March 17, 2023

Neighbors, 

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Wishing you a joyful and lucky day today and every day!

I was elated to join my friend Jennifer McClellan for her Congressional swearing in ceremony! Congresswoman McClellan was elected in a special election in February to represent Virginia’s 4th Congressional District after the death of Congressman A. Donald McEachin. She and I have worked on several legislative proposals when she served in the state Senate, and I am so happy that she will be a voice for Virginia in Congress!

In this newsletter, I’ve included information about the following:

  • Town Halls

  • Community Updates

    • Commendations

    • Civic Association Meetings

    • Meeting with Girl Scout Troop 2209 

    • The Arc of Northern Virginia’s "A Life Like Yours" Benefit Breakfast

    • FCPS School Board Rally For Collective Bargaining

    • Rally with National Airport Workers

    • Jewish Community Relations Council's “An Evening of Community Building and Collaboration”

    • White House Visit for Julie Su Nomination

  • Legislative Updates

    • Budget Update

    • Reconvened Session

    • Redistricting Reminder

As always, let me know if you have questions or need assistance by calling my office at (804) 698-1042 or emailing me at DelKTran@house.virginia.gov. 

Best, Kathy

Kathy KL Tran

Delegate

Town Halls

Save the dates for two upcoming virtual town halls in April:

End of Session Virtual Town Hall

Thursday, April 13 at 7pm

and

Delegate Kathy Tran’s 3rd Annual Virtual Earth Day Town Hall

Wednesday, April 19 at 7pm

I hope you’ll join me for my wrap-up of the legislative session and my 3rd annual Earth Day Town Hall! We will share information about these upcoming town halls through this newsletter and on social media – I look forward to seeing you!

Community Updates

Commendations

It was wonderful to see and catch up with Principal Angela Thompson of Newington Forest Elementary School when I came to present a commendation for my constituent, Laura, to congratulate her on her contributions and retirement as the school counselor.

I was pleased to present Principal Gary Morris with a commendation for his leadership and mentorship during his time as the principal of South County High School, where he built a nurturing and inclusive environment. I wish him the best at Metz Middle School!

Civic Association Meetings

I appreciated the opportunity to meet with several neighborhood associations recently. I joined the North Springfield Civic Association at their March meeting to hear about their priorities and share my legislative work, and I had coffee with members of The Woods at South Run Homeowners Association to discuss road safety in our community.

Girl Scout Troop 2209 

It was so wonderful meeting with Girl Scout Troop 2209 to help them earn their Democracy Badge. We were able to discuss running for office, women’s leadership roles, standing up for your values, and school safety. These girls are our future! 

The Arc of Northern Virginia’s "A Life Like Yours" Benefit Breakfast

I was delighted to join my constituents, Toby and Linsday, and community leaders at The Arc of Northern Virginia’s "A Life Like Yours'' Benefit Breakfast. The Arc is a leader in providing direct services and advocating for policies to help individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and we have worked together on several policy initiatives during my time in office.

Jewish Community Relations Council's “An Evening of Community Building and Collaboration”

I joined other local elected officials and community leaders for an evening with Asian American Pacific Islander and Jewish leaders from San Francisco, who are traveling together on a solidarity mission to New York and DC, to strengthen relationships between our communities.

FCPS School Board Rally For Collective Bargaining

My daughter and I attended a rally hosted by Fairfax County Education Association, Fairfax County Federation of Teachers, and SIEU 512 to urge the Fairfax County School Board to pass a resolution allowing educators and staff to collectively bargain. I was proud to stand with my constituents, parents, students, and community leaders, and that evening, the FCPS School Board passed their resolution allowing collective bargaining!

Rally with National Airport Workers

I joined SEIU 32BJ, SEIU 512, Northern Virginia Labor Federation and other unions to march with National Airport workers as they call for health care and paid sick leave – No one should have to choose between work and taking care of their health.

White House Visit for Julie Su Nomination

I had the privilege of attending the White House ceremony for President Biden’s announcement that he is nominating  Julie Su as the next US Labor Secretary. 

I started my career as a civil servant at the US Department of Labor in 2003, drawn to the Department’s mission of lifting up workers. During my time there, I thought often of my parents’ experience as refugees newly resettling in the US, and of many other immigrants who are working hard to provide for their families: Jobs are not only about putting food on the table and saving for the future, but they are also about aspirations, dignity, being a part of a community, contributing to something larger than yourself, and so much more.

It was very meaningful for me to be at the ceremony to lift up Julie Su. She is eminently qualified to lead the Department and dedicated to ensuring workers have a voice and are able to organize, and that the jobs we create in our country are good jobs - with good wages, good benefits, career ladders, and worker safety.

And, as the first AAPI secretary-level member of the Biden Administration, Julie will bring an important voice to the table.

Legislative Updates

Budget Update

The state Senate and House of Delegates are meeting to negotiate a budget agreement to allocate the entirety of our $4.6 billion surplus.

As I mentioned previously, when the General Assembly adjourned, we only reached agreement to pass a “skinny budget” that allowed us to immediately fill the school funding shortfall caused by an accounting error at the Virginia Department of Education. As I’ve noted, this error would have cost school districts across the Commonwealth over $200 million, more than $18 million in Fairfax alone. The skinny budget also added funds to Virginia’s revenue stabilization fund, ongoing state construction projects, and the Virginia Retirement System trust fund.

You can read my summary of key differences in the House and state Senate proposals in my past newsletter here, and you can check out The Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis’s comprehensive breakdown of the proposed budgets.

Reconvened Session

The General Assembly will reconvene on April 12 to consider any vetoes or amendments to bills proposed by the Governor. 

As the Governor makes decisions about legislation passed during the regular session, you can track the list of vetoed, amended, and approved legislation on the Legislative Information Systems (LIS) website.

Redistricting Reminder

As a reminder, the district lines of the General Assembly were redrawn by the Supreme Court last year, which will take effect after this fall’s elections. Every 10 years, Congressional and state legislature district lines are redrawn given updated population data from the Census. 

Your member of the General Assembly will continue to represent you until the new General Assembly is sworn in next January. For example, I will continue representing the 42nd District until next January.

However, as I announced in October, I will be running for re-election in the new 18th House District. I currently represent about 50 percent of this district, which includes parts of Lorton and West, Central and North Springfield. I hope to be able to continue being a voice for you in the House of Delegates and look forward to meeting neighbors in the new part of the district..

You can see which new district you reside in on the General Assembly’s website. Just input your address, click “find now,” and then “**NEW IN 2024.” If you are interested to see who is running for the House of Delegates or state Senate in your new district, I encourage you to check out Virginia Public Access Project’s website.