Loudoun is a County of Home Owners Associations (HOAs). One of the defining characteristics of HOAs is the debate over, and enforcement of, parking regulations. The HOA where I live, for example, has no assigned parking. It also was built at a time when planners included sufficient parking for the number of townhouses to be built. These factors make my neighborhood a great place to live. This doesn’t mean that people from anywhere can park wherever they like for as long as they like, but it does mean that when we have visitors for a couple days, they do not need to worry about where to park.

That doesn’t mean that people don’t get towed. If a car is left too long in one spot, or is clearly not owned by someone who lives here, it will be towed away. I know that other HOAs are much more aggressive in their towing policies than mine. That brings us to the issue of towing enforcement and costs. As of right now, there are no rules on how much a towing company can charge someone to get their car back.

Ever accidentally park your car in an unauthorized space? Then you would know that exorbitant towing fees often ensue.

…

Towing fees normally total $125 with administrative or storage fees sometimes included. However, many Loudoun residents were facing towing fees of up to $600. – The Loudoun Times

$600 is a lot of money to be able to get your car back. Especially when that car is so necessary to simply live life in Loudoun. Luckily, our Board of Supervisors, at the behest of Leesburg’s own Kelly Burk, is doing something about that. This month the Board voted unanimously to establish an Advisory Committee to look into and manage towing fees. The goal is to bring Loudoun more in line with neighboring jurisdictions when it comes to commercial towing.

If you’re one of the constituents who complained to Supervisor Kelly Burk (D-Leesburg) about the wide variance of prices charged by Loudoun towing firms – she and the rest of the supervisors heard your call.

The board voted at its Oct. 19 meeting to form a citizen advisory committee to ensure fees charged by towing companies in Loudoun are fair. The committee will include one towing representative, one government representative and one citizen.

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Virginia code allows for two types of towing enforcement regulations: police tows, or law enforcement towing, and non-consensual towing, which is the towing of vehicles that have trespassed onto private property. Other regional jurisdictions, including Fairfax County, already have towing advisory boards. – The Loudoun Times

I am glad that the Board has established a Committee to investigate towing prices. Towing impacts people with low incomes quite harshly. A lot of towing happens in rental complexes and townhouse communities where the residents are often in the lower tiers of County income. Thus, high towing fees when these neighbors do get towed impact them more heavily than others who have more disposable income to work with each month. Also, people with higher incomes often live in single-family homes on private parking, and can park without any worries about towing. This is not true of renters or people in townhouse communities whose cars and trucks must be parked in community parking lots. Thus, people with lower incomes are not only more impacted by the cost of towing, they’re more likely to be towed in the first place!

Now, I’m not against all towing, far from it. Follow below the fold for some further explanation.Lest someone think I am against all towing, please understand that I believe that towing is a perfectly valid way to enforce community rules. It can be critical for ensuring people get what they signed up for when they moved into a neighborhood. I am not against towing. I simply believe that the cost of being towed should be proportional to the infraction. If getting your car out of impound for an HOA parking violation costs 25-50% of your monthly mortgage or rent, that is not proportional, that’s simply taking advantage of someone with no option but to pay.

It is great to see Supervisor Burk was able to get the unanimous consensus of the Board on this issue. There are very few things of substance on which this Board votes unanimously. (Indeed, it often appears that the Supervisor from Sterling votes “no” simply out of spite.) Supervisor Burk excels in heads-down leadership that focuses on getting things done, and it is this kind of leadership that leads to 9-0 votes.

So yes, the Board can make progress to get things done for the residents of Leesburg and Loudoun. Supervisor Burk has shown us how.

(Crossposted from Leesburg Tomorrow.)  

The Washington Post has an interesting article about the disconnect between the facts of recent policy, and the things people believe about recent policy.

Most Americans still think that the bailouts of the banks, the auto companies and American International Group will wind up costing taxpayers hundreds of billions of dollars. In fact, the latest guess is that the government will come out even on the deal, and may even turn a profit.

