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Lawmakers reshape Youngkin’s final budget with focus on affordability, no new taxes
The Virginia General Assembly’s money committees on Sunday rolled out sweeping amendments to former Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s proposed two-year, $212 billion state budget, with both the House and Senate advancing plans that emphasize affordability, backfill federal funding gaps and avoid new taxes as they reshape the Republican’s final spending blueprint. The Senate Finance Committee’s Senate Bill 30 would end a data center sales tax exemption and set the stage for the state to potentially reap millions in revenue from the industry.
Virginia Senate shuffles committee assignments; Marsden, Reeves removed from posts
The Virginia Senate shuffled key committee assignments Friday following Sen. Adam Ebbin’s departure to join the Spanberger administration, triggering a shake-up that included Sen. Dave Marsden’s, D-Fairfax, removal from the powerful Finance and Appropriations Committee and Sen. Bryce Reeves’, R-Orange, ouster from Commerce and Labor. Officially, Senate Democrats said that Marsden requested to leave the Appropriations Committee; however, multiple sources told Virginia Scope that Marsden made a disrespectful comment to the committee’s chair, Sen. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, prior to a meeting. Marsden’s alleged comment to Lucas implied that she is not heavily involved in the Appropriation Committee’s work.
Yancey: 10 things to know about the new state budget proposals
Sunday was budget day in Richmond, the day where the budget-writing committees in each chamber release their proposed rewrites of the spending plan that Gov. Glenn Youngkin proposed shortly before he left office. Virginia’s budget cycle is quirky like that. What happens next is that, after some procedural actions, a select group of legislators — the “budget conferees” — will work out the differences, then send the budget to our new governor, who has line-item veto authority.
Yancey: Confused about where redistricting stands after court rulings? Here are the key questions and answers.
We’ve had quite a run of action on the redistricting front: A Tazewell County judge ordered the state to halt preparations for the April 21 special election. Attorney General Jay Jones appealed that ruling to the Virginia Supreme Court. Gov. Abigail Spanberger signed the legislation for the redrawn congressional maps aimed at knocking out four of the state’s five Republican House members. The Patrick County Board of Supervisors voted to instruct its registrar not to do anything about the election until the courts resolve the matter. The Lynchburg City Council has set a special meeting for Monday to do the same thing. It may be time for us all to get caught up. With that in mind, here are some frequently asked questions on redistricting.
First look at Virginia Democrats’ budget: Senate would end data center tax exemption
Former Gov. Glenn Youngkin prioritized tax cuts in his last budget proposal. But Democrats, who control the state legislature, propose largely scrapping those in favor spending that reacts to federal reductions to social programs. The General Assembly money committees presented their respective budget amendments Sunday. One notable difference: Senate’s approach includes over $1 billion in new revenue from letting the data center sales and use tax exemption expire in January 2027. That measure is absent from the House’s version.
Collective bargaining, iGaming and cannabis bills differ in Virginia House, Senate
The Virginia Senate and House of Delegates passed competing versions of legislation to repeal a ban on collective bargaining for public employees. But the bills each exclude different types of public workers. The chambers will have to resolve the differences between those bills and others in the coming weeks. ... The Senate’s version of the collective bargaining bill removed provisions that would extend those rights to home health workers. And while the Senate version includes employees at public colleges and universities, the House version explicitly removes higher education from its definition of state agencies.
Special election to be held to fill Del. Barry Knight’s seat in Virginia Beach
A special election will be held to fill the vacancy in Virginia’s 98th House District following Del. Barry Knight’s death. Knight, a Republican who represented Virginia Beach in the House of Delegates for 17 years, died Thursday. He was 71 years old. Knight had been battling health issues and had not attended the 2026 General Assembly session in Richmond. Knight was serving the beginning of a two-year term when he died. The election will be held on March 17.
Knight’s Virginia House Delegate seat to be filled in March special election
A special election has been scheduled by the Virginia House of Delegates to fill the vacancy left after the passing of delegate Barry Knight in Virginia Beach’s 98th House District. Knight passed away earlier this week after a multi-year battle with cancer. He was 71-years-old. Today, February 21, speaker Don Scott announced a special election to be held on March 17, 2026. Early in-person voting will take place March 6 through 14, according to Virginia Department of Elections.
From VPAP New Episode: The Virginia Press Room Podcast
In the latest episode of The Virginia Press Room, Michael Pope is joined by Lauren Hines-Acosta of the Chesapeake Bay Journal, covering recent funding for a study on menhaden fishing in the Bay; Greg Schneider of the Washington Post, covering the twists and turns in the ongoing redistricting saga; and Billy Shields of VPM News, covering controversy over a 300-home housing development in Chesterfield that goes back 20 years. Plus the State of the Union response, oyster filtration, and the new VPM News headquarters. Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts.
AOL laying off more than 100 employees in Reston as sale to Italian company looms
Internet pioneer AOL, which is in the process of being acquired by an Italian media company, is eliminating more than 100 jobs at its Reston office and is warning that more layoffs could be coming. The company, founded 41 years ago in Northern Virginia, notified Virginia officials this week that it will lay off 94 employees who work in or report to the Reston office by March 1 and an additional 14 by the end of May.