The 2023 Reconvene Session adjourned on Wednesday, April 12th! The reconvened session is held on the sixth Wednesday after the adjournment of each regular or special session to consider the Governor's proposed recommendations to and vetoes of bills passed by the General Assembly. This is frequently referred to as the Veto Session.
I'm happy with the progress that we made this year. In an environment with a divided government, it takes a lot of discussion and compromise to pass on just about anything. I'm happy to say that of the bills I introduced this session, eleven of them have passed and have been signed by Governor Youngkin. These bills will become effective on July 1st, 2023, those bills are:
SB824, which broadens the scope of the Substance Abuse Services Council to include problem gambling and adds additional members to combat the opioid crisis, and updates the title to be more inclusive to the recovery community;
SB825 and SB896, which ensure that the Virginia School for the Deaf and the Blind (VSDB) is able to keep students safe and secure via hiring security staff and conducting employment background checks;
SB891, which allows landlords additional time to assess damages to a rental property after a tenant moves out;
SB1014, which is a Loudoun County bill that invalidates a voluntarily conveyed park restrictive covenant so the County may purchase the park and utilize it for the public;
SB1024, which keeps medical and educational records confidential even after they are transferred into state archives;
SB1071, which adds military service members transitioning to civilian life and their families to the list of individuals who can receive mental health services through the Department of Veterans Services.
SB1072, which directs school administrators to report bullying incidents to parents within 24 hours of the incident;
SB1249, which prevents deceptive websites from mimicking official venue and ticketing websites by using copycat fonts, venue photos, and other tools to trick consumers into thinking they’ve reached an official venue website;
SB1313, which ensures that construction subcontractors will finally be able to count on being paid for their work;
SB1491, which removes arbitrary restrictions on the ability of construction managers to perform construction work on locality infrastructure projects; and
As for the budget, our budget conferees in the House and Senate have been unable to come to a full agreement and continue to work on creating a budget. I will continue to keep you updated on the budget developments.
While we have passed many great things this year, I consider what we didn't pass another accomplishment. This year, the Senate "Brick Wall" blocked every bill that would have made voting more difficult, targeted and victimized transgender students, and curtailed the right to choose.
