by Markus Schmidt, Charlotte Rene Woods and Nathaniel Cline
In a swift and silent rebuke, the Virginia House of Delegates on Wednesday signed off on just 41 of Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s proposed changes to the $188 billion state budget, rejecting the other 164 without floor debate.
The move leaves billions in spending and tax policy hanging in the balance — and sets the stage for a potential showdown between Democrats, a GOP governor and a Republican legislative minority three months before the new fiscal year begins.
At the heart of the disagreement is Youngkin’s effort to slash $300 million from the budget to plug anticipated shortfalls linked to waning federal support. A major casualty of those proposed cuts is the funding to fully lift a long-standing cap on support for school staff — a key priority for public schools across the state.
Lawmakers had approved $223 million for that initiative in February, but Youngkin wanted to pull back $183.2 million of it. The House said no.
And although House Democrats supported locking in permanent increases to the standard tax deduction for filers who don’t itemize, along with an expanded refundable earned income tax credit for low-income Virginians, Senate Democrats pushed back, declining to make those changes permanent — despite including two-year boosts to both in the budget passed during the session. The proposal was one of eight additional amendments from Youngkin that failed in the Senate.
Despite the tensions, the Democratic-controlled legislature did throw the governor a few wins, including a key concession for small businesses. Lawmakers agreed to continue the pass-through entity tax workaround, allowing business owners to bypass federal limits on state and local tax deductions.
In his budget amendments that he unveiled at an event before administration officials and reporters in Richmond last month, Youngkin had already signed off on the legislature’s plan to issue nearly $1 billion in income tax rebates this fall — right before the upcoming statewide elections — with individuals set to receive $200 and joint-filers $400. He also accepted bonuses for public employees, a 1.5% bump for state workers and $1,000 payouts for teachers and school staff.
Still, some of Youngkin’s more populist ideas never made it off the drawing board. During the legislative session, Democrats soundly rejected his proposals to offset car tax payments and exempt tip income from taxation, both modeled after GOP efforts on the national stage.
In a statement released Wednesday evening, Youngkin acknowledged the formal conclusion of the 2025 legislative session with measured appreciation, even as Democrats rejected the vast majority of his proposed budget changes.
“The General Assembly has now concluded its legislative work for 2025. I am grateful to all our legislators, who dedicate their time and energy to serving the people of Virginia,” Youngkin said.
Despite the pushback against a wide swath of his proposed amendments, the governor struck a conciliatory tone and emphasized the next phase of the process.
“Over the next 30 days I will review and take final action on the bills and budget amendments that have been sent back to my desk,” he said, signaling that more vetoes could still be on the horizon.
Beginning with lunch in the afternoon, Virginia lawmakers ended Wednesday’s lengthy reconvened session agreeing on several amendments made by Youngkin, moving forward proposals to improve traffic stops in the commonwealth, expand opportunities for people who have been incarcerated and reign in risky drivers.
However, on the same day, lawmakers also rejected Youngkin’s amendments for bills that would have made changes to textbook and instructional materials in public schools, preserved Virginians’ access to contraceptives and required unconscious bias training when renewing medical licenses.
Here are some of the bills taken up during Wednesday’s reconvened session.
Probation reform advances
Following an unlikely alliance between the two parties, Virginia is now a step closer to probation reform that advocates stress can help citizens returning to their communities after incarceration get back on their feet and be less likely to reoffend.
After passing both chambers last month, Virginia’s legislature formally accepted the governor’s amendments to SB 936 and HB 2252. Youngkin vetoed a version of the bill last year before embracing it this year, albeit with his own changes tacked on.
Both bills aim to allow reduced probation times if formerly incarcerated people demonstrate certain milestones indicative of reestablishing their lives. Examples include securing employment for at least 30 hours a week, earning vocational certifications, participating in mental health or substance use treatment programs and obtaining stable housing and health insurance coverage.
While the passed version of the bill allows for up to 30-days reduction in probation time depending on criteria met and 15 days for others, Youngkin’s amendment places them all at 15 days. Advocates in support of the bill note that it can build on an executive order Youngkin signed last summer designed to reduce recidivism.
With his amendments accepted, he’s likely to sign the bill.
Right-to-contraception amendment nixed
As happened last year, the legislature passed a right-to-contraception bill that Youngkin sought amendments on before later vetoing. Both chambers rejected the governor’s recommended changes to the measure.
Youngkin’s substitute of the bill reinforces two U.S. Supreme Court cases that deal with access to contraception nationwide, while the proposal would preserve contraception access specifically in Virginia, if those federal cases should be overturned. Some states have debated contraceptive restrictions after the rollback of federal protections for abortion in 2022.
Before requesting the Senate reject his amendments Wednesday, bill sponsor Sen. Ghazala Hashmi, D-Chesterfield, said Youngkin’s amendment “makes this bill not really worth anything at all.”
