With 2025 now here, it also will shortly be time for the start of the 2025 Virginia General Assembly session – convening one week from today, on January 8. One day before that, next Tuesday (January 7) to be exact, don’t forget the special elections for SD10 (Democrat Jack Trammell vs. Republican Luther Cifers), SD32 (Democrat Kannan Srinivasan vs. Republican Tumay Harding) and HD26 (Democrat JJ Singh vs. Republican Ram Venkatachalam), which will determine which party controls the State Senate and House of Delegates.
As I wrote in my “25 for 2025” post on December 25, one big question is how several proposed constitutional amendments – HJ1 (“a constitutional amendment protecting reproductive freedom in Virginia”), HJ2 (Right to vote – restoration of rights for ex-felons) and HJ9 (Marriage equality) – fare. More broadly, it will be interesting to see how the 2025 Virginia General Assembly session – Youngkin’s final one as governor, thank goodness – plays out (e.g., will Youngkin continue to veto excellent legislation just because it’s not far right/MAGA?). And, of course, we’ll see how chaos and extremism in Washington, DC, with Trump back in charge, plays out here in Virginia. Should be interesting – even if only in the “ancient Chinese curse” sense of “may you live in interesting times.”
With that, check out the following from VA Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, which goes into further detail on the proposed constitutional amendments on voting rights, marriage equality and reproductive freedom. Also, see Sen. Surovell’s “sneak peak” at his legislative agenda, which covers a wide variety of topics, including a bill to “[a]llow Fairfax County to authorize a referendum on casino gaming in Tysons Corner”; a study on “aligning federal and state elections to save taxpayer funds and increase turnout”; and improving “incentives to install heating and cooling systems in Virginia powered by Geothermal energy.”
By the way, make sure you bookmark the Legislative Information System website, for information on legislation, meetings, minutes, video, etc. It’s really an invaluable source of information if you want to follow what’s going on in the Virginia legislature.
Seasons Greetings to all! As the year draws to a close I hope you are enjoying time with family and friends. This is also a time to reflect on the year that was, and prepare to make the coming year as positive and productive as possible.
As your State Senator and the Majority Leader in the Virginia Senate, this is a time of great anticipation as the legislation we will soon consider is filed and becomes public. It might seem as though these proposals are beginning from square one when the legislative session begins but legislators spend a great deal of time between sessions serving on boards, commissions, and legislative workgroups right up to the beginning of the session.
I serve on twenty-one boards and commissions that meet outside of session touching upon many policy areas including electricity regulation, water quality, Northern Virginia public transit, the judiciary, tax policy, and child support.
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Constitutional Amendments
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| While most legislative proposals can be taken up and become law in any given year, constitutional amendments must pass the General Assembly twice, with an election in between, and then be approved by the voters. This year, we will consider at least three major amendments:
HJ1: Reproductive Freedom
In the aftermath of Dobbs v Jackson and the overturning of Roe v Wade, we are proposing to put Roe v Wade and reproductive freedom into the Constitution of Virginia to place these decisions where they belong, in the hands of mothers and medical professionals, not the hands of politicians.
HJ2: Restoration of Voting Rights
The Constitution of Virginia still contains Jim Crow-era restrictions on the restoration of voting rights. This amendment would bring Virginia in line with almost the entire United States in automatically restoring voting rights to all persons released from incarceration.
HJ9: Marriage Equality
While marriage equality became the law of the land for the entire United States after the 2014 Supreme Court decision in Obergefell v Hodges, the Constitution of Virginia still declares that marriage can only be between one man and one woman. This amendment would remove that language and establish a constitutional right to marry. |
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Sneak Peek of My Legislative Agenda
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Not every bill is the product of a formal workgroup. Many of the bills I will be carrying this year are the result of constituent inquiries, municipal processes, or my own professional experience as a working attorney in Fairfax. Here are a few of the bills I plan to file:
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- Allow the Virginia State Police and Fairfax County Police to enforce speeding laws on the George Washington Memorial Parkway and allow either to install speed cameras.
- Allow public employees to collectively bargain with all local governments in Virginia.
- Improve incentives to install heating and cooling systems in Virginia powered by Geothermal energy.
- Require any election material containing AI-generated content to include a disclaimer.
- Provide a transparent regulatory system for license plate reader technology.
- Finalize Virginia’s new legislation to allow misdemeanors and non-violent felonies to be sealed to facilitate employment and successful reintegration to the community.
- Study aligning federal and state elections to save taxpayer funds and increase turnout.
- Allow Fairfax County to authorize a referendum on casino gaming in Tysons Corner. The casino in National Harbor, Maryland sees at least one-third of its revenues from Virginians, and keeping these dollars in Fairfax County will help provide much needed real estate tax relief.
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