rebate offered to low-income buyers: in addition to the immediate benefits of a reduced purchase price, it will help low-income Virginians access the lower ongoing fuel and maintenance costs associated with EVs compared to ICVs. It is important that these are point-of-sale rebates, since low-income buyers may not be able to take advantage of incentives like the federal tax credit. There is another important way in which the EV rebate program will help to increase EV adoption in Virginia: it will encourage greater availability of EVs at Virginia dealerships, not only providing more opportunities for Virginians to purchase them, but keeping that economic activity within the state. As I shopped for an EV in the last few months, I found that despite living within walking distance of multiple car dealers, the only EV available to test drive at any of them was a $120,000+ Porsche Taycan - hardly the affordable family car we need - and I would have to go to Maryland to find some of the models we were interested in. "Virginia Drives Electric 2020", a report by Generation 180, found that the lack of EV incentives and other related policies, such as the regulations established in HB 1965, has led to 44-54% lower EV inventory in Virginia cities than in comparable cities in Maryland. The adoption of HB 1979's EV rebate program will encourage manufacturers to send more EV stock to our dealers, which will in turn help to accelerate EV adoption among Virginians, while keeping that economic activity in Virginia. The switch in the auto market to EVs is starting to accelerate, and currently Virginia is missing out on the environmental and economic benefits of participating in that movement. Please help our state step forward and meet this moment.

As a Virginia new-car dealer, I recognize electric vehicles are our future. Our new Biden administration has indicated that they will support and emphasize the move towards Electric vehicles and the needed infrastructure to support the demand. Virginia can either choose to be a leader now, embracing all the benefits electric vehicles have to offer, or wait and do nothing. Given electric vehicles are currently higher priced than traditional gas cars, Delegate Reid's Electric Vehicle Rebate bill is a key lever to speed the adoption of electric vehicles in Virginia. As a dealer, I can attest to the important role incentives play in driving demand. Most of the states that require zero emission sales, support with state backed incentives. In the simplest terms, incentives sell cars. They are the most fundamental tool of a dealer. The incentive will help mitigate the higher price of an electric vehicle, making them accessible to all Virginians. If being part of the future of a cleaner, safer, and more equitable Virginia is important to you, please support Delegate Reid's Electric Vehicle Rebate Program; HB1979

I fully support the rebate program. I'm pleased the current bill includes support for for lower income Virginia residents and used electric cars. Used Battery Electric Vehicles are key to reduced CO2 footprint while ensuring electric vehicles are utilized for their entire lifecycle. Right now (Jan 2021), a used Bolt is ~15K-18K with 200 miles of battery range. The rebates ensures affordability for the bulk of our population and ensure long lasting life cycles. My only suggestion is to move up the credit as early in the calendar year as possible, or to make them retroactive if needed. This will accelerate adopting Battery Electric Vehicles in VA. We need to align with modern emissions and adopt guidelines that other states: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington, as well as the District of Columbia have adopted. This is key to driving emissions lower. I support additional taxes / fees to pay for this. I'd suggest adding fees to the most polluting vehicles sold in the state to pay or help pay for this rebate. Next up is dramatically increasing renewable energy requirements by Virginia Power. This isn't hard. Get the vehicles on the road and green the grid!!!! As the grid gets greener, emissions per mile in Virginia go down dramatically. Virginia is a wonderful place to live, I'm happy to call my self a resident and product of Virginia public schools. I've benefited from the core investments Virginia's made in education, infrastructure and health. This is another core investment that will pay "dividends" for future generations in our great state. Let's make Virginia even better!!!!! Thank you!

While an electric vehicle (EV) is cheaper to fuel and maintain over its lifetime than a comparable gasoline-powered car, it is more expensive to purchase. This cost differential has long been considered a major barrier for widespread adoption of EVs, which is a necessary component of combating air pollution and climate change in Virginia. (1) Several studies suggest that rebates and tax credits should offset some of the differential in order to incentivize car buyers to choose an EV over gasoline or diesel cars. These studies also suggest that a rebate is a more effective policy lever to accelerate the electrification of transportation in the Commonwealth of Virginia. For example, consumers immediately receive the incentive rather than having to wait until they file their tax returns and the returns are processed.(2) In addition, a rebate would be more meaningful than a tax credit to low-income families, since it can be used by those who don’t earn enough to file taxes. This would help low-income communities that often suffer the most from air pollution and are least able to deal with the increased flooding and incidence of other extreme weather associated with climate change. Making the rebate income adjusted (the lower the income, the higher the savings) and applicable to used vehicles also helps broaden the adoption of electric vehicles beyond the demographic of white, affluent men who account for the majority of the current customer base for EVs.(3) Del. Reid's bill meets all of these criteria for an effective policy. As for the source of funding for the EV rebate, reallocating the budget for the Virginia Coal Employment and Production Incentive Tax Credit and the Coalfield Employment Enhancement Tax Credit is a sensible solution. A JLARC study in September 2020 recommended that these tax credits be eliminated because they are no longer needed. (4) Since the Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority had received 15 percent of any coalfield tax credits refunded to payers and this money helped fund renewable energy projects in southwest Virginia, among other things, this money cab be made up for elsewhere in the state budget. FOOTNOTES: (1) - Virginia Drives Electric 2020: Benefits, Barriers and Policies Needed for Widespread EV Adoption in Virginia, Generation180, 2020. (2) - Plug-in Electric Vehicle Policy Effectiveness: Literature Review, Argonne National Laboratory, 2016. (3) - Environmental Attributes of Electric Vehicle Ownership and Commuting Behavior in Maryland: Public Policy and Equity Considerations, Morgan State University, 2018. (4) - Infrastructure and Regional Incentives: Economic Development Incentives Evaluation Series, Report 536, Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission, 2020.

I am writing to ask that you support HB 2027 for the following reasons: 1. VA still depends on SOLs, which are high-stakes, end-of-year testing, that requires immense time and resources. Given the end-of-year timing, these tests do not provide actionable information for teachers to use to support their students. The current high-stakes tests cause anxiety for students and teachers alike. The measure of year-end, one-time proficiency, means limited data on how well our schools serve their students over the year. This data gap has an even higher negative impact on low-income students, as it is too late when the results come in, for any intervention by teachers. By having the tests administered in the beginning, mid and end of the year, it allows the VA DOE and school divisions to direct resources to schools and students who need them most in a timely fashion. 2. This bill will reduce the total number of tests our kids have to take, but make the tests they do take, more effective in assessing the students’ strengths, weaknesses, and growth. 3. This bill is especially important in light of Covid, as it will help identify and address Covid related learning losses and gaps in real time, rather than at the end of the year, when teachers can no longer use the data to give extra support to students who need it most. 4. Students move to other localities and states. Currently, each division uses a different growth assessment tool. For example, Henrico has moved away from MAPs tests to Performance Matters tests. When different divisions use different tools and a student moves to a different division or state, it makes it all the more challenging for the new division to place the student in the correct level. 5. Having uniform growth assessment tests all across the Commonwealth will make the college application process more manageable for students and for higher education institutes when evaluating applications. The cost is small compared to the tremendous positive impact this will have, especially in light of the huge gaps resulting from Covid and virtual learning. I have also looked at the revenue reports and based on how they look, I see no reason it should not be funded. Thank you in advance, Yael Levin-Sheldon Henrico County

The Virginia School Boards Association supports HB 2027. This bill proposes switching to a “Through-Year” growth assessment model, for English and Math SOLs in grades 3-8. This means that instead of end of year SOLs, students will take low-stakes which will allow districts to reduce the total amount of testing time and provide more accurate information on student progress and proficiency in these core areas. We urge the committee to report HB 2027 to the floor for debate in the full House of Delegates.

In favor of programs to better facilitate the development and progress of my community.

As current Director of the Commonwealth Learning Partnership, I am actively involved in providing support and professional learning opportunities for educators across the Commonwealth. In my 40 years as a public educator, I have yet to find an educator who does not support a balanced assessment model; specifically an assessment model that measures growth and offers opportunities for students to apply what he/she has learned. HB2027 opens the door for further discussion and action around a balanced assessment model for all students, including a redesign of what currently exists. I am genuinely encouraged by the intent of HB2027 and, because I am in total agreement with VASCDs position on this bill, I respectfully re-submit the following comment from Dr. Laurie McCullough, who says it best: From Dr. McCullough, VASCD: VASCD’s policy priorities call for a state assessment system that reduces reliance on one type of test measuring one type of learning, and instead combines multiple measures to give us a more complete picture of student learning. We support HB2027 with one reservation. • We applaud efforts to provide growth data statewide in elementary reading and math. • We agree that three shorter, lower-stakes assessments that inform instruction better and interrupt instruction less is an important step in the right direction. • We enthusiastically support the long-range goal-- a system in which the purposes currently served by PALs, Benchmark tests, SOL tests, and locally chosen growth measures such as MAP are met in a more streamlined, less disruptive system. Our reservation lies in the plan to develop growth measures by expanding existing SOL item banks. Although we have statistical means for calculating expected and estimated growth scores on SOL tests, these tests do not give us direct information about students' movement along the reading and math skills continua, no matter how frequently they are administered. Measuring growth on the Standards will require more than jerry-rigging SOL item banks. We believe it will require a redesign of these tests or the inclusion of a different assessment that is aligned with the Standards and designed to measure growth. We heartily support and will welcome opportunities to assist in these efforts.

Hi, my name is Carolyn Ferraro and I have 2 children in Chesterfield County public schools. I graduated salutatorian of my high school class but my standardized test scores did not reflect my hardwork. I was not a great test taker. When I heard about the SOL's before I even had children I was not a fan. Testing anxiety for students is real and putting the pressure on one test at the end of a school year at this age is unnecessary. Plus it creates 3-4 weeks of wasted time at the end of the year0 after the test have been completed. Teachers end up teaching for a student to pass one test at the end of the year. Forcing them to rush through the curriculum and increasing the chance a child is left behind. We want to provide students with the tools they need to succeed. Growth based assessments allow teachers to determine what a student needs and allows them to adjust as necessary throughout the year. With SOL's the test scores are received at the end of the year and the teacher they have built a relationship with isn't able to help.

Virginia First Cities Coalition supports HB 2027 as it is consistent with our policy work to limit the number of SOLs that students must take in their early years. A greater focus on the growth of students and their needs, and not simply teaching to the text, will, we believe, lead to more beneficial outcomes for the students.

Initially, the Virginia Association of School Superintendents had concerns regarding what we felt might be a potential increase in SOL tests in this bill. However, Delegate Coyner has addressed these concerns in the amendment before the Subcommittee. We thank the Delegate this consideration. Thank you Dr. Tom Smith VASS

I submitted previous comments from VASCD indicating that, while we supported the intent of the bill, we also had reservations. We reached out to Del. Coyner and appreciate her willingness to consider feedback from us as well as other groups. We are happy to support the bill in its amended form. Laurie McCullough VASCD Executive Director

I feel that the SOL needs to be done away with....The teachers needs to teach about history, english and math. With the SOL, all the teachers are teaching is HOW TO PASS IT. These test are making kids drop of school. There are some kids that CAN NOT do algebra, CAN NOT understand Chemistry but get failed if they can not pass the SOL and it is not because they are stupid, it just does not click with some kids like it does with others. The school systems need to go back to General studies or Academic studies. Some kids are not going to college so they do not need an Advanced Diploma. I feel that if this would happen you would have less Drop-Outs and more kids staying in school.. Thank you

I am writing today to ask that you support this bill. Not all students are good standardized test takers. I was one of them. It’s been many years since I’ve taken My SATs but I don’t know if even scored over 900 on them yet I was an honor roll student and involved in many extracurricular activities at school. Luckily my poor standardized test taking did not prevent me from graduating high school and attending college. My mom shares a story from her school of a young lady that passed her geometry class but couldn’t get her diploma because she couldn’t pass her geometry SOL. She took it 6 times. That is absolutely ridiculous and heartbreaking in my opinion. Unfortunately my daughter is just like me. She under performs on all standardized assessments she is given yet she is a straight A student. She will be going into 3rd this fall. That’s the first year for SOLs. Thanks to pandemic her anxiety around testing and school is through the roof. We are constantly working on ways to help her calm herself down. And she is getting better with it but I worry about her stress level next year. Our district has not returned to in person learning. She missed about 3 months of vital time in 1st grade when COVID hit where the emphasis at school was really reading. This year her reading has improved but I know she and so many other students would be reading at higher level if they were in a school building. I worry about all the kids that haven’t had in person instruction since March of 2020 being behind academically. I have hoped SOLs would go away from a very long time. This is the perfect time to move away from a test that doesn’t prove intelligence or what students have learned. Let teachers actually teach instead of having to cover what’s on a standardized test. Growth based assessments are definitely more appropriate. So many students will be returning in different levels due to their ability to learn virtually and based on the amount of help they receive at home. Students that were already behind will be even more behind after virtual learning. Let’s give those students a chance to catch up and provide teachers with data that will actually help them catch those students up instead of worrying about teaching what’s on SOL. Every teacher I know thinks SOLs were the worst thing to happen to education. Please listen to the parents and the teachers on this one. The affects of COVID on education and this generation are going to be with us for awhile. Please give students and teachers one less thing to worry about. I appreciate your time and attention.

No single assessment like the end of year SOLs can meet all needs, and thus VEA believes HB2027 looks at balancing the following assessment sources: ● Continuous evidence from classroom assessment to support student learning; ● Periodic evidence supplied by progress monitoring and interim benchmark assessments; and ● Accountability based on growth and aggregated proficiency. This balance acknowledges that using tests that happen once a year, while helpful in setting resource priorities, are of limited value to those who must make instructional decisions. The future effectiveness of Assessment in Virginia schools and student learning will rely on our ability to move from an assessment system historically devoted to summative applications using annual test scores to one that clearly defines the type of Assessment and the appropriate use of the Assessment for student engagement in learning. Used appropriately, Assessment can be a powerful tool to help both educators and their students know where they are now in their learning progression and determine where students need to go next. With consistent, ongoing educator support and engaged students, Assessment for student learning can provide individualized support to meet each learner's needs. Traditionally, Assessment has been seen as occurring after teaching to measure what students have learned. This alternative approach weaves Assessment into teaching itself. The student and teacher work together to see where the student is along a continuum of success and determine what should come next. Ongoing, continual Assessment of student growth over time gives educators and students more frequent opportunities to adjust the course of learning to meet each student's needs. Research has revealed that such an approach yields profound achievement gains, with the largest gains accruing for struggling learners (Black & William, 1998a; Black & William, 1998b). We believe HB 2027 is especially important for students with disabilities, English-language learners (ELLs), and at-risk students. It flows into multiple measures to show student growth, which is a more appropriate way to determine how well students are doing and the progress they've made. HB 2027 would lower combined test time by capping at 150% of the current end-of-year SOL length, which will give teachers more time to teach. We ask the committee to favorably report HB 2027.

HB 2027 Comment of Prince William County Schools The 2014 General Assembly eliminated Standards of Learning assessments in Grade 3 History, Grade 3 Science, Grade 5 Writing, United States History to 1865, and United States History: 1865 to the Present, but not for English and Math. Additionally, the Assembly’s action required local school divisions to continue to teach the content and to measure student achievement with local alternative assessments, including authentic or performance assessments. School divisions must certify annually that they have provided instruction and administered an alternative assessment, consistent with Board of Education guidelines, to students in grades and subject areas that no longer have a corresponding SOL test. Students in grades 3-8 already take annual tests in reading and mathematics, plus science tests in grades 5 and 8. Thus, grade 5-8 students already take a total 14 tests. I have read the White Paper entitled “Replace Current SOLs with Growth-Based Assessments”. It further describes PALs (the proposed substitute) as a “low stakes” growth assessment. It is my understanding that Federal testing requirements will still remain, so this bill does not reduce that. As such, it is not clear that there will be much (if any) of a reduction in the number of assessments. Generally, PWCS has supported the reduction in SOLs and the increased use of authentic performance assessments. It is not clear, however, that a low stakes PALs really accomplishes that goal but, in reality, just adds another test. For the reasons stated, we believe this bill needs additional work and clarity before recommending that it be reported. Jim Council Lobbyist

Tidewater Connection Alumni Association represents children and Communities primarily in the 757, specifically Norfolk. Systemic Racism with in has caused widespread problems. Two schools in the Berkley and Campostella school district of Norfolk are in the bottom ten schools of all schools in Virginia. Funding is need to uplift the Educational providence of Southside STEM Academy at Campostella and St.Helena ranked even lower. It has also been brought to attention that Special Needs Children are in Dyer need of State if not Federal intervention. I.E.P.'s are either not being followed, or the conditions identified are not be serviced to the fullest extent of the law. We ask for outside audit with input from parents and the Not For Profit Organization, cca-tidewater, Tidewater Connection Alumni Association Barrett Hicks, Executive Director tcaa757@gmail.com or tidewaterconnection4all@aol.com

I do not support high stakes testing. I do not support fewer SOL tests to be replaced by more "growth" tests. This is actually expanding testing instead of reducing it.

I am writing to ask that you support HB 2027 tomorrow during the SOL/SOQ Subcommittee hearing tomorrow for the following reasons: 1. VA still depends on SOLs, which are high-stakes, end-of-year testing, that requires immense time and resources. Given the end-of-year timing, these tests do not provide actionable information for teachers to use to support their students. The current high-stakes tests cause anxiety for students and teachers alike. The measure of year-end, one-time proficiency, means limited data on how well our schools serve their students over the year. This data gap has an even higher negative impact on low-income students, as it is too late when the results come in, for any intervention by teachers. By having the tests administered in the beginning, mid and end of the year, it allows the VA DOE and school divisions to direct resources to schools and students who need them most in a timely fashion. 2. This bill will reduce the total number of tests our kids have to take, but make the tests they do take, more effective in assessing the students’ strengths, weaknesses, and growth. 3. This bill is especially important in light of Covid, as it will help identify and address Covid related learning losses and gaps in real time, rather than at the end of the year, when teachers can no longer use the data to give extra support to students who need it most. 4. Students move to other localities and states. Currently, each division uses a different growth assessment tool. For example, Henrico has moved away from MAPs tests to Performance Matters tests. When different divisions use different tools and a student moves to a different division or state, it makes it all the more challenging for the new division to place the student in the correct level. 5. Having uniform growth assessment tests all across the Commonwealth will make the college application process more manageable for students and for higher education institutes when evaluating applications. Sincerely, Yael Levin-Sheldon Henrico County

As a parent and teacher I am writing to ask you to please vote YES on HB2027. This is an incredibly intelligent move in the right direction for all of our children. Thank you so much for your consideration.

I am writing on behalf of the State and Local Government Policy Clinic at the University of Virginia School of Law. Please note that the views I express here are my own and do not represent the University of Virginia School of Law. We have had the privilege of working with Delegate Coyner in the research and drafting of HB 2027. Now that it has reached the General Assembly, we would like to highlight several of the reasons that this bill’s passage and the introduction of a “Through-Year” growth assessment model is both urgent and important for the students of the Commonwealth. • All students will receive more personalized instruction and will better understand their progress over the year. • Teachers will have more time for teaching (less time on test prep) and better data to help them plan personalized instruction. • Parents and students will receive information on what grade level the student is performing (proficiency score), and how much they’ve grown (growth score), highlighting the progress students are making and those areas where they still need to advance. • Schools will be evaluated more effectively on how they helped students make progress, allowing low-income schools in particular to better understand how they are serving students. • State officials will use proficiency scores to determine where resources are most needed, making sure that schools get the help and support they need to close achievement gaps. • Virginia will join the cutting edge of testing reform, joining states including Georgia, North Carolina, and Nebraska in implementing growth assessment models. While these changes would be important at any time, the COVID pandemic has made them urgent. The existing achievement gap has been exacerbated by COVID. This new growth assessment model will give teachers, school officials, and lawmakers the tools to identify and address these learning gaps earlier and more effectively. Beyond addressing these urgent learning gaps, HB 2027 will modernize the state’s testing system, and help students, families, and teachers ensure that every child has a chance to grow and succeed.

Virginia ASCD strongly supports adjustments to teacher salaries that will bring them in line with those of surrounding states, help to mitigate our growing problem with teacher shortages, and enable teachers to live and raise their families in the communities in which they work.

I’m submitting these comments on behalf of Virginia ASCD, a professional association of approximately 1500 Virginia educators including teachers, building administrators, and division-level leaders. For the past several years, we have advocated for a more balanced state assessment system, which we agree should include measures of growth in elementary reading and mathematics. Growth measures are widely recognized as important, including by the former SOL Innovation Committee’s Subcommittee on Assessment, which made several recommendations related to growth measures in its 2017 report. (https://www.education.virginia.gov/media/governorvirginiagov/secretary-of-education/pdf/sol-innovation-committee-fall-2017-report.pdf). VASCD’s policy priorities call for a state assessment system that reduces reliance on one type of test measuring one type of learning, and instead combines multiple measures to give us a more complete picture of student learning. We support HB2027 with one reservation. • We applaud efforts to provide growth data statewide in elementary reading and math. • We agree that three shorter, lower-stakes assessments that inform instruction better and interrupt instruction less is an important step in the right direction. • We enthusiastically support the long-range goal-- a system in which the purposes currently served by PALs, Benchmark tests, SOL tests, and locally chosen growth measures such as MAP are met in a more streamlined, less disruptive system. Our reservation lies in the plan to develop growth measures by expanding existing SOL item banks. Although we have statistical means for calculating expected and estimated growth scores on SOL tests, these tests do not give us direct information about students' movement along the reading and math skills continua, no matter how frequently they are administered. Measuring growth on the Standards will require more than jerry-rigging SOL item banks. We believe it will require a redesign of these tests or the inclusion of a different assessment that is aligned with the Standards and designed to measure growth. We heartily support and will welcome opportunities to assist in these efforts.

Legal Aid Justice Center supports this bill, because each of its four provisions makes Virginia’s unemployment insurance system work better for workers. Codifying that Virginia won’t stop benefits to people when a question of eligibility comes up just makes sense. That’s what the VEC recently implemented, and what the constitution and federal law requires. Virginia should also join the 42 jurisdictions that already allow waiver of overpayments in some circumstances. When folks are facing crushing debts, they should have a chance at relief. In the current pandemic, this is more important than ever. Also, we should strengthen the incentives for employers who want to participate in unemployment claims, to do that timely and adequately. Nebraska tells employers that if they delay on a claim, without a good reason for that delay, they lose the opportunity to appeal it. That’s fair and reasonable. And we should make sure that Virginians actually owe an overpayment, before they are told they do. Telling Virginians that they owe overpayments, even if an underlying issue is under appeal or within the appeal period, is premature. It causes confusion for claimants, violates due process, and creates additional work for the VEC. We hope the committee will support this bill, because it makes important steps forward. Thank you for your consideration.

Dear Members of the Virginia General Assembly: On behalf of the Coalition for a Strong Virginia Economy, our 31 business associations wish to express our position that it is crucial that the General Assembly avoid mandates and increased taxes on small businesses and instead looks for ways to help businesses recover. We respectively ask the committee not to move these bills forward. HB 1785 Ward HB 1977 Askew HB 2037 Tran HB 2040 Hudson HB 2015 Ayala HB 2016 Ayala HB 2103 Reid HB 2137 Guzman HB 2228 Guzman Best Regards, Associated Builders and Contractors of Virginia Associated General Contractors of Virginia Delmarva Chicken Association Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce Harrisonburg – Rockingham Chamber of Commerce Heavy Construction Contractors Association National Federation of Independent Business Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce Northern Virginia Transportation Business Coalition Precast Concrete Association of Virginia Richmond Area Municipal Contractors Association Shellfish Growers of Virginia Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy Virginia Agribusiness Council Virginia Association of Roofing Professionals Virginia Association for Home Care and Hospice Virginia Automatic Merchandising Association Virginia Contractor Procurement Alliance Virginia Forestry Association Virginia Forest Products Association Virginia Loggers Association Virginia Manufactured Association and Modular Housing Association Virginia Manufacturers Association Virginia Peninsula Chamber of Commerce Virginia Poultry Federation Virginia Retail Federation Virginia Seafood Council Virginia Trucking Association Virginia Veterinary Medical Association Virginia Wholesalers and Distributors Association Virginia Wineries Association

HB1977 - If someone gets something they've not earned, it should be returned. HB2037- remove (iii) and I'd support. "Belief" is not fact. HB2040 - support HB2103 - if we had the economy before Virginia's rulers ruined our economy, maybe, but this is NOT something to put in when our economy is trashed, the G A is raising minimum wage. Stop killing small business and making our taxes go sky high with legislation that has failed Commieformia to having 1/2 the homeless USA population, and sent people moving out of the state to live.

Chairman Torian and Members of the Committee, AARP Virginia supports HB2053 introduced by Del. Samirah. Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) are a common-sense solution that allows homeowners more freedom concerning their property and diversifies neighborhoods in terms of housing stock and households. ADUs help address issues relating to helping older homeowners, single parents, young home buyers, and renters seeking a wider range of home, prices, rents, and locations. Furthermore, they provide a convenient living arrangement for family members or other persons to provide care and support for someone in a semi-independent living arrangement while remaining in their community, which is particularly important during health emergencies like the current COVID-19 pandemic. There is a need to assess the construction of internal, attached, and detached accessory dwelling units as a strategy to address the Commonwealth’s growing demand for affordable and market-rate housing. House Bill 2053 brings expert stakeholders, community leaders, and pertinent governmental organizations together to report to the State a clear understanding of the ADU stock in Virginia and how localities could implement ADU ordinances. AARP Virginia urges you to pass HB2053 and looks forward to being named as a member of the advisory group. Respectfully submitted, Natalie Snider AARP Virginia State Advocacy Director

HB2053 – Samirah – ADU study – Support (CSG+PSG+SELC) We strongly support Delegate Samirah’s bill HB2053 to study the status and potential for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in Virginia. Recently, the City Council of Alexandria Virginia voted 6 to 1 to adopt an ADU ordinance making it easier for homeowners to build backyard cottages and in-home apartments. ADUs have many benefits including providing homes for an aging parent (which is of increased interest given the health challenges in nursing homes), a returning college graduate starting out, or a member of the community looking for a more affordable place to live. ADUs can provide a stream of income to allow a family to afford their home or a retiree to supplement their income. They provide greater diversity and affordability to our housing supply. One mid-size U.S. city is producing 500 ADUs per year. The information gathered in this study will help local governments to develop and improve their ADU ordinances and address growing housing needs.

VCN is fully in support of HB 2053.

We at VCN are in full support of HB 2053.

We strongly support Delegate Samirah’s bill HB2053 to study the status and potential for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in Virginia. At CSG we have produced a how-to guide for ADUs in DC and are supporting them in Northern Virginia. ADUs have many benefits including providing homes for an aging parent (which is of increased interest given the health challenges in nursing homes), a returning college graduate starting out, or a member of the community looking for a more affordable place to live. ADUs can provide a stream of income to allow a family to afford their home or a retiree to supplement their income. They provide greater diversity and affordability to our housing supply. One mid-size U.S. city is producing 500 ADUs per year. The information gathered in this study will help local governments to develop and improve their ADU ordinances and address growing housing needs.

Mr Chair and members of the Subcommittee, GNDVA hopes you will support Delegate Samirah’s bill HB2053 to study the status and potential for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in Virginia. Flexibility in housing makes sense for environmental, lifestyle, and financial reasons. Though many people buy houses and live in them for decades, their actual needs change over time.  But the way that houses are currently built doesn’t reflect those changes, especially the way households may spend decades with just 1 or 2 members.  Many houses are too big for 1- or 2-person households, and size is probably the biggest single factor in the environmental impact of a house. If you have a reasonably sized house, and an even more reasonably sized ADU, you’ve likely got a pretty green combination with some social benefits as well.  You could have your best friend, your mother, or your grown child live with you. This kind of flexibility and informal support could really help as Virginia’s population ages.  Most people want to stay in their homes as they age, but finances and design can be problematic. ADU’s could help aging people meet their needs without moving. Thank you for your consideration.

Chair Bulova and Members of the Committee, AARP Virginia supports House Bill 2053 introduced by Del. Samirah. Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) are a common-sense solution that allows homeowners more freedom concerning their property and diversifies neighborhoods in terms of housing stock and households. ADUs help address issues relating to helping older homeowners, single parents, young home buyers, and renters seeking a wider range of home, prices, rents, and locations. Furthermore, they provide a convenient living arrangement for family members or other persons to provide care and support for someone in a semi-independent living arrangement while remaining in their community, which is particularly important during health emergencies like the current COVID-19 pandemic. There is a need to assess the construction of internal, attached, and detached accessory dwelling units as a strategy to address the Commonwealth’s growing demand for affordable and market-rate housing. House Bill 2053 brings expert stakeholders, community leaders, and pertinent governmental organizations together to report to the State a clear understanding of the ADU stock in Virginia and how localities could implement ADU ordinances. AARP Virginia urges you to pass HB2053 and looks forward to being named as a member of the advisory group. Respectfully submitted, Natalie Snider AARP Virginia State Advocacy Director

Home Builders Association of Virginia Supports HB 2053

We strongly support Delegate Samirah’s bill HB2053 to study the status and potential for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in Virginia. The City of Alexandria Council recently voted 6 to 1 to approve ADUs throughout the city, and some other jurisdictions are studying ADUs. ADUs have many benefits including providing homes for an aging parent (which is of increased interest given the health challenges in nursing homes), a returning college graduate starting out, or a member of the community looking for a more affordable place to live. ADUs can provide a stream of income to allow a family to afford their home or a retiree to supplement their income. They provide greater diversity and affordability to our housing supply. One mid-size U.S. city is producing 500 ADUs per year, contributing to meeting urgent housing needs, The information gathered from this state ADU study will help local governments to develop and improve their ADU ordinances and address growing housing needs. Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director, Coalition for Smarter Growth; Sonya Breehey, CSG Northern Virginia Advocacy Manager (resident of Fairfax County).

VCN would like to offer its full support of HB 2053 from Delegate Samirah. Accessory dwelling units are a critical housing option for many Virginians, especially seniors who would like to age in place. A study to investigate how to expand their usage in Virginia in an environmentally conscious way would be a good addition to our state's housing strategy.

The Virginia Conservation Network is in full support of both bills being brought forward today by Delegate Samirah. One of the biggest culprits of climate change is buildings. They create about 40% of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions. Today, the global building floor area is about 2.4 trillion square feet; and this number is expected to double by 2060. This means that for the next 40 years, we’ll be adding the equivalent of another New York City to the planet every 34 days. To stop climate change, the way of building and city planning have to change. Both HB 2052 & HB 2053 can help Virginia begin to change the way it builds to be both more sustainable and affordable. By considering the impacts of climate change in their normal land conservation activities, land trusts can provide strategic investments and effective land management to help reduce the vulnerability of natural areas, working lands, and the human communities that depend on them. Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) provide Virginians with more housing options that are typically smaller, more affordable, and closer to family. Launching a statewide stakeholder study is the first step to figuring out how we can better incorporate ADUs into our statewide housing stock to fill in the housing gaps for young couples, seniors who would like to age in place, and many more Virginians in need of safe, accessible shelter.

HB2052 -- Please withdraw our testimony in support. Late breaking information from a local Richmond land trust indicates that not all legal issues have been worked out. HB2053 -- We maintain our support via the comments we submitted a few minutes ago.

HB2052 – Samirah – Land Banks – Support. (CSG + PSG) We strongly support Delegate Samirah’s bill HB2052 as a critical tool in the effort to revitalize towns, cities, and older suburbs, while increasing the supply of critically needed affordable housing. We support the amendment ensuring that the bill is only applied to tax-delinquent properties if the tax lien on the property exceeds the assessed value of the property. This bill will enable non-profit organizations to acquire for land needed to rehabilitate homes or build new affordable homes for our essential workforce. By removing the cost of land it will help ensure homes are affordable at lower income levels. This bill will also ensure that land and buildings are returned to the tax rolls. This bill is pro-economic development, pro-housing, pro-equity, and pro-smart growth. Thank you. HB2053 – Samirah – ADU study – Support (CSG+PSG+SELC) We strongly support Delegate Samirah’s bill HB2053 to study the status and potential for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in Virginia. At CSG we have produced a how-to guide for ADUs in DC and are supporting them in Northern Virginia. Alexandria City Council recently voted 6 to 1 to permit ADUs. ADUs have many benefits including providing homes for an aging parent (which is of increased interest given the health challenges in nursing homes), a returning college graduate starting out, or a member of the community looking for a more affordable place to live. ADUs can provide a stream of income to allow a family to afford their home or a retiree to supplement their income. They are pro-property rights and they provide greater diversity and affordability to our housing supply. One mid-size U.S. city is producing 500 ADUs per year. The information gathered in this study will help local governments to develop and improve their ADU ordinances and address growing housing needs. Thank you.

