THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, February 1, 1997 TAG: 9702010410
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B2 EDITION: FINAL
LENGTH: 156 lines
What would you prefer to see as you cruise down a Virginia highway: a patch of saplings or a billboard advertising an eatery, motel or gas station at the next exit?
If a bill approved Friday by the House of Delegates becomes law, you can expect to see more ads and less greenery.
The legislation would permit billboard owners to cut down ``diseased or unsightly'' trees up to four inches in diameter on public land if the trees block the view of the billboard from the highway.
Scenic America, a nonprofit conservation group in Washington, and the Garden Club of Virginia opposed Del. Frank M. Ruff's bill. Scenic America spokesman Frank Vespe said the proposal puts the formidable outdoor advertising lobby's interests ahead of the public good.
Not so, said Kippy Burns of the Outdoor Advertising Association of America. She said travelers depend on billboards when looking for tourist attractions, food, fuel and lodging.
Under the proposal by Ruff, R-Mecklenburg, billboard owners would have to get a permit from the state Department of Transportation before chopping down trees. The bill does not specify who decides whether trees are diseased or unsightly. That would be left to VDOT regulations.
Seven states have similar laws, Burns said. ``We drove down Interstate 95 yesterday and saw a number of instances where trees on the public right of way could be cut down under this bill,'' Vespe said Friday. ``It would have been hundreds of trees.''
Republican Del. John Watkins, who owns a nursery in suburban Richmond, said some trees four inches in diameter can grow as high as 20 to 25 feet. He voted for the bill, which passed 58-40. ``It's at a point now where a lot of the signs aren't as useful to the traveler as they could be,'' Watkins said.
Vespe argued that the smaller signs VDOT places along interstate highways advising motorists about services available at the next exit are adequate. ``Tourists don't come to Virginia because it has billboards,'' he said. ``They come because Virginia has incredible natural beauty and carefully preserved historic communities.''
VDOT regulations allow removal of trees up to two inches in diameter to improve visibility of about 2,300 billboards. Ruff's bill would apply to those signs plus an additional 1,300 billboards not now covered by the VDOT regulations.
``We have a long history of opposing billboards, going back to about 1930,'' said Hylah Boyd of Richmond, conservation chairman for the Garden Club of Virginia. ``We're very interested in Virginia's scenic beauty being maintained, and we don't think billboards help in that effort.''
Del. Clifton A. ``Chip'' Woodrum's wife, Emily, is active in the Garden Club in Roanoke, but he voted for the bill anyway. He said he's not too worried about the grief he might catch from her. ``We've been happily married for 33 years,'' he said, ``and we're talking about hugging trees - not blondes.''
ALSO FRIDAY Parental notification seems sure to pass
Senators debating a bill requiring parental notification when minors receive abortions seemed to agree on one point Friday: When the bill comes up for a final vote Monday, it's going to pass.
Compared to last year, when the women senators waged a powerful clamor and rose in joint protest to oppose parental notification, senators this year acted like the debate was a mere formality.
The amendments were the same: Opponents tried to add grandparents, stepparents, clergy and other relatives to the list of people the minors could notify. They tried to lower the age of consent from 18 to 17.
But with the votes long since counted and the bill's fate all but decided, opponents lost every attempt to water down the measure. They could hardly muster the eight raised hands needed to get all the votes recorded in the journal.
The only amendment that received spirited debate was Portsmouth Democrat L. Louise Lucas' suggestion that the parents of the unborn child's father be notified as well. It failed.
``People say it takes two to tango,'' said Lucas. ``Well, I've seen people tango alone, but - and I don't mean to make light of the situation - you can't make a baby alone.''
The only new protest this year: that the bill came from the Senate Courts of Justice Committee and not the Education and Health Committee. That point will likely be the subject of a court challenge if the bill passes. It would also be a key aspect in ensuring the bill's passage, because Democrats on the Education and Health Committee have defeated it in the past.
``This is not a punitive issue,'' said Sen. Janet Howell, D-Reston, arguing that the bill did not belong before the committee that considers criminal laws.
The House Finance Committee voted 17-5 in favor of a bill designed to ensure construction of a new arena in Norfolk if Hampton Roads is awarded a National Hockey League franchise.
The bill calls for sales and income tax generated at the new arena and at Scope and Chrysler Hall to be used to finance construction. Legislators and investors are still negotiating the arrangement with Gov. George F. Allen and with bond attorneys.
The House of Delegates voted 50-47 to pass a bill allowing the legislature's Joint Rules Committee to appoint five members of the State Council of Higher Education. All 11 members are now appointed by the governor.
A bid to limit senators and delegates to 12 years in office was defeated 25-15 in the Senate.
A bill that would require parents to be notified if their underage daughters seek an abortion survived a series of attempts to weaken it in the Senate.
The House voted 74-22 to pass a bill requiring schools to conduct an annual safety audit.
NOTICED & NOTED Political affiliations on ballots ruled out
Lawmakers, who stand for reelection at regular intervals (every two years for delegates, every four for state senators), also make the rules about how elections are run.
Friday, the Senate voted 26-14 to kill a bill allowing candidates to list their political party affiliation on the ballot.
As originally proposed, the bill by Sen. Kevin G. Miller, R-Harrisonburg, would have required the party labels. The bill was amended to make the party listing optional.
Sen. Richard J. Holland, D-Isle of Wight, said having party designation as an option would be more confusing than making it mandatory.
And, the Senate debated a bill that would outlaw using doctored photographs in campaign ads before sending it back to a committee for further study.
``This is a modest attempt to close a flagrant loophole in the law,'' said Sen. Henry L. Marsh III, D-Richmond.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
``The delegates giveth and the delegates taketh away.''
- Pacing the floor, while proposed laws were being discussed, House Majority Leader C. Richard Cranwell, to no one in particular about nothing in particular.
WHAT'S NEXT
The House of Delegates has committees meeting in the morning and a session at 1 p.m. Saturday.
The Senate has committees scheduled for Sunday afternoon and the House may work as well.
Monday, proposed amendment to the state Constitution banning all forms of casino gambling comes up for a Senate vote. ``We should tie the hands of future General Assemblies when it comes to casino gambling,'' said the bill's sponsor, Sen. Mark L. Earley, R-Chesapeake.
ONLINE INFORMATION
See Pilot Online's Virginia Voter Net to read and track bills, check local legislators' contact information and legislation, and review Pilot coverage. The Web address is:
http://www.pilotonline.com/voter/ MEMO: Staff writers Robert Little, Laura LaFay and the Associated Press
contributed to this report. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
State Sen. L. Louise Lucas suggested that parents of an unborn
child's father be told of abortion.