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Greetings, John!
After the Virginia General Assembly Legislative Session adjourned on February 22nd, all of the bills that successfully passed both the House and Senate went to Governor Youngkin's desk. He chose to approve, veto, or amend each bill. Next, as specified in the Virginia Constitution, on the sixth Wednesday after adjournment--Wednesday, April 2nd--the General Assembly reconvened, in what's often referred to as the "veto session," to consider the Governor's proposed amendments to and vetoes of bills passed by the General Assembly.
In this newsletter, I'll get you caught up on the status of my legislation.
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During the Reconvene Session, I make floor speeches presenting my recommendations for accepting or rejecting the Governor's amendments to my bills. I try to be as persuasive as possible!
Legislative Updates - Reconvene
Governor Youngkin took action on the 916 bills sent to him during the 2025 General Assembly session. He signed 599 bills, amended 159 bills, and vetoed 157 bills. For the budget, HB 1600 [[link removed]] , he presented 205 amendments and vetoed eight items.
According to the Virginia Constitution [[link removed]] , simple majorities in the House and Senate can accept or reject the Governor's amendments to bills; however, vetoes can only be over-ridden by a two-thirds majority vote in both chambers. If both chambers agree to the Governor's amendments, then the bill becomes law. If one or both chambers reject his amendments, or only agree to some, then the bill returns to him in its original enrolled, or passed, form. Then, he gets to decide to approve or veto the legislation. The Governor has 30 days to do this after the Reconvene Session adjourns.
I introduced 18 pieces of legislation this past session--17 bills and one major resolution--14 of which passed both chambers of the General Assembly in some form, with one changing patronage and two getting folded into the budget. That's close to an 80% bill survival rate! Eleven pieces of my legislation passed the General Assembly directly (close to a 60% passage rate) with no changes, as in not folded into the budget or transferred to other patrons.
Of my bills that passed through both chambers of the General Assembly, the Governor approved five, amended five, and vetoed two (my resolution which designated March as Persian Heritage Month [[link removed]] in Virginia--did not require action on the Governor's part). This has been a very productive session for me, and while there’s always more that could be done, I am happy about what my team and I were able to accomplish.
Below is a list with descriptions of the bills that made it to the Governor’s desk and their current status:
Legislation Signed Into Law:
Legislation signed by the Governor does not need additional action by the General Assembly and was not addressed during the Reconvene Session. Five of my bills were signed into law. They will go into effect on July 1st of this year:
✅ SB 822 [[link removed]] - This bill limits the amount of time that public school teachers are required to participate in non-academic trainings which will help our school districts to prioritize trainings and save teachers precious time for planning and grading.
[[link removed]] ✅ SB 871 [[link removed]] - This bill extends from 2025 to 2028 the expiration of the retail sales and use tax exemption for certain printed materials purchased by an advertising business from a printer in the Commonwealth, so long as such materials are distributed outside of the Commonwealth.
✅ [[link removed]] SB 974 [[link removed]] - This bill will significantly reduce the time it takes to approve plat development plans by shifting approval authority from the local planning commission to a designated agent employed or authorized by a locality.
✅ SB 1014 [[link removed]] - This bill prohibits any state agency from requiring a Bachelor’s degree as a prerequisite for employment in a governmental job, with few exceptions.
✅ SB 1015 [[link removed]] - This bill amends the definition of state code of "practice of chiropractic" to include recommending or directing patients on the use of vitamins, minerals, or food supplements.
Legislation Amended by the Governor:
The Governor amended five of my bills, in some cases making changes that were acceptable and in others, drastically changing the bills’ intent or will of the legislature.
📝 SB 838 [[link removed]] - This bill charges un-certified recovery residences with a Class 1 Misdemeanor if they fail to become certified, or register their desire to become certified, by July 1, 2025. It also directs the Secretary of Health and Human Resources to form a work group to recommend oversight measures and create credentialing guidelines for recovery residences.
Status : The Governor made minor amendments to this bill. I recommended accepting the Governor's amendments to the bill, the House and Senate agreed, and the amended bill will now become law.