Chair Heretick and Members of the Committee, AARP Virginia supports both HB2052 and HB2053 introduced by Del. Samirah. Land Banks are growing in popularity around the country and here in Virginia. House Bill 2052 provides localities with the option to set up or interact with an established community land bank under the Land Bank Entities Act (§ 8 15.2-7500 et seq.). This measure gives these land trusts the first right of refusal on all tax delinquent properties going to auction and is amended to ensure that the bill is only applied to tax-delinquent properties if the tax lien exceeds the property's assessed value. AARP Virginia urges you to pass HB2052 as it is a good step towards addressing housing needs. Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) are a common-sense solution that allows homeowners more freedom concerning their property and diversifies neighborhoods in terms of housing stock and households. ADUs help address issues relating to helping older homeowners, single parents, young home buyers, and renters seeking a wider range of home, prices, rents, and locations. Furthermore, they provide a convenient living arrangement for family members or other persons to provide care and support for someone in a semi-independent living arrangement while remaining in their community, which is particularly important during health emergencies like the current COVID-19 pandemic. There is a need to assess the construction of internal, attached, and detached accessory dwelling units as a strategy to address the Commonwealth’s growing demand for affordable and market-rate housing. House Bill 2053 brings expert stakeholders, community leaders, and pertinent governmental organizations together to report to the State a clear understanding of the ADU stock in Virginia and how localities could implement ADU ordinances. AARP Virginia urges you to pass HB2053 and looks forward to being named as a member of the advisory group. Respectfully submitted, Natalie Snider AARP Virginia State Advocacy Director 804-344-3063 nsnider@aarp.org

AARP Virginia supports HB2052, HB2053, and HB2054, presented by Del. Samirah. Land Banks are growing in popularity around the country and here in Virginia. HB2052 provides localities with the option to set up or interact with an established community land bank under the Land Bank Entities Act (§ 8 15.2-7500 et seq.). This measure gives these land trusts the first right of refusal on all tax delinquent properties going to auction. It is a good step towards addressing housing needs. Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) are a common-sense solution that allows homeowners more freedom concerning their property and diversifies neighborhoods in terms of housing stock and households. ADUs help address issues relating to helping older homeowners, single parents, young home buyers, and renters seeking a wider range of home, prices, rents, and locations. Furthermore, they provide a convenient living arrangement for family members or other persons to provide care and support for someone in a semi-independent living arrangement while remaining in their community, which is particularly important during health emergencies like the current COVID-19 pandemic. There is a need to assess the construction of internal, attached, and detached accessory dwelling units as a strategy to address the Commonwealth’s growing demand for affordable and market-rate housing. HB2053 brings expert stakeholders, community leaders, and pertinent governmental organizations together to report to the State a clear understanding of the ADU stock in Virginia and how localities could implement ADU ordinances. AARP Virginia looks forward to being named as a member of this work group. HB2054 addresses increased city and county planning for transit-oriented development to include limiting parking requirements to encourage public transit use and increased density around our metropolitan areas. It is important to revise parking policies to create walkable, mixed-use communities that support public transportation use, generate revenue, and reduce the cost of housing. These are common-sense options to explore as a state, and we believe that support of these bills would be in the best interest of our Commonwealth's working families. We have shared these comments previously with Del. Kory, Del. Heretick, and Speaker Filler-Corn. Thank you for your consideration of our recommendations. I can be reached at 804-344-3063 or nsnider@aarp.org should you have questions or concerns. Respectfully submitted, Natalie Snider State Advocacy Director AARP Virginia

The Southern Environmental Law Center supports Delegate Samirah’s HB2053, which calls for a study of the status and potential for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in the Commonwealth. ADUs offer multiple benefits, including providing much-needed diversity of housing stock and households (such as helping to meet the pressing needs of housing for aging parents and providing more affordable places for adult children or other community members to live) and helping to slow the spread of sprawl and the destruction of farmland and natural resources by allowing more housing units within existing neighborhoods. HB2053 provides a path to assessing the value of greater adoption of provisions to allow ADUs, bringing key stakeholders together to develop information on the status and barriers to ADUs in Virginia, as well as potential steps to encourage or require creating more of this housing stock. This is a process well worth pursuing, and SELC urges you to support this bill. Thank you.

HB2052 – Samirah – Land Banks -- Support We strongly support Delegate Samirah’s bill HB2052 as a critical tool in the effort to revitalize towns, cities, and older suburbs, while increasing the supply of critically needed affordable housing. This bill will enable non-profit organizations to acquire for $1 land needed to rehabilitate homes or build new affordable homes for our essential workforce. By removing the cost of land it will help ensure homes are affordable at lower income levels. This bill will also ensure that land and buildings are returned to the tax rolls. This bill is pro-economic development, pro-housing, pro-equity, and pro-smart growth. Thank you. HB2053 – Samirah – ADU study -- Support We strongly support Delegate Samirah’s bill HB2053 to study the status and potential for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in Virginia. At CSG we have produced a how-to guide for ADUs in DC and are supporting them in Northern Virginia. ADUs have many benefits including providing homes for an aging parent (which is of increased interest given the health challenges in nursing homes), a returning college graduate starting out, or a member of the community looking for a more affordable place to live. ADUs can provide a stream of income to allow a family to afford their home or a retiree to supplement their income. They provide greater diversity and affordability to our housing supply. One mid-size U.S. city is producing 500 ADUs per year. The information gathered in this study will help local governments to develop and improve their ADU ordinances and address growing housing needs. HB2054 – Samirah – TOD -- Support We strongly support Delegate Samirah’s bill HB2054 – Transit-oriented development (TOD) – amendments. TOD is one of the most effective local economic development strategies we have. Think Amazon. Amazon selected the most transit rich location it could find – with 3 Metro stations, Amtrak, commuter rail, and bus. But it’s also the case that TOD locations are much in demand in Norfolk, Richmond, Fairfax, and North Carolina and other parts of the U.S. by the next generation workforce and companies. Marriott moved from an office park to a Metro station. VW is moving from an office park to Reston Metro Station. TOD communities are also great locations for new housing – where transportation costs are minimized. Because of the ease of using transit, walking and biking, and the access to jobs and services, parking can and should be reduced in TODs. Doing so also increases the affordability of housing because a structured parking space can cost $30,000 to $50,000. Not surprisingly builders are looking for flexibility to reduce parking and building costs. Therefore, we support the amendment to the TOD statute passed last year: reducing, modifying, or waiving local parking requirements or ratios. We also support removing the requirement that density be reduced elsewhere. The Coalition for Smarter Growth is the leading organization in the D.C. region advocating for walkable, bikeable, inclusive, transit-oriented communities as the most sustainable and equitable way to grow and provide opportunities for all. We are 23-years-old and also work in many other areas of Virginia assisting local groups and officials with sustainable land use, transportation and housing policies.

The Southern Environmental Law Center supports Delegate Samirah’s HB2053, which calls for a study of the status and potential for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in the Commonwealth. ADUs offer multiple benefits, including providing much-needed diversity of housing stock and households (such as helping to meet the pressing needs of housing for aging parents and providing more affordable places for adult children or other community members to live) and helping to slow the spread of sprawl and the destruction of farmland and natural resources by allowing more housing units within existing neighborhoods. HB2053 provides a path to assessing the value of greater adoption of provisions to allow ADUs, bringing key stakeholders together to develop information on the status and barriers to ADUs in Virginia, as well as potential steps to encourage or require creating more of this housing stock. This is a process well worth pursuing, and SELC urges you to support this bill. Thank you.

HB2052 We strongly support Delegate Samirah’s bill HB2052 as a critical tool in the effort to revitalize towns, cities, and older suburbs, while increasing the supply of critically needed affordable housing. This bill will enable non-profit organizations to acquire for $1 land needed to rehabilitate homes or build new affordable homes for our essential workforce. By removing the cost of land it will help ensure homes are affordable at lower income levels. This bill will also ensure that land and buildings are returned to the tax rolls. This bill is pro-economic development, pro-housing, pro-equity, and pro-smart growth. HB2053 We strongly support Delegate Samirah’s bill HB2053 to study the status and potential for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in Virginia. ADUs have many benefits including providing homes for an aging parent (which is of increased interest given the health challenges in nursing homes), a returning college graduate starting out, or a member of the community looking for a more affordable place to live. ADUs can provide a stream of income to allow a family to afford their home or a retiree to supplement their income. They provide greater diversity and affordability to our housing supply. ADUs are an affordable housing solution that strengthens the private market for housing and allows people who may not otherwise be able to afford homes the opportunity to build equity. The information gathered in this study will help local governments to develop and improve their ADU ordinances and address growing housing needs. HB2054 We strongly support Delegate Samirah’s bill HB2054 – Transit-oriented development (TOD) – amendments. TOD is one of the most effective local economic development strategies we have. Amazon, for example, selected the most transit rich location it could find – with 3 Metro stations, Amtrak, commuter rail, and bus. But it’s also the case that TOD locations are much in demand in Norfolk, Richmond, Fairfax, and North Carolina and other parts of the U.S. by the next generation workforce and companies. TOD communities are also great locations for new housing – where transportation costs are minimized. Because of the ease of using transit, walking and biking, and the access to jobs and services, parking can and should be reduced in TODs. Doing so also increases the affordability of housing because a structured parking space can cost $30,000 to $50,000. Not surprisingly builders are looking for flexibility to reduce parking and building costs. Therefore, we support the amendment to the TOD statute passed last year: reducing, modifying, or waiving local parking requirements or ratios. We also support removing the requirement that density be reduced elsewhere.

HB2052 – Samirah – Land Banks -- Support We strongly support Delegate Samirah’s bill HB2052 as a critical tool in the effort to revitalize towns, cities, and older suburbs, while increasing the supply of critically needed affordable housing. This bill will enable non-profit organizations to acquire for $1 land needed to rehabilitate homes or build new affordable homes for our essential workforce. By removing the cost of land it will help ensure homes are affordable at lower income levels. This bill will also ensure that land and buildings are returned to the tax rolls. This bill is pro-economic development, pro-housing, pro-equity, and pro-smart growth. Thank you. HB2053 – Samirah – ADU study -- Support We strongly support Delegate Samirah’s bill HB2053 to study the status and potential for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in Virginia. At CSG we have produced a how-to guide for ADUs in DC and are supporting them in Northern Virginia. ADUs have many benefits including providing homes for an aging parent (which is of increased interest given the health challenges in nursing homes), a returning college graduate starting out, or a member of the community looking for a more affordable place to live. ADUs can provide a stream of income to allow a family to afford their home or a retiree to supplement their income. They provide greater diversity and affordability to our housing supply. One mid-size U.S. city is producing 500 ADUs per year. The information gathered in this study will help local governments to develop and improve their ADU ordinances and address growing housing needs. HB2054 – Samirah – TOD -- Support We strongly support Delegate Samirah’s bill HB2054 – Transit-oriented development (TOD) – amendments. TOD is one of the most effective local economic development strategies we have. Think Amazon. Amazon selected the most transit rich location it could find – with 3 Metro stations, Amtrak, commuter rail, and bus. But it’s also the case that TOD locations are much in demand in Norfolk, Richmond, Fairfax, and North Carolina and other parts of the U.S. by the next generation workforce and companies. Marriott moved from an office park to a Metro station. VW is moving from an office park to Reston Metro Station. TOD communities are also great locations for new housing – where transportation costs are minimized. Because of the ease of using transit, walking and biking, and the access to jobs and services, parking can and should be reduced in TODs. Doing so also increases the affordability of housing because a structured parking space can cost $30,000 to $50,000. Not surprisingly builders are looking for flexibility to reduce parking and building costs. Therefore, we support the amendment to the TOD statute passed last year: reducing, modifying, or waiving local parking requirements or ratios. We also support removing the requirement that density be reduced elsewhere. About CSG: The Coalition for Smarter Growth is the leading organization in the D.C. region advocating for walkable, bikeable, inclusive, transit-oriented communities as the most sustainable and equitable way to grow and provide opportunities for all. We are 23-years-old and also work in many other areas of Virginia assisting local groups and officials with sustainable land use, transportation and housing policies.

I urge you to pass HB 2074. VEJA’s EJ policy declaration alone and current public participation requirements do not provide for the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of Virginians in agencies' environmental decisions and actions. This is demonstrated by the persistent environmental injustices related to the siting of fossil fuel infrastructure, landfills, and other environmentally hazardous activities in environmental justice communities. Thank you!

On behalf of our nearly 10,000 paying members all across the Commonwealth, NRDC supports this important equity reform.

Mr Chairman and members of the Subcommittee, SUPPORT Delegate Simond’s HB 2074 Omnibus Environmental Justice Bill. HB 2074 strengthens the Virginia Environmental Justice Act of 2020 which established the promotion of environmental justice as the official policy of the Commonwealth. Although Virginia now has a basic EJ policy, DEQ still needs the guidance, regulations, trainings, and tools necessary to ensure EJ is carried out and to close historic structural gaps in their public engagement, program administration, permitting, regulation development, and regulatory enforcement. This Bill authorizes agencies when making environmental-related decisions to adopt policies designed to mitigate disproportionately adverse and cumulative environmental impacts on environmental justice communities at the state and local level over the next two years. HB 2074’s local government requirements support DEQ Director David Paylor's commitment, after the completion of VDEQ’s 18-month study in October, “to coordinate with local and state government agencies to ensure alignment with environmental justice policies”. On behalf of our diverse coalition’s 80 grassroots partner organizations, and their members from across the commonwealth, we hope you will support this Bill and vote to give the Department of Environmental Quality the tools necessary and clear authority to deny permits, based on environmental justice impacts and cumulative impacts. This authority is critical to any effort to improve DEQ's consideration of environmental justice in their environmental permitting processes. Thank you for your consideration.

Strengthen Environmental Justice this year! Support HB 2074 which embed environmental justice strategies in state agencies. It's time for the state of Virginia to consider EJ when making decisions that impact us!

The Omnibus Environmental Justice Bill builds on the Virginia Environmental Justice Act of 2020 which established the promotion of environmental justice as the official policy of the Commonwealth. The Bill authorizes agencies when making environmental-related decisions to adopt policies designed to mitigate disproportionately adverse and cumulative environmental impacts on environmental justice communities at the state and local level over the next two years. In short, this legislation helps operationalize environmental justice as the policy and practice of the Commonwealth. CCAN Action Fund supports this legislation.

As the Northern Virginia Conservation Advocate for the Audubon Naturalist Society, I’m emailing you to ask for your SUPPORT of HB2074, a bill to amend the Virginia Environmental Justice Act and make the EJ Interagency Working Group a permanent body. For Virginia to be truly equitable, it is critical that state agencies adopt and implement specific environmental justice policies and regulations that consider not only disproportionate, but also cumulative impacts to thoroughly evaluate their historic and anticipated effects. This is particularly significant for environmental activities near low-income areas, communities of color, or historically underserved communities that are impacted by several environmental risks and harms simultaneously. This bill contains a slew of important recommendations to help ensure Virginia is more environmentally just. One important part if this bill is giving the Department of Environmental Quality clear authority to deny permits, based on environmental justice impacts and cumulative impacts. Please ensure this aspect is retained. This authority is critical to any effort to improve DEQ's consideration of environmental justice in the environmental permitting processes. I ask you to once again SUPPORT HB2074. Thank you for your consideration!

Please support HB 2074 (Del. Simonds), which seeks to address environmental justice (EJ) concerns that are present in Virginia. An important component of HB 2074 is the requirement that certain state secretariats develop an EJ policy that agencies within that secretariat must adhere to. These EJ policies will require the covered agencies to consider where agency actions might have an adverse impact on an EJ community in the Commonwealth, and also to improve public outreach processes for agency actions that carry EJ concerns. HB 2074 also prompts localities to develop a similar understanding of where EJ communities are located, and asks these localities to strategize around reducing harms to those EJ communities. Ultimately, this bill seeks to embed EJ-thinking into the very framework of community planning at the local level, in the work of state agencies and within the executive branch of government, through the Interagency WG on EJ (which is currently only a temporary body). HB 2074 makes reasonable and prudent demands upon state and local government by ensuring that EJ concerns are more fully understood -- and addressed -- by a range of state agencies.

Adding a citizen member from the Virginia Council on Environmental Justice and the state Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion to the state’s EJ Interagency Working Group in leadership positions is critical to help and hold agencies accountable for implementing ground-truthed, equitable, best practices for furthering environmental justice in the Commonwealth.

Mr. Chairman and committee, I speak to the importance of passing the EJ Act amendments bill from the perspective of the cost benefits of doing so. Put another way, as the anthropologist and Buckingham resident since 1979 who worked with the African American community leaders of Union Hill to uncover robust evidence on race, population, existing health conditions, and Freedpeople historic significance, I have had a front row seat on the costs to taxpayers and EJ communities when DEQ does not do their statutory requirements for EJ "site suitability" and BACT review of alternate energy sources as pre-screening first steps for permits. Their legal requirement to do so was adjudicated by the US Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit in our lawsuit based on site-specific research argued by SELC and CBF using existing Virginia laws. I witnessed firsthand the consequences of no DEQ site community outreach yet thousands of DEQ staff hours dedicated to rewriting Dominion's ACP Union Hill air permit. We learned this fact from the Air Division's Mike Dowd at the only 2-hr "community outreach" meeting -- on closing day of permit comments, before the public hearing. Who proudly described how DEQ staff had "fixed two failed tries by Dominion to write the air permit." I asked then, and I ask this committee now: what if in Fall of 2015 DEQ had chosen to answer and not ignore our 70 letters asking DEQ to come to Union for a site visit? Not spent hundreds of staff hours to invent easily refutable means to deny each and every type of our community evidence with alternate, for Dominion benefit, facts? After DEQ lost our lawsuit, it has ignored the legal findings related to these EJ site review responsibilities. Under Covid, in rural EJ and internet desert communities, proceeded with permit processes without doing the pre-screening of sites they are required to do. We have heard from DEQ that implementing true and comprehensively inclusive community outreach is too expensive, doing EJ site review, and BACT analysis are too costly. Citing budgetary losses because of Covid. Please envision the cost benefits to taxpayers, to EJ communities, to Virginia's issues with sea-level rise, with water contamination issues, if DEQ staff time were used to do the actually quite low-cost actions of fully examining proposed sites of new or increased toxic pollution? As proactive and preventive of the true costs of toxic pollution? Preventive of legal costs for permits approved without following Virginia's laws and statutes? As preventive medicine -- reducing the disproportionate health burdens of asthma, diabetes, heart, lung, cancers, and respiratory illnesses that are true costs of toxic pollution? Environmental injustice is now acknowledged as a root driver of rapid climate change, by ensuring the highest consumers of fossil fuels do not face their worst impacts in their communities. Until now. When wildfires, increasingly damaging storms, and sea-rise impacts reveal yet another consequence of our 400-year history of racism. How do we calculate those dollar costs to Virginia? Please support this bill! Thank you.

The VMA respectfully requests your support for five friendly amendments to the HB2074 substitute. Two of the amendments were adopted by the Senate Ag Committee in Senator Hashmi’s companion bill (SB1318) to which Delegate Simonds is a co-patron. The requested amendments are as follows: • Line 25 Impacts are calculated as “positive and negative” in any fair evaluation. Senator Hashmi agreed and incorporated this into her SB1318. • Line 30 The definition of “environment” is too expansive. “Environmental and cultural” assets are the focus of EJ. • Line 41 The “Fenceline communities” definition is targeting industrial businesses. They did not choose to have property zoned residential near them. This is a local zoning responsibility and should be specifically identified as such. • Line 96 The Governor should be directed to appoint a citizen from the regulated community. Senator Hashmi agreed and incorporated this into her SB1318. • Line 142 The local EJ strategy should focus on environmental issues and EJ communities. Our definition refines the strategic focus and removes “fenceline communities” from everything but the identification process. Thank you for your consideration.

I urge you to pass HB2074. Environmental injustice is the standard practice of most polluting industries. They locate their facilities in poor or black and brown communities because they believe people will not fight them or feel powerless to do anything about it. Virginia needs to continue to strengthen EJ practice and policies to really make the changes that need to be made to protect and preserve vulnerable communities. May it be the pleasure of the committee to pass this bill. Suzanne Keller Richmond, VA

I am a lifelong Virginian, voter, homeowner, father of two, teacher and artist. I urge you to vote yes on HB2047. Massive natural gas infrastructure is slated to be installed in upper Charles City County, devastating local air and water quality in a majority minority community. The Bellemeade fossil fuel power plant south of Richmond continues poisoning the air of a majority black neighborhood as I write. A historic black community in Henrico is slated to be paved for a Wegman's distribution center that will destroy a wetland while countless other developed sites lay vacant across the metro Richmond Area. These are just 3 environmental justice issues at top of mind for me right now. Let's stop destroying Black communities. Let's stop destroying minority communities. Let's stop destroying the ecology of this state. Let's stop destroying both at the same time. Let's name what is happening, and make a conscious choice to stop doing it. Pass this bill.

Dear Esteemed Leaders, I write to you today to implore that you vote yes on House Bill 2074, Environmental Justice Bill which authorizes agencies to take environmental justice considerations when making environmental related decisions. For far too long frontline communities have experience the most burdens without any economic benefits or community support. Left to suffer with poor air and water quality, heavy industrial uses in close proximity to parks and homes, and the destruction of natural, archaeological, cultural, or historic resources, this bill is the next step in addressing these injustices and presents a path forward to community healing. The permitting process proposed in this bill will finally give the voice and representation frontline communities so long deserve. Furthermore we need a reliable air monitoring system and this bill puts us in the right direction. We need to be able to identify and track any existing and potentially new hotspots (and as COVID clearly shows these hotspots correlates with the health of the community) NAACP has documented in various documents the negative impacts on the BIPOC community caused by poorly sited projects as well as the lack of representation and community will to work with the community to find a suitable and safe solution. The time is now to create legislation that is committed to do no harm. Please vote yes Thank you,

HB 2074 The Omnibus Environmental Justice Bill builds on the Virginia Environmental Justice Act of 2020 which established the promotion of environmental justice as the official policy of the Commonwealth. The Bill authorizes agencies when making environmental-related decisions to adopt policies designed to mitigate disproportionately adverse and cumulative environmental impacts on environmental justice communities at the state and local level over the next two years. In essence, this legislation operationalizes the concepts that were codified in 2020. CCAN Action Fund supports this bill.

Please advance HB2074 in support of Environmental Justice !

This bill is important to stop the devastation of marginalized communities especially and of our environment entirely. I am your constituent and a person of faith and conscience. I urge you to support HB 2074. I believe we have a moral obligation to require state agencies to adopt and implement specific environmental justice policies and regulations that consider not only disproportionate, but also cumulative impacts of environmental burdens when evaluating their effects, either anticipated or historic. This is particularly significant for low-income areas, communities of color, or historically underserved communities that are impacted by several environmental risks and harms simultaneously.

We want to know if the air / water quality have been tested lately and whether the soil been tested lately as well because some residences plant gardens.

We appreciate the patrons amending these bills to incorporate positive changes to provide better participation and transparency for all stakeholders. However, we still have concerns pertaining to the modifications to and minor sources of certain permits. We also have concerns about the definition of "fenceline community" and the practicality of noticing all property owners individually within the radius defined.

Virginia League of Conservation Voters supports this legislation. Reasons to SUPPORT HB 2074: This Bill builds on the state’s commitment to EJ by imposing specific requirements on state agencies and local governments to advance environmental justice. This Bill implements the VEJA across the state government by requiring each state agency to adopt an environmental justice policy to govern agency decision-making affecting the environment. It also directs the Virginia’s EJ Interagency Working Group, modeled after the EPA’s Federal Interagency Working Group, to collaboratively support and carry out the purposes of the Act. This Bill prioritizes the needs of low-income areas, communities of color, or historically underserved communities by expanding and improving their access to transparent public engagement processes at the state level; Under the VEJA, all Virginians have a right to fair treatment and meaningful involvement in environmental decision-making.

We must protect BIPOC from harmful and obnoxious uses in their community. In addition, everyone should have the right to be able to have productive contributions In the decision making processes relating to land use matters that may have a significant influence in their well being and quality of life. HB2074 would require every state agency to adopt agency-specific environmental justice policies, and codifies the Environmental Justice Interagency Working Group. Further, it requires the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality and its citizen boards to approve a public participation plan to ensure that diverse voices are heard in hazardous use permitting applications. We must protect communities of color and other vulnerable populations, which is why we support this essential legislation. Our legislation should do no harm. Please support HB2074

Good Morning Committee Members, I am writing to comment on HB2074, the EJ Omnibus Bill, Del Simonds, patron. This bill builds on the important foundation that was laid by the Virginia Environmental Justice Act in the 2020 General Assembly, which initiated steps towards recognizing and protecting vulnerable rural, black, indigenous and communities of color that are most targeted to carry the burden of polluting industries in our state. Representatives of these communities provided the real, human insight and experiences that informed the initiatives outlined in HB2074 and the bill spells out needed next steps in Virginia's movement towards environmental justice. The growing recognition of the deep roots of systemic racism, colonialism, domination and cultural genocide in our Commonwealth also form the foundation and need for this legislation. Environmental justice is also racial justice, health, economic, community and social justice. Residents in marginalized communities continue to find themselves having to maneuver a business and governmental, local and state process and system weighted against them, without adequate access to vital information, education, resources, and support. Requiring state agencies and localities to adopt and implement specific EJ policies, and authorizing each state agency to issue regulations to implement their EJ policies once developed puts the proper weight on government taking responsibility toward providing EJ equity. I have witnessed how public engagement has been of such low quality in rural, brown and black communities and, especially in rural areas, poor internet and cell service and few gathering places results in residents not even knowing that a mega- polluting industry has sought to build in their neighborhood until most or all of the permitting process is complete. This bill prohibits the issuance of a permit for any covered activity until the applicant has submitted, and the permitting authority has approved, a public involvement plan, a cumulative impact statement, and an environmental justice impact statement and that will improve the possibility for residents to know in advance of projects moving forward and allow greater chance that they can speak of their concerns. And this bill for the first time requires that “cumulative impacts” of multiple polluting projects in an area are among those matters which must be considered in administration of agency actions. HB2074 provides solid, doable necessary changes and actions if we are serious about achieving environmental justice in Virginia . We have to decide whether or not black, indigenous, people of color in these communities will continue to be at the disadvantage, and their health, well-being and lives be sacrificed for business profits. Thank you to Delegate Simonds and I ask all the committee members to please vote to approve HB2074 and allow it to move forward.

As a father, grandfather, driver of used Chevy Spark EV, owner of solar panels, planter and encourager of Virginia native plants in my yard, ground source geothermal heating/cooling owner, and citizen who wants our earthly home to survive and thrive so we humans and animals can survive and thrive, I support this measure. I urge you to support this measure. roger bruce giffen pittard 9201 minna drive henrico, va 23229

My name is Irène Mathieu and I am a pediatrician and professor at the University of Virginia. I am also a health equity researcher and advocate for climate justice. As a representative of Virginia Clinicians for Climate Action, I served on Virginia Conservation Network’s environmental justice review committee last year. This experience underscored for me the importance of reviewing policy with an environmental justice lens before it is enacted, through an inclusive and proactive promise. In my pediatric practice, I see the impact of climate change and environmental threats on a daily basis. From the baby born prematurely in a neighborhood disproportionately impacted by traffic-related air pollution to the child suffering from poorly controlled asthma due to poor air quality, environmental injustices threaten the health of the Commonwealth’s children. We have seen how the negative impacts of air and water pollution, climate change, and habitat destruction are borne most often by low-income Virginians, people of color, and those living in rural and inner city areas. That’s why I’m speaking today in support of House Bill 2074, also known as the Omnibus Environmental Justice Bill. This bill builds on the Virginia Environmental Justice Act of 2020 by requiring governmental agencies to prioritize the needs of the communities most severely affected by environmental decisions. This bill would expand and improve localized air quality monitoring, a move that would greatly assist the medical community and policymakers in crafting laws and regulations that consider environmental justice impacts on a wide range of issues. Recently Virginia Clinicians for Climate Action released our transportation emissions report. Unfortunately we were unable to focus on the disproportionate impacts to vulnerable populations due to a lack of available air quality monitoring data. It is particularly critical that we include the original requirement of this bill to establish permitting processes consistent with environmental justice standards, as originally written. Given the disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on these same vulnerable communities, it is imperative that we reduce the risk of further harm. I urge you to join me in supporting House Bill 2074, for the health of all Virginians.

I strongly support the proposal of HB 2074 calling for the formation of a working group focused on Environmental Justice. Speaking as both a student and as a young person, I urge you to consider our collective futures. Without the formation of a working group designed specifically for interagency communication and action surrounding environmental justice, we will continue to reproduce complacency-- which will prove extremely harmful or fatal for communities vulnerable to the climate crisis. That vulnerability however is by no means the fault of the communities experiencing them-- rather the calculated result of systematic white supremacy and the extractive forces of capitalism. Virginia in particular bears witness to the disproportionate distribution of environmental harms that fall hard along racial and class lines. To name just one example, both the Atlantic Coast and Mountain Valley Pipelines have already endangered a number of communities across Virginia. Union Hill in Buckingham County-- a predominately Black community-- faces the potential of a harmful and potentially explosive pipeline compressor station. HB 2074 will help to build legal and political channels & checks and balances to address environmentally and socially harmful projects like the compressor station. I urge you all to pass this bill and promote accountability for large big perpetrators of harm in Virginia like Dominion Energy.

I spent my career as a librarian in public service and I know that re-orienting an institutional mindset is not easy. I believe Del. Simonds' bill will guide that needed change while producing immediate, practical results in quality of life for those Virginians who are too often the ones bearing environmental burdens. I have watched and provided comments on several recent permit requests and have seen first-hand the need for change. Environmental justice is a moral imperative and the health of fellow Virginians is the backbone of a strong economy. Please vote yes on HB2074.

The Environmental Protection Agency defines environmental justice as, “the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income, on the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental law, regulations, and policies.” Unfortunately, this definition has not been accurate in practice. For far too long, environmental injustices have not been taken seriously, leaving devastating implications for vulnerable communities. As public servants, you all have a responsibility to provide equitable welfare for all residents of the commonwealth. You are responsible for our health and welfare. You are responsible for the sustainability of your communities. Passing HB 2074 will be a step towards fulfilling your duties. This bill is important as it calls for effective enforcement of environmental justice policies. Environmental injustice is not something that should be glossed over. The health implications are REAL. The racist implications are REAL. The capitalist implications are REAL. Environmental injustice is a REAL systemic problem and it's time for Virginia to treat it as such. Pass this bill to let the people of Virginia know that you care about their needs. Pass this bill to let your communities know that you are committed to their sustainability. Pass this bill and start taking environmental justice seriously.

STRONGLY SUPPORT HB2074!

I urge you to support this bill. VEJA’s EJ policy declaration alone and current public participation requirements do not provide for the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of Virginians in agencies' environmental decisions and actions. This is demonstrated by the persistent environmental injustices related to the siting of fossil fuel infrastructure, landfills, and other environmentally hazardous activities in environmental justice communities.

HB 2074 This bill builds on the Virginia Environmental Justice Act of 2020 which declared environmental justice (EJ) as the policy of the Commonwealth. First, the Bill amends VEJA to require state agencies to adopt agency specific EJ policies, and codifies the EJ Interagency Working Group created in last year’s budget bill. It also authorizes the EJ Interagency Working Group to conduct an assessment on the state’s air quality monitoring practices. Lastly, the bill requires local planning commissions to include an EJ strategy in their jurisdiction’s comprehensive plan. In short, this legislation operationalizes the policies and practices set forth by the 2020 Act. CCAN Action Fund asks for your support of HB 2074.

I urge you to support HB 2074 as a member of Students for Equity and Reform at UVA. We believe that environmental injustice has been overlooked by the state for far too long. The fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people in the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental policies has broken down along the lines of race and class. Virginia communities have been drastically undermined by the effects of proximity to landfills, coal plants, and hazardous waste. Union Hill, Lambert’s Point, and the Mayfield neighborhood in Fredericksburg are just a few examples of communities burdened by a lack of environmental regulation at the local level. Our own DEQ released a study in October of 2020, which recommends that Virginia municipalities be required to consider environmental justice in their comprehensive plans and zoning ordinances. We believe that there is no better way to ensure that neighborhoods are protected from the byproducts of encroaching industry than HB 2074, and the standards it aims to hold to local government.

At New Virginia Majority, we support HB2047. Under the Virginia Environmental Justice Act (VEJA), environmental justice “means the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of every person, regardless of race, color, national origin, income, faith, or disability, regarding the development, implementation, or enforcement of any environmental law, regulation, or policy.” We support this Bill because it builds upon that declaration by requiring agencies across the state government to adopt an environmental justice policy to govern agency decision-making affecting the environment. It also codifies and directs the EJ Interagency Working Group, included in last year’s budget and modeled after the EPA’s Federal Interagency Working Group, to collaboratively support and carry out the purposes of the Act. This legislation is particularly significant for making environmental permit decision-making accessible and participatory for covered activities and regulating environmental activities that often occur near low-income areas, communities of color, or historically underserved communities in Virginia that can be impacted by several environmental risks and harms simultaneously (cumulative impacts). VEJA’s EJ policy declaration and current public participation requirements alone cannot provide for the needed fair treatment and meaningful involvement of Virginians in agencies' environmental decisions and actions. This is evidenced by the expansive recommendations from DEQ’s recent 2020 EJ Study and demonstrated by continued environmental injustices related to the siting, construction, and operation of fossil fuel infrastructure, landfills, and other environmentally hazardous activities across the state. For these reasons, we highly recommend that the committee support this legislation, especially for its amendments to the VEJA and its effort to improve DEQ's consideration of environmental justice in the environmental permitting processes. Tyneshia Griffin, the Environmental Policy Research Analyst at New Virginia Majority.

