Delegate Matt Fariss

The most important thing we do in the General Assembly is pass a budget.

The school shooting in Parkland, Florida was horrific and tragic, and reminds us just how important it is to keep our children safe in our schools.

The 2018 General Assembly Session has reached the end of it’s 60 day session. The House was productive and successful this year, advancing several major priorities as part of the practical solutions to everyday issues agenda, including legislation to address our teacher shortage, lower the cost of medical prescriptions, create avenues to get students into good paying jobs, and honor our veterans who gave so much to our country.  We have not yet reached an agreement on a two-year budget. We will now wait for the governor to call a special session.

The 2018 General Assembly session is entering its final week! The last week of the session will be a busy one, there are hundreds of bills still waiting to be acted on by both the House and Senate, and we still have a lot of work to do on the budget. This week I want to give you an update on the budget and tell you about some of the important bills that are already headed to the Governor’s desk for him to sign.

We are entering the final weeks of the 2018 General Assembly Session. There are only 2 weeks left before what is known as “Sine Die,” the last day of session. Our last day is March 10th, and there is still a lot of work to be done before then. This week we debated and voted on the budget, and there were several other House bills that cleared the Senate. As I have said before, this year I and my House colleagues have been focused on “Practical Solutions to Everyday Issues,” prioritizing the real problems people talk about at home.

We are officially in the second half of the 2018 General Assembly session! Tuesday was “Crossover” which is our “halfway point.” All of the bills passed by the House now head to the Senate for consideration, and we will begin considering all of the bills passed by the Senate. In this newsletter I want to discuss the many accomplishments achieved by House Republicans in just the first half of the 2018 Session. This year we have been focused on passing “Practical Solutions to Everyday Issues”.

The 2018 General Assembly session is nearing our halfway mark as crossover is on Tuesday, February 13^th.  The House is making progress on several key issues as we prepare to begin considering legislation passed by the Senate. Tuesday is the last day for the House to act on its legislation.

It’s hard to believe, but we are already into February! We are just over a week away from Crossover, which is the time when all the bills passed by the House head to the Senate and all of the Senate bills come to the House. The House has already passed several major pieces of legislation and we look forward to that work continuing.

The 2018 General Assembly session has concluded its third week. Several very important bills have already passed through the House and are on the way to the Senate. This week I will be providing you updates on several key issues we are working hard to address such as adoption reform, improving our education system, and fighting the opioid crisis. As I have said before, House Republicans are focused on passing “Practical Solutions to Everyday Issues”

Week 2 of the General Assembly Session began with meetings in our assigned committees. This year I will be serving on the Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources Committee, Finance Committee and Militia, Police and Public Safety Committee. I look forward to working with other members on these important committees to pass practical solutions to everyday issues.