[VAcourier] VIRGINIA LINCOLN COMMISSION TO BE CREATED SB809

[Virginia Division SCV Communication List]

VIRGINIA LINCOLN COMMISSION TO BE CREATED SB809

Today the Virginia General Assembly - Sentate Rules Committee 
unanimously decided to honor Abraham Lincoln with a commission to 
celebrate his life.  This is the same General Assembly who refuses to 
support Confederate History Month.  The General Assembly in 1861 voted 
to fight this man and send your ancestors to their death to do so.  
Please thank the Senate Rules committee for their leadership.  They 
would not spend this much effort and money to honor a real hero like 
Robert E. Lee, who was actually a Virginian. 

SENATE RULES COMMITTEE:
(All Senators can be mailed at the following address, but you must 
address you letter to each Senator):
Hon. (Senators name)
Senate of Virginia
P.O. Box 396
Richmond, VA 23218

Chairman:  Senator Thomas K. Norment, Jr.
Phone: (804) 698-7503
Email*: district03 at sov.state.va.us <mailto:district03 at sov.state.va.us>
Legislative Assistant: Tom Cosgrove

Senator Charles J. Colgan
Email*: district29 at sov.state.va.us <mailto:district29 at sov.state.va.us>
Phone: (804) 698-7529
Legislative Assistant: Peggy Tyree-Wells

Senator Richard L. Saslaw
Email*: district35 at sov.state.va.us <mailto:district35 at sov.state.va.us>
Phone: (804) 698-7535
Legislative Assistant: Janet Muldoon

Senator William C. Wampler, Jr.
Email*: district40 at sov.state.va.us <mailto:district40 at sov.state.va.us>
Phone: (804) 698-7540
Legislative Assistant: Phyllis Hamilton

Senator John H. Chichester
Email*: district28 at sov.state.va.us <mailto:district28 at sov.state.va.us>
Phone: (804) 698-7528
Legislative Assistant: Jennifer Hall

Senator Walter A. Stosch
Email*: district12 at sov.state.va.us <mailto:district12 at sov.state.va.us>
Phone: (804) 698-7512
Legislative Assistant: Karla W. Boughey

Senator Frederick M. Quayle
Email*: district13 at sov.state.va.us <mailto:district13 at sov.state.va.us>
Phone: (804) 698-7513
Legislative Assistant: Mary Korving

Senator Charles R. Hawkins
Email*: district19 at sov.state.va.us <mailto:district19 at sov.state.va.us>
Phone: (804) 698-7519
Legislative Assistant: Mary Catherine Plaster

Senator Kenneth W. Stolle
Email*: district08 at sov.state.va.us <mailto:district08 at sov.state.va.us>
Phone: (804) 698-7508
Legislative Assistant: Will Payne

Senator Emmett W. Hanger, Jr.
Email*: district24 at sov.state.va.us <mailto:district24 at sov.state.va.us>
Phone: (804) 698-7524
Legislative Assistant: Holly Herman

Senator Martin E. Williams
Email*: district01 at sov.state.va.us <mailto:district01 at sov.state.va.us>
Phone: (804) 698-7501
Legislative Assistant: Sara Gerringer

Senator R. Edward Houck
Email*: district17 at sov.state.va.us <mailto:district17 at sov.state.va.us>
Phone: (804) 698-7517
Legislative Assistant: Andrew W. Wright

Senator H. Russell Potts, Jr.
Email*: district27 at sov.state.va.us <mailto:district27 at sov.state.va.us>
Phone: (804) 698-7527
Legislative Assistant: Lana Westfall

Senator Mary Margaret Whipple
Email*: district31 at sov.state.va.us <mailto:district31 at sov.state.va.us>
Phone: (804) 698-7531
Legislative Assistant: Janie Burton

Senator Stephen H. Martin
Email*: district11 at sov.state.va.us <mailto:district11 at sov.state.va.us>
Phone: (804) 698-7511
Legislative Assistant: Shirley Pappalardo

Senator Jeannemarie Devolites Davis
Email*: district34 at sov.state.va.us <mailto:district34 at sov.state.va.us>
Legislative Assistant: Bonnie Buchanan


SENATE BILL NO. 809

AMENDMENT IN THE NATURE OF A SUBSTITUTE

(Proposed by the Senate Committee on Rules

on February 2, 2007)

(Patron Prior to Substitute--Senator Marsh)

A BILL to amend the Code of Virginia by adding in Title 30 a chapter 
numbered 42, consisting of sections numbered 30-278 
<http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+30-278> through 
30-284 <http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+30-284>, 
relating to the Virginia Commission on the Bicentennial of Abraham 
Lincoln; report.