I am writing to voice my strong support for HB2074 and encourage the delegates on this committee to vote in favor of advancing the bill forward.

HB - 2074 is a long needed remedy for Environmental Injustices that have been routinely perpetrated on People of Color, Fenceline Communities and Environmental Justice Communities. Often, by the time these communities have learned of the damaging project the permit has already been through almost the entire process. The bill includes a way forward that is fair and needed to insure that such communities do not bear the brunt of dangerous pollutants in their air, water and soil -- impacting their health to a much greater extent than the health of more affluent communities and communities that are not primarily communities of color. Low income communities should not be expected to unfairly be exposed to noxious chemicals and dangerous projects just because of their income or racial composition. I urge you to support this critically important and long overdue Environmental Justice Legislation so that all Virginians may breath clean air and live in healthy environments.

Imagine waking up in the morning to the sound of birds chirping and the warmth of sunrays beaming on your forehead. You rise out of bed and prepare for your morning coffee. Yet, instead of the aroma of coffee percolating, you are assaulted by a rotten odor, or even worse, gas fumes. This is just a foretaste of what continues to threaten many communities in Virginia. And, this has been especially the case for low-income communities and communities of color. Therefor, I urge the committee to pass the Environmental Justice Omnibus Bill (HB 2074). My personal fight for environmental justice in my community has a similar tale. I presently serve on the ministerial staff at New Macedonia Christian UCC in the Bruce’s Park area of Norfolk. As a leader in the church and community, I am deeply connected to the families, young people, and schools. In 2018, my community came face to face with environmental inequality when a solid waste company attempted to place a trash dump in the heart of our community. After months of community organizing and protesting, the proposal to build the trash dump was denied. While my community was able to win this battle, there are a host of other communities still in the fight against big business seeking to obstruct the communities with like environmental hazards. Environmental justice is nonetheless justice, for clean air and clean drinking water is a basic human right. Therefore, I fully support Delegate Shelly Simonds and the Environmental Justice Omnibus Bill, and so should you. Passing this bill will require state agencies to adopt and implement agency specific environmental justice policies, require local planning commissions to incorporate environmental justice in comprehensive plans, and expand public involvement and consider environmental justices and cumulative impacts on marginalized communities.

Environmental justice needs to be a core pillar of our environmental efforts because it addresses the needs of those most deeply impacted by environmental issues: communities of color and low income communities. There is tremendous urgency behind environmental issues and that is triple the case for EJ communities which bear the brunt of systemic racism and colonialist history on top. We need a requirement for agencies and local governments to advance EJ initiatives, or otherwise it won't happen: we've seen EJ communities deprioritized time and time again and we can't afford to have that any more. I strongly support this bill and urge Delegates to do the same. Thank you for your consideration.

Please support HB2074. Despite the passage of last year's Virginia Environmental Justice Act of 2020, the state still lacks the necessary tools to ensure EJ is meaningfully carried out throughout the Commonwealth. To accomplish this, it is necessary that we require EJ at the state and local levels, improve transparency and public involvement in decision-making, and authorizing agencies to make decisions to mitigate adverse impacts. Additionally, please support HB 2148. Simply put, this bill streamlines project approval for energy storage and hybrid projects, which combine clean energy and storage, to allow for rapid approval of solar projects up to 150MW, a necessary process to help us quickly and efficiently achieve our clean energy goals.

The benefits and burdens of agencies' environmental activities remain unequal among Virginians along lines of race, income, and geography. I support the Bill because it seeks to redress this inequity by requiring government agencies at the state and local level to take specific actions to advance environmental justice.

On behalf of Food & Water Watch's 28,000 members in Virginia, we support HB2074. We believe that in order to meaningfully address environmental justice issues, an interagency working group must be established and thorough measures, as outlined in HB2074, must be required for any project that affects a person's right to clean air and water. FWW believes HB2074 is necessary to address the systemic racism and economic factors that lead to polluting projects disproportionately affecting person of color and low-income communities. Thank you.

Please support HB 1902 (Carr) and please support HB 2074 (Simonds) Thank you kindly, --Tyla Matteson, Chesterfield County

I am writing to ask for your support for HB 2074, the Omnibus Environmental Justice Bill. The benefits and burdens of agencies' environmental activities remain unequal among Virginians along lines of race, income, and geography. I support the Bill because it seeks to redress this inequity by requiring government agencies at the state and local level to take specific actions to advance environmental justice. State agencies must be required to adopt and implement specific EJ policies and regulations that consider not only disproportionate but also cumulative impacts to thoroughly evaluate their historic and anticipated environmental actions. This is particularly significant for environmental activities near low-income areas, communities of color, or historically underserved communities that are impacted by several environmental risks and harms simultaneously. VEJA’s EJ policy declaration alone and current public participation requirements do not provide for the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of Virginians in agencies' environmental decisions and actions. This is demonstrated by the persistent environmental injustices related to the siting of fossil fuel infrastructure, landfills, and other environmentally hazardous activities in environmental justice communities. The amendment of VEJA is even more critical in the face of an international respiratory virus outbreak, regional climate change, the state’s clean energy transition, and the rollback of over 100 federal environmental protections (Harvard School of Law; 2020) including the National Environmental Protection Policy Act (NEPA) by the Trump-led U.S. executive administration. For environmental justice to be effective in Virginia, we must back the VEJA’s EJ policy declaration with effective legislation that addresses disparity in access to healthy environment at the source.

I write in support of HB2074. As a Virginian that lives in an area identified in the NY Times article as one of the most swelting parts of Richmond due to decades of racist housing policy, I see everyday the impact of inequity in our neighborhoods. Although Virginia now has a basic environmental justice policy, our state still lacks the tools to ensure environmental justice is carried out. I urge you to support HB2074 to operationalize environmental justice at the state and local levels.

I would like to see the Virginia government putting the well being of communities of color first when considering permits for new industrial construction in those communities. We have been redlining and placing polluting industry in these communities for far too long.

I have spent the past two years supporting the community of Charles City County as they've faced endless environmental justice threats from two fracked gas plants permitted for their county without adequate citizen notification, and also the threat of the expansion of a mega landfill in their backyards. With good reason, these residents worry that these projects will increase already high cancer rates, erode their property values, and deplete their water supply. This community was targeted for these projects, and not even informed about the permit process, because regulators and developers disregarded and dismissed the rights of this majority minority population. This is environmental injustice at its worst, and it has happened in Cumberland County, in Buckingham County, in Newport News with the permitting of a naval shipyard . . . the list goes on and on. Virginia needs legislation that will protect all of its citizens and ensure environmental injustice does not continue. Please support HB2074 and the amazing work of the Environmental Interagency working group. In order to ensure the rights of Virginians, we need environmental justice and we need to pass HB 2074.

https://docs.google.com/document/u/0/d/1NZUogiNJXi2aglaLRRYMyZS0ZG175jzK9mnYMG_Uxso/mobilebasic

There is no excuse to prolong the past due wait for EJ concerns to be at the forefront of the decision making process. Too long have the benefits and burdens of agencies' environmental activities remain unequal among Virginians along lines of race, income, and geography. This bill is a vital expansion of the state's responsibility to use EJ in every consideration by requiring each state agency to adopt an environmental justice policy to govern agency decision-making affecting the environment, and by imposing specific requirements on state agencies and local governments to advance environmental justice. This Bill prioritizes the needs of low-income areas, communities of color, or historically underserved communities by expanding and improving their access to transparent public engagement processes at the state level; Under the VEJA, all Virginians have a right to fair treatment and meaningful involvement in environmental decision-making.

We are surrounded and embraced by OUR environment. The power of the forces therein determines the conditions of our present and the quality of our future. The Environment has no other legal protections than those enacted by you and other folk in their elected chambers. Your family depends on a supportive environment for all their activities...and their lives. So does mine. You hold in your finger-tip the vote for the quality of the future for our land and our people. Vote YES for HB2074

Please support this legislation to make our Commonwealth truly green.

I support Bill 2074. Communities of color are usually impacted by industrial construction sites, hazardous dumping grounds and sewage plants This bill allows the communities impacted to have a voice in the process. This is a step in the right direction. Yes to environmental justice in Virginia.

As climate change wreaks havoc on our world, it is increasingly obvious that our own actions and lifestyles have highly impacted and worsened the natural phenomenon of climate shifting. As a citizen of Springfield, it is utterly imperative that we seek alternate sources of energy, continue recycling, and provide healthy climate actions for future generations of all economic, racial, and other marginalized communities. The churches of Virginia have joined to raise our prayers and our voices to see that we treat our planet with the respect it deserves, and ensure a healthy life for all those to come. Please vote YES on HB 2074 and other initiatives that work to preserve our community so that many may enjoy it for decades of our future. Dixie Ross 7704C Lexton Place Springfield, VA 22152

I urge you to support HB 2074. The state of Virginia has a long history of environmental injustice and we need to be stronger in our will to protect our people from environmental degradation. We all need clean air and clean water. As a mother and as a nurse I believe we have a moral obligation to require state agencies to adopt and implement specific environmental justice policies and regulations that consider not only disproportionate, but also cumulative impacts of environmental burdens when evaluating their effects, either anticipated or historic. This is particularly significant for low-income areas, communities of color, or historically underserved communities that are impacted by several environmental risks and harms simultaneously.

So many news articles report the harm we have done to our environment. As a person of faith, I believe we have a responsibility to care for the planet. This bill is a step in the right direction. I also think it is good that environmental ills are recognized as harmful especially to the economically disadvantaged. I hope HB2074 will become law. Thank you.

As a person of faith, I urge you to support the Environmental Justice Omnibus bill HB 2074 AND Environmental Justice Act Amendment. We need environmental justice because vulnerable populations in Virginia continue to bear increased risks from all kinds of polluting industries. Protecting our shared Earth and caring for my neighbors is my moral and civic obligation. HB 2074 is the first step in setting a standard for environmental justice in Virginia. I ask you to create a basic environmental justice framework for the Commonwealth that protects all of Virginians by passing these bills.

As a citizen who lives in the state and on the Rappahannock river and has seen the impact of poor stewardship, I ask that the General Assembly support these bills.

VMA Supports this bill. • PPE has become a significant financial cost that cannot always be passed through to the customer. Now that Virginia is the only state in the U.S. with a permanent COVID-19 regulation (16VAC25-220), PPE has specific mandated uses depending upon the employer (see 16VAC25-220-40 & 16VAC25-220-60). This bill is written specifically to the 15 types of PPE contemplated by this regulation and used in the private sector. • Our concern is that any estimated “cost” will be erroneous. First, there would be no revenue without a government mandate. Second, any estimated “cost” for foregoing the 5.3% or 6% sales tax (depending upon the region) is speculative. Third, the impact assessment must include the benefits of the economic activity generated by the manufacturing, wholesaling, distribution, and retailing of PPE – a static impact assessment of sales tax “loss” is not adequate because the Commonwealth derives other revenue from the specific activities of manufacturing, wholesaling, distribution, and retailing PPE. • It is hard to imagine that the Commonwealth would insist on profiting from the pandemic. Sales tax revenue is up over 5% (year over year), total revenue is up 15% (year over year), and still many businesses have lost everything due to the pandemic. Please help small manufacturers make their PPE costs more affordable. Support HB 2185.

Virginia Loggers Association supports HB1785. Majority of VLA members are engaged in forest harvesting and mill processing. Most are family - owned and smaller businesses employing people from the locality of residence. Many needed the PPE to survive the economy and pandemic. Let's help our small family owned businesses and not make this situation more difficult for them to survive. Thank, you.

VMA supports HB2185. PPE has become a significant financial cost that cannot always be passed through to the customer. Now that Virginia is the only state in the U.S. with a permanent COVID-19 regulation (16VAC25-220), PPE has specific mandated uses depending upon the employer (see 16VAC25-220-40 & 16VAC25-220-60). This bill is written specifically to the 15 types of PPE contemplated by this regulation and used in the private sector. Our concern is that any estimated “cost” will be erroneous. First, there would be no revenue without a government mandate. Second, any estimated “cost” for foregoing the 5.3% or 6% sales tax (depending upon the region) is speculative. Third, the impact assessment must include the benefits of the economic activity generated by the manufacturing, distribution, and sale of PPE in the market – a static impact assessment of sales tax “loss” is not adequate because the Commonwealth derives other revenue from the specific activities of manufacturing, wholesaling, and retailing PPE. It is hard to imagine that the Commonwealth would insist on profiting from the pandemic. Please support HB2185.

VMA Supports HB2185. Bill was reviewed by the VA MFG Development Commission. Virginia is the only state with a permanent COVID-19 regulation. PPE is a significant expense for essential industries. Virginia already treats medicine differently for tax purposes. PPE should be sales tax exempt - the Commonwealth should not profit from a pandemic. Virginia year-over-year sales tax collections are up 5% and year-over-year revenue is up 15%. We can do this now to help essential businesses.

LeadingAge Virginia supports House Bill 2185.

I urge you to support a moratorium on permits for commercial gold mining until a study of all the dangers in gold mining is completed.

I urge you to support HB2213, for a moratorium on gold mining, and to provide for appropriate funding to study potential impacts. There are significant environmental justice issues, as well as broad ecological / human health issues, that must be thoroughly studied and considered.

I urge you to support this Bill. The importance of enough funding to study the effects of gold mining in my area and also the importance of allowing enough time for a thorough study whose result can be relied on is very important to me.

As a constituent, I am writing in favor of this bill to issue a moratorium on gold mining until the effects of this practice on nearby residents, especially those of Union Hill and Yogaville, can be accurately assessed. At this time, the risk of arsenic contamination from gold mining requires further research before the practice can be supported. We must ensure the safety of all residents. Given the ways in which environmental factors have historically had more adverse effects on our Black and Brown neighbors, our responsibility here is (at least) twofold — 1) to enact antiracist legislation that protects communities of color who have historically been marginalized and 2) to embody care for the environment at a time in which the need to do so has become not only readily apparent but also absolutely critical for the well-being and future of all. Please support HB2213.

I am glad to see the subcommittee passed HB2213. I urge you to do the same. Please be sure to fund this study of gold mining properly, so that it is done well and we can rest assured that we are taking care of business by investing appropriately in the wise counsel and investigations of the designated agencies and stakeholders. An ounce of prevention is worth many pounds of cure. Thank you.

I urge you to support HB2213. This bill is crucial to protect communities that could be impacted by gold mining. Please note the maps of the many Senate and Delegate districts within the Virginia Gold-Pyrite Belt. GoldPyriteBelt_ImpactedDistricts_HoD: https://www.dropbox.com/s/qh2xdmklhe2cvqw/GoldPyriteBelt_ImpactedDistricts_HoD.pdf?dl=0 GoldPyriteBelt_ImpactedDistricts_Senate: https://www.dropbox.com/s/lor97ijyjcww0k4/GoldPyriteBelt_ImpactedDistricts_Senate.pdf?dl=0 The moratorium is necessary for the time specified in this bill to allow for thorough research into the potential costs and threats of gold mining to water, air, and nearby and downstream communities. Can Virginia regulations provide adequate protections for the Virginians who would be put in harm’s way by the mining process? This bill gives the opportunity and time for impacted community members, the Council on Environmental Justice, and representatives from Native communities to be heard. Please support HB2213.

Currently, Union Hill and Yogaville face the imminent threat of arsenic contamination due to gold mining nearby. This needs to be studied to determine the extent of exposure to toxic chemicals of the residents.

Please support this bill. The people in the are at risk of arsenic poisoning from the ongoing gold mining in the are. Union Hill is a small dominatly Black town and deserves our support. Yogaville is a place I have visited and enjoyed.

I urge the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Agriculture and Natural Resources to support House Bill 2213 from Del. Elizabeth Guzman to implement a temporary moratorium on gold mining and assign state agencies the task to study the impacts that a large-scale gold mine, like the one being proposed in Buckingham County, which is being proposed at the banks of the James River - a major drinking water source for many communities, including Richmond, to the east of this proposed project. Gold mining is a highly toxic and dirty process. I can't believe that in the year 2021 we're still having to even debate this known fact as history has shown how communities have been damaged by such mining. Allowing this gold mining to proceed without any research is a blatant disregard for people's health , livelihood and environment. Please support HB2213.

Dear Members of the Subcommittee. HB2213 is absolutely necessary to protect Virginia communities and waters from commercial gold mining. Virginia is targeted by international mining companies because of our lax environmental rules and frankly lack of experience regulating large industrial gold mines. That is why we need the moratorium and study to update Virginia regulations to reflect the current mining techniques. It take 20 tons of rock to produce and ounce of gold. The process uses millions of gallons of water and produces toxic leachate that must be managed in perpetuity. May it be the pleasure of the committee to move this bill forward. Thank you.

Please support of HB2213, a moratorium & study of gold mining; to be fully funded and to take the time requested to do a good job, so that Virginia can understand what the impacts would be to our waters, our community. Thank you.

Dear Representatives of Virginia, I hope that you will approve Bill 2213 concerning a moratorium and study of gold mining. The information i have learned recently from different experts and from TV channels such as Smithsonian and other science channels have educated me on the perils of mining and especially gold mining. Gold mining is as detrimental to the environment as uranium. Please do a study on gold mining to get all the facts. The people of Virginia need you to protect them. In my opinion, gold mining is far, far more dangerous than any pipeline. Thank you for your time and service to our beautiful state. Sincerely, Marie Flowers PO Box 1155 Dillwyn, Va. 23936 434-315-0152

Friends of the Rappahannock (FOR) supports HB 2213 carried by Delegate Guzman that ensures that the impacts of commercial gold mining to air, water, and public health are studied before permits are issued. The pyrite gold ore body runs through the Rapidan and Rappahannock River watersheds. Gold mining tailings often contain elevated concentrations of toxic heavy metals such as arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury, and others. This study is essential to understanding how gold mining would impact our waterways and the surrounding communities.

I support the moratorium . Germany, Czech Republic, Hungary and Costa Rica have such bans, as well as the US states of Montana and Wisconsin and several Argentine provinces. Cyanide use in most countries is strictly regulated, to reduce the risk of significant environmental damage or death through misuse or mishandling. These two simple facts indicate an obvious need to study thoroughly potential problems and establish appropriate regulations for the industry which do not yet exist here in VA. Failure to do a thorough study and establish cyanidation regulations before any mining begins could result in serious long term consequences to the environment, specifically the James River, which would result in very long term and possibly disastrous economic impacts to the state. Robert Day

Encouraging the passage of this bill for the Virginia Council on Environmental Justice and appropriate stakeholders, including experts in mining, hydrology, toxicology, and other fields; environmental organizations; representatives of potentially affected communities in localities with significant deposits of gold; and indigenous communities in such counties to further study gold mining impacts.

I urge you to support HB 2213. The last thing our state needs is more extractive, dangerous, and polluting projects. All of our energy and legislation needs to go toward creating a livable planet for future generations and increasing quality of life for ALL Virginians. Please act to preserve our home and stop gold mining before it causes irreparable harm. Thank you.

HB2213 is a bill that will benefit the entire commonwealth, which has never hosted large-scale, modern gold mining. This type of mining is very different from coal mining, and requires its own set of regulations. In order to understand what sort of regulations, we first must understand the industry. Open-pit gold mines can be hundreds of feet deep, and thousands of acres wide. They can have severe and drastic effects on local groundwater, livestock, and agriculture. HB2213 would provide the commonwealth with enough time to conduct studies on the effects of gold mining, and to make regulatory determinations based on the results of those studies. This bill is important to me, personally, because my home is adjacent to land where gold exploration is already going on. But the bill is important to my fellow Virginians, as well, because of the Gold Pyrite belt that cuts across the commonwealth. The gold industry has their eyes on us, and before we allow them to set up shop here we need to be sure we understand exactly what that would mean for Virginians. Please support the funding required for HB2213, and please vote to pass the bill when you are given the chance. Thank you for your time.

Please support a moratorium & study of gold mining in Virginia. This needs to be to be fully funded as determined by DEQ, Dept. of Health and DMME. Allow them to take the time requested to do a good, job, so that Virginians can fully understand what the impacts would be to our water and our communities.

I urge you to support HB2213. This bill is crucial to protect communities that could be impacted by gold mining. Please note the maps of the many Senate and Delegate districts within the Virginia Gold-Pyrite Belt. ---below The moratorium is necessary for the time specified in this bill to allow for thorough research into the potential costs and threats of gold mining to water, air, and nearby and downstream communities. Can Virginia regulations provide adequate protections for the Virginians who would be put in harm’s way by the mining process? This bill gives the opportunity and time for impacted community members, the Council on Environmental Justice, and representatives from Native communities to be heard. Please support HB2213. Thank you. Senate district map: https://www.dropbox.com/s/lor97ijyjcww0k4/GoldPyriteBelt_ImpactedDistricts_Senate.pdf?dl=0 Delegate district map: https://www.dropbox.com/s/qh2xdmklhe2cvqw/GoldPyriteBelt_ImpactedDistricts_HoD.pdf?dl=0 or: https://docs.google.com/document/d/16tsdOnCOkGJeeyavlh5IyPDrcXx6SDQdE-nSCW1khtE/edit

I urge you to support HB2213 – the study and moratorium on commercial gold mining. The potential threats from commercial gold mining are numerous to the communities and watersheds in and downstream of the gold/pyrite belt that spans the entire state of Virginia. Exploratory drilling to prospect for potential commercial gold mining operations is happening in Virginia as we speak, so it is imperative that this bill and the study and related moratorium it mandates move forward now. It is also crucial that environmental justice be taken into account and representatives from potentially impacted communities be given the ability for input as this bill provides for. Again, please support HB2213.

I write on behalf of the non-profit organization Appalachian Voices, to ask that you support HB2213. As gold-mining operations could introduce irreparable damage to groundwater via leaching of harmful materials, and the waste produced via gold mining contains many toxins including lead, mercury and cyanide, we support a thorough study of potential impacts to public health and the environment, with a moratorium during that time or review. HB 2213 allows Virginia to press “pause” and allow appropriate scrutiny of existing regulations, identify places where protections are insufficient, and improve the stakeholder engagement process. Please support HB 2213.

Good morning! I urge you to please support full funding for HB2213, the gold mining moratorium study. It is important that this study is done now, done well, which includes being given the full amount of time as recommended by the DMME, DEQ & VDH. Due to the gravity of the well known impacts of modern day large scale gold mining elsewhere, we feel a moratorium is in the very best interests of the Commonwealth. Gold exploration has been going on in Virginia for the last 4 years without local authorities being aware of it. The gold pyrite belt runs from southern to northern Virginia. In fact it runs from Georgia to Canada. The impacts to Virginia could be vast and devastating, as many watersheds could be impacted, including the drinking water for millions. Modern large scale open pit gold mining is vastly more impactful than the pan, pick and axe methods of the 1850s. The EPA lists metal mining as the #1 most toxic of industries. The current trend of other known gold mines of externalizing the costs of doing business leads to superfund sites that the local communities, those downstream, and really, the whole state pay for in many ways, and for generations to come. We need the moratorium and the study to buy us time for more people to learn about the true costs of gold and to make educated decisions. We can and we must do business smarter. A lot smarter! Thank you!

On behalf of the Virginia Conservation network, I would like to reiterate our support of HB2213. This legislation will give the Department of Minerals, Mines and Energy, Department of Environmental Quality and Virginia Department of Health until July 1, 2023 to complete a study on the potential environmental and health impacts that gold mining could have on the Commonwealth. This is a necessary piece of legislation to ensure that we are protecting the health and rights of Buckingham County Residents and other downstream communities.

Good morning! I urge you to please support full funding for HB2213, the gold mining moratorium study. It is important that this study is done now and done well as gold exploration has been going on in Virginia for the last 4 years without local authorities being aware of it. The gold pyrite belt runs from southern to northern Virginia. In fact it runs from Georgia to Canada. The impacts to Virginia could be vast and devastating, as many watersheds could be impacted, including the drinking water for millions. Modern large scale open pit gold mining is vastly more impactful than the pan, pick and axe methods of the 1850s. The EPA lists metal mining as the #1 most toxic of industries. The current trend of externalizing the costs of doing business leads to superfund sites that the public pays for in many ways, and for generations to come. We need the moratorium and the study to buy us time for more people to learn about the true costs of gold and to make educated decisions. Thank you for making the sage decision to fully support this bill.

I am writing in support of HB2213 because I believe it is important that the Commonwealth study the challenges posed by gold mine operations and develop plans for the future responsible use of our natural resources. Gold mining is substantially different from aggregate mining operations. The pause in permitting gold mines that would be created by this legislation only affects gold mine permits during the proposed time period. Virginia has little to no experience with the oversight of gold mining in recent years. It is important that the Commonwealth have time to study the best way to oversee the process and mitigate the numerous potential hazards posed by this unique type of mining. A pause in permitting gold mines would have no impact on other types of mining or quarrying operations in the state. HB2213 will serve to make sure that the citizens and environment will be protected now and in the future. It would be irresponsible of the Commonwealth to allow gold mine operations to begin before the study and appropriate regulatory adaptations are complete. I ask that you appropriate the funding for HB2213 to protect our state.

HB2213 is a bill that will benefit the entire commonwealth, which has never hosted large-scale, modern gold mining. This type of mining is very different from coal mining, and requires its own set of regulations. In order to understand what sort of regulations, we first must understand the industry. Open-pit gold mines can be hundreds of feet deep, and thousands of acres wide. They can have severe and drastic effects on local groundwater, livestock, and agriculture. HB2213 would provide the commonwealth with enough time to conduct studies on the effects of gold mining, and to make regulatory determinations based on the results of those studies. This bill is important to me, personally, because my homea is adjacent to land where gold exploration is already going on. But the bill is important to my fellow Virginians, as well, because of the Gold Pyrite belt that cuts across the commonwealth. The gold industry has their eyes on us, and before we allow them to set up shop here we need to be sure we understand exactly what that would mean for Virginians. Please support the funding required for HB2213, and please vote to pass the bill when you are given the chance. Thank you for your time. Stephanie Rinaldi Buckingham, VA

I've read and support Del Guzman's bill to place a moratorium on Gold Mining until it can be studied to determine what environmental impacts and/or public health impacts. Please help keep Virginia lands and citizens safe by delaying any gold mining operations until their impact can be carefully studied and understood. Thank you for your work on behalf of the citizens of the commonwealth. Patricia VonOhlen

I write in support of HB2213. Virginia has not had a commercial gold mines since the 1940s and they are nothing like that envisioned by the Canadian exploration company currently operating in Buckingham County. They compare their findings to the Haile mine in South Carolina which is a huge open pit mine with all of the fraught environmental and economic downsides of a boom and bust industry. Like virtually every gold mine, the Haile mine has released contaminated waste into the environment, affecting surface and possibly ground waters. Virginia's regulatory regime for mining is not equipped to deal with all of the issues of modern open pit mining that includes cyanide leach pits or vats. We must have complete information before making policy decisions about this enterprise. May it be the pleasure of the committee to approve this bill. Suzanne Keller Richmond, VA

The proposition to study gold mining in VA may seem unusual, since these mining techniques under consideration are primarily seen in the west in deserted landscapes. Canadian miners sniffing around gold mining prospects in the heart of VA does not bode well for those of us who call this home. In fact gold mining, using open pit methods prefers a lower water table with less rainfall, since higher water tables found in our area increase management issues when the mine is functioning. Constant flooding from shallow aquifers can be problematic both in keeping the pit dry and by reducing available water in the surrounding aquifer. In fact, the abundant water that grows trees and crops would be severely impacted for a much larger distance than the footprint of the mine itself. Large rain events can cause extra problems with containment of chemicals used in processing. This case is one where a little research into the long term effects of chemical extraction of gold from ore using cyanide will pay the state back many times over When it prevents long term damage and expense in managing these effects for generations to come.

Please don't ruin our lives and State ! Thank You

Please vote for a moratorium on gold mining to allow for time to study the impacts to the drinking water of potentially millions of Virginians! An exploratory company has already found gold in Buckingham County. They say their find will lead to large-scale mining. Modern metal mining is the nation’s #1 toxic polluter. Because Buckingham was the target of previous industry projects like the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, we know that a company who comes to this Environmental Justice community to open a mine will not have our best interests in mind. Please enact a moratorium on gold mining in Virginia. Thank you.

I would like to know what the bills have in them. Don't want anything in them hidden like they do in Washington.

Please support House Bill 2213 to stop the proposed Buckingham County gold mine. State agencies need time to investigate and establish safeguards on how an open-pit gold mine on the banks of a major water supply would impact our environment and public health. The possibility of open-pit gold mine being established in Buckingham County is very concerning. Gold mining on a large scale is an incredibly toxic process, and one of the dirtiest extractive industries in operation. With only small quantities of gold found in every ton of earth and rock removed, the process leaves behind large volumes of solid and liquid waste laden with harmful heavy metals. The immediate and long term impact to people and the environment is extremely severe. I'm hearing the Virginia has little to no regulation for this kind of gold mining. If this project proceeds, there are few if any remedies in state code to protect nearby residents and our clean water resources from the toxic byproducts produced during the mining process. Let's put the brakes on this. Thank you for your consideration.

Ms. Chair and Members of the Committee, I write in support of HB2213. A Canadian company has been conducting borings in Buckingham County to determine if there is sufficient gold to warrant large scale open pit mining. Gold mining is an inherently dirty enterprise, you would be hard pressed to find an active mine where there has not been release of toxics into the waters and lands around the mine. Virginia has not had a large scale commercial gold mine in nearly a century. Modern cyanide leaching techniques allow the extraction of gold from rock, it takes nearly 20 tons to make an ounce of gold, and creates vast tailings and leach ponds that are hazards to nearby people, animals, and waters. Most gold mined in the United States is exported. Once again Virginia is seen as a ripe location to engage in q dirty extractive industry by a foreign company because of a weak and industry friendly regulatory regime. We must do a better job of protecting communities and the environment from this type of activity. I do hope you will pass the bill. Thank you, Suzanne J. Keller Richmond, Va

my name is kamran and i'm grateful for being alive :)

We ALL need Clean Water! A Canadian company, seeking to fly under the radar and take advantage of Virginia’s weak or non-existent regulations surrounding gold mining, has proposed building a massive, open-pit gold mine in Buckingham County, near the historic community of Union Hill and the James River – a drinking water source for many communities, including Richmond, to the east of this proposed project. If built, the people of Union Hill, Buckingham and everyone downstream would be in harm’s way. Gold mining on a large scale is an incredibly toxic process, and one of the dirtiest extractive industries still conducted today. With only a few specks of gold found in every ton of earth and rock pulled out of the ground, the process leaves behind large volumes of solid and liquid waste laden with harmful heavy metals known to negatively impact human health and our environment. And if this project proceeds, there are few if any remedies in state code to protect nearby residents and our clean water resources from the toxic byproducts produced during the mining process. I urge you to support House Bill 2213 to stop this project and give our state agencies the time they need to research how an open-pit gold mine on the banks of a major water supply would impact our environment and public health.

I urge you to support HB2213. This bill is crucial to protect communities that could be impacted by gold mining. The threats of gold mining to water, air, and nearby communities are well-documented. At the very least, a study including impacts specific to the geology, water systems, and climate of Virginia is critically needed to determine the extent of harms to the water and health of nearby communities and those downstream to commercial gold mining operations, and to determine if Virginia regulations can provide adequate protections for the Virginians who would be put in harm’s way by the process. Further, impacted community members, the Council on Environmental Justice, and representatives from Native communities must be given the opportunity to weigh in, and this bill provides for that. Again, I urge you to support HB2213.

As your constituent and as a human, I respectfully ask you to stop this life and environmentally endangering project. I ask you to give state agencies time to study the environmental and public health impacts of large-scale gold mining by passing House Bill 2213 from Del. Elizabeth Guzman. I ask you to consider the drilling on an exploratory basis and touting of Virginia’s complete lack of regulations to the Canadian investors and shareholders of the mining company that is already impacting the environmental integrity and presenting a life endangering threat to the citizens of Buckingham and everyone, all species downstream . Your choice whether of not to pass House Bill 2213 from Del. Elizabeth Guzman will have an immediate and multi-generational all species and environmental impact. I know of nothing more essential for the quality of all life than the quality of water, soil and air. Thank you for your authentic consideration of this request to pass House Bill 2213 and authentic , responsible leadership on behalf of the all life and the environmental integrity necessary to the well-being of everyone. With respect, Polly Lazaron

Re Aston Bay property, Buckingham Co.--I am a retired USGS geologist with extensive experience in Virginia. I am not an expert on this particular tract, but I am experienced with the 1969 pollution of the James River by mining operations at nearby Piney River (see my USGS Prof. Papers 959H and 1371). I am concerned that Aston Bay is quite a small company, presumably with limited assets, and its intended mine could cause far more damage than its assets could cover. Gold from open-pit mines is usually leached with toxic chemicals that would pollute aquifers, and the nearby James River itself could be polluted even by normal operations, much less breakout flood effects on leach fields.

