Dear Jack,

I hope you and your family are doing well during these tough times. We'll be sending out weekly Bulletins to update you on all the information you need in the 13th District.

Session Begins

The 2021 regular session began on Wednesday! As always, I'm grateful and humbled to be representing the people of the 13th District in Richmond. Some of the bills that I'm putting forward this session that I want to highlight:

SB 1259: This bill would help to slow the rise of Greenway tolls by increasing financial security requirements for the Greenway's operators and putting public protections into place for future SCC toll rate cases.

SB 1279: This bill would create an employment initiative to help military service members, veterans, and their spouses and help ease the transition to civilian life.

SB 1299: This bill would allow restaurants to continue to sell mixed drinks to-go, as they've been doing during the pandemic.

SB 1410: This bill would prevent discrimination in public accommodations, employment, or housing against military service members or their spouses.

Censure of Sen. Amanda Chase

As many of you may know, Sen. Amanda Chase spoke at the Capitol on January 6th and helped to encourage the insurrection that happened that day. I believe that her refusal to accept the results of a free and fair election, to the point of actually instigating insurrection, is a violation of her oath to support the Constitution of the United States. For this reason, I introduced SR 91, which would censure Sen. Chase. I am not happy to have to do this -- however, we have to stand up and say that our oaths to this country, this Commonwealth, and the people we represent mean something.

Vaccine Updates

Virginia's vaccination numbers have been rapidly improving this week, though we still have a long way to go to get to where we need to be. The Governor announced this week that people 65+, as well as people between 18-65 with high-risk conditions, are now eligible to receive the vaccine in the 1b vaccine tier. 

If you are in Loudoun County: You can fill out this vaccine pre-screening form, and you will be contacted when you're able to get scheduled for a vaccine.

If you are in Prince William County: You can fill out this vaccination request form, and you will be notified when you're able to get scheduled for a vaccine.

Coronavirus Numbers 1/17

As always, please reach out to my office if you need any assistance. My Senate email address is [email protected] and my in-district phone number is (571) 367-9080. I hope you and your family are able to stay safe and healthy during these challenging times.

Sincerely,

Senator John J. Bell