Lynwood Lewis

The second full week of the Virginia General Assembly saw a noticeable increase in the pace of activity which will likely continue until legislative cross-over day on Feb. 16.

This week I took a point of personal privilege on the floor of the House to speak about a column which appeared in the Orlando Sentinel (www.orlandosentinel).

This column, by the President of the Florida Manufacturer’s Association, sounded the alarm for Floridians in regard to the competition for dominance in space flight which Wallops Island is poised to give.

The column reminded Floridians that the space industry in Florida contributed over $4 billion to Florida’s economy, half of which was in salaries alone.

In my remarks before the House, I reminded my colleagues of the efforts that we had made in attracting the Orbital project to the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport. I thanked them for their support but reminded them that we must keep up the effort as Florida is becoming more and more aware of the threat posed by the Wallops Island flight facility.

Shortly after the column appeared, the Governor of Florida announced a $32 million appropriation to Florida’s Spaceport. Also, we must also be very, very cautious as we tend to unquestioningly embrace offshore oil and natural gas exploration about which both the Navy and NASA are on record as having serious and grave reservations.

I do not know whether or not offshore energy exploration and production can be accomplished in harmony with activities of the Navy and the Spaceport; however, I think at a minimum, we need to show the Navy and the space industry that we are at least sensitive to their concerns as we seek to develop the Commonwealth’s position on that issue.

A great many significant investment decisions are being made based upon the idea that flight paths and operations areas will be free from obstruction.

While the destiny of any money obtained from offshore oil and natural gas production, if it ever occurs five or ten years down the line, is uncertain, I know where the economic benefit from the Navy and commercial space launches will be received, right here on the Eastern Shore and in the Commonwealth.

In addition Dels. Cosgrove, Kilgore and I have legislation that will remove the end-date on the bill we earlier passed for space flight liability immunity and also renewing the governor’s aerospace advisory council.

Some of my legislation has advanced through the House, including a bill to prohibit the VMRC from granting commercial fishing licenses or permits to residents of states that do not grant Virginia the same licenses or permits.

We have also given the Eastern Shore special mention in Virginia’s Nutrient Trading Law so as to allow our towns and the hospital the ability to buy nutrient credits from other basins, which is incredibly important as they struggle in the short term with remediating and improving their sewage disposal facilities.

I will discuss some of my other legislation as it progresses through the process.

Over 2,000 bills have been filed this session and are working their way through the process in both the House and the Senate. The number will be cut down by the subcommittee and the committee process and also by some floor action. All in all, however, this is a tremendous amount of legislation for us to consider in addition to the horrendous task of trying to construct a budget in light of a $4 billion shortfall.

As always, we welcome and encourage visits to the Capitol and my office will be glad to help coordinate and facilitate visits by any group. Please do not hesitate to contact me while I am in Richmond at 804-698-1000 or by e-mail at DelLLewis@house.virginia.gov or by mail at Delegate Lynwood Lewis, P. O. Box 406, Richmond, VA 23218.