Introduction
The General Assembly, officially
the name of the State Legislature, dates from the establishment
of the House of Burgesses at Jamestown in 1619. It is now
composed of a Senate and a House of Delegates which have
the power to: levy taxes, enact laws not specifically prohibited
by the state or federal constitution, confirm the Governor’s
appointments of state agency heads and board members, approve
the budget, elect State Supreme Court Justices, Court of
Appeals, Circuit and District Court Judges, members of the
Judicial Inquiry and Review Commission, the Auditor of Public
Accounts, the Commissioners of the State Corporation Commission,
and members of the Virginia Worker’s Compensation Commission.
The General Assembly meets annually, beginning on the second
Wednesday in January, for 60 days in even-numbered years
and for 30days in odd-numbered years, with an option to
extend the annual session for a maximum of 30 days.
The present Constitution provides that the House of Delegates
shall contain 90 to 100 members and the Senate shall have
33 to 40 members. Both houses presently have maximum membership.
The terms of office are two years for Delegates and four
years for Senators.
House and
Senate
The House of Delegates consists of 100 members.
Each member represents approximately 71,000 citizens. The
House membership primarily consists of attorneys, business
executives, educators, and farmers. The term of office
for a member of the House of Delegates is two years. Each
member receives an annual salary of $17,640.
The Speaker of the House is the presiding officer of the
House and is elected by the House in even-numbered years
for a two-year term. The Speaker’s duties are dictated
by the Rules of the House. Among these duties are the assigning
of bills to committee and appointing the membership of
the 14 House standing committees.
The Clerk of the House is elected by the House in even-numbered
years and continues in office until another is chosen.
The Clerk is responsible for the administration of the
House under the direction of the Speaker.
The Senate of Virginia consists of 40 members. Each
member is elected for a term of four years and receives
an annual salary of $18,000. A Senator represents approximately
176,000 citizens of the Commonwealth. The membership of
the current Senate is composed of lawyers, business executives,
farmers, and those from a variety of other occupational
backgrounds.
The Lieutenant Governor is the presiding officer of the
Senate and is elected in a statewide election for a four-year
term. In the event of his absence, the President pro tempore
carries out the duties of the presiding officer. The President
pro tempore is elected by the Senate for a term of four
years.
The Clerk of the Senate is elected by the Senate and serves as the chief administrative
officer. The Clerk's duties are overseeing the daily operations of the Senate,
maintaining all Senate records, keeping the daily Journal, referring bills to
committees, personnel management, information technology, and facilities management.
The Big Picture - How does the General Assembly fit in with the
other branches of Government
Virginia’s government is
made up of three branches: the Judicial branch, the Executive
branch, and the Legislative branch.
The Judicial branch
consists of the courts, which decide when laws have been broken by
the citizens of the Commonwealth and whether laws agree with
Virginia’s Constitution.
The Executive
branch is made up of the Governor of Virginia and his
cabinet. The Governor is the head of the Executive branch.
He prepares the biennial budget, administers the state
bureaucracy, appoints cabinet officers, and grants pardons.
The Legislative
branch consists of the General Assembly. The General
Assembly is charged with making the laws of the Commonwealth,
appointing state agency heads and board members, approving
the budget, electing State Supreme Court Justices, Court
of Appeals, Circuit and District Court Judges, members
of the Judicial Inquiry and Review Commission, the Auditor
of Public Accounts, the Commissioners of the State Corporation
Commission, and members of the Virginia Worker’s Compensation
Commission.
All three of these
branches of government are interconnected. The General Assembly
makes the laws, and the Judicial branch makes sure those
laws are constitutional. The courts have judges, and the
General Assembly elects those judges to their positions.
The Governor introduces the biennium Budget and the General
Assembly must approve that budget. These are just a few examples
of how the branches of government work together. All three
branches work together under a system of checks and balances
to insure that the citizens of the Commonwealth have a fair
and just system of governance.
How a Bill
Becomes a Law
- A Delegate or Senator has an idea for a bill, usually from
a constituent. He or she presents the idea to the Division
of Legislative Services and requests that it be drafted
into a bill. The bill is signed by the patron (the Delegate
or Senator who had the bill introduced), introduced, and
printed.
The bill is referred
to the appropriate committee. The members of the committee
consider the bill and decide what action to take. This is
when the public may speak.
First Reading:
The bill title is printed in the Calendar on its first reading
or is read by the Clerk, and the bill advances to second
reading.
Second Reading:
The next day the bill title appears in the printed Calendar on
second reading. Bills are considered in the order in which
they appear on the Calendar. The Clerk reads the title of
the bill a second time. A bill on second reading is amendable
and is debatable. A bill that has passed second reading with
or without an amendment is engrossed. If an amendment is
adopted, the bill is reprinted in its final form for passage.
Third Reading:
The
next day, the engrossed bill title appears in the Calendar
on third reading. The title is read a third time by the Clerk.
By recorded vote, the bill is passed.
Communication: When
passed, the bill is sent to the other body, either by the
Clerk in a communication or by a member in person, informing
the other body that the bill has passed.
In the other body:
The
bill goes through essentially the same procedure as it did
in the house of origin. The bill title is printed in the
Calendar or is read by the Clerk. The bill is referred to
a standing committee, considered, and reported by the committee.
The title is read a second and a third time before passage.
Committee of Conference:
If the House amends a Senate bill, or the Senate amends a House
bill, and the house of origin disagrees with the amendment,
a conference committee, usually three members from each legislative
body, may be formed to resolve differences.
Enrollment:
After
being passed by both houses of the General Assembly, the
bill is printed as an enrolled bill, examined, and signed
by the presiding officer of each chamber.
