Virginia General Assembly Update – Week 3
Virginia General Assembly Update – Week 3
Here in Richmond, we stand in prayer and solidarity with all those participating in the National March for Life in DC today! In addition, here are key updates from another fast-paced week of the Virginia General Assembly session.
Constitutional amendments: On Tuesday, the Senate passed all three constitutional amendment resolutions that the House passed last week. Click here to read the statement by Bishop Burbidge and Bishop Knestout on the House and Senate floor votes.
Passage of these resolutions during the 2025 session is the first step in the two-year process required to amend our state’s constitution. In their statement, the bishops noted, “Your voices are vital and will be needed at every stage in this long-term fight for the values we cherish and the lives these measures impact, especially the lives of those who have no voice but ours.”
Last week, we reported the House floor votes on each proposed amendment. Here is how each member of the Senate voted on Tuesday:
Senate floor vote on extreme abortion amendment (NAY = VCC Position)
Senator floor vote to remove one-man/one-woman marriage provision (NAY = VCC Position)
Senate floor vote on restoration of voting rights (YEA = VCC Position)
Coercive Contraceptive Bills: VCC-opposed legislation that would end lives, violate religious liberty and undercut parental rights is also speeding forward.
HB 1716 would grant all persons, including minors, a “right” to obtain contraceptives and undergo sterilization procedures. The bill’s inclusion of sterilization undercuts current law on parental consent before a minor can have a surgical procedure. The legislation would also undermine the religious liberty and conscience rights of hospitals and health clinics that do not provide sterilization procedures or contraceptives due to their beliefs. It would even subject them to lawsuits. Yesterday, this bill passed the House 53-44.
SB 780 would require health plans to cover contraceptives and even some abortion-inducing drugs (such as Ella, which works the same way as the “abortion pill” RU-486). Today, this bill passed the Senate 21-17 (vote not posted yet).
Other Key Issues: This week, we again testified in committee on a wide range of issues. We spoke against SB 1098, which would make abortion a “protected health care activity” and give abortion providers unprecedented legal protections. We also expressed support for legislation to limit solitary confinement, help tenants struggling to keep up with rent, increase the minimum wage, provide farmworkers the protection of Virginia’s minimum wage requirements, and eliminate the sales tax on groceries.
Virginia Pro-Life Day: Virginia Pro-Life Day is less than a week away! Register today to stand for life in Richmond on Wednesday, January 29. Meet with your legislators to advocate against dangerous bills that expand abortion and for policies that affirm life and dignity.
After your meetings with legislators, please join Bishop Knestout and Bishop Burbidge for Mass at noon at St. Peter’s Pro-Cathedral, across the street from the General Assembly Building.
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In prayer and in public, your voices are urgently needed to bring Gospel values to bear on vital decisions being made by those who represent you.
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The Virginia Catholic Conference is the public policy agency representing Virginia’s Catholic bishops and their two dioceses.
