By Brian Trompeter
Local state senators fared better than their House of Delegates counterparts in recent rankings announced by the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), but none even came close to voting with the group’s preferences all the time.
NFIB based its ratings on legislators’ votes on bills handled by the General Assembly in 2022 and 2023. Sixty-eight of the 140 state legislators (100 in the House of Delegates, 40 in the state Senate) received perfect 100-percent ratings from the group.
“Our voting record is an important tool for small business owners, their employees, and really everyone who lives and pays taxes in Virginia,” said Julia Hammond, NFIB state director in Virginia. “NFIB’s score card gives voters a real number that provides a clear picture: not what a lawmaker says or promises, but how they cast their vote.”
NFIB gave state Sen. Janet Howell (D-Reston-Arlington) a rating of 60 percent, bestowed a 67-percent ranking on Sen. Chap Petersen (D-Fairfax-Vienna) and gave Sen. Barbara Favola (D-Arlington-McLean-Great Falls) a 50-percent rating.
Among local members of the House of Delegates, NFIB rated Dels. Kathleen Murphy (D-McLean-Great Falls) and Marcus Simon (D-McLean) at 42 percent and Del. Rip Sullivan (D-McLean-Arlington) at 50 percent.
Former Del. Mark Keam (D-Oakton-Vienna), who resigned last year, received a 44-percent ranking for the nine NFIB-monitored bills he voted on in 2022. NFIB did not bestow a ranking on Keam’s successor, Del. Holly Seibold (D), who only voted on three bills watched by the organization.
NFIB recommended a “yes” vote on these bills voted on in both houses:
• HB971, Rebuild Virginia Grants and Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Loans (2022).
• HB1173, Repealing Changes Made to the Virginia Overtime Wage Act (2022).
• SB15, Approving the Sale of Paid Family Leave Insurance Policies (2022).
• SB219, Reforming the Virginia Employment Commission (2022).
• SB335, Creation of Association Health Plans for Real Estate Salespersons (2022).
• SB1470, Consolidation of Virginia’s Workforce Development Policies and Programs Under New Agency (2023).
This bill handled by both houses had a recommended “no” vote from NFIB:
• HB30, Gas Tax Holiday (2022), Governor’s Budget Amendment No. 31).
Senate-only bills with NFIB urging “no” votes were:
• SB352, Mandatory Paid Sick Leave for Health Care Providers and Grocery Store Workers (2022).
• SB624, Mandatory Paid Sick Leave for Home Health Workers (2022).
• SB447, Prohibition on Employers Asking for Wage or Salary History (2022).
These House-only bills received “yes” vote recommendations from NFIB:
• HB320, Freezing the Minimum Wage (2022).
• HB883, Repealing the requirement of Project Labor Agreements, Prevailing Wage, and Collective Bargaining (2022).
• HB1301, Removing Virginia from Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) (2022).
• HB2138, Qualified Business Income Deduction and Corporate Rate Reduction (2023).
•HB2319, Income Tax Rate Reduction and Standard Deduction (2023).
Several new legislators will fill newly redrawn and renumbered local General Assembly districts come January. Howell and Murphy decided not to seek re-election in November and Petersen was knocked off by a challenger in the Democratic primary in June.
To view more detailed information on the bills of interest to NFIB, legislators’ voting records on the bills and their rankings from the group, visit strgnfibcom.blob.core.windows.net/nfibcom/Virginia-Voting-Record-FINAL.pdf.
Farm Group Endorses 101 State Legislative Candidates: Virginia Farm Bureau Federation AgPAC, the Farm Bureau’s political action committee, recently endorsed 32 state Senate candidates and 69 candidates who are pursuing seats in the House of Delegates.
The organization’s endorsements are based on recommendations from local committees of farmers and reflect the incumbents’ or newcomers’ policy positions on farming and forestry.
“Candidates are evaluated through a grassroots process that assesses their understanding of the needs and challenges that we as farmers face in today’s times,” said Wayne Pryor, VFBF president and chairman of the VFBF AgPAC board of trustees. “Those who have received the AgPAC endorsement have a history of supporting issues important to agriculture or have demonstrated their commitment through their participation in the evaluation process.”
Virginia Farm Bureau Federation AgPAC endorsed incumbent Dels. Rip Sullivan (D-6th) and Holly Seibold (D-12th) in districts that recently were reconfigured and renumbered. The group did not issue endorsements in two other new districts in the GazetteLeader’s readership area, the 7th, 11th and 13th.
The organization endorsed incumbent state Sen. Jennifer Boysko (D) in the new 38th District, but did not favor a candidate in the new 37th Senate District, which covers Vienna, Tysons, Oakton, Merrifield and parts of the Fairfax and Falls Church areas.
The endorsed incumbents have an established track record of working with farmers at the local level, said Martha Moore, senior vice president of VFBF governmental relations.
“The newcomers our farmers endorsed for the House and Senate have demonstrated a willingness to listen, seeking to understand the nuances of agricultural issues specific to Virginia’s farmers and foresters,” she said.