Governor:
The bill is then sent to the Governor for his approval. After
being signed by the Governor, the bill is sent to the Clerk
of the House (Keeper of the Rolls of the Commonwealth) and
is assigned a chapter number. All chapters of a session are
compiled and bound as the Acts of Assembly. Bills that become
law at a regular session (or the reconvened session that
follows) are effective the first day of July following adjournment
of the regular session, unless otherwise specified.
People, Places, and Things
George Washington:George
Washington, a Virginian, was our first President. He was
commander-in-chief of American forces during the Revolution,
chairman of the convention that wrote the U.S. Constitution,
and is called the “Father of our Country.” The
famous Houdon statue of George Washington can be found
in the Capitol Rotunda.
Thomas Jefferson:
Thomas
Jefferson was a Virginian and is known for writing the Declaration
of Independence. He also penned the Statute of Religious
Freedom which is memorialized by a plaque in the Chamber
of the House of Delegates. Jefferson also designed the original
Capitol building in Richmond. He was the third president
of the United States.
James Madison:
James
Madison is called the “Father of the Constitution”
because he was the author of many of its provisions and was
one of the leaders at the Constitutional Convention. He is
also the author of the Bill of Rights and fourth president
of the United States.
James Monroe:
James
Monroe was the fifth president of the United States. He established
the Monroe Doctrine warning European powers not to interfere
in the Americas.
L. Douglas Wilder:
A Richmond attorney, Governor Wilder served in the State
Senate and as Lieutenant Governor before becoming the first
elected African-American Governor in U.S. history. As Governor,
he balanced the state budget during a recession without raising
taxes or endangering the state's AAA bond rating. He also
established an emergency reserve fund and crafted a record-setting
bond package for capital improvements.
Virginia State Capitol Building:
In 1904, extensive
renovation and additional construction to the Capitol were
begun. Wings were added to the west of the original structure
as a new Senate chamber and to the east as new quarters
for the House of Delegates. Other modernizations have since
been added, including automatic elevators, public address
systems, electronic voting tabulators, a snack bar, and
other facilities unknown to Jefferson's contemporaries.
These structures remain in use to the present day.
Virginia Governor’s Mansion:
In 1810, the Virginia
General Assembly authorized funds for the construction of Virginia's
Executive Mansion. Work was completed on the Alexander Parris
designed home and its first residents, the family of Governor
James Barboor, occupied the home in 1813. Since that time --
with its historic traditions, sophistication, and classic elegance
--this Federal-style structure has been the home of Virginia
Governors and their families.
Virginia Supreme Court Building:
The Virginia Supreme Court Building
is located in Richmond, near the Capitol. The present Supreme
Court of Virginia is made up of seven justices elected
by a majority vote of both houses of the General Assembly
for a term of twelve years. To be eligible for election,
a candidate must be a resident of Virginia and must have
been a member of the Virginia Bar for at least five years.
Vacancies on the Court occurring between sessions of the
General Assembly may be filled by the Governor for a term
expiring thirty days after the commencement of the next
session of the General Assembly. By Constitution and statute,
the Chief Justice is the senior justice in years of service
on the Court.
Senate of Virginia Seal:
The Seal for the Senate of
Virginia was initiated in 1973 by Senator James D. Hagood,
President pro tempore. Senator Hagood was concerned with the
misuse of the great seal of the Commonwealth and wanted a seal
designed for the Senate. Senator J. Harry Michael, Jr., was
selected to head the project. The College of Arms in London
agreed to undertake the project and designed a seal drawn from
the devisal of arms (seal) of the London Company. A general
description of the Senate seal follows: On the dexter of the
arms is the state bird, a cardinal with wings outspread. On
the sinister side of the shield is a dragon, part of the arms
of the sovereigns of England. In the shield are four quarters—the
arms of France (modern), those of England, those of Scotland,
and those of Ireland. To denominate the Senate as a law-making
body, on the cross there is superimposed an ivory gavel. Above
the shield is a helmet, otherwise referred to as a "helm",
with a wreath of dogwood flowers, the state flower, supporting
the female figure which represents Queen Elizabeth I. There
is a scroll on each side of the maiden. The ribbon at the base
of the shield contains the motto of the Senate, "Floreat
Senatus Virginiae", translated as "May the Senate
of Virginia flourish."
The Senate seal was accepted by the Senate on January 22,
1981.
House of Delegates Mace:
The Mace is a ceremonial
staff presented to the House of Delegates in 1700 by the
Governor General of the Colony and Dominion of Virginia.
Displayed in the old House chamber is an Edwardian style
mace made of silver with a 24-karat gold wash. Purchased
in England, it was presented to the Virginia House of Delegates
in 1974 by the Jamestown Foundation. The mace is presented
by the sergeant-at-arms in the current House chamber and
remains each day until the House adjourns.
The importance of
the mace lies in its symbolism, which derives from English
tradition. Centuries ago, the King’s bodyguard carried
clubs in order to protect the royal person when traveling
among the people. Gradually the club, or mace was replaced
by other more useful weapons and it became an ornament of
beauty, often made of precious metals encrusted with jewels,
and an object symbolic of royal authority and power. As such,
it was first used in the British House of Commons.
Today a mace can also be seen in the United States House of
Representatives, and it symbolizes, as it does here, the
importance of our government.
Geography
Virginia officially became a state on June 25th, 1788, making
Virginia the 10th state. Richmond is the Capital of Virginia.
Virginia is approximately
42,769 square miles and is divided into four geographic regions.
The regions are the Allegheny Plateau, the Ridge and Valley,
the Piedmont, and the Tidewater.
Virginia’s border
states are Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, Tennessee,
and West Virginia.
For the purposes
of the legislature, the state is divided into 100 House of
Delegates Districts and 40 Senate Districts. One member serves
from each district.
Virginia’s largest
cities are Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Norfolk, and Richmond.
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