I urge you to support House Bill 2213. It is crucial that we pause a toxic gold mining project that will affect Union Hill communities. We need to give Virginia's agencies enough time to adequately research how an open-pit gold mine on the banks of a major water supply would impact the environment and the public health of nearby communities. I urge you to put equity and environmental justice first by supporting this bill.

Dr. Mary Finley-Brook - support for HB2213 I have taught Environmental Studies at the University of Richmond since 2006. I have more than two decades experience reviewing social, economic and ecological impacts of Canadian gold mining operations. There is no such thing as a ‘clean’ or sustainable open pit gold mine; the water pollution can be expensive to remediate if the regulatory process is inadequate. I am concerned about environmental racism. Canadian mining companies have a reputation for work in areas with regulatory gaps and weaknesses and for targeting communities of color. Aston Bay has picked two sites for exploration - the indigenous territory of Nunavut, a semi-autonomous region in the far north of Canada, where regulatory agencies are poorly integrated and oversight is poor, and Buckingham County, Virginia. Aston Bay does not have a proven track record in Canada as operations are relatively new and the frozen terrain slows development. If Virginian gold mining moves forward without expertise in our regulatory agencies, I fear the state government will be on the hook financially to either train or hire experts in modern mining technology and science in state agencies or will end up paying to remediate ecological damage or for water systems/delivery due to the history of mines producing and leaving toxic waste. Since there are environmental justice communities impacted, and there is a pattern of racism in the mining sector, I expect DEQ and others will be required to oversee extensive review to make sure disproportionate harm does not occur. I have conducted research in Buckingham, which could be most impacted with the first gold mining. I am concerned households are reliant on well water and there are many wetlands, streams and rivers. These connect to the James River. I live downstream. One of the sources of water where I live with my children in Chesterfield is the James, so constituents such as myself care about heavy metal contamination upstream in rural areas. The Commonwealth could end up with dangerous contamination (i.e., from cyanide, mercury, arsenic or other toxic elements) is particularly harmful to babies, children and pregnant women. Heavy metals do not degrade easily so they persist for a long time causing harm. Pollution from mines is dangerous to livestock and can enter crops. Biomagnification can occur. Chemicals will spread throughout the food chain, including to game species people hunt and consume. Risk in Buckingham may be higher because of the proposed use of brownfields and former mining areas; processes could release prior contamination. Mining uses large quantities of water, meaning it is not available for other uses, such as farming and household uses. The water discharged from mining operations contains harmful chemicals and is not safe for other productive uses. Mining contributes to sedimentation, which causes property damage and ecosystem degradation. Vast quantities of tailings containing the chemicals used to extract gold as well as heavy metals must be treated and stored carefully to prevent leaching. A network of groundwater monitoring wells would be necessary to assess preventive measures and provide an early warning system. More sustainable mining methods are expensive and will not be used unless agencies require them. HB2213 will allow DMME, DEQ and VDH to study impacts and review existing protections.

A Canadian company, seeking to fly under the radar and take advantage of Virginia’s weak or non-existent regulations surrounding gold mining, has proposed building a massive, open-pit gold mine in Buckingham County, near the historic community of Union Hill and the James River – a drinking water source for many communities, including Richmond, to the east of this proposed project. If built, the people of Union Hill, Buckingham and everyone downstream would be in harm’s way. Gold mining on a large scale is an incredibly toxic process, and one of the dirtiest extractive industries still conducted today. With only a few specks of gold found in every ton of earth and rock pulled out of the ground, the process leaves behind large volumes of solid and liquid waste laden with harmful heavy metals known to negatively impact human health and our environment. And if this project proceeds, there are few if any remedies in state code to protect nearby residents and our clean water resources from the toxic byproducts produced during the mining process. I urge you to support House Bill 2213 to stop this project and give our state agencies the time they need to research how an open-pit gold mine on the banks of a major water supply would impact our environment and public health. Gold mining on a large scale is an incredibly toxic process, and one of the dirtiest extractive industries still conducted today. With only a few specks of gold found in every ton of earth and rock pulled out of the ground, the process leaves behind large volumes of solid and liquid waste laden with harmful heavy metals known to negatively impact human health and our environment. With nearby residents relying on a clean aquifer for their drinking water supply, and with this project located near the James River that supplies major populations centers like Richmond with their water, this project has the potential to be a huge threat to our health and clean water. Gold mining hasn’t taken place in Virginia in any significant volume since before the California gold rush – and our laws and regulations reflect this reality. Moving forward now is a recipe for disaster, with the citizens of Union Hill and Buckingham County again on the frontlines of what has the potential to be an environmental catastrophe. We can’t let this happen – act now and let your lawmaker know that our health and clean water are more important than a foreign company’s dividends.        

New Virginia Majority Supports HB2213 (Guzman): Prior to allowing the gold mining industry to receive permits and begin new operations, conducting a thorough investigation into the potential implications of gold mining and how to strengthen the state’s regulations and guidelines as it relates their industry practices is vital to upholding Virginia's recent commitment to environmental justice. The analysis required in this legislation will assist the rural, Native, and Black communities within the region of the state targeted for these sorts of mining operations in understanding the immediate public health, environmental, economic, and safety risks that may occur in their local community and guide the included Secretariats in the prevention and mitigation of these potential adverse outcomes. We also support the inclusion of the Virginia Council on Environmental Justice as an advisory body to this study. We thank the Delegate for uplifting this urgent environmental justice issue and we encourage the committee to vote in support of this legislation. Tyneshia Griffin, the Environmental Policy Research Analyst at New Virginia Majority.

Please support HJ 2213. A Canadian mining company should not be able to develop a huge open-pit gold mine without any adequate regulation in place. No permit should be issued for this proposed project without adequate study of the potential environmental damage. It threatens to become yet another polluting extractive injury adding to the environmental inequities already suffered by poor and minority communities such as Union Hill, a town founded by freed slaves. I am asking the Virginia legislature to pass this crucial bill. Since gold mining has not taken place in our state since the 19th century, our current regulations do not begin to adequately address the environmental and public health impacts of a large open-pit gold mine. In addition to the direct destruction caused by open-pit mining, extracting the gold produces toxic waste including heavy metals that could wreak havoc on the water quality of the James River and the drinking water of surrounding and downstream communities, including Richmond. Virginia should be leading the way in protecting and restoring biodiversity, improving air and water pollution, and addressing environmental injustice. An open pit mine developed to profit a foreign corporation exploiting a gap in our laws will only create yet more damage to our environment and our citizens. Sincerely, Laura P. Livesay

I write on behalf of the non-profit organization Appalachian Voices, to ask that you support HB 2213. As gold-mining operations could introduce irreparable damage to groundwater via leaching of harmful materials, and the waste produced via gold mining contains many toxins including lead, mercury and cyanide, we support a thorough study of potential impacts to public health and the environment. HB 2213 allows Virginia to press “pause” and allow review of existing regulations, identify places where protections are insufficient, and improve the stakeholder engagement process. Please support HB 2213.

Please move ahead with the study of mining and processing and consider the effect of these industries on our environment and the unjust disproportional effects on our minority and economically disadvantaged communities. These industries must be held accountable for safe operations and environmentally appropriate clean up and restoration of all areas affected by their operations. Mining and processing may be seen as providing jobs, but there are other ways to provide good jobs which are less intrusive to our environment. We must put the long term good of our state’s environment and our citizens’ health over short term profits and dangerous low paying jobs. Let’s focus on more environmentally sustainable industries and safer, better paying jobs for our citizens. Thanks for all your good work for the benefit of all Virginians.

A Canadian company, seeking to fly under the radar and take advantage of Virginia’s weak or non-existent regulations surrounding gold mining, has proposed building a massive, open-pit gold mine in Buckingham County, near the historic community of Union Hill and the James River – a drinking water source for many communities, including Richmond, to the east of this proposed project. If built, the people of Union Hill, Buckingham and everyone downstream would be in harm’s way. Gold mining on a large scale is an incredibly toxic process, and one of the dirtiest extractive industries still conducted today. With only a few specks of gold found in every ton of earth and rock pulled out of the ground, the process leaves behind large volumes of solid and liquid waste laden with harmful heavy metals known to negatively impact human health and our environment. And if this project proceeds, there are few if any remedies in state code to protect nearby residents and our clean water resources from the toxic byproducts produced during the mining process. I urge you to support House Bill 2213 to stop this project and give our state agencies the time they need to research how an open-pit gold mine on the banks of a major water supply would impact our environment and public health.

Please stop this gold mining project in its tracks and give state agencies time to study the environmental and public health impacts of large-scale gold mining by passing House Bill 2213 from Del. Elizabeth Guzman. Virginia needs regulations in place!! Thank you!

I am an internal medicine physician who has practiced medicine in the Buckingham County and Albemarle County communities for over 25 years. The chemical pollution from gold mining includes toxic elements such as arsenic, lead, mercury, cyanide, as well as other pollutants. High levels of these chemicals poison the soil, ground water, streams, and rivers, not only near the mine but extending well beyond the mine area. These chemicals enter the food chain and affect plants, fish, other animals, and humans. They can cause cancer and neurologic problems as well as lung, liver, and kidney dysfunction. Most concerning is the effect on pregnant women, fetuses, and children. High levels of lead, mercury, and arsenic can cause premature birth, low birth weight, birth defects, and developmental neurologic problems which can lead to lower IQ’s and learning disabilities. And this exposure does not end when the mining ends. The waste left behind continues to pollute the area for decades and will affect residents’ health for years to come. For these reasons, please support HB2213 which will allow a complete study of the potential environmental and health impacts that gold mining will have in the Commonwealth. This is very important to protect the health of Virginia’s citizens.

Gold mining is one of the dirtiest extractive industries resulting in tons of solid and liquid wastes full of heavy metals. Heavy metals negatively impact human health. It is inconceivable that we would trade our water supply for a few golden baubles. It is environmental injustice to allow a foreign company to destroy land near a traditional black freeman's town. I urge you to support Delegate Guzman's bill HB2213.

Exploratory drilling for gold in Virginia is happening as we speak, and went on for years without the knowledge of the local community. Commercial gold mining is extremely toxic and a threat to the health, water, and air of communities across Virginia, and is currently threatening Union Hill and Buckingham County, who already had to endure being targeted for the now-canceled Atlantic Coast Pipeline. House Bill 2213, which would establish a moratorium on permits for commercial gold mining until a study of all the dangers of gold mining is completed, is crucial to protect Virginia communities. I moved to Buckingham to get away from business and to live a peaceful life. After the pipeline was defeated, I thought my well water was safe and Buckingham's Board of Supervisor's again not listening to the people have now made it legal for core sampling instead of shutting down a company who was drilling illegally. Please help us stop them. Rhonda Dennis

Virginia needs to develop up to date regulations for gold and other mining to protect our rivers and streams. Many Virginians depend on these waters and the aquifers beneath them for drinking water for themselves and their livestock. Polluting them with mining runoff and the exposed toxic components of drilling residue (arsenic, etc.) needs to be contained to the degree that surrounding waters are never impacted. Gold mining could occur throughout the mountain ranges and foothills of Virginia, so this is an issue throughout the state.

Please move ahead with the study of mining and processing and consider the effect of these industries on our environment and the unjust disproportional effects on our minority and economically disadvantaged communities. These industries must be held accountable for safe operations and environmentally appropriate clean up and restoration of all areas affected by their operations. Mining and processing may be seen as providing jobs, but there are other ways to provide good jobs which are less intrusive to our environment. We must put the long term good of our state’s environment and our citizens’ health over short term profits and dangerous low paying jobs. Let’s focus on more environmentally sustainable industries and safer, better paying jobs for our citizens. Thanks for all your good work for the benefit of all Virginians.

On behalf of the Virginia Conservation Network, I ask that you support HB2213, which will give the Department of Minerals, Mines and Energy, Department of Environmental Quality and Virginia Department of Health until July 1, 2023 to complete a study on the potential environmental and health impacts that gold mining could have on the Commonwealth. This is a necessary piece of legislation to ensure that we are protecting the health and rights of Buckingham County Residents and other downstream communities.

Dear Members of the House Rules Committee, The Virginia Transportation Construction Alliance (VTCA) represents over 300 organizations that make up the Transportation Construction Industry in Virginia And VTCA’s Aggregate Producers Members represent over 90% of all the metal/nonmetal mineral production in the Commonwealth. The Aggregate Producer Members of VTCA support the study of HB 2213, with one amendment. We recognize there are valid community concerns about the impacts of gold mining and encourage the Commonwealth to further study the process, however we do not believe it is necessary to issue a statewide prohibiting of certain mining permits until 2024. We believe localities currently have the tools to manage the issuance or denial of permits. While none of VTCA’s Members are gold mine operators, this legislation, if passed would be detrimental to the mining industry as a whole. Delaying permitting of mining operations to conduct studies is unjust legislation to operators that may currently be in the process of permitting operations, adding undo costs and delays to permit approvals. Aggregate is an essential component in everyday life. Uses for aggregates range from infrastructure construction, house & building construction, erosion control, medicines, agriculture, and pollution control to gravel for driveways. Again, we ask Members of the House Rules Committee to support HB 2213 with an amendment to strike lines 29 – 31.

My name is Heidi Dhivya Berthoud. I ask you to please support HB2213, which calls for a moratorium on gold mining in Virginia, and a study of the impacts and existing protections in place. I am the secretary for Friends of Buckingham. For 6 very long years, we labored to oppose the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, a very impactful, polluting, dangerous and economically unjustified project that was rightfully stopped. Large-scale gold mining operations would be new to the Commonwealth and present a unique risk to communities and the environment. In particular, gold mining typically involves large quantities of cyanide, a toxin that is harmful to humans and wildlife. The history of gold mining around the world is dire. One important purpose of the moratorium and study in HB2213 is to assess whether Virginia’s existing regulations will protect human health and the environment from this type of activity. Many of Virginia’s current mining regulations date back to the 1800’s. They also do not address environmental justice. In 2020, the General Assembly declared that it is the policy of the Commonwealth to promote environmental justice and ensure that it is carried out throughout the Commonwealth, with a focus on environmental justice communities and fence line communities. We know that polluting industries would not be permitted, if the externalized and true costs of doing business were properly and rightfully accounted for. We ask that proper and realistic assessment is done; that the taxpayers are not left with the extensive costs of clean up and ruination of our health and drinking water. Thank you for taking a clear look at this.

I ask that you support Delegate Guzman's HB 2213 moratorium on gold mining in Virginia. After learning that exploratory drilling for gold was happening near my neighborhood, I reached out to the Buckingham County Zoning Administrator, Nicci Edmondston. She learned that no one in the county administration knew of it. Her research uncovered the fact that the driiling was not permitted and therefore prohibited. Not only was the county unaware of the several years-long exploratory drilling, but basically no one I've spoken with about open pit gold mining has any idea of what's involved. Transparency and accountability are needed regarding such an industrial possibilty which is documented in the western US, and globally: https://www.earthworks.org/issues/mining/, as causing severe environmental and economic harms. Please support the HB 2213 moratorium to allow for research before permitting modern, large scale gold mining in Virginia.

My name is Chad Oba and for the last 6 years I have served as president of Friends of Buckingham. During the time that we were trying to defend our homes, health and resources from a pipeline and compressor station, a Canadian company was doing exploratory drilling on land within the same aquifer as the Union Hill neighborhood where my husband and I live. We share the same aquifer as those who would be more immediately impacted, a distance of about 5 miles away. There is a historical African American church, the Warminster Church, in the neighborhood where the exploratory drilling has taken place. We feel a strong alliance with them as we share the same fate if the drilling leads to a modern gold mine. We feel that once more it is people of color who will bear the devastating impacts of a highly polluting industry that gold mining presents for anyone unlucky enough to live near one. Indeed most people are forced to give up their homes and move away from these types of mines. Please let me remind you that the General Assembly declared that “it is the policy of the Commonwealth to promote Environmental justice and ensure that it is carried out throughout the Commonwealth, with a focus on environmental justice communities and fence line communities." The tailings produced in the extraction process introduce many heavy metals into our environment such as arsenic, cadmium, mercury and others. Enormous cyanide ponds are created that can be up to a mile across. The whole process is extremely deadly to all forms of life, including humans and put our water and the water of those downstream at extreme risk. The location here where the drilling has taken place is quite close to the James River which supplies water for millions of people. The gold pyrite belt extends into the Blue Ridge and along the Piedmont region so it is quite likely that gold mining could proliferate. The company has already leased 11,000 acres in Virginia. We do not have sufficient existing regulations in place to protect us as modern gold mining of this kind has not occurred in Virginia. I ask that you support HB2213. Our health, our water and our land use is great risk and this deserves further study. Thank you.

"My name is Mindy Zlotnick and I live in Buckingham County, VA. I'm writing to ask you to support HB2213 that is currently with the House Rules Committee. This is our urgent request for a moratorium on gold mining to allow for time to study the impacts to the drinking water of potentially millions of Virginians. An exploratory company has already found gold in Buckingham County. They say their find will lead to large-scale mining. Modern metal mining is the nation’s #1 toxic polluter. When Buckingham was the target of previous industry projects like the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, we learned that a company who comes to this Environmental Justice community to open a mine will not have our best interests in mind. We are looking to you to protect us. Please support HB2213. Thank you for your attention.

The Piedmont Environmental Council (PEC) supports HB 2213 carried by Delegate Guzman that ensures that the impacts of commercial gold mining to air, water, and public health are studied before permits are issued. Exploratory drilling for gold is taking place in Buckingham County and the same ore body runs through PEC's 9-county service region as well in the Virginia Piedmont. Gold mining tailings often contain elevated concentrations of toxic heavy metals such as arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury, and others. PEC believes this study is necessary due to the potentially negative impacts from gold mining on the health, safety, and welfare of the communities in and around where such mining takes place.

My name is Billie Brown I am a member of CECVA – Cannabis Equity Coalition of VA CECVA is in support of Del Herrings HB 2312; however, we are advocating that the bill be amended to increase the percentage of tax revenue allocated to the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund from 30% to 70%. The Governor’s Bill has allocated 40% of tax revenues to fund Pre-K education. While CECVA is in favor of funding Pre-K…this has always been a direct obligation of Virginia taxpayers from General Fund revenues. CECVA’s position is that all Pre-K funding should continue to be fully supported and funded from General Fund revenues. CECVA strongly advocates that Virginia follow the New Jersey model and allocate 70% of tax revenue received from the Adult Use Marijuana Industry to the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund to be used exclusively to help repair families and communities that have been most hurt by Virginia’s War on Drugs. CECVA is also requesting that the committee consider amending the makeup of the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Board to be fully reflective of the population it will be serving.

As a retired law enforcement officer (25 years) in Virginia, I believe this change is overdue. All of the fear mongering I hear about this is unwarranted. Please pass this bill now. Respectfully.

UFCW Local 400 represents over 10,000 members in Virginia who work in retail food, food service, food processing and healthcare. Thank you for the opportunity to submit testimony. Nationally, UFCW represents over 1.3 million hard-working men and women who work in highly regulated industries including the emerging legal cannabis industry. UFCW Local 400 strongly supports HB 2312 and urges the addition of labor peace agreements as a condition of cannabis licensure and renewal. Labor peace agreements protect businesses, workers, and consumers, and are an effective regulatory tool for the state. The addition of the ability of the newly formed board to suspend or revoke the license of an operator who is not neutral when their employees are attempting to unionize, does not pay the prevailing wage, or attempts to classify over 10% of their employees as independent contractors, is a huge step in the right direction towards ensuring employees in this new industry are able to have a voice. There is no equity for employees in this industry if they are wrongfully denied representation and a voice on the job and in the regulatory process. A labor peace agreement would take employees the rest of the way by leaving no doubt that adult cannabis employers will respect the rights of their workforce, giving those employees the ability to equitably share in this new industry. The specific language change in the substitute bill we would recommend is: Add to 4.1-606B as a new 18 between line 6458 and 6459 to read: 18. Establish requirements for all license applicants to submit an attestation signed by a bona fide labor organization stating that the applicant has entered into a labor peace agreement with such bona fide labor organization. The maintenance of a labor peace agreement with a bona fide labor organization shall be an ongoing material condition of maintaining a marijuana cultivation, marijuana manufacturing, marijuana testing, marijuana wholesaler, or marijuana retail store license. In reviewing initial license applications, the commission shall give priority to the following: (i) Applicants that are party to a collective bargaining agreement with a labor organization that currently represents, or is actively seeking to represent, cannabis workers in Virginia. (ii) Applicants that are party to a collective bargaining agreement with a labor organization that currently represents cannabis workers in another state. (iii) Applicants that include a significantly involved person or persons lawfully residing in Virginia for at least two year as of the date of the application. (iv) Applicants that submit an attestation affirming that they will use best efforts to utilize union building trades labor organizations in the construction or retrofit of the facilities associated with the permitted entity. (v) Applicants that submit an attestation affirming they have a project labor agreement, or will utilize a project labor agreement, which is a form of pre-hire collective bargaining agreement covering the terms and conditions of a specific project, including labor issues and worker grievances associated with any construction or retrofit of facilities, or other applicable project, associated with the licensed entity. It would also add to 4.1-900 under 1p as a new (iv) in line 7194 to read: (iv) Failing to maintain a labor peace agreement with a bona fide labor organization.

Marijuana legalization strikes at many of the racial, legal, and socioeconomic inequities facing Virginians. Legalization should occur as soon as possible, particularly given its overwhelming support both nationally and in the state.

I am in favor of this bill as it stands, as a good start. I suggest the following changes: * Allow ONLY small producers to vertically integrate (cultivate, manufacture, and sell at one same single location). This follows the farm winery / microbrewery model presently in place for wine and beer. For wine and beer that law has been highly successful to encourage agritourism. Also it has enabled small operators to maintain their niche presence in the market even in the face of large corporate producers. * The present proposal re-hashes the archaic Virginia ABC "three tier system" onto the marijuana business. In the distant past, it made sense as beer/wine was taxed on the volume of product at the wholesale level. Having relatively few wholesale distributors forming a choke point simplified enforcing tax compliance. The proposed marijuana tax though is a percentage of the retail price, to be collected by the retailer. In that context a "three tier" system has nothing to serve the public interest. It creates a class of licensee who is strictly a middle man, and requires all commerce to pass through him. That is never a benefit to the consumer, and also hamstrings the producer. * Allow licensed cultivators to import seeds or immature plants from out of State. It should not be necessary to break the law to bring a new variety of marijuana to market. * Change the personal grow exemption to reflect that many households have two adults who are users, and in that case allow each person to grow four plants for their personal use. Also I agree with the ACLU and UFCW comments on the bill.

I support HB2312 though I believe home cultivation should be made effective July 1, 2021. If cannabis is legalized but no one can't grow it, buy it or bring it in from a legal state are you not encouraging an illegal market? I would also like to see home cultivation worked on. The current definition of immature plant includes "no taller than eight inches" which is inaccurate and quickly makes all plants mature limiting households to two plants only. Given the length of time a plant needs to grow, I would hope to see the number of plants increased and changed to per person of age as apposed to the current per household.

I would like to write in support of HB 2312, but also voice that I feel very strongly that home cultivation of some form should be included in the bill's effective date of July 1 of this year. Legalizing possession is the obvious next step but I believe that without the ability to grow, citizens would be encouraged and almost directed to purchase cannabis on the black market, and put prospective business owners and workers in the cannabis industry this bill seeks to establish at a disadvantage. Moving home cultivation up with possession would allow these would-be business owners/hopeful industry workers in Virginia to try their hand at growing a clean, quality product and perfect the process of growing on a small scale for their own personal consumption; I believe this would also cut into the black market share of the industry by eliminating the need to purchase or secure cannabis on the black market before the date that retail stores are in place (retail stores this bill believes should be staffed and owned by Virginian residents, who will have no legal way to practice growing the plant hands-on, while outside entities from other states with years of experience in the game wait to move in and corner the market from inexperienced Virginia cannabis growers). Don't let perfect be the enemy of good! If you're legalizing cannabis possession, please legalize a way for it to be obtained by Virginians (growing it yourself)! You can always fine-tune it next session :( Thanks!

It would be a great way to add jobs in Virginia

The use of Cochaine, Heroin, ecstacy, optoids are 1 million times worse than Marajuana, which 98 :/: are incarcetated and thrown in jail, even for small amounts of possession. I personally started to use it whilst going through my divorce and there after. Alchohol and Marijuana have different effects, and If it was not for Marajuana I may have taken my ex husbands life, I testify to that, Marajuana treats anxiety, anger, moon swings, depression it also helps with pain management ..the only problem is there is sativa and indica which can contribute great differences to ones life, I personally would request that we have more weed doctors to evaluate ones illness so that they can prescribe the right medicinal amount based on each individual, the down sides are having the muncheez, but on a serious note, more doctors analyzing and prescribing the right doses of thc in capsules would work better for those who do not smoke or like the smell. Marajuana has unfortunately assisted me in these last two turbulent years, but the ailments return when I stop intaking it. I am not addicted to Marajuana and I use very small quantities, I prefer Marijuana rather than alchohilc, as I was married to an alchohlic and I experienced violent behaviour whilst one is intoxicated compared to smoking. The Medicinal Benefits of Marajuana helps cancer patients, Leukimia and many other illnesses, I also think we need more edible cake bake and cookie stores, the real problem is that no one knows what is grown indica or sativa and no one knows what they are smoking. If the Government take control of the growing and cultivation of this medicinal plant, at least when it is used in baking adibles in stores at least people will know what they are intaking smoking or eating or drinking. The blasphemy of incarcerating people for Marajuana is a joke and an excuse to target individuals. Regulating, producing and cultivating Marajuana will become a huge industry in the USA..even the use of hemp creams, oils. Then we have to start to seriously look at pharmacutical companies and how we must stop drugging and dosing and testing and experimenting on people..they call it medicine, tablets or liqued, Marajuana capsules and edibles are going to give big Pharma a run for their money. Natural remedies, rather than popping pills that have enormous negative side effects, not to mention they can also become adictive. I personally would prefer to have a capsule form or edibles with thc rather than smoking, and that is where the USA takes over the distribution, production and selling of this plant, and most importantly the cultivation is important because some one with epilepsy will need Indica and someone with depression and anxiety will advance towards sativa. God Bless You. Kind Regards Gursharan. Obviously the Government must take the initative to seed, grow, and produce more efficient ways to intake, taking a plant and not knowing what one is taking plays a major role in ones lives...and necoming more informative about what the benefits are to those who suffer from ptsd which 99 percent of veterans do..it also decreaces the suicide rate so hugely. Marajuana is not a drug, it is medicine which can be more progressively cultivated.

Please do the common sense, morally right, thing and legalize the plant for adult recreational use. It has caused zero deaths, yet is the source of millions of incarcerations. The laws that were based in racism and not science have disproportionately affected populations of color in our great Commonwealth far too long. Let us be the voice of reason and agents of change for our children. Leverage the legalization to create new jobs and spur the economy. Do this by giving preference to small, woman, and/or minority businesses in licensing, loans, etc. when setting up the regulations for the recreational market and business licensing. For the record, I am a white male-so I am not looking to benefit myself. Just trying to implore my elected officials to do something right and set an example. We weren’t at the forefront of this much needed change, but we can set an example of how to do this correctly and quickly for those that will undoubtedly follow and legalize.

Dear Committee Members: I am writing to ask you to legalize cannabis so as to create an equitable commercial market. In order to do that, you must be include remedies to past harm to communities most impacted by the drug war and over-policing. As you must certainly know, Black and white people use and sell cannabis at roughly the same rates, yet Black Virginians are charged at about 3 times the rate of white people. This is more astonishing given that Black people make up about 20% of Virginia's population. These facts cannot be ignored if we are to work towareds racial justice and equity. I support Marijuana Justice and am asking you to implement 5 key points: 1. Ban Vertical Integration 2. Social Equity License make up 50 percent of ALL Licenses 3. All licenses MUST be held by a Virginia Resident 4. Strike Social Equity Loophole of Hiring 10 Impacted Virginians 5. 70 percent tax revenue for the reinvestment fund Thank you for taking the time and intention to legalize it right by considering past harms. Best, Linsdsey Lawson Battaglia

This is bad legislation with data skewed to one perspective. There is no need to legalize a substance proven to cause health problems and incite other crimes.

I think you should legalize recreational use of marijuana because it helped me stop drinking so much. It has help me deal with my stress and anxiety. It helps me when I had seizures in the past as well. It can help many others. It can also bring revenue to local and state governments. Over half the country is benefitting off of it being legalized. We should be too. It honestly is inevitable! Please!

As a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist in the state of Virginia, I can attest to and have witnessed the devastating addictive effects of narcotics on some of my patients. In stark contrast, cannabis overdose cannot lead to death and its healing qualities in the endocannabinoid system in our bodies can help with many ailments that plaque the citizens of Virginia such as insomnia, depression, anxiety, PTSD to name a few. Please legalize this formally misunderstood plant so that Virginians can take advantage of all it has to offer and in so doing also bring much needed funding for our economy and food shortages caused by this horrific pandemic. Thank you for listening!

Good Afternoon, My name is Heather Wright. I’m a lifelong Virginia resident that would like to ask for your support of HB 2312. I believe the legalization of marijuana in the commonwealth should be supported. The cannabis industry will bring much needed jobs and money to our crippled economy. Just look at the statistics that prove responsible adult use cannabis is not as dangerous as alcohol. I’m also a current Virginia Medical Cannabis patient and would appreciate the access to lower priced medicine which passage of this bill would ultimately create. While destroying the illicit black market we have now. Please support HB2312! Thanks, Heather

I live in rural Roanoke County, VA. (Boones Mill). We sure could use the tax revenue here from completely legal cannabis. Most kids smoke it anyway and they’re fine. Don’t let surrounding states get all the revenue. Reason enough to pass this bill. Just do it. -Non-Smoker and Virginian

I support HB2312. Marijuana drug enforcement disproportionately targets Black and Brown communities despite marijuana use being similar across racial groups. The current system must be reformed in order to reach racial equity and justice in law enforcement. While there may be legitimate concerns about health and safety due to marijuana use in large amounts or in certain situations such as operating a vehicle or machinery, studies have shown that marijuana is less dangerous than other drugs, including alcohol and tobacco.

Please let's see this legalization go forward. The benefits are huge,generating tax dollars to benefit schools,reducing jail overcrowding,reducing court dockets,generating jobs and medicinal use guarantees relief for so many. Veterans who have not found pain relief through pharmaceuticals. It is time to move forward.

My name is Meaghan McInnis, residing in Richmond Va. I am writing to tell you how important it is to legislate an equitable cannabis commercial market that will include communities normally left to the margins and center those who have been most impacted by marijuana prohibition.

I believe Virginia can create an equitable future for marijuana legalization. That starts with immediate end of prohibition and expungement of records and release of anyone in jail for marijuana related crimes. I also believe Virginia should be helping people obtain their licenses to work in the marijuana field. Anyone who’s been charged for distribution of marijuana should be given a first chance at obtaining marijuana licenses.

Hello

While you are deciding how policies will affect people for years to come: please repeal marijuana prohibition for simple possession under an ounce. Please do not criminalize another generation of youth for marijuana possession. You have the power to end a cycle of disempowerment. Expungement must be far-reaching, free, and without barriers. No new crimes for marijuana usage in a vehicle! I know many constituents who have been harmed by prohibition and criminalization in our county. Please serve the people by protecting them from harmful policies. THANK YOU!

I support the bill ONLY with these significant changes: 1. A completely new regulatory agency (separate from the ABC) should have full regulatory power over the adult use cannabis industry. It is a different substance and should be regulated differently. 2. Remove language that creates new crimes targeting minors. The goal of this program is to stop targeting minorities and punishing them on Cannabis use. Underage consumption should be treated as a health issue treated with classes or rehab, not a criminal issue punishing them with charges and jail. 3. Ban vertical integration so the wealth is DISTRIBUTED! It’s about the amount of lives effected, not about the amount of money one person/company can make. I believe someone mentioned previously that it’s easier to allow it later if you feel that’s necessary later on , rather than allowing it now and deciding to ban it later. If we want the most Virginia families to be positively impacted by this new industry, we must ban vertical integration. 4. Remove language allowing corporations who employ individuals who have been effected by cannabis criminalization to receive the same benefits as individuals who have been directly effected by cannabis criminalization. Again, if this is truly about social equity, it only makes sense that these benefits are reserved specifically to those individuals only. 5. Allow a larger portion (50%) of adult use cannabis tax income to be directed back to social equity. If we want this program to be centered about Social Equity. Social equity must truly be threaded all throughout the legislation. Thank you all for your hard work and commitment to establishing an Adult Use Cannabis Industry with true integrity.

Legalize possession. Now. Pass HB2312. Let’s inch a little closer to liberty and justice for all, by quickly ameliorating the deleterious effects of this misbegotten, politically driven prohibition. As our state wisely moves to full, regulated legalization, it’s high time that the law catch up with what’s right. Let’s let law enforcement focus on protecting and serving, not harassing our communities. Legal possession. Post haste!