Whereas, on February 12, 2009, the nation will commemorate the 200th 
anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the 
United States, considered by many citizens to have been the greatest 
American president; and

Whereas, Abraham Lincoln, sketching out his life five months before 
receiving his party's nomination for President, wrote, "I was born Feb. 
12, 1809, in Hardin County, Kentucky. My parents were both born in 
Virginia, of undistinguished families--second families, perhaps I should 
say"; and

Whereas, Abraham Lincoln, a central figure in American history, 
fervently resolved to preserve the nation, and "he wished not only to 
save his country, but also to make it worthy of the saving, a place 
where all would have the right to rise"; and

Whereas, at the dedication of the military cemetery at Gettysburg he 
rededicated the nation to freedom and democracy stating, "The brave men, 
living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our 
poor power to add or detract. The world will little note nor long 
remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. 
It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished 
work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is 
rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before 
us--that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that 
cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion--that we 
here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain--that 
this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom--and that 
government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not 
perish from the earth," and the principles that he espoused remain a 
core part of the American value system; and

Whereas, as President and Commander-in-Chief of these United States at a 
time when the Union was torn asunder, Abraham Lincoln guided the country 
through the most devastating experience in its national history, and on 
December 3, 1861, he addressed the Congress: "The struggle of today is 
not altogether for today--it is for a vast future also," apparently 
understanding, predicting, and warning future generations that the 
reverberations of the Civil War and the struggle for human rights would 
persist well into our own time; and

Whereas, the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission, created by 
Congress to inform the public and lead the nation in the commemoration 
of the 200th anniversary of his birth, stated that on "January 1, 1863, 
President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, setting into 
motion a legal process that destroyed American slavery, and this noble 
act, controversial both then and now, committed the United States to the 
long, difficult struggle for racial justice"; and

Whereas, given the national observance of the 200th anniversary of the 
birth of Abraham Lincoln, the relevance of his legacy today, and that 
his presidency is fundamentally woven into the historical and social 
fabric of the Commonwealth, it is fitting and appropriate that a 
legislative commission be established to lead the Commonwealth in 
joining with the nation to commemorate the bicentennial of the 
anniversary of his birth; now, therefore,

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That the Code of Virginia is amended by adding in Title 30 a chapter 
numbered 42, consisting of sections numbered 30-278 
<http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+30-278> through 
30-284 <http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+30-284>, as 
follows:

CHAPTER 42.

VIRGINIA COMMISSION ON THE BICENTENNIAL OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN.

§ 30-278 <http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+30-278>. 
Virginia Commission on the Bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln; purpose.

The Commission on the Bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln (the Commission) 
is established in the legislative branch of state government for the 
purpose of preparing for and commemorating the 200th anniversary of the 
birth of Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States.

§ 30-279 <http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+30-279>. 
Membership; terms.

The Commission shall have a total membership of 15 members that shall 
consist of eight legislative members, four nonlegislative citizen 
members, and three ex officio members. Members shall be appointed as 
follows: three members of the Senate, to be appointed by the Senate 
Committee on Rules; five members of the House of Delegates, to be 
appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates in accordance with 
the principles of proportional representation contained in the Rules of 
the House of Delegates; two nonlegislative citizen members of whom one 
shall be a recognized scholar in Civil War history and one shall be a 
nonlegislative citizen member at large to be appointed by the Senate 
Committee on Rules; two nonlegislative citizen members of whom one shall 
be a recognized scholar in the life and history of Abraham Lincoln and 
his presidency and one shall be a nonlegislative citizen member at 
large, to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates. The 
Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Executive Director of the 
State Council of Higher Education, and the Chancellor of the Virginia 
Community College System or their designees shall serve ex officio with 
voting privileges. Nonlegislative citizen members of the Commission 
shall be citizens of the Commonwealth. Unless otherwise approved in 
writing by the chairman of the Commission and the respective Clerk, 
nonlegislative citizen members shall be reimbursed only for travel 
originating and ending within the Commonwealth for the purpose of 
attending meetings.

Legislative members and ex officio members of the Commission shall serve 
terms coincident with their terms of office. Appointments to fill 
vacancies, other than by expiration of a term, shall be for the 
unexpired terms. Vacancies shall be filled in the same manner as the 
original appointments. All members may be reappointed.

Nonlegislative citizen members shall be appointed for a term of two 
years. No nonlegislative citizen member shall serve more than four 
consecutive two-year terms. The remainder of any term to which a member 
is appointed to fill a vacancy shall not constitute a term in 
determining the member's eligibility for reappointment.

The Commission shall elect a chairman and vice-chairman from among its 
membership, who shall be members of the General Assembly.

§ 30-280 <http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+30-280>. 
Quorum; meetings; voting on recommendations.

A majority of the members shall constitute a quorum. The meetings of the 
Commission shall be held at the call of the chairman or whenever the 
majority of the members so request.

No recommendation of the Commission shall be adopted if a majority of 
the Senate members or a majority of the House members appointed to the 
Commission (i) vote against the recommendation and (ii) vote for the 
recommendation to fail notwithstanding the majority vote of the Commission.

