
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, February 4, 1991                   TAG: 9102040300
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: A-6   EDITION: EVENING 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

ASSEMBLY HIGHLIGHTS/ SUNDAY'S SESSION

Budget: The Senate Finance Committee recommended major changes in Gov. Douglas Wilder's budget bill and rebuked the governor for overstepping his authority in cutting spending. Meanwhile, the House Appropriations Committee went along with most of the governor's budget proposals.

Education: The House of Delegates by voice vote killed a bill allowing financially strapped localities to relax education standards with approval of the state Board of Education.

Abortion: A bill to require a minor to tell a parent or a judge before getting an abortion died in the House Courts of Justice Committee on a 10-10 vote.

School construction: The House voted 57-43 to pass a bill allowing the sale of bonds backed by the Literary Fund to finance about $162 million in school construction.

Early retirement: The House voted 97-1 to pass a bill establishing an early retirement program for state employees.

RF&P stock: The House voted 84-15 to pass a bill allowing the state to pass control of its RF&P Corp. stock to the state pension fund.

Gun ban: The House voted 98-1 to pass a bill prohibiting until Feb. 1, 1992, leases which ban guns in public housing.

Tow trucks: The House voted 49-44 to pass a bill requiring tow-truck operators to accept personal checks or credit cards when a parking violator retrieves his impounded vehicle.

Beer kegs: The House voted 56-43 to send back to committee a bill requiring registration of beer kegs, thus killing the bill for this session.

Smoking: The House voted 87-13 to pass a bill exempting unenclosed elevators from the no-smoking requirements in the Virginia Indoor Clean Air Act.

Dealer tags: The House gave preliminary approval to a bill limiting car dealers who sell fewer than 50 cars a year to four dealer tags.

Surrogate mothers: The House and Senate Courts of Justice committees approved bills that would regulate surrogate motherhood contracts although the House version would not take effect until 1993.

Child abuse: The Senate Courts of Justice Committee approved 9-1 a bill to extend the statute of limitations for child abuse victims to file lawsuits against the abuser.

Assault weapons: The Senate Courts of Justice Committee approved 11-2 a bill to ban the carrying of certain assault weapons on the streets of Richmond, Norfolk and Virginia Beach.

Summer camps: The Senate Courts of Justice Committee voted 11-4 for a bill to require criminal background checks of operators and employees of summer camps. z Criminal checks: The Senate Courts of Justice Committee voted 10-4 to

add Virginia Beach and Richmond to the school divisions that may get state police criminal background checks of school employees.

Child porn: The Senate Courts of Justice Committee unanimously approved a bill that makes it a crime to possess child pornography.

by CNB