My name is Sarah R Rinehardt, residing in Richmond, VA, county of Henrico. I am writing to tell you how important it is to legislate an equitable cannabis commercial market that will include communities normally left to the margins and center those who have been the most impacted by the violence of marijuana prohibition. To do that, we are recommending 4 key points: 1. Repeal marijuana prohibition for simple possesion under an ounce now. 2. Do not criminalize another generation of youth and young adults for marijuana possession. 3. Expungement must be far-reaching, free and without barriers. 4. No new crimes for marijuana usage in a vehicle. Sincerely, S. Rinehardt

Marijuana: Glimpsing at Snow Between the Bars Today I woke up to a rare delight in Virginia. Snow. I looked through one of the many windows in our house, basking in its whimsical glory. However, my mind quickly turned to those unfairly imprisoned for simple marijuana possession. I thought of them excitedly peaking through the bars to catch a glimpse of the falling snow. Like snow, they were caught up in something that is, by all definitions, natural and a gift for us from Earth. Delegate, ending the marijuana prohibition in Virginia would be one of these rare but needed delights. Legalization benefits all Virginians and especially those who have been disproportionately impacted by prohibition. According to a Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC), a legal marijuana market would create between 11,000 and 18,000 jobs. During the tumultuous times of COVID-19, it is imperative to create sustainable jobs for those who have been unemployed. Additionally, JLARC predicts that a recreational marijuana market could generate $308 million in annual tax revenue. This revenue is severely needed in Virginia to undo the damage of marijuana prohibition and to fund Virginia’s many programs (education, public utilities, etc.). While the bill, as it stands is well-written, it is missing some crucial components that we Virginians are calling for. Firstly, we need to repeal marijuana prohibition for simple possession under an ounce now. We also must avoid criminalizing yet another generation of youth. When marijuana laws are carelessly applied, they are stealing the future of many people aged 18-25. Evidence also shows that these laws most impact Black Americans. How does this support the rule of law? How are we helping these youth if they are struck by the hand of Virginia? Lastly, expungement should be automatic and far-reaching. The state of Virginia needs to do its part in repairing the wounds that marijuana prohibition has wrought. This work, of course, involves expungement and funding Black-owned cannabis businesses. I imagine a legal market in Virginia. No, I do not imagine the glitzy cannabis stores or the products they sell. No, I envision the state of Virginia and its citizens bending the bars, reaching a helping hand to those who have been harmed by this prohibition. This is the future your delegates and Virginians want. Delegate, we ask you to help us secure this future by helping pass HB 2312. Supporting this rare but historic bill would be a tremendous step forward for Virginia and Virginians. I encourage you to listen to your constituents and do the right thing and help pass HB 2312.

I have suffered from MS for twenty years, all the available science indicates that marijuana helps ppl who struggle with this incurable disease. I first ran across this bit of data in a book from ‘73 by Lester Grinspoon, it’s time to fix this issue. It’s not a cure just a tool, a medicine that enables one to cope with the myriad symptoms that we are presented with. Making it legal would allow a wider range of options than what we now have, a freer atmosphere to research differing forms marijuana treatment folks might need or feel comfortable with. We were agrarian at one point, legalization would be a great way to start that economy once again. The spin off businesses that would support legalized marijuana would be inestimable in a tourist beach town like mine. Finally it presents a superb opportunity to address institutional racism. Black folks have suffered in greater numbers than other Americans during the drug war. Now is a great time address that inequality. Thanks, A Citizen

By legalizing marijuana in Virginia, you would be changing the lives of so many of your constituents. I am 23 and live with a chronic pain disorder, anxiety, and depression. Being able to manage my pain with marijuana without the fear of legal action would give me some control back over my life, instead of depending on prescriptions that don’t always work. This also gives our state the opportunity to rectify some of the harm done to black and brown communities, who have been the most targeted and affected by harsh marijuana laws. And think of all the revenue from taxes!! That money can go to helping our schools, rebuilding infrastructure, and other uses that benefit all of us. Please at least allow us to legally possess an ounce or less this summer; 2020 was rough for everyone and we could really use this win. Thank you.

To whom it may concern: I am a resident of Virginia Beach as well as legal, registered medical marijuana patient in the state of Virginia. I suffer from anxiety as well as Crohn’s disease. I support legal, adult use of marijuana because current marijuana laws are disproportionately enforced between black Virginians and white Virginians despite equal usage rates. Although my prescriptions are legal, there is still a lot of stigma associated with the use of marijuana. My ability to purchase a gun, travel across state lines with my medicine and future employment opportunities are all impacted by current marijuana laws. I believe that Virginia can help pave the way to federal legalization by making this change within our state laws.

As a 44 years resident, retired medical researcher, and tax payer of Virginia I am in favor of legalization of marijuana. Tax wise, agriculturally, and medically--legalization of marijuana will be beneficial to Virginia. We can regulate it just as we do driving, cigarettes, and alcohol (ABC stores), as well as tax it. Marijuana should never have been classified as a Class I drug--the pharmaceutical industry was instrumental in this. As a treatment for PTSD, and other medical issues, it has proven to aid in relief without the possible addictions to pharmaceutical drugs, or the astronomical costs associated. Allowing for citizens to grow it for personal use in limited amounts should be included. Not to mention that we will eliminate the need for more 'private' prisons (incentivizing incarcerations) to imprison non-violent offenders. Please legalize this natural product to advance Virginia's economic stability.

I had COVID19 in March 2020. The devastation to my body has continued in the form of excruciating pain and destruction to all my joints in the form of rheumatoid arthritis spondylitis and Adult Stills disease. I am never without pain. I am destined for a wheelchair. The only release from the pain is THC which I consume in the form of edibles. I live in Kansas where it’s impossible to obtain THC. I must put family at risk in order to obtain THC from other states. Family members travel to other states to purchase THC for me and if they are caught, their lives are ruined. Please pass this bill and protect my family and help me live pain free.

1. Ban vertical integration 2. Licenses should be owned by Virginians 3. 50% of licenses should be reserved for Social Equity 4. Strike the ability to apply for a social equity license by hiring 10 impacted folks 5. Increase the amount of tax revenue dedicated for reinvestment from 30% to 70%

Anyone engaging in good faith has to admit that the war on drugs has been a spectacular failure--one that has disproportionately victimized Black Americans and other communities of color. Simple possession must be legalized immediately to prevent further harm to communities that have already suffered, and will continue to suffer as long as these outdated, racist laws remain in place.

The Virginia Association of Commonwealth's Attorneys has no official position on the legalization of marijuana. However, if the sale of marijuana is to be legalized, VACA is concerned that the lawful, regulated market not be placed at a disadvantage in comparison to the black market or illegal sale of marijuana. Presently the bill allows for the unlicensed sale of up to one ounce of marijuana. Because the vast majority of transactions involving marijuana are for amounts below 1 ounce, those individuals who follow the regulations and process for licensure established by this bill and sell marijuana legally are placed at a significant financial disadvantage in comparison to the individuals who can sell up to one ounce without suffering any negative civil or criminal consequence. California's legalization scheme has come under tremendous scrutiny for not doing enough to enforce disincentives for black market transactions. If individuals in Virginia are permitted to sell up to an ounce without civil or criminal consequences, Virginia's legalization efforts will do far less to address the black market than the efforts being called into question in California.

Please fix the system so it expunges records automatically and without barriers. Make easy defaults in the system and gov forms.

Just like a $15 minimum wage, affordable healthcare, it’s time. Additionally, passing HB2312 will increase revenue & decrease crime, which makes this a windfall across the board.

It is time for Virginia to move towards regulated sale of cannabis for adult use. Not only can cannabis effectively treat pain, some types of anxiety, and other health conditions without the use of opiate drugs, but the regulated sale of cannabis is absolutely a necessary component of keeping VA’s economy strong. We need to give teachers raises and expand Medicaid so that people with disabilities have a fighting chance at living a life like yours. The taxes collected from regulated sale would allow Virginia to do these things and so much more. Please move another step beyond decriminalization by moving towards regulated sale. This ensures true decriminalization and provides for adult use. The current medical model is costing people money they do not have, to see doctors who do not know them, and it is not an accessible model. Thank you for your consideration.

Virginia needs to be progressive on this issue. It will help our economy and it will also help right the wrongs of arresting decent citizens for possessing a plant.

I would like to share my personal story about the positive experience and benefits cannabis has brought to my life. I am a retired veteran with 5 years old twins and I am a closet user due to the stigma behind being a cannabis user. I completed two Masters degrees within a three year period while working 16+ hour days for a huge government contractor. I am a career mother suffering from PTSD due to my experience with MST during my time as an active duty member. I also suffer from OCD and anxiety which somedays is so debilitating I cannot function. I use cannabis because it helps me function in all the ways prescription medications are peddled to make us believe they work. My home is immaculate and my bills are paid. I have never used anything harsher than alcohol or cannabis and since becoming a cannabis user I barely drink. I fear everyday I will lose my job, kids and everything I have worked so hard for because if people knew I was cannabis user I would automatically be categorized as a druggie and bad mom. Without me telling my story noone would ever be able to tell from the outside. My kids are happy, healthy and well taken care of I want to share my story in hopes of educating others.

My name is Paula Goldman. I'm a resident of Fairfax County and I am writing in support of legalization of marijuana in the Commonwealth for adult use via HB2312-Herring. I'm in my 50's and I have tried marijuana just enough to know that it isn't something I'd be using regularly even if it was legal. Nonetheless, I support its legalization for 4 reasons. First and foremost, I'd like to see the Commonwealth taxing and regulating marijuana much as it does cigarettes and alcohol, two substances that pose more potential harm than marijuana. This would bring revenue to the Commonwealth that can be used to fund affordable treatment for addiction, among other things. Second, I want an end to what amounts to inadvertently subsidizing gangs and criminal enterprises -- as long as marijuana remains illegal to sell, people will be buying it illegally and funding the gangs and other criminals who are in the business of selling it -- and not paying any taxes on the sales, either. We are essentially repeating the mistakes of Prohibition, which helped fund the Mafia's rise in the US. (https://prohibition.themobmuseum.org/the-history/the-rise-of-organized-crime/the-mob-during-prohibition/). If we want to see fewer of our youth being seduced by MS-13, we need to take the allure of easy money out of gang membership. And yes, MS-13 and other gangs will try to sell "hard" drugs instead, but we can use some of our marijuana tax dollars to fund alternatives to gang membership and to crack down on cocaine, heroin, and other illegal, far more addictive drugs. Third, states that have legalized marijuana have seen a decrease in use of opiates (both legal and illegal) and in opiate mortality. See https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6717967/ and https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7246665/ for the results of studies showing these decreases. It would be to the Commonwealth's benefit to have similar decreases. Fourth, as a tax payer, the cost of imprisoning people for non-violent distribution is astronomical and enforcement has been racially biased, resulting in mostly people of color being prosecuted and incarcerated. The cost to the individuals and their families also should not be discounted. Once marijuana is legalized in the Commonwealth, enforcement of "street" sales would still occur but should be treated the same as cigarette tax evasion. Thank you for your time considering my comments.

I would like it urge the committee to support this bill and to legalize marijuana the right way. Immediately legalize possession under an ounce, make expungement far reaching, and don’t create new crimes for marijuana usage in vehicles, which will be unjustly used to criminalize another generation.

I have cirrhosis and pulmonary hypertension. Little appetite. Nausea. Often pain. Have lost so much weight, doctor thinks I will die of malnutrition. Yes we have medical marijuana but have not the resources for the several hundred dollar “exam” nor money to drive to Bristol. My one doctors wishes he could prescribe it. If legalized, it would be less cost for me and easier to locate! Not to mention it would greatly help my quality of life!

1.Please repeal Marijuana prohibition for simple possession under an ounce asap. 2. Do not criminalize another generation of youth and young adults for Marijuana possession. 3. Expungement must be far reaching, free and without any barriers yo! 4. No new crimes for Marijuana usage in vehicle. Please please please Pretty please with a cherry on top.

Using cannabis has helped me tremendously. I’m more productive and friendly. I’d love to be able go to a dispensary and know exactly what I’m getting, knowing it’s safe and reliable, as well as push money back into the state from tax revenue.

I urge you to please do your part to end prohibition on Marijuana before sales begin. During this pandemic we do not need our criminal system focused on a natural substance that has been deemed legal in many states and will be sold in the future in VA. Take this opportunity to end a racist law now, and provide people who need this to help them during a pandemic do so without potentially tying up unneeded resources..

Dear Delegate, I’m writing to urge your support for HB 2312, to legalize and regulate the responsible use of cannabis by adults 21 and older. It’s time to stop ceding control and revenue of the cannabis market to unregulated and untaxed criminal enterprises, and the proposed pragmatic regulatory framework which licenses production and sale of cannabis to adults, combined with evidence-based education for minors, will best reduce the risks associated with its use and commerce. Governor Northam’s Marijuana Legalization Report positions Virginia as the single most prepared state to undertake a legislative effort to equitably legalize and regulate cannabis for adults. The nearly 500-page report explores and outlines how the Commonwealth can best approach this effort in a manner that is equitable, centers public and consumer safety, and creates economic opportunity for Virginians. Keeping the report in mind, there are multiple improvements that should be made to the legislation. It is critical that this legislation not roll back the progress achieved by decriminalization by the creation of multiple new crimes that will again target Black, Brown, poor and young Virginians, maintaining disproportionate criminalization of these groups. Currently, the legislation delays legal possession and personal cultivation until the date of legal retail sales. I am greatly concerned by the choice to continue penalizing Virginians - and disproportionately Black and Brown Virginians - until the Commonwealth and retailers are able to capitalize on cannabis sales. Legal possession and personal cultivation should be implemented on July 1, 2021. The allowance for personal cultivation is crucial for Virginians who may reside in areas not within a reasonable distance of a retail cannabis outlet, whether for adult or medical use. Additionally, the proposed two mature plus two immature plant limit should be increased to four plants total, whether mature or immature. While it will take many months to establish the regulatory structure and license retailers, in the interest of public and consumer safety, interim adult access should be expedited through collocation at the existing medical operators. Without such access, Virginians will continue to engage in criminal action to obtain what would otherwise be a legal product. It is also important that this legislation automatically expunges marijuana-related records, protects the parental and employment rights of responsible consumers and those participating in the legal cannabis industry, directs revenue to communities most impacted by marijuana criminalization, and creates economic opportunities for Virginians through microbusiness opportunities, particularly those harmed by prohibition and in rural agricultural areas. The ongoing prohibition of marijuana encroaches upon civil liberties, impedes legitimate scientific research, and disproportionately impacts communities of color. And as Virginia faces a looming $1 billion budget shortfall, expanding the Commonwealth's state-regulated cannabis industry to include adult-use can generate tax revenue to support our much-needed public services. Please support HB 2312 to equitably legalize and regulate the responsible adult-use of cannabis in Virginia and begin undoing the harms of prohibition.

Please repeal marijuana prohibition for the sake of families being torn apart by drug-war incarceration. Repeal marijuana prohibition NOW, not later, not once a market is set up for it. Do this for the sake of racial justice and in the name of what is right. This prohibition protects no one and instead harms Virginians and our trust in our state government. Please repeal marijuana prohibition immediately, without caveats, and repeal any and all criminal punishments related to marijuana prohibition.

My name is Naomi Isaac, I am an HBCU student and community organizer with Marijuana Justice VA, residing in Richmond. I am writing to tell you how important it is to legislate an equitable cannabis commercial market that will generate our Virginia economy in communities normally left to the margins. To do that, we are recommending 4 key points: 1.Repeal Marijuana prohibition for simple possession of under an ounce NOW--we cannot wait for the commercial market. 2. Do not criminalize another generation of youth and young adults for possessing marijuana. 3. Only “impacted people” eligible for expungement will qualify to participate in the industry, expungement must be far reaching, free and without barriers. No new crimes for marijuana in the car, the current DUI laws are sufficient Thank you for taking the time and intention to legalize it right. Sincerely, Naomi Isaac

Thank you to the committee, my name is Willie Hilliard from Richmond, Virginia and I represent Grow Up Va. I am here to encourage you to: 1. Repeal Marijuana prohibition for simple possession of under an ounce NOW and not wait. Waiting will only increase the criminalizing of people when eventually it will be legalized for the commercial market. 2. Not criminalize another generation of youth and young adults for possessing marijuana. We can no longer hinder the future of our youth with cumbersome criminal charges against them. 3. Ensure our expungement is far reaching, free and without barriers because only the “impacted people” who are also eligible for expungement will qualify to participate in the industry. 4. Legislate no new crimes for marijuana in the car. The current DUI laws are sufficient and to give criminal charges to innocent passengers is reprehensible to say the least. Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, Willie Hilliard

In addition to reducing or eliminating non-violent incarcerations, legalization eventually would lead to a good deal of tax revenue. I think the state could benefit from the this. Legalization is not a giant step from our current decriminalized status. I encourage you to please consider legalization for the benefit of the state, and I thank you for your time.

As you consider legislation for the legalization of marijuana, which is much needed in the state of Virginia, I urge you to: -Repeal marijuana prohibition for simple possession under an ounce now. -Treat minors in possession of marijuana as "children in need of services." not "juvenile delinquents" -Repeal the mandatory "zero tolerance expulsion policy for students with marijuana on school grounds - Make "intent to distribute" when everyone involved is under the age of 24 a civil penalty. Thank you for your consideration.

I urge members to consider the repeal of simple possession should take effect July 1, 2021. This would begin the process of helping those who have faced legal issues with simple possession in the past. Marijuana legalization must be equitable. We must right wrongs and help minorities who have been targeted with harsher punishment when it comes to marijuana possession. Taking a social justice stance to marijuana legalization must be part of our goal.

Please allow for small businesses to vertically integrate based on the size of their operation. This licensing model is already being used in Michigan. Michigan allows for a cannabis microbusiness license. The Michigan microbusiness license allows a licensee to cultivate up to 150 plants, process those plants into concentrates, edibles, or other products, package those end products, and sell those products to customers of legal age. Virginia should adopt a similar license. The main deterrent for getting a small business license is the cost and confusing applications. Please make sure these costs do not reach above $250.00 per license, with that dollar amount being on the high end and the application process very simple. I also would like to add; to put an end to the Marijuanna Prohibition you must not make new laws and fines. This is defeating the entire purpose. I appreciate the consideration.

Repeal marijuana prohibition for simple possession under an ounce now. Do not criminalize another generation of youth and young adults for marijuana possession. Expungement must be far reaching, free, and without barriers. No new crimes for marijuana usage in a vehicle. Ban vertical integration.

My name is Rebecca and I am a resident of Alexandria. Please legalize simple possession of marijuana and expunge all non-violent records. Virginia’s failed “war on drugs” has hurt Black communities and poor communities disappropriately across the state, and it is fundamentally immoral. HB 2312 is the first step to ending this war and making amends. As a person who has lived in places where marijuana is legal, I can attest firsthand that as a substance it can be used safely for medical and recreational purposes. Better yet, I would also like to see the state move even further by legalizing and regulating the substance, and directing the collected taxes to be used as reparations to fund Black and marginalized communities in the state.

Treat minors in possession of marijuana as "children in need of services," not "juvenile delinquents." Repeal the mandatory "zero tolerance" expulsion policy for students with marijuana in school grounds. Make "intent to distribute" when everyone involved is under the age of 24 a civil penalty.

It is imperative that Virginia move forward with legalizing possession of marijuana and expunging the records of those who have been charged with carrying less than one ounce. It has been proven time and again that marijuana laws disproportionately affect Black and Brown communities.

Please legalize the simple possession of marijuana of under one ounce effective July 1, 2021. My friend was just diagnosed with cancer in December and has started chemotherapy treatments. Marijuana is well documented to help in the treatment of many maladies. In the case of cancer and chemotherapy, it helps ease the nausea induced by the chemo, but it’s not available. Thank you for your consideration and your service.

Virginia should legalize marijuana following Colorado's example. It's a cash cow. Many Virginians already have access via black market or crossing borders. Virginia should take advantage of its own state tax benefits, money for school programs and COVID budget shortfalls, less distraction for law enforcement, and remove the tremendously unfair effects on the Black community. As a white mother I've counseled my children about how unfair the police are to Black people. Illegal pot is rooted in systemic racism and lobbying dollars in the alcohol and cigarette markets. Marijuana should be legal just like alcohol and cigarettes. Let Virginians have the freedom of choice.

As a legal resident of Virginia since 1993, I fully support the passage of HB2312. The legalization of marijuana/cannibas makes sense legally, economically, morally and medically. Other states have shown the benefits in all the categories above, so let's move forward.

Good afternoon. It is both a moral and financial imperative that we make valuable strides towards cannabis legalization and end the disastrous War on Drugs. For too long we have criminalized a plant and locked citizens away for simple, non violent drug offenses such as possession. This must end, and this legislation is a step in the right direction. As a citizen and lifelong resident of Virginia I am in support of legalization. For too long people have color have been unevenly and unfairly punished for possessing and using Cannabis, and legalization and decriminalization would free up law enforcement officals to better direct their efforts and focus towards real, violent crime. Further, in such a day when wearing a mask is seen as taking away individual freedom, it seems unreconcilable to me that we as a society quite literally are okay with taking someones actual freedom for an Ounce (the weight of 1 USD Bill) or less! I am not okay with that. These are people. Fathers Mothers Brothers and Sisters, friends and family that are no longer present at the dinner table because they got pulled over with a bag of weed in the car. What substance a person chooses to use is no more a concern for the government than buying a six pack or a pack of smokes, providing they fit legal and safe criteria for use. (Proper age and dont drive) The laws should not say you cant have Sprite on Wednesday, or any other such banality. They should be for our protection and well-being. Who does criminalizing a plant help? Finally, it is an economic boon that is simply too big to ignore. Virginia should join the growing list of states legalizing, and benefit from the taxes off the industry, which would create jobs and bring in more revenue. Turning your back on the market forces it underground, enabaling sketchy back alley deals, unverified products, and strains on our prisons, law enforcement officers, and our communities.

immediately legalize simple possession under 1oz, effective July 1, 2021.

Any legislation must come from an equity lens. We must legalize any simple possession under 1 oz. so as not to continue to criminalize a new generation of cannabis users. Real legislation is retroactive and provides automatic expungement of past convictions to restore the harm done to individuals and entire communities, especially overpoliced black and brown communities. Any taxation should involve reparations to communities that have been harmed to repair damages caused to the legacy market. Lastly any government sanctioned regulation of the cannabis market should ensure that those most impacted by the War on Drugs have a stake in the market, not just employment but ownership. This means black ownership and brown ownership. This bill has aspects of change needed but certainly is far from repairing the historic harms of marijuana criminalization. All bills need to be crafted and enacted from an equity lens.

Marijuana possession should be legalized. It never should have been illegal. It is horrifying that so many Virginian’s have become involved with the criminal justice system due to possession of marijuana. These people are not criminals and I should not have to be supporting those who are incarcerated for this reason with my tax dollars when many would be productive, contributing members of society, otherwise. Prohibitions on far more dangerous substances like alcohol would be a better use of taxpayer dollars.

I am sole caregiver for wife with Alzheimer’s. It is back breaking work, plus I believe witnessing her decline over 5 years has left me with PTSD. That said, with constant back pain, neuropathy and stress, marijuana provides relief without having to use addictive pharmaceuticals. I’m a law abiding citizen yet because of being illegal use makes me a criminal. I had used off and on recreationally for close to 50 years, no health issues. It is time to legalize and regulate a legal marijuana market. The tax revenue would be beneficial to the State, and many otherwise law abiding citizens would no longer be criminals and free up jail space for real criminals. Jailing people costs money too. It would be a win-win for all.

Time to end prohibition on marijuana. It has been proven to be medically efficient and it doesn't cause anger issues. Remove all peoples records of convictions and release from jails and prisons all persons convicted of such. Our legal system is grossly o er populated and out of control. This will help tremendously with that problem.

As Virginia moves forward with cannabis legalization we must look to our recent past, "the war on drugs." The General Assembly must be committed to repairing the harm and injustice of past legislation of marijuana concerning racial inequities. So as not further expand the gulf of social mobility among Virginians I ask that the House Courts of Justice Committee will move forward with legislation that: 1. Repeals marijuana prohibition for simple possession under an ounce - now, 2. Does not criminalize another generation of youth and young adults for marijuana possession, 3. Provides far-reaching - free and without barriers - expungement. 4. Ends any new crimes for marijuana usage in a vehicle. In legalizing cannabis Virginia is offering an opportunity for some Virginians to prosper, while others (primarily Black Virginians) are burdened by past legislation.

Marijuana has been legal in Oregon for almost 7years. During this time, no one was arrested for possession. No one had a criminal record, turned down for employment or rentals due to this criminal record. Lives are long. A criminal record is forever. Shouldn't the people of Virginia have this safety? Lives ruined can impact future children, the ability of a parent to support them, provide shelter.

Thank you to the committee, my name is Ace from Virginia Beach, Virginia. I am here to encourage you on the following points in legalizing cannabis right: 1. Repeal Marijuana prohibition for simple possession of under an ounce NOW and not wait for the commercial market. 2. Do not criminalize another generation of youth and young adults for possessing marijuana. 3. Only “impacted people” eligible for expungement will qualify to participate in the industry, expungement must be far-reaching, free, and without barriers. 4. No new crimes for marijuana in the car, the current DUI laws are sufficient.

Please ensure the following items are part of this initiative. - Legalization of possession of an ounce or less. - Legalization of home grows of 12+ plants. - Expungement of criminal records. - Prioritized opportunities for past offenders, BIPOC, and Virginians. - No vertical integration. - No out of state companies. - No new crimes related to marijuana. - Prioritization of restorative justice for groups impacted by the war on drugs. - Usage of funds raised from taxes for infrastructure, schools, community services, and providing grants for previous offenders to start legitimate businesses in the industry. - Quality assurance programs for medicinal and recreational marijuana that include testing for heavy metals, bacteria, mold, pesticides, herbicdes, fungicides, and other contaminants. - Encourage environmentally sustainable business practices and provide business credits for using renewable energy, optimizing water usage, and sustainable agricultural practices.

I am in favor of fair and equitable cannabis legalization.

I am in favor of legalization. I urge you to vote in favor of marijuana legalization in Virginia.

Legalize all simple possession of marijuana under 1 OZ immediately. From a social worker in Richmond.

This legislation is necessary to improve the Commonwealth's standard of equity. This legislation will also contribute to much needed economic growth. Other states & localities have legalized marijuana successfully. Virginia needs to again lead the charge in the South.

My name is Maryann Long. I am a retired midwife and a resident of Charlottesville. I urge the Delegates to immediately legalize simple possession of a small amount (less than 1 ounce) of marijuana, effective on July 1, 2021. Decriminalization with fines still has the potential to unfairly burden people of color who are more likely to be noticed and apprehended. It does not go far enough. Moreover, it's absurd to make everyone wait until the whole process for management of sales, taxation, distribution and so forth is complete and ready to begin, which could be up to 3 years from now. Thank you .

Greetings Chair Herring and Committee members, I am writing to ask that you please continue to do the important work of legalizing marijuana right in Virginia. It is critical that our legislation end and address the past harm caused to Black and brown folks and make the important decisions on what is needed for equity and justice moving forward. As such, I believe that it is important that we not set up any new structures, policies or laws that may cause ongoing harm. You have many things to consider before you and I trust you all to do the hard work to make careful decisions in moving this legislation forward. Some of the items I ask that you include are: -legalizing simple possession under 1 oz. effective 7/1/21 -treat youths as "children in need of services," not "juvenile delinquents" -expunge, automatically & without cost, marijuana felonies & misdemeanors Thank you for your hard work this session and for your critical attention to legalizing it right in Virginia!

Marijuana legalization cannot wait years, we need to move forward as a commonwealth now and to fully legalize possession of marijuana of any quantity and finally end a policy that has done so much unnecessary harm to the people of our state for far too long. We all know that this natural plant is far less harmful than alcohol and has far more real and proven benefits which the state has endorsed through its medical program and allowing the use of CBD in an over the counter capacity. It makes no more sense to punish someone for having any quantity of marijuana in their possession than it would to punish someone for having a fridge full of beer, despite the fact that we know that the over consumption of alcohol is far more dangerous and has killed many. For far too long people have been incarcerated and their lives destroyed without just cause and its time for us to move forward as a state now. We can't wait for 2023 we need full legalization in 2021. We need to let adults make their own decisions about their own lives and stop allowing this plant to be a tool for over-policing and targeting communities of color. Nothing short of immediate full legalization without limit to quantity or commerce will accomplish that. Virginians have been smoking and growing marijuana since the founding fathers, its time to stop the madness of an unrealistic and failed policy of prohibition. Let the people buy and sell and posses this plant like any other crop. End marijuana prohibition undo the decades of harm it has causes, retroactively overturn all convictions for possession and release all those incarcerated for this most benign of intoxicants. We can move forward, boost our economy, and realize greater justice with just one act. Full Legalization for adults, of any quantity, with the right to grow and buy and sell now in 2021.

Respectfully request the decriminalization and legalization of simple possession of marijuana. And to continued work to fully legalize and tax marijuana in the future. Also please allow for the automatic expungement or dismissal of charges related to simple possession. Thank you

Legalizing marijuana would help SO MANY people suffering from pain & anxiety in a less destructive manner than alcohol, which is as easy as pie to obtain and abuse. Associating it with super harmful drugs like cocaine when its medicinal benefits far outweigh such things is shameful.

I am a resident living in zip code 22192 and I strongly support fully legalizing marijuana under 1oz in July 1 of 2021. Furthermore, I support FULL legalization of any amount with expungement of criminal records for anyone arrested or imprisoned for crimes related to marijuana. We should also have a plan for reparations to help folks harmed by the laws. It’s critical that we take this opportunity to lift people rather than just make the rich richer.

I am demanding that you repair the harm of the war on drugs. I demand that there will be NO NEW CRIMES for marijuana usage in a vehicle. I demand that you repeal the marijuana prohibition for simple possession under an ounce NOW. I demand that you DO NOT CRIMINALIZE another generation of youth and young adults for marijuana possession! Change begins now. These laws must change. Expungement must be far-reaching, free and without barriers.

Chair Herring and members of the Courts of Justice Committee. I write on behalf of the members of the United Food and Commercial Workers, Local 400. We represent over 10,000 members in Virginia who work in retail food, food service, food processing and healthcare. Nationally, UFCW represents over 1.3 million hard-working men and women who work in highly regulated industries including the emerging legal cannabis industry. Our cannabis members can be found across multiple states , including in Maryland and the District of Columbia. UFCW Local 400 supports HB 2312 as reported out of the General Laws Committee and urges the addition of labor peace agreements as a condition of cannabis licensure and renewal. Labor peace agreements protect businesses, workers, and consumers, and are an effective regulatory tool for the state. The ability to suspend or revoke the license of an operator who is not neutral when their employees are attempting to unionize, does not pay the prevailing wage, or attempts to classify over 10% of their employees as independent contractors, is a huge step in the right direction. There is no equity for employees in this industry if they are wrongfully denied representation and a voice on the job. Labor peace agreements would take employees the rest of the way by leaving no doubt that adult cannabis employers will respect the rights of their workforce, giving those employees the ability to equitably share in this new industry. The amendment in the substitute bill we recommend is: Add to 4.1-606B as a new 18 between line 6809 and 6810: 18. Establish requirements for all license applicants to submit an attestation signed by a bona fide labor organization stating that the applicant has entered into a labor peace agreement with such bona fide labor organization. The maintenance of a labor peace agreement with a bona fide labor organization shall be an ongoing material condition of maintaining a marijuana cultivation, marijuana manufacturing, marijuana testing, marijuana wholesaler, or marijuana retail store license. In reviewing initial license applications, the commission shall give priority to the following: (i) Applicants that are party to a collective bargaining agreement with a labor organization that currently represents, or is actively seeking to represent, cannabis workers in Virginia. (ii) Applicants that are party to a collective bargaining agreement with a labor organization that currently represents cannabis workers in another state. (iii) Applicants that include a significantly involved person or persons lawfully residing in Virginia for at least two year as of the date of the application. (iv) Applicants that submit an attestation affirming that they will use best efforts to utilize union building trades labor organizations in the construction or retrofit of the facilities associated with the permitted entity. (v) Applicants that submit an attestation affirming they have a project labor agreement, or will utilize a project labor agreement, which is a form of pre-hire collective bargaining agreement covering the terms and conditions of a specific project, including labor issues and worker grievances associated with any construction or retrofit of facilities, or other applicable project, associated with the licensed entity. Add to 4.1-900 under 1p as a new (iv) in line 7584: (iv) Failing to maintain a labor peace agreement with a bona fide labor organization.

