Lawmakers called back to Richmond

Having concluded the 2022 regular session without approving a budget, lawmakers were called back to Richmond by Gov. Glenn Youngkin earlier this month for the purpose of picking up where they left off in reaching a compromise on the biennium state budget. After meeting for just over an hour, the legislature went into recess, with lawmakers returning to their respective districts.


When the regular legislative session adjourned in March, the two budget proposals passed by the Republican-controlled House of Delegates and the Democratic-controlled state Senate contained about $3 billion in differences. Disagreements over tax cuts led to a stalemate in approving a final budget. Republicans have been trying to double the standard deduction on personal income taxes and eliminate the state and local grocery taxes. Democrats, on the other hand, are seeking to eliminate the state portion of the grocery tax while keeping a mechanism for localities to raise revenue via grocery taxes. Democrats would also rather conduct a study over the course of the next year on the impact tax cuts will have on revenue than move forward with doubling the standard deduction. 


A conference committee consisting of 14 lawmakers from both the House and the Senate have been working together on a compromise budget since both chambers approved their respective proposals at the end of the session. Work has been slow, however, and without a budget compromise to vote on, the General Assembly went into recess as quickly as it had convened. Lawmakers are expected to return to Richmond once again on April 27th to consider amendments and vetoes Gov. Youngkin has made to bills passed by the legislature. They’ll also have another chance to approve a budget; the current fiscal year ends on June 30. 


In the meantime, Gov. Youngkin has been considering bills sent to him from the legislature. So far, he has vetoed 25 bills, all of which received bipartisan support. Among the bills vetoed include one which would have established a three-year statute of limitations on the collection of medical debt, one which sought to prevent a repeat of this year’s I-95 traffic jam by prohibiting truck operators from using cruise control in snowy conditions, and one which would have prohibited penalties on health insurance premiums for tobacco usage. The governor also amended over 100 bills.


Providing Virginians with relief at the gas pump has also been a major topic of discussion among lawmakers as they gear up for a special session. With national gas prices hitting $4.33 last month, Gov. Youngkin has proposed suspending Virginia’s 26 cents per gallon gas tax for three months. Democrats in the House raised concerns about how such a suspension could impact the budget, and proposed providing all car owners in Virginia with a $50 gas rebate, or up to a $100 rebate for households. It’s unclear whether Senate Democrats support this proposal. 


Lawmakers will have the opportunity to override Gov. Youngkin’s vetoes, consider his amendments, pass a measure to help Virginians pay for gas, and approve a biennial budget when they meet at the end of this month.

[Virginia Public Media] New Virginia Law Will Expand Zoning for Manufactured Homes

By VOW Ops • April 23, 2026
Manufactured homes are constructed in a factory and then transported to a land plot instead of traditional homes which are built on site. Despite the cost-savings constructors and prospective homeowners earn from manufactured homes, outdated stigma prevents them from being located anywhere other than agricultural zones. As part of her Affordability Agenda, Governor Spanberger has signed legislation which will expand where manufactured homes can be located. Under HB 655 and SB 346, starting July 1st Manufactured homes can now be located within any residential zone intended for traditional homes (with exceptions for historic districts). Further, localities will not be permitted to place different rules or any additional restrictions on manufactured homes that would not be imposed on single-family homes. Both bills passed the General Assembly with near-unanimous support. Executive Director of the Virginia Manufactured and Modular Housing Association Randy Grumbine says the new laws “could be very significant” in removing barriers that have been in place for decades. In 2020, a single-section manufactured home cost 35% the price of a similar-sized traditional home. Virginians have been facing affordability challenges when looking for housing – especially over the last several years – and they continue to experience a housing shortage which only exacerbates the problem. Del. Maldonado and Sen. VanValkenburg have noted that the strong bipartisan support they received for their respective bills is because Virginia’s housing crisis affects everyone regardless of partisan affiliation. Beyond the expansion of locations for manufactured homes, Governor Spanberger also signed HB 1227, which increases the amount of state funding toward affordable housing. She also signed HB 4, which gives localities the authority to require property owners to give the local government or developer the first chance to purchase property to build affordable housing. You can read the full article here for more details.

[Virginia Mercury] Virginia Lawmakers Recess Special Session Without Budget Deal

By VOW Ops • April 23, 2026
[Virginia Mercury] Virginia Lawmakers Recess Special Session Without Budget Deal

[Virginia Mercury] Data Center Bills Dominated This Year’s General Assembly. Here’s What Happened

By VOW Ops • March 19, 2026
Virginia’s growing data center economy was the center of attention for this year’s General Assembly session, with lawmakers balancing the industry’s benefits against its costs to communities. Of the many bills that were proposed to regulate data centers, some passed both the House and Senate and now head to Governor Spanberger’s desk for either her signature or veto. SB 253 (Sen. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth) would extend a program Dominion Energy and Appalachian Power Company offer low-income customers to reduce their monthly energy bills by weatherproofing their houses. The bill also gives the State Corporation Commission (SCC) the liberty to determine if more of the cost of generating electricity for data centers should fall onto them and large manufacturers instead of homeowners. SB 553 (Sen. Srinivasan, D-Loudoun) would direct water utilities to provide monthly or quarterly reports on how much water they are providing to data centers. Currently, data centers can withhold their water usage as an industry secret. SB 94 (Sen. Roem, D-Manassas) and HB 153 (Del. Thomas, D-Prince William) would require applicants who request localities to rezone for “high-load users” to submit site assessment reports. Localities would then be able to use the information from said reports to determine if the application conforms with their zoning requirements. HB 507 (Del. McAuliff, D-Loudoun) would mandate the Department of Environmental Quality to deny air permits for data center generators after July 2026 unless they meet stricter environmental regulations. Currently, data centers are allowed limited use of backup generators that run on diesel fuel, which have resulted in next-door neighbors complaining of noxious fumes spilling into their communities. HB 323 (Del. Sullivan, D-Fairfax) directs the Department of Energy to study how to best utilize waste heat generated by data centers to meet heating demands from neighboring buildings. One of the most robust debates involving data centers revolved around the sales tax exemption given to them on their server equipment and software. The Senate budget bill would end the exemption, hoping to recover the $1.6 billion they argue the state loses annually as a result. The House budget bill would keep the exemption but stipulate additional requirements for data centers to remain in compliance with receiving the exemption. The data center industry has rebutted the proposals to end the tax exemption, arguing that it has brought billions of dollars in investment into Virginia. Furthermore, the issue does not fall along clear, partisan lines, with both Democrats and Republicans arguing for against ending the exemption. The issue has ultimately ground Virginia’s budget approval process to a halt, with neither chamber coming to a consensus on the state’s biennial budget. Governor Spanberger has called for a special session beginning April 23rd so that the General Assembly can resolve the dispute. You can read the full article here for more details.
Show More