Legislative Priorities

Goal: To ask the General Assembly to pass laws that defend our human rights, address housing affordability, invest in transportation equity, and improve environmental protections for our City and the broader Virginia commonwealth.

Project: Send public comment to the City

Please Act Now: Please support Grassroots Alexandria by speaking up for stronger human rights protections, improved housing affordability, investment in our transportation needs, and support for sustainable environmental initiatives. GrA is working with city staff, the City’s Boards and Commissions, and Alexandria City Councilors to shape legislative priorities that solve the pressing needs of residents in Alexandria.

Action Plan: Each summer, we develop a set of legislative priorities that we want the City to adopt in its Legislative Package for the upcoming General Assembly Session. A draft set of proposals can be found in these links:

Here is a SAMPLE MESSAGE: ‘I am writing to support amending the Virginia Human Rights Act to provide an individual’s private right of action to sue for discrimination to encompass discrimination in public accommodations, housing, education, and other non-employment contexts. We can’t rely on future administrations to enforce the Virginia Human Rights Act, and so must allow residents to take these actions to vindicate their rights on their own initiatives.’

Here is a SAMPLE MESSAGE: ‘I am writing to support allowing residents to protect their constitutional rights by creating a private right of action to sue federal agents in Virginia state courts for violations of their constitutional rights. Virginia should allow their residents to seek redress for blatant Constitutional violations in the state court system, following the lead of Connecticut, which just passed a collection of anti-ICE bills featuring such a provision.’

  • GrA Housing Affordability Priorities, Send Comments to the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority at info@arha.us.

Here is a SAMPLE MESSAGE: ‘I am writing to support providing more committed affordable housing for Virginia residents by a) recognizing the need for non-market sources of deeply-affordable (“working class”) housing, b) expanding local authority to fund and develop such housing (known as “social housing”), c) expanding local authority to require monetary housing contributions associated with development, and d) expanding state-level investment in affordable and deeply affordable housing. Affordable housing is desperately needed to address the significant housing burden faced by Alexandria families.’

Here is a SAMPLE MESSAGE: ‘I am writing to support dedicated and sustainable transit funding for WMATA, VRE and local bus systems such as DASH. Robust and well-utilized public transportation is a cornerstone of the Northern Virginia economy.’

Here is a SAMPLE MESSAGE: ‘I am writing to support expanded funding for the Solar for All, Weatherization Assistance Program, and Leap Program for Virginia residents so that we can proactively safeguard our electrical grid, improve health outcomes, and reduce energy costs during extreme weather events.’

By playing an active role in developing, encouraging and/or revising Virginia law, the City of Alexandria can ensure that Commonwealth of Virginia acts to protect our human rights, protect our environment, and support the development of more affordable and accessible housing within our City.

Project lead: Dane and Zeina

Project Status: At present the City’s public input survey on the City’s Legislative Package closed in August. Feedback will be reviewed and shared with the City of Alexandria’s Legislative Subcomittee for consideration. However, you can still engage with the City Council and the City’s Boards and Commissions who will approve the City’s legislative package.

As the City of Alexandria finalizes its Legislative Package, GrA will continue to work with the City of Alexandria, and reach out to our Commonwealth representatives in the General Assembly to move forward legislation that will improve the lives of those living in Alexandria and across the Commonwealth.

To join a project team, please write to one of the project leaders or to grassrootsalexandria@gmail.com