HJ25: Virginia Rail Heritage Region; designating various counties, cities, and towns to be included.


HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 25
Designating ?Virginia's Rail Heritage Region.?

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Agreed to by the House of Delegates, January 21, 2010
Agreed to by the Senate, March 9, 2010

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WHEREAS, the region, including the Counties of Allegheny, Amherst, Bedford, Botetourt, Campbell, and Roanoke, and the Cities of Lynchburg, Bedford, Covington, Salem, and Roanoke, and the Towns of Buchanan, Clifton Forge, Troutville, Amherst, Iron Gate, and Vinton, involves the largest concentration of rail facilities in Virginia, owned by the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad, the Norfolk and Western Railway Company, and the Southern Railway Company, including the shops in Roanoke where the most modern steam locomotives in the world were designed and built, the Clifton Forge shops of the C&O Railway, and the Southern facilities at Monroe in Amherst County; and

WHEREAS, with the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad Historical Society in Clifton Forge and the Norfolk and Western Historical Society in Roanoke combined with the Roanoke and Blue Ridge chapters of the National Railway Historical Society and the Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke, this region has the largest base of rail enthusiasts in the Commonwealth; and

WHEREAS, the region is the location of the Commonwealth's official transportation museum, the Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke, designated by the General Assembly in the 1980s; and

WHEREAS, the region also contains the O. Winston Link Museum, featuring America?s finest collection of professional photos taken of Virginia railroads in the 1950s, when steam was king on the Norfolk and Western; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly designate ?Virginia?s Rail Heritage Region,? which includes the Counties of Allegheny, Amherst, Bedford, Botetourt, Campbell, and Roanoke, and the Cities of Lynchburg, Bedford, Covington, Salem, and Roanoke, and the Towns of Buchanan, Clifton Forge, Troutville, Amherst, Iron Gate, and Vinton, and encourage state agencies and local governments to work together to promote and encourage rail tourism in their respective areas of the region, to include working with the Commonwealth Transportation Board to establish appropriate highway signage; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates transmit copies of this resolution to the city and town councils and the county boards of each locality in ?Virginia?s Rail Heritage Region? as an expression of the General Assembly?s support.

HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 25
Offered January 13, 2010
Prefiled January 4, 2010
A BILL to amend the Code of Virginia by adding sections numbered 22.1-18.2 and 22.1-90.1, relating to instructional spending in the classroom.
Patron-- Putney

Committee Referral Pending

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1.  That the Code of Virginia is amended by adding sections numbered 22.1-18.2 and 22.1-90.1 as follows:

§ 22.1-18.2. Annual report to General Assembly on instructional spending.

Beginning on July 1, 2011, the Board shall annually report to the Senate Committee on Finance and the House Committee on Appropriations the amount of spending allocated by local school boards to instructional spending for each fiscal year based on the reports submitted to the Board in accordance with § 22.1-90.1.

§ 22.1-90.1. Annual report to Board of Education on instructional spending.

A. Each local school board shall report annually to the Board of Education the percentage of its operating budget allocated to instructional spending for each fiscal year. "Instructional spending" means any current expenditures for activities directly associated with the interaction between teachers and students, including teacher salaries and benefits, supplies, textbooks, and purchased instructional services. "Instructional spending" does not include expenditures such as food services; interscholastic athletics; community services; adult education; operation and maintenance of buildings; school administration; student support services for nurses, guidance counselors, and therapists; and student transportation.

B. Any school board that, according to its annual report, spent less than 65 percent of its operating budget on instructional spending for the reported fiscal year shall present a plan to the Board to increase such expenditures by 0.5 percent in the following fiscal year. Any school board failing to submit such a plan shall be audited by the Auditor of Public Accounts pursuant to § 15.2-2511. The Auditor of Public Accounts shall, upon completing such audit, submit recommendations to the Board including instruction concerning how school divisions failing to meet the 65 percent requirement may increase their instructional spending to 65 percent in the next fiscal year. The Board shall develop a plan, based upon the recommendations, to assist such school divisions in increasing instructional spending.