Dominion Cannabis is honored to bring our cannabis production, distribution, and sales business to Virginia. Our team has years of experience operating in the cannabis market in multiple states. Below, we have identified some common challenges businesses and governments experience when establishing a regulated cannabis market. Top Barriers to Entry • Money required to receive license • % tax going to local town o How much? (3% in MA) • Licensing Board o Should be staffed early and robustly to handle the demand • Controlled and regulated rollout o Want to match the demand with the supply but not at the cost of quality and sustainable growth • Banking o A state -chartered bank would allow for ease of business, secure transactions, and attract seasoned companies and operators • Social Equity component o A program for communities negatively affected by past cannabis convictions o Local talent and labor o Equity sharing program o Special program for Veterans and first responders o Training and mentoring programs Cultivation Facilities There should building standards for these facilities. They should not be built according the licensee’s budget which in many cases turns out to be very poor quality. These standards should be set up to make these facilities close to a medical facility. This will help on quality control in the long run. There should also be standards for the wastewater, condensate water, fertigation requirements, odor control, utility consumption, as well as OSHA standards. Dispensaries Roll Out to Public The opening of new dispensaries should be done in a systematic way so that multiple dispensaries open on the same day in different counties throughout the state of Virginia. This would prevent one of two dispensaries opening in the state and have a large population flock to these dispensaries for weeks at a time causing public safety issue. Testing Agencies Testing has become an issue in Massachusetts because it was not thought through properly. The MA industry allowed more dispensaries to open than the current cultivation facilities could supply. To compound this there were not enough testing facilities in the state to support the products being sold which caused a slowdown in products getting to market. Farming There are a myriad of pitfalls which complicate the development of the marijuana market in any given state. How does one bring in marijuana plants and seeds into a state to begin growing them if it is a schedule 1 substance? Answer: people have to break the law and smuggle in plants and seeds in order to help establish a legitimate market. This shouldn't be the case. The genetics brought in this way tend not to be the best. Virginia should seek out the best genetics available based on their climate and market demands. How does one pay for the seed and plants? Most major bank chains don't want anything to do with industrial hemp or cannabis. Cash is dangerous and without a bank, someone will eventually get robbed or killed because the government couldn't create a safe method for these transactions. Money flow will also affect how consumers will purchase the products, how supply chains are managed and ultimately it will determine how quickly your market will be able to grow. We stand ready to assist the Commonwealth as it continues on its cannabis journey. We can be reached anytime at 703-732-9740

We oppose total Vertical Integration...but will support Micro Business model...with maybe grandfathering in the present marijuana dispensaries with limits on the number of retail stores they can have...

I am in full support of this bill. We need legal home cultivation to equitably help medical and non-medical users alike. Please pass this bill for you constituents and for Virginia. Thank you.

I fully back HB2312. I am a Virginia medical cannabis patient and would like to continue to have availability of the medical products in if a legalization bill like HB2312 passes. Virginia should plan to regulate medical and adult-use as different entities.

Virginia needs both recreational dispensaries and a medical cannabis program. One should not conflict with the other. Thank you

Please don’t pass policy that would harm our medical program.

Leader Herring, Mr. Chair and members of the subcommittee. My name is Lisa Smith and my daughter Haley has dravet syndrome, a severe from of epilepsy, and is a medical cannabis patient here in Virginia. In 2015 a group of mothers and I began Virginia’s journey to legal patient access to medical cannabis. We have been involved every step of the way and met with all 140 members of the General Assembly to get this program where it is today. Medical cannabis has changed Haley’s life. Prior to 2015 she had over 1000 Grand Mal seizures a month. Rarely did she live a day without life-threatening seizures. The introduction of medical cannabis has changed her life drastically. She immediately had a 40% reduction in seizures. She basically went from existing to really living with the addition of CBD oils. Not only did this treatment give Haley her life back, it gave OUR FAMILY our lives back. I am happy to say presently Haley has been able to go up to 24 days without a seizures. Unheard of before we started this journey. Virginia’s program requires us to work with registered practitioners and pharmacists to ensure Haley is receiving the medicine that will work best for her. For thousands of patients across the Commonwealth, cannabis is medicine. I am here today asking you to remember the patients and ensure that the medical cannabis processors are included as licensees in the adult use program. States such as Washington and Oregon who set up legalization without considering the medical aspect, left patients across their states in a lurch. Only ONE medical cannabis dispensary remains in Oregon. Please learn from the mistakes of those that have come before us and include the pharmaceutical processors in your adult use program. This is the only way to ensure that patients such as my daughter continue to have access to this life changing medicine while consulting with healthcare professionals in the process. Thank you for your time and consideration this afternoon. Sincerely, Lisa and Haley Smith White Stone

Please don't make policy that would hurt the medical program we rely on. This is important to me and many others like me with chronic medical conditions.

We are very supportive of HB2312. Please make sure that no items in the bill damage the Medical Program we have now. It has helped thousands of Virginians.

I urge you to protect the medical cannabis industry in VA when considering any adult use legalization. These processors are essential to patients in need to have access to their medicine. The current processors are also leaders in the industry and can help provide a path forward to this program in the future.

It's critical to ensure that the funding for treatment of SUD provided in this bill get into the hands of those who can do the most good for the most people. I'm advocating for these funds to go to non-government organizations that provide peer-based services like recovery residences and recovery community organizations. These organizations allow for same day services for those suffering from SUD, which can mean the difference between life and death.

Pass something THIS YEAR ~ before federal. Don't make a policy that would hurt our medical program we rely on.

Please do not make it more difficult for medical cannabis dispensaries to thrive in the market. Medical cannabis already costs me $12,000 out of pocket. I am one of the few lucky ones who can barely afford this! Legalization will make the medical cannabis products more affordable in Virginia, but we still need for the specialization of products to be protected for patients.

I ask that you support HB2312. We do ask while you support this, please leave our medical program intact. Thank you!

We oppose total vertical integration but will support the Micro Business model...of grandfathering in the 5 medical marijuana facilities all ready awarded and limiting their retail stores to 3...

In representing Cannabis Equity Coalition of VA (CCECVA.org) I'd like to share there are specific concerns about existing ideas about the formation of the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Board - see details below: Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Board § 2.2-2499.1, p. 11-12 Heartburn Caused by his Section: Rarely do government-run and bureaucracy-laden Boards and Commissions genuinely impact the lives of Black and other impacted communities as intended and in very positive ways over time. Too often, too few “common people” are included in these types of entities to the extent they effectively become invisible, cease to attend meetings, and/or feel isolated given the “clubby” nature of these very intimate environments. Typically, the general thought process of Boards and Commissions leans heavily toward the preconceived notions of those making the appointments, while others (ex-officio members in particular) have a sense for the types of outcomes intended, and therefore “go along with the program” of the entire group or person(s) who appointed them to the entity. In the end, and as a result of the items listed above, not much changes in the lives of the very folk who were to be the beneficiaries of efforts of said Boards and Commissions, leading to the complete failure of the overall effort. Know that “common people” out in the streets see the Board/Commission structure as nothing but a scheme, a hackneyed shell-game that results in nothingness for them and their communities, that so often function in the state of desperation. Solution: Ensure a structure formed by laws such that Black leaders and select others serve on the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Board (CECVA’s selected title is Cannabis Community Reinvestment Board) in ways that ensure geographic diversity, racial diversity (directly in line with issues revealed in the JLARC Study), and inclusion of persons who have a direct feel for the needs of Blacks and other impacted persons, their families, communities, and institutions. NOTE: See details in CECVA’s Legislative Interest Two (listed in CECVA.org) -- listed below and formed in October 2020. To ensure Virginia’s solutions to the Equity/Social Justice dilemma is both successful and enduring, the Cannabis Community Reinvestment Board should be crafted in ways to be impervious to the changing winds of politics that may occur from Administration to Administration. To help bolster the efforts of a Cannabis Community Reinvestment Board, ex officio participants, as currently listed in the Bill, would be included as support resources in helping to provide expertise and other needed resources, in an advisory-only capacity, to Cannabis Community Reinvestment Board members. The combination of Cannabis Community Reinvestment Board members and the supporting ex officio contingent results in an excellent melding of resources needed to succeed in this effort. To succeed with the very tough “Equity/Social Justice” portions of this legislation, such a structure, along with others, will go a long way to achieving that which not many other states have been able to achieve – while most states governments have failed miserably. After successfully implementing this structure (along with other innovative, out-of-the-box ideas), Virginia’s solutions to the very tough Equity/Social Justice dilemma can become a shining example and model for many other states across America to follow and mimic.

In representing Cannabis Equity Coalition of VA (CCECVA.org) I'd like to share there are specific concerns about existing ideas about the formation of the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Board - see details below: Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Board § 2.2-2499.1, p. 11-12 Heartburn Caused by his Section: Rarely do government-run and bureaucracy-laden Boards and Commissions genuinely impact the lives of Black and other impacted communities as intended and in very positive ways over time. Too often, too few “common people” are included in these types of entities to the extent they effectively become invisible, cease to attend meetings, and/or feel isolated given the “clubby” nature of these very intimate environments. Typically, the general thought process of Boards and Commissions leans heavily toward the preconceived notions of those making the appointments, while others (ex-officio members in particular) have a sense for the types of outcomes intended, and therefore “go along with the program” of the entire group or person(s) who appointed them to the entity. In the end, and as a result of the items listed above, not much changes in the lives of the very folk who were to be the beneficiaries of efforts of said Boards and Commissions, leading to the complete failure of the overall effort. Know that “common people” out in the streets see the Board/Commission structure as nothing but a scheme, a hackneyed shell-game that results in nothingness for them and their communities, that so often function in the state of desperation. Solution: Ensure a structure formed by laws such that Black leaders and select others serve on the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Board (CECVA’s selected title is Cannabis Community Reinvestment Board) in ways that ensure geographic diversity, racial diversity (directly in line with issues revealed in the JLARC Study), and inclusion of persons who have a direct feel for the needs of Blacks and other impacted persons, their families, communities, and institutions. NOTE: See details in CECVA’s Legislative Interest Two (listed in CECVA.org) -- listed below and formed in October 2020. To ensure Virginia’s solutions to the Equity/Social Justice dilemma is both successful and enduring, the Cannabis Community Reinvestment Board should be crafted in ways to be impervious to the changing winds of politics that may occur from Administration to Administration. To help bolster the efforts of a Cannabis Community Reinvestment Board, ex officio participants, as currently listed in the Bill, would be included as support resources in helping to provide expertise and other needed resources, in an advisory-only capacity, to Cannabis Community Reinvestment Board members. The combination of Cannabis Community Reinvestment Board members and the supporting ex officio contingent results in an excellent melding of resources needed to succeed in this effort. To succeed with the very tough “Equity/Social Justice” portions of this legislation, such a structure, along with others, will go a long way to achieving that which not many other states have been able to achieve – while most states governments have failed miserably. After successfully implementing this structure (along with other innovative, out-of-the-box ideas), Virginia’s solutions to the very tough Equity/Social Justice dilemma can become a shining example and model for many other states across America to follow and mimic.

Thank you to the committee, my name is Sean Cardwell from Roanoke, Virginia. And I have these thoughts and opinions on HB2312. Section 4.1-626, 1c restricts licensure to any individual convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude within 7 years from date of licensure. This will disproportionately impact minorities and the lower class. It is of my opinion that lawmakers should limit the crimes which would restrict a candidate from licensure. You cannot preach social equity and then limit who can participate in the industry. Virginia’s jails and prisons are predominately black and brown and to take those people out of this new industry is un-American. And I hate how cliche that sounds but its true. If this is this land of opportunity and here we have a very new chance for growth and opportunity…don’t take the dream away from those people. Additionally, lawmakers should shorten the period of years between conviction and application from 7 years to 3. If only 400 licenses available, it may not be any licenses available by the time the licenesee is eligable.

My name is Billie Brown I am a member of CECVA – Cannabis Equity Coalition of VA CECVA is in support of Del Herrings HB 2312; however, we are advocating that the bill be amended to increase the percentage of tax revenue allocated to the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund from 30% to 70%. The Governor’s Bill has allocated 40% of tax revenues to fund Pre-K education. While CECVA is in favor of funding Pre-K…this has always been a direct obligation of Virginia taxpayers from General Fund revenues. CECVA’s position is that all Pre-K funding should continue to be fully supported and funded from General Fund revenues. CECVA strongly advocates that Virginia follow the New Jersey model and allocate 70% of tax revenue received from the Adult Use Marijuana Industry to the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund to be used exclusively to help repair families and communities that have been most hurt by Virginia’s War on Drugs. CECVA is also requesting that the committee consider amending the makeup of the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Board to be fully reflective of the population it will be serving. Thank you

support a hybrid model that allows for vertically integrated craft growers, do not support the tiered model as it will raise the cost of operations for social equity retailers and make it impossible to compete with the illicit market. remove employ 10 people from the definition. add an income requirement to economically distressed areas.

support a hybrid model that allows for vertically integrated craft growers, do not support the tiered model as it will raise the cost of operations for social equity retailers and make it impossible to compete with the illicit market. remove employ 10 people from the definition. add an income requirement to economically distressed areas.

1) support a hybrid model that allows for vertically integrated craft growers, do not support the tiered model because it will raise the cost of operations for social equity retailers and make it impossible to compete with the illicit market.

I would like to see half of the tax revenue go to the recovery community (NGO’s). In my 8 1/2 years involved, I have witnessed the McShin Foundation serve and help people with Substance Use Disorders. Their peer to peer recovery program has been documented to be cost effective, saving taxpayers money, and offers same day life saving service. The McShin Foundation has evidence based data to support their work.

I am a founding member of CECVA-Cannabis Equity Coalition of VA. CECVA is in support of Del Herring's HB 2312; however, we are advocating that the bill be amended to increase the percentage of tax revenue allocated to the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund from 30% to 70%. The Governor's bill has allocated 40% of tax revenues to fund Pre-K education. While CECVA is in favor of funding Pre-K...this has always been a direct obligation of Virginia taxpayers from General funds revenues. CECVA's position is that all Pre-K funding should continue to be fully supported and and funded from General Fund revenue. CECVA strongly advocates that Virginia follow the New Jersey model and allocate 70% or tax revenue received from the Adult Use Marijuana Industry to the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund to be used exclusively to help repair families and communities that have been most hurt by Virginia's war on drugs. CECVA is also requesting that the committee consider amending the makeup of the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Board to be fully reflective of the population it will be serving.

Thank you to the committee, my name is Willie Hilliard from Richmond, Va . I'm reaching out to you today to encourage you to : 1. Ban Vertical Integration.. Vertically integrated operations are monopoly structures which decrease ownership opportunities for the many and are more likely to be acquired by big out of state conglomerates. 2. Demand that Social Equity Licenses make up at least half of all licenses approved. This will ensure some sort of equitable compensation to the communities most affected by over policing and racist policies. 3. Ensure that all licenses be given to Virginia residents only. Big Canna is waiting to pounce on our system once it becomes law. They will be a serious threat to small businesses trying to find their place in this industry, basically threatening their existence. 4. Remove the Social Equity loophole that requires the hiring of 10 impacted Virginia residents to acquire said license. This loophole will give people jobs but not the opportunity to build their own generational wealth. 5. Dedicate 70 percent of revenue to the reinvestment fund. Anything less will jeapordize the impact of the fund's social initiatives. I ask that you please consider these requests as we want Virginia to be the model for Social Equity for the rest of the country. Thank you

Prohibition didn't work for Alcohol, and it hasn't for Marijuana, which is less of a contributing substance to Substance Use Disorder (SUD). If legalized, this bill proposes 25% of Marijuana tax revenues to "substance use disorder prevention and treatment programs," but doesn't specify program types. The recovery community would like to see a specified "split" of this 25%, with at least half of it going to non-governmental organizations (NGO's) delivering evidence-based lived experience SUD recovery services. I am an individual with more than 29 years of continuous sustained recovery from SUD. First hand, I have witnessed evidence-based lived experience SUD recovery services, which for the most part have been unfunded, or grossly underfunded, consistently deliver better outcomes than government services.

Prohibition didn't work for Alcohol, and it hasn't for Marijuana, which is less of a contributing substance to Substance Use Disorder (SUD). If legalized, this bill proposes 25% of Marijuana tax revenues to "substance use disorder prevention and treatment programs," but doesn't specify program types. The recovery community would like to see a specified "split" of this 25%, with at least half of it going to non-governmental organizations (NGO's) delivering evidence-based lived experience SUD recovery services. I am an individual with more than 29 years of continuous sustained recovery from SUD. First hand, I have witnessed evidence-based lived experience SUD recovery services, which for the most part have been unfunded, or grossly underfunded, consistently deliver better outcomes than government services.

Good afternoon Chair Krizek and members of the General Laws – ABC/Gaming Subcommittee. I am here today on behalf of the members of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW), Local 400. We represent over 10,000 members in Virginia who work in retail food, food service, food processing and healthcare. Thank you for the opportunity to speak with you this afternoon. Nationally, UFCW represents over 1.3 million hard-working men and women who work in highly regulated industries including the emerging legal cannabis industry. Our cannabis members can be found across multiple states in growing and cultivating facilities, manufacturing, and processing facilities, and in laboratories and dispensaries, including in Maryland and the District of Columbia. Wherever cannabis is legalized, the UFCW is committed to building family sustaining jobs and a strong, diverse, and skilled workforce. As I said on Tuesday night, we strongly support Delegate Herring's bill and the legalization of adult use cannabis with strong social equity protections for ownership with the industry and the inclusion of our proposed amendment that would provide equity in employment by ensuring a voice for workers within this new industry. The specific language change in the substitute bill we would recommend is: Add to 4.1-606B as a new 18 between line 6548 and 6549 to read: 18. Establish requirements for all license applicants to submit an attestation signed by a bona fide labor organization stating that the applicant has entered into a labor peace agreement with such bona fide labor organization. The maintenance of a labor peace agreement with a bona fide labor organization shall be an ongoing material condition of maintaining a marijuana cultivation, marijuana manufacturing, marijuana testing, marijuana wholesaler, or marijuana retail store license. In reviewing initial license applications, the commission shall give priority to the following: (i) Applicants that are party to a collective bargaining agreement with a labor organization that currently represents, or is actively seeking to represent, cannabis workers in Virginia. (ii) Applicants that are party to a collective bargaining agreement with a labor organization that currently represents cannabis workers in another state. (iii) Applicants that include a significantly involved person or persons lawfully residing in Virginia for at least two year as of the date of the application. (iv) Applicants that submit an attestation affirming that they will use best efforts to utilize union building trades labor organizations in the construction or retrofit of the facilities associated with the permitted entity. (v) Applicants that submit an attestation affirming they have a project labor agreement, or will utilize a project labor agreement, which is a form of pre-hire collective bargaining agreement covering the terms and conditions of a specific project, including labor issues and worker grievances associated with any construction or retrofit of facilities, or other applicable project, associated with the licensed entity. It would also add to 4.1-900 under 1 as a new p between lines 7328 and 7329 to read: p. Failing to maintain a labor peace agreement with a bona fide labor organization. Thank you for the opportunity to comment.

A microbusiness license is the missing link of the licensing scheme of HB 2312. The subcommittee has been debating whether or not to allow vertical integration in the marijuana industry. The main concern that delegates have voiced regarding vertical integration is that a few large vertically integrated companies will dominate the new legal cannabis industry. However, vertical integration should not be confused with monopolization. In the cannabis industry, vertical integration is a way for businesses to make and sell their own products from plants they grow. A vertically integrated business is not inherently a large company. In fact, banning vertical integration is a limitation that would make more small businesses likely to fail. If vertical integration is banned, then a farmer cannot sell his product to a consumer; a processor cannot use her own strains for her products; a retailer cannot grow flower for their own boutique brand. These are limitations that would be extremely harmful to businesses in similar industries. For example, if a vineyard were not allowed to vertically integrate, then a vineyard owner could grow grapes, but could not make wine. Or, a vineyard could make wine, but only from another vineyard’s grapes, and then could not sell that wine to consumers. By the same token, a craft brewery could not make and sell their own beer. Banning vertical integration wouldn’t make sense for other industries, and it doesn’t make sense for cannabis, either. A hybrid approach with an option for cannabis microbusiness licenses is the best way to accomplish the subcommittee’s goals and to create an environment where more small businesses can succeed. During the January 28 subcommittee meeting, the representative for the JLARC study suggested a hybrid model of licensing that would allow for small businesses to vertically integrate based on the size of their operation. This licensing model is already being used in Michigan. Michigan allows for a cannabis microbusiness license. The Michigan microbusiness license allows a licensee to cultivate up to 150 plants, process those plants into concentrates, edibles, or other products, package those end products, and sell those products to customers of legal age. Virginia should adopt a similar license. A microbusiness license is a sensible addition that would solve multiple issues. First off, it would limit vertical integration only to small businesses. This is the guardrail that would prevent a few large companies from dominating the industry. Second, a microbusiness license allows for more small businesses to enter the industry. In essence this license carves out room for “mom and pop” shops, which benefits social equity and is exactly what the committee hopes to encourage. Third, it allows for small businesses to grow into larger businesses. A company can start as a microbusiness, do everything from seed to sale, and as they grow they can decide whether to remain a microbusiness or to specialize in one of the licensed segments. With a microbusiness license, a small business’s potential for growth would not be needlessly limited, and it would allow small businesses to figure out what they are best at doing without boxing themselves into only one segment of the industry from the start. Thank you for your time and consideration of my comments. I hope that this is helpful in crafting the legislation to legalize marijuana.

Members of the Virginia Legislature and Governor Northam: I am writing to you to discourage in the strongest terms the legalization of marijuana, specifically SB 1406, HB 1815 and HB 2312 and other bills legalizing the non-medical use of marijuana. Discussion of regulation of marijuana production puts the cart before the horse. While not as acutely lethal as "harder" drugs, it more dangerous than alcohol and should be treated as such. The following are documented negative effects of marijuana: Medical effects: 4 x risk of heart attack during intoxication Increased long-term risk of vascular disease, heart attack, stroke with chronic use Respiratory problems: , bronchitis, respiratory infections, asthma, COPD Cyclic vomiting (cannabis hyperemesis syndrome), electrolyte disorders and dehydration Impaired cognition, coordination and complex decision-making; increased MVC, trauma Testicular atrophy “Lacing”, pesticides and other contaminants - polydrug intoxications/overdoses Pediatric risks: Second-hand smoke exposure Medical, respiratory infections, asthma Psychiatric, developmental issues; exposure of developing brain Unsecured confections with marijuana ingested by children Increased risk of hospitalization due to intoxication Domestic abuse/neglect Psychiatric effects: Schizophrenia Psychosis; acute psychotic episodes leading to psychiatric hospitalization Depression Suicide Memory and cognitive impairment Decreased school performance Social effects: Poverty Homelessness/Vagrancy Poor parenting: intoxication, drug availability, unsecured firearms Poor parenting: spending money on drugs rather than essentials Domestic abuse & violence Crime: to support habit; violent crime and murder due to psychosis Support of drug dealers and cartels; gang activity Addiction/Co-addictions Gateway drug - leads to “harder” drugs: amphetamines, opioids, many others. Disproportionately affects minority communities. DUI/MVC: Increased vehicular trauma, fatalities, hospitalizations Increased ER visits and hospitalizations - takes beds from COVID patients Threefold increase in use following legalization Political/Economic Aspects: $8-20 billion in taxpayer funds just in infrastructure/regulatory costs Businesses investing in marijuana States wanting tax revenue from marijuana Both downplay harmful effects Mixed messaging: DARE, drug-danger education vs. legislation promoting drugs Spending taxpayer funds in both directions These comments are based on thirty years of experience in emergency medicine, the accounts of family members in Colorado, family contacts who have been in the drug world and medical educational resources. We should also learn from the sad experiences of the other states which have legalized marijuana. On one hand, you are working so hard to decrease poverty, homelessness, crime, gang activity, domestic violence, child abuse and medical costs. On the other hand, you are in the process of passing legislation that will only increase all the things you are trying to get rid of! This is a devastating and wasteful self-contradiction. I urge you in the strongest terms not to pass this legislation, as these devastating effects will certainly outweigh any potential benefits, including financial ones. Sincerely, Alan Denekas, MD Roanoke References to follow.

This legislation on Herring’s HB2312 is a must to support but now without revisions and amendments. For over 100 years there is definite racial bias when it comes to the “War on Drugs” or more specifically the war on marijuana. How we think, write and talk about marijuana has been negatively perpetuated through negative racial bias dictated to how politicians draft and send bills for possible legalization. It is one thing to legalize but a whole other perspective to legalize it right. More than 300 billion dollars has been wasted on the incarceration and war on marijuana possessions. 2020 was a year of racial reckoning in our country of United Sates. There is absolute no denying of 2 America’s one for whiteness and one for others. 2020 was a year of the realization of progressive racial equity centered policies and laws that must take place. I support the ACLU and Marijuana Justice organizations. 1) We must not criminalize our youth and all such should be repealed. If our youth are our future then we must invest in them and provide the resources that not only they need but their families to be able to live a just life. 2) Repeal the prohibition on simple possession. As stated by the ACLU “When people are arrested for possessing even tiny amounts of marijuana, it can have dire collateral consequences that affect their eligibility for public housing and student aid, employment opportunities, child custody determinations, and immigration status.” Simply put, it can completely destroy not only one individuals life but an entire community especially people of color. 3) There must be an independent cannabis agency. Racial equity logically has to be centered in any talks about legalization of marijuana. Another government run agency will 100% involve over policing, more new derogatory assimilationist laws and further perpetuated trauma black and brown communities face. Virginia must be better than Illinois and other states where it is legal. When in doubt, communities themselves know exactly what they need. 4) Hiring 10 people should NOT allow someone for an equity license. Black and brown people are not a checkbox that businesses, institutions and agencies can check off in order to keep going about their daily business. If Virginia wants to start building relationships within these communities than please have unlimited seats available to listen and pass legislation that doesn’t undermine these communities and people. Do better! 5) Legalize horizontal integration 6) Only 30% of the tax revenue reinvested back into these communities is another form of assimilationist policy. The details are everything, even the smallest. Black and brown communities have been not been just hurt or damaged but desecrated by local and state law-enforcement and lawmakers. 70% is just. Injustices are happening right now as you debate this legislation. Moving from 30% to 70% into the Cannabis Equity Fund will help start the healing and funding of resources, programs, grants, scholarships directly to the communities. BIPOC people cannot be left behind anymore. Be mindful of the details and discussions on the legalization of marijuana in VA. Be on the side of your constituents and not against them. Be for the people and communities that are being unheard. As a citizen of Virginia and full supporter of legalization of marijuana I, we are watching closely. Thank you for your time.

I support the bill but ONLY with significant changes including removing the new crimes specifically targeting minors, allowing horizontal integration ONLY rather than vertical integration, removing the language that allows corporations the same social equity benefits as individuals simply by employing those who have been effected by cannabis criminalization, and most critical, is that the ABC has no business being involved in the cannabis industry and should NOT be the regulatory body in charge of regulating and enforcing the industry. The ABC has a history of aggression and law enforcement agents significantly outweigh regulators. In order for the industry to be created with true integrity, there should be a completely separate, newly created regulatory body that regulates cannabis and cannabis ONLY. Many people fear that with the ABC in control, there will still be a laser focus on crimes rather than regulations, which, if we are truly aiming toward social equity and undoing the wrongs done to those affected by cannabis criminalization, focusing on enforcing new erroneous laws created by the ABC only opens the possibility of minority businesses to be discriminately targeted on another level. A new regulatory agency could take it's time in hiring professionals with experience in this new industry (to Virginia, but established in other states) and really establish realistic and well considered regulations that will specifically benefit yet control the adult use industry.

Delegates and Staff, thank you for taking comment. My name is Elly Tucker. I am a medical cannabis patient. I am asking that you support HB2312. To me, this is an equity issue. We have had Medical Cannabis since July. The program is working really well. The problem though is it is cost prohibitive to many citizens of the Commonwealth because the oil (albeit effective) is too expensive for many residents. When legalized, it is important that the botanical form (the flower) be available. We should not make acquiring cannabis products prohibitively expensive to a segment of the market, by offering a less expensive alternative form of cannabis—the botanical. Thank you again for allowing comment.

Thank you to the committee, my name is Naomi Isaac, I am from Richmond, Virginia and a representative of the cannabis advocacy group, Marijuana Justice VA. I am here to encourage you all to prioritize social equity when it comes to cannabis legalization, so that we can ensure that those who have been most harmed by the War on Drugs benefit most. An equity-first approach to marijuana legalization means that communities who have endured the most violence and divestment from cannabis prohibition have a fair opportunity to participate in the cannabis industry. This means establishing an independent Cannabis agency rather than depending on the VABC which is a law enforcement agency, that is already overwhelmed with its responsibilities, and has historically been an enforcer of prohibition and the War on Drugs. We know that increased interaction with any kind of law enforcement increases the likelihood of violence and arrest for Black and Brown people, and this includes the VABC whose agents were responsible for assaulting Black UVA student, Martese Johnson, just as recently as 2015 An equity-first approach to marijuana legalization means that communities who have endured the most violence and divestment from cannabis prohibition have a fair opportunity to participate in the cannabis industry. However, the current proposal allows for an applicant to hold up to 4 licenses simply by paying a fee of $250,000 while there are no other protections for those who have access to little wealth, and we know those people are more likely to Black, Brown, and low-income. It is for that reason that I encourage the Committee to legislate horizontal integration in order to dismantle these barriers to participation, and prevent multi-state operators and others who have been least impacted by the prohibition from having a monopoly on licensure. An equity-first approach also means tightening the restrictions for who can qualify for social equity licenses. Hiring 10 impacted folks should not qualify someone to be eligible for a social equity license. Additionally, I also encourage the Committee to increase the number of impacted people set to serve on the Cannabis Control Advisory from one impacted person to at least three. A one person limitation affects the extent to which the perspectives and experiences of impacted communities can be properly incorporated into marijuana regulation.

It’s difficult to watch government machinations be used to avoid addressing the systemic racism inherent in state and federal policy. Every single reform movement in this country has been powered by the Black American struggle. From the abolition movement where negro labor built this country for free to the civil rights movement where the blood of Dr. King and others led to progressive policies that we all have benefited from. Even today, President Biden, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Speaker Nancy Pelosi are sitting in leadership because Black Americans stood against racism after the deaths of Breonna Taylor, Greg Floyd, Ahmad Arbery, and others. We come to those same leaders asking for fairness and reform: end Slavery & associated racial inequality; end the War on Drugs and offer negroes an opportunity to build wealth and restore their communities. Those same electeds shut off communication but meet with corporate elite behind closed doors and throw you a Harriet Tubman $20. #FairnessIsReform @WeRiseToLegalize LDB

An exclusion of Black and Brown people in the business of Medical Cannabis seem to be the same systemic ‘pattern and practice’ of exclusion similar to those seen in other States across the US. These bills (ie. HB2312) and laws simply do not address disparities created in areas impacted by the War On Drugs. We Rise to Legalize believes access to Medical Cannabis is an essential health care need and any policy that deprives access based on Race, either intentional or by disparate impact, is discriminatory and a Civil Rights violation. We Rise to Legalize and its supporters have communicated this view to several states and have warned of the collateral consequences associated with the lack of access on impacted communities. J. Hill WeRisetoLegalize.org #WeRisetoLegalize #RoadtoRestoration #WeRiseAction #FairNessIsReform

I do not need to speak. I would like to hear what is discussed and it's possible I may submit written comments after. I am a Board member of the DrugFreeMHC coalition for Martinsville/Henry County. I represent Henry County Department of Public Safety on that board.

SAFE opposes HB2312. Why are we turning VA over to Big Marijuana? Decriminalization of simple possession of marijuana up to 1 ounce became legal just 6 months ago. We've already seen the adverse effects of this on our roadways with increased DUIDs and traffic crashes. Marijuana legalization will create more drug impaired driving fatalities. The Board of Pharmacy has been setting up pharmaceutical processors for CBD, THCA, low THC oils in VA since 2017 to enable patients to have pharmacist approved products. Marijuana legalization will make high potency THC products available to VA citizens. This will possibly cause drug to drug interaction if people consume THC with other medications. There is still an opioid epidemic in VA. There were 6 overdoses in 72 hours in Chesterfield County last weekend. First Responders are already strained from this crisis. Marijuana legalization will create more poisonings of children, more mental health episodes, more injuries and car crashes, which will exhaust our First Responders even more. Finally, we are in the middle of a Pandemic with our hospitals and ERs stretched to the limit. Marijuana legalization will only put a heavier burden on our healthcare workers. Please don't sell out VA to the Marijuana Industry, the next Big Tobacco! We oppose HB 2312. Thank you.

I am a founding member of CECVA- Cannabis Equity Coalition of VA. CECVA is in support of SB 1406. However, we are advocating that the bill be amended to increase the percentage of tax revenue allocated to the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund from 30% to 70%. The Governor's bill has allocated 40% of tax revenues to fund Pre-CEK education. While CECVA is in favor of funding Pre-K...this has always been a direct obligation of Virginia taxpayers from General funds revenue. CECVA's position is that all Pre-K funding should continue to be fully supported and funded from the General Fund revenue. CECVA strongly advocates that Virginia follow the New Jersey model and allocate 70% of tax revenue received from the Adult Use Marijuana Industry to the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund to be used exclusively to help repair families and communities that have been most hurt by Virginia's War on Drugs.

