Sweeping changes
In their second year in power, Virginia Democrats have made big overhauls in state laws. Here’s a look at some.
Virginia’s General Assembly adjourns Monday with Democrats boasting big changes in law that reverse many conservative policies long kept in place by Republicans who once controlled the state.
It’s the Democratic party’s second year in power, and in that span they have pushed sweeping overhauls to criminal justice practices and bills that would make Virginia the first state in the South to abolish the death penalty and legalize marijuana. With a Democrat in the governor’s mansion, their legislation will likely be signed into law.
Here’s where key bills stand as lawmakers wrap up their work:
On abolishing the death penalty
The House of Delegates and Senate have each proposed identical bills ending the death penalty, and each gave final approval to the other chamber’s version on Monday. Gov. Ralph Northam has said he supports the bills. The House version is HB 2263, and the Senate version is SB 1165.
“In the last 50 years, Virginia has executed more people than all states but two — and the Commonwealth holds the record for total number of people who have undergone the death penalty in its history,” Democratic Majority Leader Dick Saslaw said in a prepared statement released after Monday’s votes. “With this historic legislative action, we have seized the opportunity to stand on the right side of history by abolishing the outdated, unjust punishment of the death penalty.”
Republicans tried to preserve capital punishment, at least for the most heinous cases, but did not have the votes. A Christopher Newport University survey showed 56% of the state’s registered voters favored ending it.
On legalizing marijuana
Marijuana bills from both chambers passed the other on Feb. 16, with the Senate passing HB 2312 and the House of Delegates passing SB 1406. Both would legalize adult recreational use of the substance and call for opening regulated dispensaries.
But the versions are different, and they’ll have to be reconciled for legalization to move forward.
On reining in police power
Last year, the General Assembly passed a host of what Democrats called police reforms during a special session called to hold law enforcement more accountable in the wake of George Floyd’s killing at the hands of Minneapolis police officers.
The legislation banned no-knock search warrants, let localities establish civilian review boards with subpoena power and disciplinary authority, and made it easier to decertify officers who commit misconduct.
Now, lawmakers are pushing to require public officials to release records from closed criminal investigations, something 32 states and the federal government
already do.
The Senate Committee on General Laws and Technology voted last week to advance HB 2004, which would broaden public records laws and stop law enforcement and prosecutors from shielding investigative files from the public. The bill passed 55-44 in the House of Delegates on Feb. 4.
The legislation has been praised by two loved ones of the 12 victims who were fatally shot during the 2019 Virginia Beach mass shooting, who told the Senate committee that they have been blocked from records related to the criminal investigation.
On giving teachers raises
At the start of the legislative session, Northam said he wanted to give teachers a pay raise of at least 2%. The governor has called for a bonus of that amount in his proposed 2020-2022 budget, and if revenues look good he has said he plans to ask for a budget amendment to turn it into a permanent raise.
The Senate and House passed their amended budgets on Feb. 12, and they will help determine whether to give teachers a pay increase of 2%, 3% or 5%.
The House version, HB 1800, proposes allocating $231.4 million for 5% teacher pay raises.
The Senate version, SB 1100, suggests increasing the governor’s proposed pay increase to 3%.