Delegate Bobby Orrock Session Update:  Reconvened Session

April 24, 2014

Yesterday was the “Veto Session” where the General Assembly reconvened to take action on the bills that the Governor amended or vetoed.

There were three of the sixty such bills that I had heard the most comments and concerns from folks in my district.  The first was SB377 introduced by Senator Bryce Reeves.   It establishes a process to be administered by the Department of State Police so that firearm dealers can find out whether a firearm that is being transferred to the dealer by a person other than a dealer, importer, or manufacturer can be lawfully transferred.  The process included a consent form that would contain identification from the person trading, selling, or transferring the firearm to the dealer as well as the firearm information.  According to the bill, if the firearm was not reported lost or stolen, the dealer is required within two weeks to destroy the consent form. The Governor’s amendment would have changed the bill so that dealer must keep the consent forms for 90 days and they would not be required to be destroyed.  The concern with the Governor’s amendment was that it would create “a backdoor registration” of those trading, selling or transferring their legally owned firearms.

SB377 went to the Senate floor first where they rejected the Governor’s amendments.  Since they rejected his amendments, the House did not have a chance to act.  If the bill had made it to the House floor, I would have voted against the Governor’s amendments as well.  The bill will now go back to the Governor un-amended for him to choose to sign it “as is” or veto it.  If he vetoes the bill now, then the legislature does not have the ability to override his actions and the bill will be completely dead.

The second bill of concern, SB 236, protects the free speech rights of public school students.  The third bill of concern, SB 555, prohibits government censorship of military chaplain’s sermons.  Unfortunately, the Governor vetoed both bills.  Yesterday, while the majority of the Senate rejected the veto, it was less than the two-thirds majority needed to over-ride it and move it to the House floor for a vote.  If it had made it to the House, I would have voted against the veto.

Other bills that were acted upon yesterday can be found on the Virginia Legislative Information Floor Calendar by choosing “April 23, 2014” under both the House and Senate links.