RICHMOND — Their age alone still won’t entitle senior citizens to vote by absentee ballot.

The last remaining legislative measure to allow no-excuse absentee voting by Virginians 65 and older was rejected by a House subcommittee Tuesday. That means they will still have to choose from a list of specified excuses — such as disability, business travel or extended work hours — to qualify for an absentee ballot.

“We’re putting senior citizens in a position of lying,” state Sen. John Miller, D-Newport News, patron of the Senate-passed measure (SB 724), told the panel.

Neither his plea nor the support of the State Board of Elections, the League of Women Voters and the state registrars’ association was enough to sway the subcommittee, which killed a similar House measure last month.

— The (Norfolk) Virginian-Pilot

Law to reduce ‘dooring’ doesn’t leave committee

It’s not looking good for bicycle-friendly legislation in the 2013 General Assembly.

State Sen. Chap Petersen’s “dooring” bill (SB 736) failed to advance Tuesday from the House Transportation Committee on a 7-7 tie vote, likely dooming its chances for the session.

Dooring is what happens when someone opens a car door into a lane with moving traffic and a passing bicyclist slams into it.

Petersen’s measure, which passed the Senate, would have required drivers and passengers to wait for a reasonable opportunity to open a door into moving traffic. It would have applied regardless of whether the passing vehicle was a bicycle or a car. Violations would have carried a $100 civil penalty.

— The (Norfolk) Virginian-Pilot

Discrimination measuretabled by House panel

Every year they come to the Capitol, and every year they go away disappointed.

A dozen speakers pled with a House subcommittee Tuesday to approve legislation prohibiting discrimination against state employees on the basis of sexual orientation.

At the end, as it does every year, the Republican-dominated panel tabled the Senate-passed measure (SB 701), killing its chances of passage this session.

“This is a bill about fairness,” the patron, Sen. Donald McEachin, D-Henrico County, told the panel. “No one in the state workforce should have to worry about discrimination.”

Opponents, including the conservative Family Foundation and the Virginia Assembly of Independent Baptists, said there is no evidence that state employees are being discriminated against.

“There is no problem that this bill solves,” said Del. Todd Gilbert, R-Shenandoah County.

— The (Norfolk) Virginian-Pilot

Olympic gold medalist Douglas honored

Champion gymnast Gabby Douglas and her Fierce Five teammates visited the White House in November to be recognized for their Olympic success last summer.

She was solo Tuesday while visiting an American seat of government with an even longer history — the Virginia General Assembly, the oldest continuously operating legislature in the Western Hemisphere.

During her visit, the gold medal-winning Olympic gymnast was honored by the Virginia Senate. Douglas was introduced by Sen. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, who turned to the Hampton Roads gymnast and said: “I used to be your size — when I was 10.”

Speaking about Douglas, Lucas praised “the outstanding work that she did at the Olympics.”

Douglas won the individual all-around gold medal at last summer’s London games as well as team gold.

The Virginia Beach-based athlete was then invited to the dais, where Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling presides, and was presented with a framed copy of the resolution.

— The (Norfolk) Virginian-Pilot

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