§ 30-281 <http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+30-281>. 
Virginia Commission on the Bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln Fund established.

There is hereby created in the state treasury a special nonreverting 
fund to be known as the Virginia Commission on the Bicentennial of 
Abraham Lincoln Fund, hereafter referred to as the "Fund." The Fund 
shall be established on the books of the Comptroller and shall consist 
of gifts, grants, donations, bequests, or other funds from any source as 
may be received by the Commission for its work. Moneys shall be paid 
into the state treasury and credited to the Fund. Interest earned on 
moneys in the Fund shall remain in the Fund and be credited to it. Any 
moneys remaining in the Fund, including interest thereon, at the end of 
each fiscal year shall not revert to the general fund but shall remain 
in the Fund. Moneys in the Fund shall be used solely for the purpose of 
enabling the Commission to perform its duties. Expenditures and 
disbursements from the Fund shall be made by the State Treasurer on 
warrants issued by the Comptroller upon written request of the chairman 
of the Commission.

§ 30-282 <http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+30-282>. 
Compensation; expenses.

Legislative members of the Commission shall receive such compensation as 
provided in § 30-19.12 
<http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+30-19.12>, and 
nonlegislative citizen members shall receive such compensation for the 
performance of their duties as provided in § 2.2-2813 
<http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+2.2-2813>. All 
members shall be reimbursed for all reasonable and necessary expenses 
incurred in the performance of their duties as provided in §§ 2.2-2813 
<http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+2.2-2813> and 
2.2-2825 <http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+2.2-2825>. 
However, all such compensation and expenses shall be paid from existing 
appropriations to the Commission or, if unfunded or underfunded, shall 
be approved by the Joint Rules Committee.

§ 30-283 <http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+30-283>. 
Powers and duties of the Commission.

The Commission shall have the following powers and duties:

1. Develop, plan, and coordinate the implementation of statewide 
programs, events, and activities appropriate to commemorate the 
bicentennial anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln.

2. Promote and encourage research and scholarship on and 
interdisciplinary examination and increased understanding of the life, 
presidency, contributions, and legacy of Abraham Lincoln and their 
importance to the history and the social, legal, and political systems 
of the Commonwealth and the nation.

3. Identify ways to increase public knowledge and awareness of Abraham 
Lincoln, including ways to memorialize and preserve his history and 
legacy in Virginia.

4. Create opportunities for increasing historical literacy about Abraham 
Lincoln, particularly among children and young adults, throughout the 
Commonwealth.

5. Work collaboratively, where appropriate, with the federal Abraham 
Lincoln Bicentennial Commission, state and local agencies and 
governments, and professional and community organizations involved in 
local, state, or national commemoration of his birth.

6. Sponsor, support, and encourage opportunities for public discourse 
and diverse perspectives during the commemorative period on issues 
including but not limited to freedom, democracy, federalism and states' 
rights, American history between 1619 and the Civil Rights Era, 
reconciliation, preservation of the nation, the life and characteristics 
of Abraham Lincoln, the legacy of the Lincoln presidency, and the effect 
of his legacy during modern times and its implications for the future.

7. Seek the assistance and participation of diverse organizations and 
interested parties, in Virginia and out of state, with expertise or 
experience that will facilitate the Commission's work.

8. Submit to the General Assembly and the Governor an annual report for 
publication as a report document as provided in the procedures of the 
Division of Legislative Automated Systems for the processing of 
legislative documents and reports. The chairman of the Commission shall 
submit to the General Assembly and the Governor an annual executive 
summary of the interim activity and work of the Commission no later than 
the first day of each regular session of the General Assembly. The 
executive summary shall be submitted for publication as a report 
document as provided in the procedures of the Division of Legislative 
Automated Systems for the processing of legislative documents and 
reports and shall be posted on the General Assembly's website.

9. Perform such other duties, functions, and activities as may be 
necessary to facilitate and implement the objectives of this chapter.

§ 30-284 <http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+30-284>. 
Staffing.

Administrative staff support shall be provided by the Office of the 
Clerk of the Senate or the Office of the Clerk of the House of Delegates 
as may be appropriate for the house in which the chairman of the 
Commission serves. The Division of Legislative Services shall provide 
legal, research, policy analysis, and other services as requested by the 
Commission. All agencies of the Commonwealth shall provide assistance to 
the Commission, upon request.

2. That the provisions of this act shall not become effective unless an 
appropriation effectuating the purposes of this act is included in the 
2006-2008 
<http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+2006-2008> 
Appropriation Act passed during the 2007 Regular Session of the General 
Assembly and signed into law by the Governor.

3. That the provisions of this act shall expire on July 1, 2010.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Legislative Information System <http://leg1.state.va.us/071/lis.htm>

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