Virginia General Assembly Update – Week 5
Virginia General Assembly Update – Week 5
On Monday and Tuesday, both chambers held long floor sessions as they raced to meet the Feb. 4 crossover deadline. Now that crossover has occurred, the House can only consider bills that have passed the Senate, and the Senate can only consider bills that have passed the House. Beginning Wednesday, committees began moving quickly to act on legislation that has crossed over. Governor Youngkin will soon have hundreds of bills on his desk to sign, veto or attempt to amend.
State Budget: This week also featured intense work on the budget, with both chambers adopting their respective packages of budget amendments. Regrettably, the Senate and House both rejected Governor Youngkin’s proposal to adopt the federal Hyde Amendment in our state budget. The proposal would have prevented state taxpayer funding of abortion to the fullest extent possible under federal law. The Hyde policy saves lives. We will continue to fight for it, and we thank the Governor for his consistent efforts to include this language in the budget.
One positive note regarding this week’s budget work is that the Senate and House packages both expand the earned income tax credit. We have long supported this important policy to help low-income working families afford rent, utilities, groceries and other basic needs.
Other Key Issues: Among the hundreds of bills that advanced during the pre-crossover flurry of activity, ones we support include measures to limit solitary confinement, ban assault firearms, keep hospital workers safe from violence, and help people struggling with rent payments. Ones we oppose include legislation to shield abortion providers from prosecution for violating other states’ pro-life laws, restrict rights of speech and assembly outside abortion clinics, require health plans to cover contraceptives and some drugs that cause abortions, and create a commercial marketplace for marijuana.
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The Virginia Catholic Conference is the public policy agency representing Virginia’s Catholic bishops and their two dioceses.
