“Well, as long as they’re not Mary Kay pink!” Del. Terry Kilgore said.
The color of sheriffs’ cars was the topic late last week in the Militia, Police and Public Safety Committee. Del. Riley Ingram, at the request of the Hopewell sheriff wanted to change the law so sheriffs’ offices could have car colors other than white or dark brown. The goal is for the public to recognize sheriffs’ cars by the color. That may not be easy after a vote Friday.
Assembly Anonymous marvels at the topics that come before the General Assembly. Car colors was not a short discussion. This weighty topic had legislators worrying about whether boards of supervisors might interfere and even take over car color decisions!
AA thinks a sheriff car color contest would be fun!
Del. Ben Cline declared, “If public safety is sacrificed for aesthetics, I’ll oppose the bill.” Del. Clifford Athey asked, “Who is going to decide what color the car will be—the board of supervisors or the sheriff?”
“This has to be a cooperative decision,” Del. Bill Janis declared.
The patron, Del. Ingram, said local governments pay for the cars … so…car colors should be their prerogative. Ta da! The committee voted 16-6 to allow more car colors. Local choice! Sheriffs and the local governing body can, if the bill now passes the House, and if the Senate and the Governor concur, pick their own car colors. Athey and Cline, however, stuck to their guns—what’s wrong with white or brown?—and voted nay.
Look out, folks, sheriff car glamour is on the way! Not pink, of course. Mary Kay already cornered that market.
This all reminds AA of another burning issue years back at the G. A.: the color of school bus roofs. A Northern Virginia delegate had, as is often the case, observed that some states were painting the school bus roofs white.
Why?
Well, it was supposed to keep the kiddies cooler inside the bus. Never mind that the riders were rattling around, as they still are, without seat belts. So, a state law was passed that school buses, henceforth, would have white roofs.
Maybe that was before financial impact statements, now attached to bills. The financial impact statement attached to a bill by the Department of Planning and Budget can be the death knell of a bill.
So the next time you see a school bus with a white roof or a purple sheriff’s car, you can trust that your elected leaders are working for YOU!