Senate committee kills bill to make Election Day a school holiday in Virginia

[Yonnie3]

In my part of Virginia, the schools have been closed on Election Day. They are used as polling places.

From the Richmond Times-Dispatch 2/14/19

Senate committee kills bill to make Election Day a school holiday in Virginia

BY JUSTIN MATTINGLY Richmond Times-Dispatch 22 min ago

Schools will continue to operate in Virginia on Election Day.

The Senate Education and Health Committee on Thursday killed House Bill 1752 from Del. Paul Krizek, D-Fairfax, that would have required all public schools in the state to treat Election Day in November as a school holiday. The bill came as a recommendation from a special committee formed after the deadly Parkland school shooting, which happened a year ago Thursday.

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Krizek’s bill was one of 24 recommendations made by the House Select Committee on School Safety, which Speaker of the House Kirk Cox, R-Colonial Heights, convened after last year’s Parkland shooting. Many of those recommendations, such as improving access to mental health resources and improving school safety training, have gone through the legislature without much opposition.

“It’s not as cut and dry,” Krizek said about his bill compared to the others. “It’s a tougher sell.”

The school safety committee also recommended changing the date of the June primary from the second Tuesday to the third Tuesday of the month. That bill passed the House and is now set to be taken up by the full Senate.

The Senate committee also killed a bill that would have allowed school systems to sell commercial advertising on their buses.

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https://www.richmond.com/news/virginia/government-politics/senate-committee-kills-bill-to-make-election-day-a-school/article_c354af1c-38fc-5737-bdf9-fc59fb761eee.html

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

1. Schools shouldn't be closed because they're used as polling places.

The kids need to see voting in action.

I'm in Santa Fe, and I often vote at a nearby school, and I just love it because kids are helping with the process. There are plenty of adults to make sure things are done right, but I think the kids helping out is fabulous.