I worked on the current medical legislation for 5 years with Speaker Filler-Corn and Senator Marsden on behalf of my daughter, Jennifer Collins who suffers from a severe form of epilepsy and uses medical cannabis to control her seizures. I would like to ask that when considering this bill you please allow the medical businesses to also obtain adult use licenses, because the medical businesses, that are crucial to my daughter and other Virginia patients, is the only way to ensure they will have access to this life changing medicine while consulting with healthcare professionals in the process. Thank you. Beth Arrigo

My name is Ryan Suit and I am a co-founder of a vertically integrated hemp and CBD company in Virginia Beach. I have been in the cannabis industry for two years, and I am also a licensed and barred attorney in Virginia. The two major issues that I would like to comment on are vertical integration and the creation of a cannabis agency. Vertical integration should be allowed in the cannabis industry in Virginia. Vertical integration should not be required like it is for medical marijuana licensees, but it should not be banned. Banning vertical integration could severely limit the growth potential of small cannabis businesses. Farmers would not be able to sell directly to consumers. Processors would not be able to use their own flower for their products. Retailers would never be able to create their own brands. If this same concept were applied to vineyards, then a vineyard owner could grow grapes but could not make wine. Or, a vineyard could make wine from another vineyard’s grapes, but then could not sell that wine to consumers. Banning vertical integration wouldn’t make sense for the wine industry, and it doesn’t make sense for cannabis, either. While small businesses should be able to vertically integrate, guardrails should still be put in place to prevent few, well-capitalized companies from pushing competition out of the space. Currently there is a proposed fee of $250,000 to have more than one permit. That would be an insurmountable barrier to almost all small businesses trying to vertically integrate in any fashion, as stated above. Perhaps there could be higher taxes for companies that make over a certain amount of revenue per year. Or, there could be increasing fees to buy multiple permits. For example, a first permit could cost $100, the next permit could cost $250, a third permit $500, and to get all four could be exponentially more than that. Some kind of anti-monopoly prevention makes sense for this bill, but it is certainly easier said than done, and figuring out the details would likely require input and expertise from a regulatory agency. A new cannabis agency would be best suited to regulate marijuana in Virginia. A successful regulatory schema for marijuana legalization is going to require comprehensive legislation. The cannabis industry is an expansive one that is much more complicated than may seem at first glance. From farming and harvesting, to extraction and testing, to manufacturing and retail, there are a multitude of cannabis-related sub-industries that will need to be regulated. They should be regulated by an agency that is focused solely on cannabis. ABC has no experience with cannabis enforcement. VDACS has been in charge of hemp, which is cannabis with low levels of THC, but recently was about to end its program and allow the USDA to regulate hemp in Virginia. A new agency could use its expertise in cannabis to regulate both marijuana and hemp, and to address all of the issues that will arise with both. This would ensure that the novel complexities of a new industry would have an agency’s full attention, and it would neatly allow for a single agency to regulate all of cannabis in the commonwealth. Thank you for your time and consideration of my comments. I hope that my comments are helpful in addressing a few of the issues that marijuana legalization presents. I believe that input from those already involved in the cannabis industry is important, and I would be happy to provide more at any time.

Good afternoon Chair Krizek and members of the General Laws – ABC/Gaming Subcommittee. I am here today on behalf of the members of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW), Local 400. We represent over 10,000 members in Virginia who work in retail food, food service, food processing and healthcare. As I said on Tuesday night, we strongly support Delegate Herring's bill and the legalization of adult use cannabis with strong social equity protections for ownership with the industry and the inclusion of our proposed amendment that would provide equity in employment by ensuring a voice for workers within this new industry. The specific language change in the substitute bill we would recommend is: Add to 4.1-606B as a new 18 between line 6548 and 6549 to read: 18. Establish requirements for all license applicants to submit an attestation signed by a bona fide labor organization stating that the applicant has entered into a labor peace agreement with such bona fide labor organization. The maintenance of a labor peace agreement with a bona fide labor organization shall be an ongoing material condition of maintaining a marijuana cultivation, marijuana manufacturing, marijuana testing, marijuana wholesaler, or marijuana retail store license. In reviewing initial license applications, the commission shall give priority to the following: (i) Applicants that are party to a collective bargaining agreement with a labor organization that currently represents, or is actively seeking to represent, cannabis workers in Virginia. (ii) Applicants that are party to a collective bargaining agreement with a labor organization that currently represents cannabis workers in another state. (iii) Applicants that include a significantly involved person or persons lawfully residing in Virginia for at least two year as of the date of the application. (iv) Applicants that submit an attestation affirming that they will use best efforts to utilize union building trades labor organizations in the construction or retrofit of the facilities associated with the permitted entity. (v) Applicants that submit an attestation affirming they have a project labor agreement, or will utilize a project labor agreement, which is a form of pre-hire collective bargaining agreement covering the terms and conditions of a specific project, including labor issues and worker grievances associated with any construction or retrofit of facilities, or other applicable project, associated with the licensed entity. It would also add to 4.1-900 under 1 as a new p between lines 7328 and 7329 to read: p. Failing to maintain a labor peace agreement with a bona fide labor organization. Thank you for the opportunity to comment.

Proposal: expand Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund to support the development of community-based approaches to wellness in lieu of investing in downstream impacts (treatment and recovery services). For example, 35% preschool, 60% cannabis equity reinvestment fund, and 5% substance use prevention. Substance use prevention programs are part of a statewide network of community coalitions currently, thus, funding for prevention is recommended to remain separate. Moneys in the Fund shall be used solely for the purposes of: 1. Making whole again families and communities historically and disproportionately targeted and affected by drug enforcement; 2. Providing scholarships for the historically marginalized population of youth, particularly in underserved communities, who have been adversely impacted by substance abuse individually or within their families or communities, including the experience of incarceration of a family member convicted of a marijuana offense; 3. Awarding grants to support workforce development, youth mentoring programs, job training and placement efforts, and reentry services that serve persons residing in areas disproportionately impacted by 345 drug enforcement; 4. Awarding grants to support the development of Accountable Communities for Health and/or Community Wellness Funds, to include community-based behavioral health supports and services; Definitions: Accountable Communities for Health (ACHs) are multi -sector, community-based partnerships that aim to address community health and social needs Community Wellness Fund refers to a community-based approach to pool resources in a community so they can be more efficiently and effectively targeted to improve overall health and health equity

1. Independent agency for oversight, not ABC 2. Board appointments should not only be appointed by the gov and should include at least 3 people impacted by disparate policing of marijuana 3. Virginia residency requirement with 51% ownership for all licenses not just social equity 4. Include micro-business & delivery licenses for more smaller business opportunities for growth and guard large buyouts from happening quickly 5. Ban vertical integration except for micro-business and grandfathering in medical with a $1mil fee at each renewal 6. Assign 50% of all licenses as social equity licenses 7. Protect social equity licenses for ownership and include equity for employees with all licenses

I am providing a written comment to urge lawmakers to legalize cannabis through a social equity lens! So many people in Black and brown communities have been incarcerated and negatively affected by criminalization of this plant. I stand with the ACLU VA and VA Marijuana Justice, the people are calling for lawmakers to do the following: 1) Vote "Yes" to an independent cannabis agency, 2) Legalize horizontal integration, 3) Remove the section that allows someone to hire 10 impacted people to qualify for a social equity license, 4) Increase the number of impacted people set to serve on the cannabis advisory board from 1 to at least 3, 5) Increase the tax revenues being dedicated to reinvestment from 30% to 70%. Legalization can have an incredibly positive impact on communities, but only if it is legalized right and with the bill's actual impact in mind!

Hi my name is Kimberly Hartke, the spokesman for Parents Opposed to Pot, a nonprofit based in Virginia. There was much discussion about how to grow, manufacture and sell legal marijuana in our state. But let’s talk about what marijuana does to the end user. Marijuana is a hallucinogen- meaning it can cause you to hear and see things that are not real. It is a drug with unpredictable effects from person to person. It is toxic to the brain, and disrupts many functions of the brain, executive reasoning, space and time awareness, dopamine regulation and vision. Serious side effects include paranoia, delusional thinking, loss of inhibition, tunnel vision, psychosis, schizophrenia, blackouts and suicide. On NextDoor. com this week, my Virginia neighbor told of a frightening incident of a strange man showing up at her door, claiming “someone is trying to kill me.” This is an example of the kind of behavior (paranoid delusions) which can be caused by cannabis. The psychoactive component of marijuana, THC, stores in body fat, unlike alcohol which is water soluble and passes quickly from the body. Flashbacks can occur when the stored drug releases unexpectedly. This can be extremely dangerous if it happens while driving, operating heavy machinery or while babysitting. Cannabis can stay in your system for weeks after use, alcohol passes within a matter of hours. Parents Opposed to Pot over the last 6 years launched 5 websites tracking the rollout of state marijuana legalization and the negative outcomes. People from all over the nation have come to us, sharing their horror stories about how cannabis wrecked their lives. We have published 100 of such first-person testimonials. The most recent story we published was about Stephen, who started smoking pot at age 14 and was dead by 17. Another mom declared, “it only took 1 year for marijuana to kill my son.” Her son Jolo ran out into the road during a schizophrenic episode after threatening all afternoon to commit suicide. Then there was the workplace incident where a crane operator under the influence of cannabis dropped 5 tons of steel on a construction worker. We have told the stories of a 1987 Amtrak train crash killing 16. The limo driver who killed 20 members of a family in New York, a Church bus crash in Texas where 13 people died, each of these are marijuana impaired drivers killing innocent victims. Most importantly, we have tracked news reports nationwide of child deaths because of marijuana impaired adults. Babies sleeping with and smothered by a stoned mother, toddlers left in hot cars, drownings, fires, and vicious dogs where adults were too stoned to rescue the child, violent attacks and car crashes. One father put his dog and the diaper bag in the car, yet forgot the toddler. He ran over and killed his 2 year old son. At least 250 children have died in these child abuse and neglect cases, just since Colorado voted for recreational marijuana. As you consider burdening Virginia’s social services with this new industry, parents urge you to fully investigate the risks, harms and social ills of this drug. The social costs to marijuana will be 10 times the tax revenue. Parents Opposed to Pot is firmly opposed to commercial marijuana. Submitted by: Kimberly Hartke representing: PotPot.org MomsStrong.org JennifersMessengers.org EveryBrainMatters.org StopPot.org Contact info: Kimberly Hartke Reston, Virginia Kim.hartke@gmail.com 703-860-2711

I am writing in support of HB2312. I also hope that any marijuana bill that passes will allow people with felony convictions, other than crimes of moral turpitude, that have paid their debt to society, to participate in marijuana related businesses. Thank you.

It is critical that cannabis legalization is implemented through a social equity lens. For this reason we demand an independent agency to lay out policies and oversee the process, we demand that the reinvestment rate be raised from 30% to 70%, and we demand that the number of impacted individuals on this advisory board/agency be increased to at least three. We demand horizontal integration. And finally, we submit that having 10 impacted individuals as employees does not qualify for a social equity license.

What will be the process of those to implement some of the first dispensaries and other logistical resources throughout Virginia? Will there be an equal number in the various regions in Virginia? Will those with medicinal needs be able to grow their own? Will the taxes increase or decrease? Where and how will the revenue be spent?

Will submit under separate cover.

Social Justice Equity: Quarterly Employee Census Reporting As part of the initial licensing and re-licensure, require all Medical and Adult Use Cannabis licensees to submit an Employee/Management Social Equity Employee Census to ensure their employee population truly reflects Virginia’s vibrant racial makeup and talents. The reports should be submitted quarterly, made public (released to the media), and include data for all entry-level staff, middle management, upper management, primary owners, and Board of Directors. As an inducement toward initial licensing and re-licensure, Medical, and Adult Use Cannabis licensee should create/maintain an employee mix that is fully reflective of Virginia’s vibrant racial diversity in all levels of their operations, management, and ownership with a specific bend toward Black and other impacted Virginians. The data reflected in these ongoing reports will be both reviewed and heavily considered at the time of re-licensure by Virginia Cannabis Agency officials and the general public.

We need an independent cannabis agency not ABC. Legalize horizontal integration. Hiring 10 impacted people should not quality someone for a social equity license. Increase the number of impacted people set to serve on cannabis advisory board from one to at least three. Increase the tax revenues being dedicated to reinvestment from 30% to 70%.

Dear New Virginia Legislator, I’m a former Colorado mom and have firsthand experience of how legal marijuana harms a family and a community. I moved out of Colorado in 2018 because of the promotional policy of marijuana and lack of treatment for addiction. In this letter, I represent myself and no other organization. I strongly advise you to oppose HB2312, the commercialization of marijuana, because of the following facts: My son started using marijuana edibles in the 8th grade soon after legalization; he was self-harming. We did not know he was using marijuana because the industry makes products in deceptive forms to disguise use. By Feb 2015 my son was irrational, paranoid, repeating things that did not make sense, and one night he was so violent towards his younger brother that his brother ran barefoot through the snow to get away from him. He attempted suicide and was hospitalized, when he was discharged, he was still suicidal, and I took him back to the ER where I was told “It’s Just Marijuana” and was sent home. Within a few days, my son was hospitalized again in a different town because there were no available beds in our town. He told me he was using dabs, and he knew they were making him feel crazy and he was trying to quit. He describes dabs as strong marijuana and called them “crack weed”. Dabs are high concentrated THC products mass produced, marketed, and called medicine. I volunteered my family for crises intervention with the department of social service because I couldn’t find treatment for marijuana abuse. My son had developed the pediatric disease of addiction, and by the next year he was not only using marijuana but had moved on to meth and heroin. Marijuana kills and is a gateway to more illicit and pharmaceutical drugs. My son allows me to tell his story because he wants the nation to know that marijuana is deadly, harmful and can change you forever with delusional thinking, hallucinations, and an increase risk for suicide, depression, and addiction. Colorado kids have now progressed to More Potent Pot like candies and vapes. The state marijuana use rate is almost 21% and now more than half of those kids use high concentrated THC products designed, manufactured, marketed, and sold by the addiction-for-profit marijuana industry. We did not have this kind of accessibility to such dangerous products for people of all ages prior to legalization. My old community of Pueblo has pot scholarships for every high school senior. It’s a brilliant marketing plan by the predatory marijuana industry to groom future users; it’s a way to advertise to kids under the radar. As a result, 1 out of 3 Pueblo high school seniors use marijuana now (35%), and they have a 27.6% chronic absenteeism rate from school. There is a marijuana head shop next door to an alternative high school where kids can see shiny colorful bongs, pipes, clothing and advertisements glorifying and normalizing marijuana. They even have a person waiving a sign saying “Come get your free pipe”. 70% of marijuana shops in Colorado recommend marijuana to pregnant women. So, my mom and I hung baby bibs on the marijuana shops in Pueblo that said, “Don’t Hurt Our Future Colorado Kids”. It was a campaign by the Marijuana Accountability Coalition #1 cause of death ages 10 to 24 is suicide in Colorado. The main drug the victims are testing positive for is marijuana, ages 10 to 19. Please say no, Thank you

While I and many others generally support this Bill and legalization of marijuana, there are significant misgivings about a number of aspects of the current Bills. Many have concerns about the lack of details about Equity in the form of allowing Black and other impacted persons to be involved in this new industry. What has been presented thus far, appears to many to be an "inside job" that only involves a select few industry insiders, large corporations, and others who have NOT been impacted by Virginia's laws about marijuana. What many in Black and Brown communities desire is very clear language/laws that outline very clear paths for their involvement in ALL aspects of this new industry. The level of current murkiness that envelopes the "Equity" portions of licensing is of significant concern. Another area that is causing great heartburn is proposals as to how the $300 million in tax revenues -- as stated by JLARC -- is to be used in a number of ways, BUT not fully/enough to support Black and Brown impacted communities that have been impacted by Virginia's onerous marijuana laws over the past 60 years. It is a general thought and idea that the lion's share of tax revenues 70% should be directly used to repair damages done to the lives of Black and Brown individuals, families, children, communities, and institutions, again, resulting from Virginia's well-target laws about marijuana. See CECVA.org Legislative Interests Four Economic Justice Equity: Allocation of Cannabis-Related Taxes Require 70% of all cannabis-related state and local tax revenues (both Medical and Adult Use) be allocated to help ameliorate the harm adjudication of Virginia’s harsh cannabis laws inflicted on Black and other impacted communities across the state. As well, because Black and Brown communities know best what repairs are best needed, where, when, and through whom, it is our intent that a Cannabis Community Reinvestment Committee is formed to specifically make such decisions, rather than an unwieldy government selected Board/Commissions made up of persons who have no connection to Black and Brown communities - See CECVA.org . Legislative Interests Two Economic Justice Equity: Form A Cannabis Community Re-Investment Board Much like the Tobacco Commission formed by elected lawmakers in 1999 to assist impacted tobacco farmers, the Cannabis Community Re-Investment Board (the Board) will be formed and supported in similar ways. The Board will be charged with making decisions as to how funds derived from Medical and Adult Use Cannabis industry taxes will be allocated for re-investment into Black and other impacted communities across Virginia for the direct benefit of persons in those communities. The Board will be comprised of persons from VUU, VSC, NSU, and HU (4 total) along with seven business and community leaders from both metro and rural areas across Virginia — Central Virginia 2, NOVA 2, Hampton Roads 1, Western Virginia 1, and Southern Virginia 1. In helping to address the apparently strong Social Justice interests relating to Virginia’s Adult Use industry, the Board will play an important role in helping to ameliorate the harm adjudication of Virginia’s harsh cannabis laws have inflicted on Black and other impacted communities statewide.

In order to prioritize social equity during the legalization of cannabis, I urge lawmakers to: 1. Vote "yes" to an independent cannabis agency 2. Legalize horizontal integration 3. Not allow the hiring of ten impacted people to qualify someone for a social equity license 4. Increase the number of impacted people set to serve on the cannabis advisory board from one to at least three 5. Increase tax revenues being dedicated to reinvestment from 30% to 70% Thank you.

Will this bill legalize the medicinal use of the cannabis plant, as opposed to the current restriction to cannabis oil, for medicinal purposes? Furthermore, will this bill legalize the simple possession of cannabis products in the intervening time between passage and the implementation of a regulatory agency in 2023 or 2024, if the user lawfully purchased the cannabis product from a lawful out-of-state retailer?

Thank you committee. My name is Sean Cardwell from Roanoke, Virginia. As of now, only those eligible for expungement will qualify to participate in the industry, no one with a felony is included, this must be changed. Minorities, specifically African Americans, are imprisoned almost five times as much as whites. Barring felons from the industry goes completely against any social equity goals.

Nicole Spangenberg, MSW student in Richmond Virginia. I am asking for you to Vote YES to an INDEPENDENT cannabis agency. LEGALIZE horizontal integration. Advocate that hiring 10 impacted people does NOT qualify as social equity INCREASE number of Impacted people set to serve on the Cannabis equality board from one to AT LEAST THREE INCREASE the tax revenues for REINVESTMENT from 30% to 70% Thank you.

The house should vote “Yes” to an independent cannabis agency and legalize horizontal integration as to not create a monopoly. Hiring 10 impacted people should not qualify someone for a social equity license, we should prioritize black and indigenous cannabis agencies/owners. We should also increase the number of impacted people people serving on the cannabis advisory board to at least 4. The tax revenues (between 70-100%) should not fund policing and should be reinvested into the community. The people who have been harmed by cannabis prohibition should be given resources for social equity and mobility.

Science supports legalization, there has been no significant rise in phycological issues or rise in marijuana only vehicular accidents. No state that has legalize has suffered a negative hit to its tourism sector as well. There is data to support the previous statements. If the marijuana is to be commercialized then the current penalties have to be done away with and changed. Those with non violent offenses should have their records expunged.

Expunging someone’s record who’s been convicted of a drug offense is just not good enough. People served years for the same drugs that people in power will benefit off of now. “Okay you served three years already, we are going to clean your record now” that’s a smack in the face. If politicians really care about these people, how about every marijuana business venture has to have a majority owner who’s been convicted of a drug offense?

Marijuana should be legalized with a social equity plan! Virginia needs to end the discrimination and prohibition by legalizing marijuana the correct way. I was criminalized for it and felt like my life was over my last semester I worked. You must invest into the communities that were affected by the prohibition of marijuana in the state of Virginia. We have to stop criminalizing our youth! Legalization in the form of reparations. Expunge all records! Allow people affected to obtain licenses to sell! It’s past the time for this! Do what’s right and legalize it right!

Hello General Laws Committee, my name is Kalia Harris and I am a co-Executive Director of Virginia Student Power Network, which represents hundreds of young Virginians. We urge you to pass this legislation but with some important changes: (1) Repeal Marijuana prohibition now and remove all penalties. This cannot wait. (2) Don’t criminalize another generation of youth and young adults. As the first-ever statewide student organizing network, we have seen the data that shows that youths aged 18-24 are the most impacted by marijuana enforcement. (3) In terms of regulation, Virginia should create an independent cannabis regulatory agency to promulgate legalization. (4) There is currently a loophole in the social equity license eligibility. True racial equity demands sharing economic power, and the criteria for social equity licensure must ensure that only those marijuana establishments that are majority-owned by individuals from communities most impacted by the War on Drugs get access to the resources dedicated to social equity. (5) In terms of board make-up, increasing the number of representatives from one to at least three is absolutely essential. (6) For tax revenue, 70 percent of tax revenue from marijuana sales should be allocated to the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund. (7) To repair for the past harms of the Virginia Drug War, full and automatic expungements for marijuana related convictions is essential. Make all expungements automatic regardless of whether it is a felony or a misdemeanour as long as the waiting period has been met post completion of sentence only. Remove the requirement that fines, fees, and restitution be paid and reduce the waiting period to 3 years which will bring us in line with 10 other states where 3 years is the policy. (8) Lastly, in regards to resentencing, the state should take on the cost of reclassification and create a process by which all cases are reviewed within 1 year of legalization of marijuana. The onus should not be placed on the impacted person to file a petition to have their case reheard. It is beneficial to the state to get these people out of jail or prison quickly - in the long term decarceration will be a tremendous cost savings. Thank you for your time and your attention to this matter. Virginia must legalize it right from day one.

Honorable Committee members, On behalf of the ACLU of Virginia and its more than 100,000 members and supporters in Virginia, we urge the committee to pass legalization of marijuana in a way that centers racial and social justice. Virginia has an incredible opportunity to be the first state in the South to legalize marijuana and we must do it right. Please find below two of the most critical aspects of social equity that should be prioritized in this committee as it relates to regulation and reinvestment. 1. Regulation and equitable access to the market Problem: Currently, ABC, an existing and overwhelmed agency with an historically punitive structure is tasked with regulating, taxing, and enforcing marijuana legalization. Solution: Virginia should create an independent cannabis regulatory agency to promulgate legalization. Problem: Currently, localities would be given a choice as to whether the marijuana industry would have access to their city, county, or town. Solution: Allowing localities to "opt out" creates disparities in access to the plant as well as access to the industry for people in those districts. Social equity license eligibility - loophole Problem: Employers of 10 or more employees are eligible for a social equity license and all the benefits it entails if more than 51% of their employees have been impacted by marijuana prohibition and targeted by drug enforcement. The problem is that this eligibility condition creates a loophole that diverts the benefits of social equity licensure away from those who need it most. Solution: We would propose striking this clause altogether. Social equity license eligibility Problem: There are two sections that may be impacted by felony convictions –Granting of licenses and Revocation of licenses resulting in denial of impacted community members from participating in an industry. We believe the provisions are too broad and “moral turpitude” is not defined explicitly. Solution: We believe that lawmakers should limit the offenses that will hinder licensure and decrease the years between the conviction and the application. We recommend that only convictions that would impact license eligibility and revocation should be those that are substantially related to the fitness and ability of the applicant to lawfully carry out activities. Marijuana felony convictions should not hinder licensure. 2. There must be funding and oversight for equity built into the new industry on day one Issue: It is my understanding that only 30 percent of marijuana excise tax revenue is allocated to the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund. 30 percent of tax revenue will not meet the depth of the needs of historically marginalized Virginians. Solution: We propose strongly that we allocate 70 percent of excise tax revenue from marijuana sales to the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund. Seventy percent of tax revenue—what New Jersey allocates to its equivalent equity reinvestment fund—would empower Virginia’s Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Board to make racial equity and justice a reality, not just an abstract principle. Legislative Director of the ACLU of Virginia, Ashna Khanna, can be reached at 248-231-2551 or akhanna@acluva.org.

I would like to voice support for legalizing marijuana in Virginia. I think it would add a whole new sector to our economy and provide a lot of jobs, while continuing to reduce over-policing of nonviolent crime.

Section 4.1-626, 1c restricts licensure to any individual convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude within 7 years from date of licensure. This will disproportionately impact minorities and the lower class. It is of my opinion that lawmakers should limit the crimes which would restrict a candidate from licensure. Additionally, lawmakers should shorten the period of years between conviction and application from 7 years to 3.

It is imperative & non-negotiable that when legalizing Cannabis in the state of Virginia & anywhere in the world, it must be done through a socially & racially equitable lens. Please vote YES to the following: 1. An independent cannabis agency 2. Legalize horizontal integration 3. Hiring 10 impacted people should NOT be a qualifier for anyone to obtain a social equity license 4. Increase the number of impacted people set to serve on the cannabis advisory board from 1 to at least 3 5. Increase the tax revenues dedicated to reinvestment in the community from 30% to 70%. It is necessary that when making any legislation community input, guidance, & leadership is sought out thoroughly & incorporated into the process. There are far too many people making decisions for disenfranchised communities without even including voices from these communities. Building trust, being transparent, integrity & accountability is needed for the path towards atonement. Thank you.

1. Yes to the legalization of Marijuana 2. Amendments: - Social Justice Equity: Support Formation of a Cannabis Producer Federation Actively support the formation and initial operation of a trade association type of entity that is organized, managed, and serves the specific needs of Blacks, impacted persons, and many others involved in or interested in involvement in Virginia’s Adult Use and Medical Cannabis industries. Because the cannabis industry is so new, there is a definitive need for Black and other impacted persons to readily have available independent and well-structured representation at the local and statewide levels if needed. 3. Amendments: Economic Justice Equity: Allocation of Cannabis-Related Taxes Require 70% of all cannabis-related state and local tax revenues (both Medical and Adult Use) be allocated to help ameliorate the harm adjudication of Virginia’s harsh cannabis laws inflicted on Black and other impacted communities across the state.

I'm a mother, wife, and I have Limb Girdle Muscular Dystrophy 2J. I vote and am concerned about families and optional pain relief. I would like to encourage you to vote YES to an independent cannabis agency, horizontal integration. Hiring 10 impacted people should not qualify you for a social equity lisence. We should also have at least 3 impacted people appointed to the Cannabis Advisory Board. Last but not lease, you should increase the tax revenue being dedicated to reinvestment to 70%. Thank you for reading!!!

Cannabis and Marijuana have provided me with relief from chronic pain due to tumors and has provided me with a safer alternative than alcohol. Virginia now is the time to push for legalizing cannabis. We can use the tax dollars for our schools and create thousands of new jobs for our residents.

1. Vote "Yes" to an Independent Cannabis Agency. 2. Legalize Horizontal Integrations 3. Hiring 10 Impacted People Should Not Qualify Someone For A Social Equity License 4. Increase the number of impacted people set to serve on the Cannabis Advisory Board from one to at least three. 5. Increase the Tax Revenue being Dedicated to Reinvestment from 30% to 70%.

In 2020, Virginia began the process of undoing countless years of harm to Black communities by decriminalizing the simple possession of marijuana. However, this effort alone will not end the disproportionate impact of the war on drugs. As the committee may know, in Virginia, Black residents are 3.4 times more likely than white residents to be arrested for simple marijuana possession. Once arrested, Black Virginians are four times more likely than white Virginians to be convicted of a marijuana charge. The effects of the war on drugs on the Black and brown communities of Virginia must not be overlooked in Virginia’s legalization legislation. To guarantee equal opportunity in the legal market, Virginia must ensure that social equity provisions are included. Virginia must follow the lead of other states, such as Illinois, which established social equity programs to allow peoples historically affected by criminalization to benefit from legalization in areas such as licensing and employment. The tax revenue from retail marijuana must be allocated back to groups who suffered from the unjust criminalization of marijuana. We urge the committee to remain fervent in its pursuit of social equity and racial justice in HB 2312 by not only legalizing marijuana but creating fair access to the legal market beyond hiring ten impacted persons. We urge the committee to increase the number of impacted individuals serving on the Cannabis Advisory Board to at least three. With the aforementioned amendments, our organization asks the committee to support the passage of HB 2312. -Students for Equity and Reform in Virginia (SERV) Tessa Danehy, President Hayden Ratliff, Dhruv Rungta, Kristin O’Donoghue, Alexandra Hartman, Patrick Cloud, Madeleine Green, Cole Davidson, Austin McNichols, Priya Viswanathan, Ciara Tisdale-Vakos, Theresa Ho, Neha Krishnakumar, Hayes Miller, Gabby Jefferson, Sona Kalatardi, Jack Melman-Rogers, Stella Banino

I am providing a written comment to urge lawmakers to legalize cannabis through a social equity lens! So many people in Black and brown communities have been incarcerated and negatively affected by criminalization of this plant. The people are calling for lawmakers to do the following: 1) Vote "Yes" to an independent cannabis agency, 2) Legalize horizontal integration, 3) Remove the section that allows someone to hire 10 impacted people to qualify for a social equity license, 4) Increase the number of impacted people set to serve on the cannabis advisory board from 1 to at least 3, 5) Increase the tax revenues being dedicated to reinvestment from 30% to 70%. Legalization can have an incredibly positive impact on communities, but only if it is legalized right and with the bill's actual impact in mind!

I am a current medical student at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, VA, and I urge the committee to oppose legalizing the sale, manufacture, and possession of marijuana. If this drug becomes widely available, it will cause significant damage to the public health of Virginia and the safety of our local communities. Substantial research has linked marijuana use to a host of negative consequences including schizophrenia, motor vehicle accidents, low-birth-weight infants, and brain underdevelopment in teenagers. Additionally, research conducted in Colorado after the legalization of recreational marijuana showed that opioid use more than doubled in teens age 10-19. Virginia already struggles with a significant opioid crisis, and legalizing marijuana will only worsen that crisis. Even the federal government lists marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug right next to heroin and LSD (Schedule 1 means that the drug has "no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse"). Finally, studies show that marijuana use in Colorado is twice as high in populations earning less that $20,000 per year compared to populations earning more than $50,000 per year. Poor and disadvantaged populations in the United States already have higher rates of substance abuse, schizophrenia, mental illness, and a host of other medical and social problems. There is no reason to further disadvantage these Americans by legalizing the recreation use of a dangerous psychoactive drug. There is a strong public perception that recreational marijuana use is harmless, but the scientific evidence shows that legalizing marijuana use will only harm communities and waste precious healthcare resources. Therefore, I urge you to oppose HB1815 and HB2312.

We support this Bill but ONLY with very strong laws that ensure inclusion of Black and other communities that have been impacted by Virginia laws related to marijuana

Hello, I am writing today to add my thoughts and support to the repeal of marijuana prohibition and subsequent legalization methods. For whatever it’s worth, I am a college-educated white woman in my 30s who is a full-time working mother. I come from a state that was early in prohibition repeal and while the state might have had good equitable intentions, it has not panned out. There were grants provided to potential business, but the recipients got stuck in bureaucratic red tape and to this day have not been able to open their businesses. It’s been 8 years. The state of Virginia has a unique opportunity to become a LEADER is equitable marijuana reform. I stand with the Virginia ACLU and Marijuana Justice on their recommendations for socially equitable legalization: repeal, repair, and reparations. When prohibition is repealed it should be repealed in FULL. Youth caught with marijuana should not have to face anything or anybody but their own caregivers - no penalties for ANY possession. People who are in jail for non-violent marijuana charges should be released or their charges should be reconsidered with expungement of the marijuana charge. There should be expungement of the same charges on criminal records - people who did time for a non-violent marijuana offense should be allowed their VOTING RIGHTS and the opportunity to find work without discrimination. At least 50% of tax revenues should be going towards the repair of the communities and families torn apart by a racially unjust drug war and over-policing. Moneys should be allocated for public education and economic development in these underserved communities. Any of the tax revenue from legal sales that goes towards policing should be earmarked for anti-racist training. The Cannabis Advisory Board needs to have majority representation from all communities effected by marijuana prohibition. Additionally, an independent agency should be established to monitor the development of the legal cannabis industry in Virginia, and there should be representation in that agency as well. Tokenism in hiring practices is not social equity. Equity is reparations. In this case, that looks like making giving first opportunities in the industry to responsible business owners from the communities most effected by prohibition. It looks like making grants available to get people in the door of the legal cannabis industry before the corporations come in and box them out. It means eliminating red tape and making sure there is ease in navigating the bureaucracy so that small business owners aren’t in a Kafkaesque nightmare as they try to make a space for themselves in the industry. I believe this is all very important as the statistics show that Black and Brown people are disproportionately targeted for and affected by marijuana criminalization. This has been the way for decades and has been just another method to keep BIPOC from succeeding and building up their communities. It is so important that we use this opportunity to begin making REAL amends - not just removing monuments and creating holidays - and personally, I wholeheartedly trust the Black and Brown communities to lead the industry with aplomb if they are given the opportunity to do so! This can ONLY be achieved through socially equitable reform. Thank you, Rebecca k

Vote YES to legalize Marijuana the right way, the socially-just way, the way that centers those most harmed by the backwards-minded War on Drugs. We must legalize horizontal integration. We must increase the number of impacted people to serve on the cannabis advisory board to at least three. Lastly, and critically important, the tax revenues being dedicated to reinvestment must be increased substantially from 30% to 70%. The War on Drugs has been misguided for decades and this approach to drug use, a public health crisis, is in stark contrast to rehabilitative research.

