Lawmakers returned to Richmond late last month to consider vetoes and amendments proposed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin. After the General Assembly concluded its regular session in the middle of March, Youngkin vetoed 26 bills — 25 of which passed along bipartisan lines — and issued over 100 amendments to bills passed by the legislature. None of Youngkin’s vetoes were successfully overridden, and most of his amendments were approved. And in the wake of record-breaking gas prices, Youngkin’s proposal to temporarily suspend Virginia’s gas tax was ultimately defeated in the state Senate during the veto session. 

But even after what ended up being a busy special session, there is still unfinished business before the General Assembly. 

Notably, the legislature still has not approved a budget for the next two years. While the Republican majority in the House of Delegates, the Democratic majority in the Senate, and Youngkin all agree spending needs to be increased for public education, public health, and police departments around the state, there are disagreements over exactly how much more to spend in the 2023 and 2024 fiscal years. Fueling these disagreements is a $3 billion gap in how much each party is expecting to raise in revenue; while Republicans are pushing for tax cuts, Democrats are seeking to conduct a study over the course of the next year on how tax cuts will impact revenue. The General Assembly needs to agree on a budget by June 30, when the current budget expires. 

The delays in approving a state budget are reminiscent of the 2014 General Assembly, which did not finalize a budget until late June. The governor at the time, Democrat Terry McAuliffe, was engaged in a lengthy standoff with General Assembly Republicans over whether to expand Medicaid to 400,000 Virginians through the Affordable Care Act. In approving a budget, albeit one without the Medicaid expansion, the General Assembly staved off what would have been an unprecedented state government shutdown.

The General Assembly also needs to confirm two new justices to the state Supreme Court. Within the last year, Chief Justice Donald Lemons and Justice William Mims both announced their retirements. The vacancies have been a subject of discussion amongst legislators since the regular session convened in January, but there has been little progress on account of the politically split House and Senate. There are seven seats on the state Supreme Court, where justices serve 12-year terms. 

The General Assembly’s inability to complete its work during the regular session has prompted calls from some to reform how often the body meets. Virginia’s legislature was initially designed to meet during the winter months in order to accommodate farmers; but today, Virginia is much more complex than the agrarian society it was during the 19th century. A longer session may allow for more time to adequately consider complex legislation, but would limit members’ ability to live and work in their districts for most of the year under the laws they’ve passed. But with so much essential work for the General Assembly to complete within the next few weeks, it’s unlikely there will be any serious talk of reform amongst legislators any time soon.