When lawmakers rejected his amendment last year he’d vetoed the bill — something that is likely to reoccur this year.
Unconscious bias amendments rejected
Also on the reproductive health front, the legislature rejected Youngkin’s amendments to a bill that would require unconscious bias training when renewing medical licenses. Carried several years in a row with bipartisan support and patronage, Youngkin sought similar amendments last year that were rejected before he ultimately vetoed it.
His substitute strips the mention of cultural competency and unconscious bias, and instead added “populations that data indicate experience significantly greater than average maternal mortality, postpartum complications and infant mortality.”
The proposal, found in SB 740 and identical House measure HB 1649, was part of a slate of bills aimed at improving maternal health outcomes this year, in light of data showing Black women are more likely to have negative outcomes or die than others. Studies show that racial bias can be a factor in the disparities.
With his changes not accepted, he could veto the bill again.
Establishing a sole Pharmacy Benefit Manager for Virginia
The legislature voted to reject Youngkin’s amendments to SB 875 and HB 2610, which would establish a sole pharmacy benefits manager in Virginia.
Pharmacy benefits managers act as intermediaries between health plans, drug manufacturers and pharmacies, but their lack of transparency has raised concerns. PBMs retain rebates and discounts from contracts, leaving consumers and pharmacies unsure how much savings are actually being passed on.
After the proposals cleared the Senate unanimously and nearly so in the House, Youngkin’s amendment sought to study the matter further.
“We do not need more studies,” Sen. Aaron Rouse, D-Virginia Beach, one of the bill’s patrons, said Wednesday. “This is a true bipartisan bill.”
He and Republican lawmakers have teamed up to tout what they called the “Save Local Pharmacies Act.” The bill would eliminate health-plan-run PBMs in Medicaid and establish a single state-contracted one. This move, supporters say, would improve accountability, lower costs and help independent pharmacies stay afloat.
Exhibition driving bill speeds ahead
The House agreed to the governor’s recommendation targeting exhibition driving that would bring tougher penalties for offenders.
The bill, carried by Del. David Bulova, D-Fairfax, broadens Virginia’s reckless driving laws to include exhibition driving, defined as aggressive driving near groups of two or more people. Offenders would also face stiffer penalties including up to a year in jail and a $2,500 fine — either or both — under the proposal.
Passengers of exhibition drivers wouldn’t get off scott-free, either. If they’re caught riding on a car’s hood or roof, they would face a $500 fine, the measure dictates.
One of the amendment changes removes the mandatory minimum jail term if an offender causes the death of another person. The penalty for the felony offense is a minimum of one year and a maximum of 20 years in jail.
Driver-police communication improvements pending
The House accepted a recommendation by the governor for a bill carried by Del. Sam Rasoul, D-Roanoke, that would improve communication between drivers who have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and law enforcement officers.
HB 2501 charges the Department of Motor Vehicles with designing a program that would oversee the development of special envelopes identifying drivers with autism, which those drivers could show police during traffic stops to help the interaction proceed smoothly.
The governor’s recommendation added language that the DMV does not have to verify any information on the envelope.
According to the Department of Planning and Budget, it would cost about $14,500 for DMV to implement the proposal.
Amendment to textbook, instructional materials bill rejected in Senate
Lawmakers in both chambers took separate actions on the governor’s amendment for a bill that would make changes to textbooks and other instructional materials in Virginia’s public schools.
Sen. Schuyler VanValkenburg, D-Henrico, who carried the bill in the Senate, opposed the governor’s amendment because it excluded in part language to create a work group to study the textbook approval processes.
The amendment also excluded language that would require the Virginia Department of Education to consult with teachers, specialists and subject experts to evaluate any changes to the current textbook review process.
However, the companion bill, carried by Del. Rasoul, narrowly passed in the House.
License plate reader regulation tweak blocked
An effort to regulate automated license plate readers at the state level was met with debate and near-defeat throughout the 2025 legislative session, after the proposal had also been workshopped last year by the Virginia Crime Commission. After passing the legislature, Youngkin’s amendments to HB 2724 were rejected Wednesday.
The technology has become widely adopted by law enforcement, private businesses and homeowner associations across the country but has also largely operated in a grey area. Virginia’s police departments that use it have not been subject to regulation — though some departments, such as Charlottesville’s, have already self-regulated, with moves like capping data storage to seven days.
In attempting to regulate at the state level, House Majority Leader Charniele Herring, D-Alexandria, sought to limit data storage to 30 days, but opposition from criminal justice and immigrants rights groups compelled her to reduce that to 21 days.
Youngkin’s amendment would have bumped that back up to 30 days. With the rejection, he can now choose to sign the bill as it had come to him or he can veto it.
Editor’s note: This story originally appeared in the Virginia Mercury and is being republished here with permission.