First, we should have an independent cannabis agency. I feel the consolidation around distribution we see around Alcohol for both beer & liquor would ultimately be harmful to retailers, producers, micro licensees, and consumers. The concerns that arise around cannabis production and sales should be handled independently by people who are experts in the field. Second, outside of a micro license, there should be no vertical integration. In the Medical space here in Virginia the highly vertically integrated model we adopted ultimately hurts the type of products available & what options patients of medical have available to them. Right now on 1/26/2021 at 2pm, none of the open dispensaries in Virginia have dab-able extracts available to patients. The rotating lineup of vape products mean patients cannot rely on having the consistent terpene profile one would expect. The supply chain restrictions that Virginia's medical marijuana program puts on medical providers should not be allowed to be duplicated in a recreation program. The market works best when retailers, producers, distributers, and consumers can utilize the market to send signals to each other. Only micro licensees should be allowed to consolidate production, processing, and retail of their own products under one roof. Concerning social equity licensees, hiring impacting people should not grant an otherwise non-conforming licensee the right to enter the market as a social equity licensee. Working for a firm is not the same as owning a firm (or owning part of a firm). The cannabis advisory board should not only have a token member of impacted communities. A minimum of three members of an impacted community is necessary to ensure the restorative capacity of a recreational cannabis social equity licensee program can be protected. The harms of cannabis prohibition upon impacted communities is well documented. Any board that regulates cannabis needs to ensure these voices are heard and have an impact on decisions being made. Tax revenues generated by the sale of cannabis should be reinstated into the communities that were harmed by cannabis prohibition. A minimum of 70% of tax revenue should be reinvested, not just 30%. Ensuring a greater % of funding being reinvested into the very communities that were most harmed by cannabis prohibition will help rebuilt up these very communities after decades of harm.

Thank you to the committee, my name is Naomi Isaac, I am from Richmond, Virginia and a representative of the cannabis advocacy group, Marijuana Justice VA. I am here to encourage you all to prioritize social equity when it comes to cannabis legalization, so that we can ensure that those who have been most harmed by the War on Drugs benefit most. This means establishing an independent Cannabis agency rather than depending on the VABC which is a law enforcement agency and has historically been an enforcer of prohibition and the War on Drugs. An equity-first approach to marijuana legalization means that communities who have endured the most violence and divestment from cannabis prohibition have a fair opportunity to participate in the cannabis industry. However, the current proposal allows for an applicant to hold up to 4 licenses simply by paying a fee of $250,000 but there are no other protections for those who have access to little wealth, and we know those people are more likely to Black, Brown, and low-income. It is for that reason that I encourage the Committee to legislate horizontal integration in order to dismantle these barriers to participation, and prevent multi-state operators and others who have been least impacted by the prohibition from having a monopoly on licensure. Additionally, I also encourage the Committee to increase the number of impacted people set to serve on the Cannabis Control Advisory from one impacted to at least three. A one person limitation affects the extent to which the values, experience, and perspectives of impacted communities can be incorporated into marijuana regulation .

My name is Khalfani Moore. I support these bills in alignment with MarijuanaJustice and CECVA. I call for equitable inclusion to be intentional and focused. This can be accomplished by having the following provisions as critical components of these bills being presented. 1. Vote "Yes" to an Independent Cannabis Agency. 2. Legalize Horizontal Integrations 3. Hiring 10 Impacted People Should Not Qualify Someone For A Social Equity License 4. Increase the number of impacted people set to serve on the Cannabis Advisory Board from one to at least three. 5. Increase the Tax Revenue being Dedicated to Reinvestment from 30% to 70%. 6. Support Formation of a Cannabis Producer Federation/Trade Association Regards

We must legalize cannabis in a truly equitable manner, and while I support HB1815 and HB2312, they are far from true and sustainable equity for the BIPOC Virginians who have been hardest hit by the racist war on drugs. I stand with ACLU Virginia and Marijuana Justice in urging lawmakers to do the following: 1.) Vote “YES” to an independent cannabis agency. 2.) Legalize horizontal integration and prohibit vertical which is nothing but White Supremacy and monopoly. 3.) White people hiring 10 BIPOC individuals is not social equity it is modern day share cropping and yet another form of legalized slavery and White Supremacy. This CANNOT qualify someone for a social equity license. 4.) Increase the number of BIPOC/impacted people set to serve on the cannabis advisory board from ONE to FIVE. 5.) Increase the tax revenues dedicated to reinvestment in BIPOC/impacted communities from 30% to 70%. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Hello, As a resident of Henrico, VA and in regards to HB2312, I urge you to employ a social equity lens with the aim of repairing harm done to the communities most affected by the War on Drugs. This means: 1. Voting “Yes” to an Independent Cannabis Agency so that ABC does not regulate sales. 2. Legalize Horizontal Integration 3. Higher standards for a social equity license. Hiring 10 impacted people should not count - I’m looking to see ownership! 4. Increase the number of impacted people set to serve on the Cannabis Advisory Board from 1 to at least 3. 5. Increase the tax revenues being dedicated to reinvestment from 30% to 70%. Our harmed communities deserve this investment!! Thank you for your time and consideration.

My name is Fernando Winnegan and I am an advisory board member for Cannabis Equity Coalition of Virginia (CECVA). We oppose HB 1815 and HB 2312... Our mission is to advocate for policies that strongly support Social Equity in Virginia's Cannabis industry legislation. One of our main goals is advocate for automatic expungement and early release of Black and Brown people who have been so negatively and disproportionately affected by Virginia's criminalization of marijuana. Because these bills do not have strong components for Social Equity...we do not support. Thank you

I would like to vote "Yes" to an Independent Cannabis Agency. And the following to 2. Legalize Horizontal Integrations 3. Hiring 10 Impacted People Should Not Qualify Someone For A Social Equity License 4. Increase the number of impacted people set to serve on the Cannabis Advisory Board from one to at least three. 5. Increase the Tax Revenue being Dedicated to Reinvestment from 30% to 70%.

As CECVA Chair, we support the Herring bill with the proviso that anti-monopoly provisions are in place that will prevent large firms from squeezing out the smaller operations buy out cos. to unduly control the marketplace.

1. Vote "Yes" to an Independent Cannabis Agency. 2. Legalize Horizontal Integrations 3. Hiring 10 Impacted People Should Not Qualify Someone For A Social Equity License 4. Increase the number of impacted people set to serve on the Cannabis Advisory Board from one to at least three. 5. Increase the Tax Revenue being Dedicated to Reinvestment from 30% to 70%. 6. Support Formation of a Cannabis Producer Federation/Trade Assocition

Hello, my name is Savana Griffith and I am a minority hemp farmer looking to get involved in the Virginia Cannabis industry. There are a number of issues that need to be corrected before this bill will truly demonstrate social equity. The main concerns include the ABC being granted regulatory oversight of the industry. This needs to be avoided as the ABC is known to be rather aggressive, focusing more on law enforcement than regulations. A completely new regulatory agency should be created to focus solely on Cannabis regulations. Those that want the industry to be set up with integrity are 100% okay with any delays in the program if it means doing it right. Also, creating a new category of crimes once adult use cannabis is legal will not lessen the potential of discriminatory law enforcement, rather it would shift the potential to underaged children, who more than likely need help rather than punishment. As well, we all agree that pre-schools could benefit from tax funding from this cannabis program, however if we are truly focusing on undoing the harms of those directly affected by cannabis criminalization, more than 30% of tax revenue - instead more like 50% - should be reserved for the social equity program which should be required for grants, loan assistance, business training, etc. After all, children grow first and foremost in their own homes, so it only makes sense to first fix the home by providing real life changing opportunities to the childrens' caregivers. Also, focusing on social equity; allowing corporations with disadvantaged employees the same "social equity" opportunities as individuals who have personally been affected by cannabis criminalization is offensive and does not speak just to social equity. These opportunities should be reserved solely to individuals, as we can help many more individuals and families this way. Which leads into my final thought that I support allowing horizontal integration rather than allowing vertical integration, as this is a definite way to redistribute the wealth across the board, rather than allowing the majority of the industry go to a handful of companies; again, helping more families in Virginia. I believe these changes highlight social equity in the most equitable ways possible, as Virginia claims to be working toward.

My name is Kemp and I’m commenting on HB2312. My family has been deeply wounded by the war on drugs. The failed rehabilitation, incarceration, and eventual overdose and death of my brother has left a shadow over my family for as long as I can remember. Every charge, every arrest, every time the state chooses to jail and fine and kill someone over a drug—another family is experiencing that same tragedy we went through. Decriminalization, and the way this policy is drafted, will directly determine how often these tragedies continue to occur. It determines who’s children will grow up fatherless, motherless—orphaned by the system. Beyond that, these choices have the capacity to rectify these past generational tragedies, and begin the long and arduous process of racial healing in the wake of mass incarceration. It is not enough to legalize, we must legalize *right* to restore the wrongs of our racist history. I implore you to vote yes to an independent cannabis agency because partisan oversight and special interest need not control decriminalization—leave that to experts in the field independent of biases and partisanship. Legalize horizontal integration because allowing single entities to hold multiple business licenses means the most impacted people will have less access to the industry and its benefits while wealthy elites consolidate the market. Put *ownership* of businesses into the hands of people who have actually been impacted by criminalization—as of now this bill allows a rich white business owner to hire 10 impacted folks and profit from social equity programs. This perpetuates the same inequalities in the industry and gives more access to wealthy opportunists rather than the people who deserve reparation and justice. Hiring 10 impacted people should not qualify someone for a social equity license. The cannabis control advisory board *must* increase the number of impacted people to at least 3. Having a board made up of mostly non-impacted people creates room for the same intellectual blinders and reductive, impersonal policy that governed the era of mass incarceration. For a truly transformative future, we must seek to amplify the voices of those who have been harmed historically by drug policy so as to avoid the problems of past legislation. Finally, the tax revenue dedicated to the cannabis equity reinvestment fund must increase from 30% to 70%. Profits for business owners and the state should take a backseat to rectifying, repairing, and reconciling with the genocidal implications of drug criminalization. Money should go towards social equity first, in a more impactful and significant way, to better promote economic and political equity and racial healing. Don’t lay the groundwork for more family tragedies and more economic injustice. Legalize it right.

As one of the first legal, black-owned Cannabis retail operations in RVA, I would be lying to say the injustice in the industry was not an inspiration for my companies origin. I have seen black and white men, who I refer to as brothers suffer by losing out on scholarship money in high school (2011 - Hermitage), college (2015 - University of Richmond), and on the NFL level 2017+. These infamous moments in my life have driven me to create and push for equity as a minority in the Cannabis space, to give back to the folks who I saw first hand lose out on life-changing opportunities. Fast forward to 2021 and I am in support of the revenue that will be earned from the legalization of Marijuana to be invested back into the communities where those teammates/brothers come from. In order to #LegalizeItRight, we must vote "YES" to an independent Cannabis agency, Legalize horizontal integration, Push for diversity amongst the staff in the industry (MORE THAN 10 MINORITIES), and Increase the tax revenue dedicated to reinvestment from 30% to at least 50%. Thank you for your time and God bless. - Brian Brown CEO of Laruesson LLC. "Cannabis Is Essential" Former NFL Player University of Richmond Grad '17

VA has an opportunity and an obligation to legalize cannabis through a social equity lens, and can lead the nation in repairing harm and reinvesting in communities in a way that will help them thrive and benefit all of us. - Vote YES to an independent cannabis agency - Legalize horizontal integration to lower the barrier to entry and create more equitable access to the profits from the legal marijuana industry for the same people who have been most impacted by the criminalization of cannabis for decades - Social equity grants should be limited to companies where impacted people have an ownership stake. Social equity grants should be used to support & repair the generations of harm done by criminalization of cannabis - hiring 10 impacted people into minimum wage jobs does not do this. - Cannabis control advisory board should increase the number of impacted people to AT LEAST 3 - Increase tax revenue dedicated to reinvestment from 30% to 70%.

The cannabis agency needs to be independent. Horizontal Integration should be legalized for the cannabis industry. The number of impacted people should be increased to at least 3. 70% of tax revenue needs to be earmarked for reinvestment. Unless we take these steps, cannabis legislation will fall flat. Make Virginia proud of how it's fixing past wrongs

Hello, I am writing regarding HB2312. As a Virginia resident I believe that marijuana should be legalized through a social equity lens. Accordingly I am asking the following: 1. Vote YES to an independent cannabis agency to ensure sustainable social equity. 2. Legalize horizontal integration - allowing applicants to hold two or more licenses decreases the number of beneficiaries and creates obstacles for people most impacted by the War on Drugs. 3. Ownership should be in the hands of impacted people - hiring 10 impacted people alone shouldn’t qualify someone for a social equity license. This loophole takes the benefits of social equity licensure away from impacted communities who need it most. 4. The cannabis control advisory board must increase the number of impacted people from 1 to AT LEAST 3. 5. Increase the tax revenue being dedicated to the cannabis equity reinvestment from 30% to 70%. Thank you

As a voter and Virginia resident, I support the legalization of marijuana ONLY IF the laws are crafted to ensure FULL INCLUSION OF BLACK AND OTHER IMPACTED PERSONS who are residents of Virginia. Of particular concerns are ensuring there are well-defined laws that ensure the major companies DO NOT monopolize the industry to the detriment of Black business persons and other small local companies. As an organization representing several thousand voters and Virginians across the state, the specific ideas about the inclusion of Blacks and other are provided at www.CECVA.org. A summary of CECVA's ideas is listed below and at https://cannabisequitycoalitionva.org/2021-legislative-interests/ Legislative Interest Eight Social Justice Equity: Fair Cannabis Industry Licensing As a part of continued licensure, require current and future significantly sized* Medical Cannabis licensees to incorporate a minimum of two Junior Partner firms in all of their operations. As part of initial and continued licensure, require significantly sized* Adult Use Cannabis licensees to incorporate a minimum of two Junior Partner firms in all of their operations. The primary goal of working with Junior Partner firms – made up of Blacks and other firms from impacted communities – is for significantly sized license holders to mentor their employees and management about the industry in helping to ensure true Social Equity and smooth development of the breadth of Virginia’s Adult Use Cannabis industry. Based on total assets and other factors, significantly sized Medical and Adult Use Cannabis licensees may be required to incorporate additional, more than two, Junior Partner firms in all of their operations. These particular aspects of cannabis legislation should be developed as part of the justified “corporate give back” needed to help build the infrastructure of a fair and truly Socially Equitable Virginia cannabis industry that incorporates as many as possible. *Significantly sized is defined as having: Total company/parent/partner company assets in excess of $5 million Involvement in any aspects of the cannabis industry in more than one state Significant company ownership is composed of Sophisticated Investors as defined in Securities and Exchange Commission regulations

Hi my name is Kimberly Hartke, the spokesman for Parents Opposed to Pot, a nonprofit based in Virginia. Marijuana is a hallucinogen- meaning it can cause you to hear and see things that are not real. It is a drug with unpredictable effects from person to person. It is toxic to the brain, and disrupts many functions of the brain, executive reasoning, space and time awareness, dopamine regulation and vision. Serious side effects include paranoia, delusional thinking, loss of inhibition, tunnel vision, blackouts, psychosis, schizophrenia and suicide. On NextDoor. com this week, my Virginia neighbor told of a frightening incident of a strange man showing up at her door, claiming “someone is trying to kill me.” This is an example of the kind of behavior (paranoid delusions) which can be caused by cannabis. The psychoactive component of marijuana, THC, stores in body fat, unlike alcohol which is water soluble and passes quickly from the body. Flashbacks can occur when the stored drug releases unexpectedly. This can be extremely dangerous if it happens while driving, operating heavy machinery or while babysitting. Cannabis can stay in your system for weeks after use, alcohol passes within a matter of hours. Parents Opposed to Pot over the last 6 years launched 5 websites tracking the rollout of state marijuana legalization and the negative outcomes. People from all over the nation have come to us, sharing their horror stories about how cannabis wrecked their lives. We have published 100 of such first-person testimonials. The most recent story we published was about Stephen, a teen boy who started smoking pot at age 14 and was dead by 17. Another mom declared, “it only took 1 year for marijuana to kill my son.” Her son Jolo ran out into the road during a schizophrenic episode after threatening all afternoon to commit suicide. Then there was the workplace incident where a crane operator under the influence of cannabis dropped 5 tons of steel on a construction worker. We have told the stories of a 1987 Amtrak train crash killing 16. The limo driver who killed 20 members of a family in New York, a Church bus crash in Texas where 13 people died, each of these are marijuana impaired drivers killing innocent victims. Most importantly, we have tracked news reports nationwide of child deaths because of marijuana impaired adults. Babies sleeping with and smothered by a stoned mother, toddlers left in hot cars, drownings, fires, and vicious dogs where adults were too stoned to rescue the child, violent attacks and car crashes. One father put his dog and the diaper bag in the car, yet forgot the toddler. He ran over and killed his 2 year old son. At least 250 children have died in these child abuse and neglect cases, just since Colorado voted for recreational marijuana. As you consider burdening Virginia’s social services with this new industry, parents urge you to fully investigate the risks, harms and social ills of this drug. The social costs to marijuana will be 10 times the tax revenue. Parents Opposed to Pot is firmly opposed to commercial marijuana. Submitted by: Kimberly Hartke representing: PotPot.org MomsStrong.org JennifersMessengers.org EveryBrainMatters.org StopPot.org Contact info: Kimberly Hartke Reston, Virginia Kim.hartke@gmail.com 703-860-2711

The United Food and Commercial Workers, Local 400 represents over 10,000 members in Virginia who work in grocery retail, food processing and healthcare. Nationally, UFCW represents over 1.3 million workers in highly regulated industries including the emerging legal cannabis industry. Our cannabis work in multiple states in growing and cultivating facilities, manufacturing, and processing facilities, and in laboratories and dispensaries, including in Maryland and the District of Columbia. Wherever cannabis is legalized, we are committed to building family sustaining jobs and a strong, diverse, and skilled workforce. UFCW Local 400 supports the legalization of recreational cannabis in Virginia with the addition of labor peace agreements as a condition of cannabis licensure and renewal. A labor peace agreement is an agreement between an employer and a bona fide labor organization in which the parties agree to maintain labor peace. Such agreements protect the government’s interests by prohibiting labor organizations and their members from engaging in strikes, boycotts, picketing and any other interference with the employer’s business. In return, the employer agrees not to interfere with efforts by the labor union to communicate with, and attempt to organize and represent, the employer’s workers. At its core, these negotiated labor peace agreements create an orderly and fair process for workers to decide whether they want or don’t want representation. Access to representation helps ensure that a broad range of workers can benefit from the fledgling industry, especially workers from communities that have been disproportionately impacted by cannabis prohibition in the past. Unions and front-line cannabis workers can be key partners in equitable hiring and establishing hiring centers and training programs that ensure diverse, skilled, and long tenured workforces. First, we must decouple the new industry from an unjust criminal justice system and ensure that workers can organize without interference. Other states have included labor peace requirements for cannabis licensure. California, New Jersey, and New York require cannabis operators to sign agreements requiring labor peace. Pennsylvania and Illinois incentivize operators with a merit-based system that gives points for labor peace agreements. Each of these states faced similar questions and arguments about labor peace and found that labor peace requirements in cannabis were good and consistent with state and federal law. A study at San Francisco Airport concluded that labor peace requirements “dramatically reduced turnover, improved worker morale and [resulted in] greater work effort.” Unions in general enhance worker’s job satisfaction leading to higher productivity and quality of output. A workforce comprised of union members is characterized by reduced turnover, which saves the business money in the long term with less spending on frequent training and induction of new employees. The nascent Virginia cannabis industry presents an unparalleled opportunity to build a new kind of industry for Virginia, one that redresses historical and continuing harms and gives workers an opportunity to exercise workplace democracy to improve both the industry and Virginia communities. Policymakers must embrace principles of equity and workplace democracy from recruitment to career advancement to build a shared culture of equality. One strong mechanism to do so is the labor peace agreement.

I urge you to define "social equity" to mean more than simply hiring 10 impacted people. VA lawmakers should eliminate the employer loophole that qualifies businesses that hire 10 impacted people for a social equity license. People most impacted by the war on drugs deserve a fair & equitable share of the legal market. Virginia lawmakers should commit 70%—not 30%—of tax revenues to the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund, so they can do meaningful reparations work in Black & Brown communities and provide robust financing to social equity licensees.

I urge you to define "social equity" to mean more than simply hiring 10 impacted people. VA lawmakers should eliminate the employer loophole that qualifies businesses that hire 10 impacted people for a social equity license. People most impacted by the war on drugs deserve a fair & equitable share of the legal market. Virginia lawmakers should commit 70%—not 30%—of tax revenues to the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund, so they can do meaningful reparations work in Black & Brown communities and provide robust financing to social equity licensees.

Just do the right thing people, think of the darned tax revenue Virginia would get!

On behalf of the Mid-Atlantic Pipe Trades and our members across Virginia, I ask you to support this HB 2321. Over the last year and a half, Virginia has started to move in the right direction to protect workers. This legislation would officially create a state Secretary of Labor moving all workforce development, worker compensation, and occupational licensing under this new Secretary. This cabinet secretary's creation shows that the state is finally taking a real interest in workers' plight across the state by putting someone in the governor's cabinet whose sole job is developing the workforce to move Virginia forward.

I am Jim Avery, retired electrician and former business manager of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1340. I support this bill because the duties of training, licensing, and inspection of the workforce of Virginia are of utmost importance to ensure we are prepared for all challenges facing the growth and success of business in our Commonwealth.

The United Steelworkers Local 8888 express our support for creating a Secretary of Labor. We feel like it would help in paying more attention to the needs of our workforce and the employees around the state.

IN SUPPORT -- HB 2321 Labor, Secretary of; position created in Governor's Cabinet. I support HB 2321 as this bill transfers from the Secretary of Commerce and Trade to the Secretary of Labor responsibility for the Department of Labor and Industry, the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation, and the Virginia Employment Commission. The bill also removes the position of Chief Workforce Development Advisor and reassigns that position's responsibilities to the Secretary of Labor. I support this bill. I support creating in the Governor's Cabinet the position of Secretary of Labor. This will serve all Virginians; it is good for business and labor; it will enhance Virginia commerce and industry ; it will improve worker safety and make Virginia more competitive in a global economy. Respectfully Submitted, Lou Spencer Caret, Virginia

IN SUPPORT -- HB 2321 I support HB 2321 as this bill moves from the Secretary of Commerce and Trade to the Secretary of Labor responsibility for the Department of Labor and Industry, the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation, and the Virginia Employment Commission. The bill also moves the position of Chief Workforce Development Advisor and assigns that position's responsibilities to the Secretary of Labor. I support this bill. I support making in the Governor's Cabinet the position of Secretary of Labor. This will serve all Virginians; it is good for labor and business. It will enhance Virginia commerce and it will improve worker safety and make Virginia more competitive. Respectfully Submitted, Tony Solis Leesburg, Virginia

IN SUPPORT -- HB 2321 Labor, Secretary of; position created in Governor's Cabinet. I support HB 2321 as this bill transfers from the Secretary of Commerce and Trade to the Secretary of Labor responsibility for the Department of Labor and Industry, the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation, and the Virginia Employment Commission. The bill also removes the position of Chief Workforce Development Advisor and reassigns that position's responsibilities to the Secretary of Labor. I support this bill. I support creating in the Governor's Cabinet the position of Secretary of Labor. This will serve all Virginians; it is good for business and labor; in will enhance Virginia commerce and industry It will improve worker safety and make Virginia more competitive in a global economy. Respectfully Submitted, Lou Spencer Caret, Virginia

HB2016 - Businesses will sink under this. Stop screwing up the economy because of your political agenda. HB2330 - The PIPP never ever should have been created. I am asked to pay tons of taxes after working a couple of decades, and then told there will be no money left for me in the system that is supposed to take care of me. That does not build up a nation.

My name is Emily Piontek, and on behalf of Appalachian Voices, am asking you to please support HB 2330. This bill: - Gives final approval to the Percentage of Income Payment Program that was authorized during the 2020 General Assembly. - PIPP will reduce energy burdens in part by lowering household energy consumption. As a participating member, I support the key recommendations from the stakeholder report, including: - A recommendation to leverage existing energy assistance programs, including weatherization programs, by connecting eligible households to them; - A recommendation to connect eligible households to existing utility energy reduction programs; - A recommendation to simplify eligibility criteria by including households at/below 200% of the FPL eligible. By improving the efficiency of participating households, energy consumption can be reduced alongside the amount of participants' bills. This can provide direct economic benefit to all customers of participating utilities, because it effectively reduces those utilities’ costs of service and leads to suppressed or lowered rates. Ultimately, PIPP will reduce household energy burdens so that people participating in this program don’t have to choose between essential energy services and rent, groceries or medical care. Reducing energy burdens is particularly important as we grapple with the economic fallout from the pandemic. By passing HB 2330, the State Corporation Commission would be authorized by this body to: - Implement this program this year, - Serve households falling at or below 200% of the FPL, and - Increase the # of households receiving energy efficiency & electrification assistance.

To the committee on Labor and Commerce, On behalf of the Natural Resources Defense Council, I submit these brief comments in support of HB 2330 by Delegate Kory, establishing a Percentage of Income Payment Program (PIPP) in Virginia. It has become well-documented that low-income Virginians are struggling to make ends meet in part due to excessive energy burdens (the percentage of income that is used to pay energy bills). As energy bills continue to rise, the PIPP will help ensure that, in the short term, low-income Virginians are protected from further increases to their energy costs. In the long term, this program will also help these same residents reduce their energy consumption, and thus energy costs, by integrating access to energy efficiency programs for these customers. This is a welcomed program for Virginians at a crucial time for low-income residents to help them keep their energy costs under control. I support the bill.

HB2330 provides critical guidance to the SCC, DSS and DHCD regarding implementation of the Percentage of Income Payment Program required by the Virginia Clean Economy Act, and Sierra Club strongly supports it. This program will help hundreds of thousands of lower-income Virginians cover their electricity costs.

On behalf of the Virginia Conservation Network, I ask the committee to support this bill. Very simply, HB2330 just provides SCC requested clarification on the implementation of the universal service fee for the Percentage of Income Payment Program, a program designed to limit electric bills for low income ratepayers across the commonwealth. Additionally, it improves the program as a whole by simplifying eligibility requirements, establishing a working group to help overcome barriers to participation in energy efficiency programs, and by establishing a goal to increase the use of electricity as a primary heating source.

Dear Delegates; We are writing you in support of HB2331 Repeal Mandatory Minimums, patron Del Mullen. We strongly support the ability of those convicted before July 1, 2021 who were not convicted of a Class 1 Felony or sentenced to a life sentence, to be able to petition the circuit court that entered the original judgment to have their sentence suspended, be placed on probation or in some way have their sentences mitigated. Repealing the sentence does not mean we are reducing the potential for severe punishment; it simply means we are returning the sentencing decision to the judge where it rightfully belongs. Mandatory minimums do not deter crime. People are not deterred by something they do not know exists. They do not reduce drug use or addiction and they are racist. Over 30 states have reformed or repealed their mandatory minimum sentences in the past two decades while maintaining public safety. In 2017, the first 6 months after repealing mandatory minimums in Louisiana, the state saved $12 million. President-elect Biden supports repeal of mandatory minimums. He will work for the passage of legislation to repeal mandatory minimums at the federal level. And, he will give states incentives to repeal their mandatory minimums. Virginia supports the repeal of mandatory minimums. The Virginia Crime Commission overwhelmingly supported the repeal of mandatory minimums plus a route to mitigation of sentences for those already serving sentences under these burdensome laws. Please support the repeal of ALL mandatory minimums in Virginia and allow those already serving a mandatory minimum a route to mitigate their sentences through the courts. Thank you. Gary and Debra Turner

My name is Tinsae Gebriel, and I’m submitting this written statement on behalf of FAMM. FAMM supports this bill. Eliminating mandatory minimums would ensure that judges, who are selected by the General Assembly and informed by sentencing guidelines, would be able to consider all relevant facts and circumstances about the case and the defendant and decide appropriate sentences. Years of research shows that mandatory minimums do reduce or deter crime. But they do impact communities of color disproportionately. The only aspect of this bill that falls short in our views is that it doesn’t repeal all mandatory minimum sentences, as recommended by the crime commission. We believe that judges should have the authority to consider all the relevant facts and circumstances in every case before imposing a fair punishment. Thank you for considering my views.

Virginia Victim Assistance Network supports this legislation. We represent victim/witness advocate offices around the commonwealth and serve over 75,000 victims of crime annually in Virginia. VVAN understands both victims and their offenders suffer if a broken process denies their fundamental right to justice. This bill is crafted balancing both victim concerns and smart criminal justice reform. We urge you to support this bill.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving would like strongly opposes any effort to eliminate mandatory minimums in any cases relating to driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs. Drunk and drug-impaired driving is a violent crime that is 100 percent preventable. Any legislation that eliminates minimum accountability standards for drunk or drugged drivers belittles the seriousness of this violent crime. In advancing criminal justice reform, please keep in my mind the Rights of Victims of drunk and drug-impaired driving.

While there has been a lot of great strides in criminal justice in Virginia for the past year, we cannot lose momentum in the fight against mass incarceration. To continue having a more fair and equitable criminal justice system, Mandatory Minimums in Virginia must end. In addition, the updated policy must allow those already sentenced and serving time behind bars receive reconsideration for excessive sentences. Having mandatory minimums in the Virginia laws do not allow judges or juries to do their jobs by hearing cases and facts, as they do not have the power to go against Virginia laws of time that MUST be served if convicted of specific crimes. PLEASE consider updating the bill to include ALL or more offenses to repeal mandatory minimums. There are many more MMs that deserve to be repealed other than drug offenses. The Virginia Crime Commission concluded in their study that Use of a Firearm was the second most incarcerated mandatory minimum, and 83% of current state-responsible inmates are serving time for only 10 mandatory minimums. I urge you all to strongly consider the disproportionate amount of sentences for these crimes. Like drug charges, firearm charges do not justify whether or not someone was hurt, nor that a person is violent. We must repeal this mandatory minimum to allow cases to be heard, and sentences to be given appropriately. Thank you

I support to abolish mandatory minimum sentences.

Each person situation is different and should be sentenced accordingly. Maybe broaden and / or resentance. Mandatory minimums are not carried out for informants based on drug charges therefore it should not be in place for individuals who are not. Possibly left in place for serial killers murders pedophiles and should be based also on life expectancy or Children and families the crime/crimes effected.

We can't trust judges to act in our best interests. I do not support this bill.

Hello, Delegates; We are writing to ask you to please vote YES for HB2331 Repeal Mandatory Minimums. Repealing the mandatory minimums does not mean we are reducing the potential for severe punishment; it simply means we are returning the sentencing decision to the judge where it rightfully belongs. The judge knows the circumstances of each case and can make the sentence more punitive or more lenient based on circumstances only the judge will be aware of. Please expand the bill to include more of the mandatory sentences and find a way to re-sentence those already serving excessively long mandatory minimum sentences. The economic savings to the State of Virginia from incarcerating a prisoner who is not a threat to public safety for a shorter period of time would be substantial. Please, vote YES for HB2331 Repeal Mandatory Minimums. Thank you.

I am writing you to say that ALL mandatory minimum need to be lifted for ALL of those who have been or will be sentanced to a mandatory minimum. Each case is different, and should be treated differently, a mandatory minimum does NOT prove anything but heartbreak for us on the outside and gives no hope for those on the inside . It proves nothing to MAKE someone sit behind bars for a mandatory time instead of fixing them and their problems. My fiance is awaiting sentencing and is facing a mandatory minimum of at least 5 years (He is in unfortunately for 18.2-374.1:1.) He is WILLING for treatment, wants to get help NOW and serving a mandatory 5 years is not going to get him the help he WANTS and NEEDS. Not all cases are the same and should not be treated the same. Please consider revising this and lift mandatory minimum for ALL .

I will love to testify in favor of this bill HB2331 I believe that Virginia needs to do away with the mandatory minimums this bill is very personal to me because my husband and son is under the mandatory minimums for gun and drug charges. The length of time that they were given affected our family in a very emotional way. The time that some of our love ones are given because of mandatory minimums are unfair and lengthy sentences because of the time that they have ahead of them they take plea deals and that is like getting a deal from the devil so please consider voting in favor of this bill to give so many chances in which Everyone deserves a second chance.

Chairman and Members of this Committee, I agree with eliminating mandatory minimums. These laws have put persons in jail who do not belong there.