📝 SB 854 [[link removed]] - [[link removed]] This bill limits the use of social media platforms with addictive feeds for users under 16 to an hour per day unless they get verified parental consent. Here is recent media coverage [[link removed]] of the actions surrounding this legislation.
Status : The Governor amended the bill so that it's closer to its version as introduced. I recommended accepting the Governor's amendments to this bill, and a majority of my colleagues in the Senate agreed, but a majority in the House did not agree. Hence, the bill as it was enrolled, or passed, was sent back to the Governor for his signature.
📝 SB 955 [[link removed]] - This bill seeks to ensure all of our public schools have access to high quality instructional materials.
Status : The Governor amended the bill, returning to its version as introduced. I recommended rejecting the Governor's amendments, a majority in the Senate and House agreed, and the bill as enrolled, or passed, was sent back to the Governor for his signature.
📝 SB 1040 [[link removed]] - This bill updates several of Dominion Energy Virginia’s renewable energy portfolio standard programs. Under the pilot program, it’ll eliminate the need for a solar and wind powered generating plant to have a minimum capacity of 50 kilowatts in order to be eligible for the third party power purchase agreement, and will help to get more solar installation on industrial facilities and locations other than farmland.
Status: The Governor heavily amended the bill. I recommended rejecting those amendments, the House and Senate agreed, and the bill as enrolled, or passed, was sent back to the Governor for his signature.
[[link removed]] 📝 SB 855 [[link removed]] / HB 1957 [[link removed]] - This bill sought to overhaul the K-12 assessment process, bolstering the quality of both SOL and local alternative assessments, providing test transparency and increased release of prior test items while limiting the window that the SOL tests can be given to the last two weeks in May.
Status: My bill was rolled into the Senate biennial budget as a budget amendment to fund a work group to study and plan for overhauling Virginia's state assessment process, and I became a co-patron with Del. Helmer, and champion, of the House companion bill, HB 1957. This bill was amended by the Governor and we accepted some of the amendments but rejected the others. The bill is now awaiting the Governor's signature.
Legislation Vetoed by the Governor:
The Governor vetoed two pieces of my legislation.
❌ SB 1223 [[link removed]] : This legislation was originally a bill that would have given the people of Henrico the opportunity to officially weigh in on the establishment of the proposed Rosie’s gaming emporium. After it was left in the Senate Finance & Appropriations Committee, General Assembly budget conferees agreed to include language in the final state budget bill that would have had the same effect as the original legislation--prohibiting the operation of a gaming facility in Henrico County, and other localities, without voter approval. Unfortunately, the Governor vetoed this line item budget amendment when it came to his desk. For recent media coverage surrounding these actions, go here [[link removed]] .
❌ SB 1119 [[link removed]] - This bill provided that ALL primary elections would be on the same date in presidential election years. This bill had bi-partisan support and was good for voters and registrars, and would have saved the state and localities money. Unfortunately, the Governor vetoed this bill, for reasons that are unclear to me.
Post Reconvene
With the 2025 Reconvene Session behind me, I'll continue to be out and about in the 16th District at various events, community meetings, and town halls. I am planning to host a town hall in the future and organize a community event that will connect constituents with a range of local resources. Stay tuned for more information on those!
I have also begun to collaborate with relevant stakeholders to refine legislation that did not pass this session and generate ideas for new legislation. For example, I plan to address some of the concerns that were raised about my housing bills, and I also have some ideas of my own and that were brought to me for possible legislation in the future. As such, if any of you have input on housing affordability, improvements in education, or clean energy solutions, or need anything otherwise, please reach out to my office at [email protected] [[email protected]] . We’re always happy to listen and consider your ideas!
Finally, my office and I continue to hear from constituents with concerns about the actions of President Trump, "DOGE," and Elon Musk, and the Constitutional crisis they have put us in. Please know that I share your concerns, and I will do whatever is in my power to protect Virginians' rights and well-being, and to find ways to proactively mitigate these harmful actions. In the meantime, I will continue to show up and do the work for the people of the 16th District and the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Yours in service,
Schuyler VanValkenburg
Senator, District 16, Henrico County
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