Virginia’s new legislative session kicks off Wednesday

Incoming House Speaker Don Scott is ready to get to work.

“I think there are a lot of things that we can agree on with the governor,” said Scott, D-Portsmouth. “I think there will be a lot of bipartisan legislation coming out.”

After a heated election season marked by tight races and record spending, leaders are cooling the rhetoric as they ready for the legislature to reconvene Wednesday for its annual session. Democrats recently held the Senate and took back the House of Delegates, but with Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin wielding power from the executive branch, neither party will have total control.

“We all have to come together in order to progress legislation,” Youngkin said at a news conference after the elections. “We’re going to have to find a way to get things done. I’m optimistic that we can.”

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Middle ground

Scott said he believes both parties are largely on the same page when it comes to the need for more funding to help with addiction and mental health.

A recent report from a panel that conducts research for the General Assembly concluded that staff and patient safety is lacking at state psychiatric hospitals. The report, issued by the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission, found many facilities struggle with overcrowding, staffing shortages and structural hazards.

“I think we can all agree that the mental health system needs more upgrading and more work and investments,” Scott said.

He also expects both parties will work together on plans to bring new professional sport teams to Virginia.

Youngkin reached a tentative deal last month with the parent company of the NBA’s Washington Wizards and NHL’s Washington Capitals to move those teams to Alexandria. But it needs the legislature’s approval.

“Bringing the teams to that region could benefit the entire commonwealth by bringing in some revenue to help deal with transportation,” Scott said.

Editorial: Let this legislative session advance the cause of government transparency

Although gun safety legislation is trickier, Scott is holding out hope for some middle-of-the-road solutions.

A bill last year allowing a $300 income tax credit for the purchase of safety equipment, such as gun storage safes or trigger locks, was signed into law by the governor after passing the legislature with nearly unanimous support.

The measure is intended to incentivize responsible gun ownership and help prevent children from accessing firearms. Guns are the leading cause of death for children and teens in the United States since surpassing car accidents in 2020.

“I think there is some hope in getting another bill like that out, and I think there is some hope in getting the governor to sign it,” Scott said.

The speaker-elect said one possible measure would involve strengthening the rules and penalties for leaving a firearm in a vehicle.

“The chief of police in my city says a lot of these guns (used in crimes) are getting out because irresponsible gun owners are leaving them in unlocked cars and people are stealing them,” he said.

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Budget

The state budget is another area that will require compromise. The General Assembly is tasked this year with crafting a two-year plan for the state.

“I would ask us to commit ourselves to deliver a budget on time when you adjourn sine die in March,”  Youngkin told legislators at a joint committee hearing last month. “Virginians deserve it, and I know we can do it.”

Legislators last year debated a series of amendments to the 2022 budget. Negotiations went into overtime after the Senate and House clashed over tax cuts.  A consensus wasn’t reached until late August.

Youngkin’s budget proposal — unveiled last month — will serve as a starting point for this year’s negotiations. His plan would cut income taxes by 12% across all income brackets and raise the state sales tax from 4.3% to 5.2%. It would also expand the sales and use tax base to include digital goods.

This year’s negotiations will be spearheaded by House Appropriations Committee Chair Barry Knight and Sen. Louise Lucas, the newly-elected chair for the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee.

Lucas, a Portsmouth Democrat, has signaled she’s less than impressed with the governor’s proposal.

“I will not support a budget that further erodes Virginia’s long-term revenues or uses worn out gimmicks in a budget when a predicted recession has not yet materialized,” Lucas wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

More surprisingly, the proposal also faced criticism from at least one Republican. Sen. Bill Stanley of Franklin County recently told Cardinal News the governor’s plan is “tone deaf” and said he believes increasing sales tax will disproportionately hurt rural and inner-city residents.

Meanwhile, Knight, a Virginia Beach Republican, said it was a good starting point.

“Like any proposal, it’s a proposal,” he previously told The Virginian-Pilot. “Every governor’s budget is put out there, and then we take it and go through it from there.”

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Constitutional amendments

While there may be some middle ground to be found, Democrats and Youngkin aren’t likely to see eye-to-eye on longstanding culture war issues. And with narrow majorities in both chambers, Democrats won’t have the votes to override a veto from the governor.

Constitutional amendments, however, allow legislators to circumvent the executive branch. A constitutional amendment must pass the General Assembly during two legislative sessions with an election in between. The amendment then only needs approval from Virginia voters to take effect.

Scott said Democrats have already begun prefiling amendments.

Five legislators introduced a measure that would protect reproductive rights, including Lucas and Sen. Mamie Locke of Hampton.

“Every individual has the fundamental right to reproductive freedom,” it states. “This right to make and effectuate one’s own decisions about all matters related to one’s pregnancy shall not be denied, burdened, or infringed upon, unless justified by a compelling state interest.”

Abortion rights have become a focus in Virginia since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling in 2022.

Locke further introduced an amendment that would automatically restore voting rights to residents who’ve served their time for a felony conviction. Those with a felony conviction lose the right to vote in Virginia, and the only way to get it back is to receive approval from the governor.

Meanwhile, Sen. Adam Ebbin, D-Alexandria, prefiled an amendment that would remove language in the state constitution defining marriage as a union between one man and one woman. Since Roe fell, same-sex marriage advocates have become concerned that the Supreme Court might also overturn Obergefell v. Hodges, the ruling that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide.

Given the state’s election schedule, any potential new amendments wouldn’t go before the state’s voters for approval until 2026.

Katie King, katie.king@virginiamedia.com