Many Americans think that the economic stimulus package has been a failure. In fact, the estimates from a wide range of experts say the stimulus has saved or created more than 3 million jobs.

Many Americans believe their federal taxes have gone up in the past two years. In fact, for 90 percent of households, taxes were temporarily cut.

After the headlines of the past few weeks, most Americans probably think government has been able to do little, if anything to stem the tidal wave of foreclosures. In fact, over the past 18 months, two mortgages have been modified to avoid foreclosure for every completed foreclosure. – Steven Pearlstein

It’s nice to see a major newspaper publishing the facts of our economic reality, even if it is in a lament about how people don’t know the facts about our economic reality. And even if the paper seems to ignore any role it may have played in failing to effectively propagate the facts of our economic reality while people were establishing their beliefs about it.Mr. Pearlstein’s article is descriptive, rather than prescriptive. He, in effect, says “I don’t have an answer, but I certainly admire the question.” This is not helpful.

What is helpful is illustrating what has been done as clearly as possible. Perhaps, then, even pointing out that the good things that have been done have been done at the hands of those serving in public office today, and over the vociferous objections of the minority party.

But what do I know, I’m just a blogger.  

[Update] – I heard from friends on the School Board that Loudoun is not going to be using the textbook at issue. It’s a supplementary text issued by the state that localities can use at their option. Loudoun is going to decline to use it until and unless it is corrected to fix the factual errors the article points out.

LCPS has put out a statement regarding this book, the full text of which is available if you click through.

What?!

A textbook distributed to Virginia fourth-graders says that thousands of African Americans fought for the South during the Civil War — a claim rejected by most historians but often made by groups seeking to play down slavery’s role as a cause of the conflict.

The passage appears in “Our Virginia: Past and Present,” which was distributed in the state’s public elementary schools for the first time last month. The author, Joy Masoff, who is not a trained historian but has written several books, said she found the information about black Confederate soldiers primarily through Internet research, which turned up work by members of the Sons of Confederate Veterans. – The Washington Post

The Loudoun County Public Schools should IMMEDIATELY suspend use of this text book (if they’re allowed to under the Dillon Rule). This is inexcusable and obnoxious. Using a known neo-confederate, white supremacist organization like the Sons of the Confederate Veterans as a source for an elementary school history textbook is the height of fraudulent reinterpretation of historical events.And it is fraudlent.

Masoff said one of her sources was Ervin Jordan, a University of Virginia historian who said he has documented evidence — in the form of 19th-century newspapers and personal letters — of some African Americans fighting for the Confederacy. But in an interview, Jordan said the account in the fourth-grade textbook went far beyond what his research can support.

“There’s no way of knowing that there were thousands,” Jordan said. “And the claim about Jackson is totally false. I don’t know where that came from.” – The Washington Post

The Post article takes a “blame the Internet” view of the research, pointing out that the author of the book relied on Internet searches for their information. Personally, I blame the person who thought that relying on an Internet search, instead of proven scholarship, was a good idea when writing a text book.

Do not teach lies in history class. There were no battalions of black soldiers under Stonewall Jackson. That is simply a lie. This book should be disqualified from our classrooms on that basis.

[Update] Here is the full text of the LCPS statement on this book.

LCPS Suspends Use of Fourth Grade Social Sciences Text

Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) has suspended the use of the state-approved fourth grade social sciences text “Our Virginia: Past and Present.”

The Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) told the state’s school divisions Wednesday that text did not meet its standards.

“The Virginia Department of Education is advising the commonwealth’s 132 school divisions that the statement in ‘Our Virginia: Past and Present’ about black Confederate soldiers is outside accepted Civil War scholarship and does not reflect the content of the commonwealth’s academic standards,” VDOE Director of Communications Charles B. Pyle said in a statement on this subject.

