By Mary Frances McCarthy
Herald Staff Writer
(From the issue of 2/3/05)

Catholics from across Virginia — from Tidewater to Arlington, Virginia Beach to Southwest Virginia — convened in Richmond on Monday to visit their legislative representatives and remind them of the Catholic Church’s support of life, dignity and fairness for all people.

In his welcoming statement, Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde urged the advocates to "be as the Gospel tells us to be — salt of the earth and light of the world — so that all people can live in dignity."

Michael Stone, the Richmond Diocese director of the Office for Justice and Peace, reminded the advocates that they need not be experts on the issues.

"We’re not lobbyists, we’re advocates — strictly non-partisan in this work," he said. In the words of the U.S. bishop’s "Faithful Citizenship" he urged them to "be political without being partisan.

"We are people of faith coming to express concerns to legislators," he said.

Jeff Caruso, the newly appointed head of the Virginia Catholic Conference, who has, in a few short weeks, become an expert on the Catholic position of many bills in the assembly, said that "bringing two dioceses together over common policy agendas…can’t help but push (that agenda) forward."

He reminded the advocates that while they met with a number of powerful political forces throughout the day, "You’re not here for yourselves, but on behalf of those who can’t speak for themselves."

Along with the 180 advocates, Bishop Loverde spent the morning visiting delegates and senators in their offices.

Among these was Robert McDonnell, 84-Va., chair of the House Courts and Justice Committee.

"If our faith doesn’t inform our actions, what use is it?" McDonnell, a Catholic, said to the bishop.

Bishop Loverde urged McDonnell’s support for the abolishment of the death penalty for juveniles on the grounds that "punishing people who commit violence with violence doesn’t make sense to me." The bishop reminded McDonnell of Pope John Paul II’s thoughts on the death penalty, that in most cases it is unnecessary for the good of society.

Another of the bishop’s visits was to Delegate Gary Reese, 67-Va., sponsor of HB 1589, which would not require, but simply make it permissible for public school systems to provide school buses to private schools.

Acknowledging that 27 states already have this system in place, Reese said, "We’re not reinventing the wheel," but said that if small steps could be made toward the availability of school busing for private schools, those steps would be in the right directions.

The bus bill, which has been supported by VA EDGE, has passed through the education committee and as of Feb. 1 was still awaiting a vote on the House floor.

To contact legislators call 1-800-889-0229 between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. to leave a message. Leave your name, geographic location and the legislator for whom you wish to leave a message; or visit legis.state.va.us for information on how to send correspondence.

Catholic Advocacy Day in Washington, D.C. will be held on April 14. For more information contact the Office of Justice and Peace of the Diocese of Richmond at 811 Cathedral Place, Richmond, Va. 23220.

Key Bills and Issues That Catholics Support

House Bills 2347 and 2784; Senate Bill 839 — Regulation and Licensure of Abortion Clinics. Virginia abortion clinics are not licensed, even though major surgery is performed in them each day.

House Bill 1524 — Inclusion of Fetal Pain in Informed Consent Information Given Prior to an Abortion — Virginia’s "informed consent" law does not require that women be informed of a fetus’ capacity to experience pain.

House Bill 1812 — Prohibition on the Execution of an Inmate While She is Pregnant

Budget Amendment for an additional $3.3 million for prenatal healthcare eligibility to support 175 percent of poverty line. Virginia’s Medicaid program only provides prenatal care to women at or below the 133 percent poverty line. Thirty-eight other states cover women at much higher levels of low income. The Virginia Catholic Conference urges expansion up to 200 percent of poverty.

House Bill 1975, Senate Bill 1078 — Abolish the Death Penalty for Juveniles. Virginia ranks second in the number of juvenile offenders executed. Studies show that the cognitive and emotional development of juveniles is not equivalent of that of adults.

House Bill 1761 — Reverse Existing Lifetime Ban on Cash Assistance and Food Stamp Benefits for Individuals Convicted of a Drug Related Felony. Cash assistance and food stamps are important transitional assistance for former offenders leaving prison.

Budget Amendment to reduce the grocery sales tax from 3 percent to 1.5 percent. Virginia’s tax on groceries hurts low-income families who spend a higher proportion of their earnings on food.

Budget Amendments to increase the state’s contribution to homeless services and support for permanent housing for homeless adults.

Budget Amendments to provide rental subsidies to working families whose wages do not enable them to afford adequate housing. Full-time minimum wage jobs pay $10,712 per year. In 2003, the poverty line for a family of four was $18,400. In 2002, 43 percent of those requesting shelter in Virginia were denied due to lack of space.

House Bill 1589 — Authorize Local School Boards to Provide Government Subsidized Bus Transportation to Non-Public School Students. Parents who choose parochial or private schools contribute their share of taxes, but must provide transportation to school. Busing non-public school students promotes public safety, eliminates heavy traffic on residential streets and allows more parents to use public transportation to commute to work

House Bill 1942 — Tax Credits for Education Related Expenses and Scholarship Programs.

HJ 528, 586, 584, 615; SJ 337 — Amend the Virginia Constitution to Explicitly Provide that Marriage May Exist Only Between a Man and a Woman.

Catholics Oppose

Senate Bill 456 — Redefinition of "Contraception" to Include Drugs that Prevent a Newly Conceived Embryo From Implanting in the Uterus. Some forms of "contraception" have abortive properties.

Senate Bill 1194 — Establish a New State Fund to Subsidize Destructive Embryonic Stem Cell Research.

House Bill 2050, Senate Bill 1055 — Increase the Wages an Employee Must Earn to be Eligible for Unemployment Compensation Benefits. This bill would unfairly reduce the number of low-wage workers eligible for unemployment compensation benefits. Virginia pays unemployment insurance benefits to a relatively low percentage of its unemployed workers. Efforts to increase minimum earnings to be eligible for unemployment insurance would hurt low-wage workers.

House Bill 1798 — Exclude "Nonqualified Aliens" from Eligibility for Many State and Local Benefits.

House Bill 1625 — Prohibit Driver’s Licenses and Permits to Those Unable to Communicate in English. Allowing only English speakers to obtain driver’s licenses would deny many Virginia workers the ability to drive to and from places of employment, and the recognized identity cards necessary to open bank accounts and cash checks.