LCPS used “Our Virginia: Past and Present” as a supplemental text. Its use will be suspended until VDOE reviews the text and issues corrections and supplements.

Did you know that President Obama has cut taxes for small businesses sixteen times!

Did you know that Congress passed legislation, that the President signed, that gave specific incentives to companies to hire people who have been out of work for months and months?

Well, you should.

I think Austan Goolsbee is my new favorite wonk. He and Elizabeth Warren need to form a superhero team.Special bonus video! Austan Goolsbee on the President’s tax plan.

In the Loudoun Times-Mirror, Mike Turner asks Congressman Frank Wolf an open question:

Mr. Wolf, which of the eight active provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (listed above) will you try to repeal if you’re re-elected?

That is the right question. The Republican party has made it clear that their order of business if they get the majority is repeal of the progress that has been made over the past two years. We, the voters of the 10th District, deserve to know where Mr. Wolf stands on that plan.

Will Mr. Wolf repeal lifetime limits on health insurance coverage?

Will Mr. Wolf repeal the provision that prevents denial of coverage for pre-existing conditions?

Will Mr. Wolf kick family members between the ages of 18 and 26 off their parents’ insurance?

I want to know, Mr. Wolf, what would you do?  

The health care reform bill that passed earlier this year is having a direct impact on the quality of available health care in Loudoun county. Contained within the bill was a provision providing over $8 million to the Loudoun Committee Health Center, aka Cornwall medical center in Leesburg.

The Loudoun Community Health Center found out Oct. 8 that it has been awarded $8.7 million in federal grant money to build a new facility.

It is one of 143 community health centers across the country to be awarded funds to address pressing construction and renovation needs and expand access to quality health care.

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The Loudoun Community Health Center opened in 2007 in the old Loudoun Hospital on Cornwall Street in Leesburg in space donated by Inova Loudoun Hospital. It provides medical, dental and mental health care to those in need, regardless of age or ability to pay, whether they have insurance or not. Since opening, more than 6,000 patients have been cared for at the Loudoun Community Health Center, but with limited space, the wait list continues to grow.

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“In short, we have reached a limit that prevents us from keeping up with the overwhelming demand for our services.”

Kenyon said the facility receives between 400 and 500 calls a day from patients and those wanting to establish care with the center.

The new 25,000 square foot building plans include 18 exam rooms, 10 dental operatories, a full on-site pharmacy, optometry, mental health counseling rooms, patient education meeting rooms and prenatal services. It is anticipated that the new facility will enable the Loudoun Community Health Center to expand from its current annual patient base of 5,000 to more than 12,000 patients and will create dozens of jobs locally.

– The Loudoun Times

You may recall that earlier this year, Cornwall was awarded a grant under the Recovery Act. That means that under President Obama and the Democratic Congress, Leesburg and Loudoun have seen a significant $10 million investment in our local ability to provide health care to people who would otherwise not be able to get it outside of expensive (for us) emergency room care. And that’s just the benefit of the services themselves. That doesn’t count the jobs created and money spent by those employees that boost the local economy.

Great news, and well done. Congratulations Cornwall! You’ve come a long way from being threatened with closure if BRMC was built.

 (I will save for another time the discussion of why a story about a grant that would allow healthcare coverage to expand to 12,000 of our neediest neighbors would be buried on page A5, in small type, nearly hidden by ads. Suffice it to say that layout is an Editorial decision at the Times-Mirror and stories about government money helping poor people get medical care and creating jobs don’t quite fit the “right” narrative.)

I grew up in New Hampshire (sniff). This hits home.

You know what they say about legislation, it’s like how they make sausage…links.

• Basic Religion Test Stumps Many Americans – And who scores highest on a test about religions? Atheists. Awesome.
• Gimmie That Old-Time Tactic – A great diary on DailyKos draws the direct link through history from 19th century Confederates to the conservative Republicans of today.

Loudoun’s own David Waldman is leading the fight for filibuster reform, as he explained when he spoke before the LCDC earlier this year.

DailyKos is stepping up to help as well.

Last month, 21,000 Kossacks signed a petition asking all Democrats to support changing Senate rules with 51 votes. Along with our allies, we took that petition to Capitol Hill, and to Democratic campaigns. What we found is a big win: not a single Democrat who will be in the Senate next year is outright opposed to changing Senate rules. Even Ben Nelson isn’t a clear “no” anymore (seriously).

Two months ago, filibuster reform was declared dead because it lacked the votes. We have momentum now because you spoke up. On our end, it took hard work in the form of dozens of meetings with advocacy organizations and Capitol Hill staff to educate them on the issue. Reform of any sort, even filibuster reform, doesn’t happen without leaders putting their boots on the ground.

Our own David Waldman (Kagro X) is one of these leaders. He started this campaign 18 months ago, and it never would have gotten anywhere without him. For years, he has been the nation’s preeminent public voice on Senate procedure. Now, he is at the center of the emerging coalition of labor, civil rights, environmental, and netroots organizations that are working together on Capitol Hill to reform the filibuster.

As much as anyone, David helped make the campaign to reform the filibuster a reality. With three months left in this fight, he needs your help to keep up his excellent work. Progressive Congress has found a donor who pledged $5,000 to support David’s work over the next three months, but only if members of the Daily Kos community can match that with another $5,000.

To meet that goal, Daily Kos needs your contribution of $10 to keep up the momentum and support David’s work to reform the filibuster. You can contribute directly to Daily Kos on the Orange to Blue page, where every candidate supports reforming the filibuster.

Even if Democrats keep Congress, there won’t be any victory in November unless we fix the filibuster in January. We can’t do that unless there are leaders like David Waldman on the ground, in DC, working on the issue. Your $10 contribution to Daily Kos will make sure David is able to keep going.

Keep fighting,

Markos Moulitsas, Daily Kos

Send your support, if you can.

A friend in Leesburg emailed me to let me know that he would be unavailable to volunteer on Election Day because of work. He isn’t even sure he’s going to be able to vote because of job commitments. No one should be asked to forgo their right to vote in order to put food on the table. (This is why Election Day should be a non-negotiable national holiday, but that’s a different diary entirely.)

Luckily, Loudoun County recognizes that people have lives and commitments, and provides an opportunity for people who may not be able to vote on Election Day to vote early, through Absentee In Person voting at the Board of Elections.

An in-person absentee voter visits an absentee office location to vote. In Loudoun County there are two locations:  the Voter Registration office in Leesburg and the Cascades Senior Center in Sterling. Arriving voters complete the Absentee Ballot Application and provide appropriate identification. The Absentee Ballot Application is processed there and voting takes place on a voting machine just as is done on Election Day.

Absentee in-person voting begins approximately 45 days prior to a general election (30 days for primaries) and ends at 5:00 p.m. on the Saturday before Election Day. – Loudoun County

The process involves going to the Board of Elections and filling out an application for an absentee ballot. They will process the application right there, and then provide you with your ballot and let you vote, immediately.

Follow through the jump for times and locations where you can vote, today!Here are the dates and locations where Absentee In Person voting is available.

Absentee Voting Hours

Extended hours for absentee voting in Leesburg will be offered at 801 Sycolin Road, Suite 102, Leesburg, 20175

November 2, 2010 General Election

         o October 18-22, 8:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

         o October 25-29, 8:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

         o Two Saturdays: October 23 and 30, 8:30 a.m.- 5:00 p.m  

Satellite absentee voting will be offered at the Cascades Senior Center, 21060 Whitfield Place, Sterling, 20165.

         o October 18-22, 4:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

         o October 25-29, 4:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

         o Two Saturdays: October 23 and 30, 9:00 a.m.- 5:00 p.m.

Here is a map showing the Board of Elections office, just north of Leesburg Airport on Sycolin Road.

View Larger Map