Dear Friend,

The General Assembly is moving at full speed as we approach crossover, when Senate bills must advance to the House of Delegates and vice versa, to ensure there is adequate time for all bills to be heard in both chambers. In addition to making the wheels of lawmaking turn, myself and other lawmakers are in regular contact with Governor Spanberger regarding issues that merit immediate action. 

Noted below are some key actions already taken by Governor Spanberger:

Virginia State Police Are No Longer Under the Control of ICE: Governor Spanberger’s first Executive Order was to terminate the Youngkin initiated 287(g) agreements between Virginia State Police and the Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE) Agency. These agreements required the State Police to conduct civil immigration enforcement, as ICE directed. Virginians are safer and our due process rights are better protected because of Governor Spanberger's actions.

Redistricting Amendment: The General Assembly has passed a referendum question which, if approved by the voters, will grant lawmakers a one-time authority to redraw congressional districts  (HJ4). These new districts would give Democrats an advantage in 10 of Virginia’s 11 congressional seats. You can access the maps here. Governor Spanberger is expected to sign budget language funding the April 21st special election very soon.

Arlington’s new districts under the Proposal: Arlington would be split into two congressional districts. From west to east, the dividing line generally follows Arlington Boulevard toward the Penrose neighborhood, then dips south toward Columbia Pike and continues east along the northern edge of Pentagon City. North Arlington would be placed in a reconfigured 7th Congressional District that stretches south into Goochland County and west into Augusta County in the Shenandoah Valley. This one-time effort will enable us to restore much needed checks and balances on President Trump’s unconstitutional actions. See this clip. 

Most Talked About Topic – Affordable Housing:

Yes, in God’s Backyard: This effort is being led by a group of faith leaders who want to build affordable housing units on church-owned properties. The advocacy group associated with this effort calls themselves – “Yes, In My Back Yard (YIMBY).” The faith leaders want to respond to a community need that aligns with their faith and mission of service. The proposals before the General Assembly would grant faith communities a by-right authority to build their desired projects. However, public dollars are needed to subsidize the costs of the units, so rents could be affordable.

I am very sympathetic to reducing the costs associated with going through county approval processes and I understand the reasons for the “by-right” request. But I do think an administrative approval process that reviews community impacts, not just the pro-forma reviews associated with by-right projects would be helpful. Of course, the review would have to be done within a reasonable time frame. A revision such as this would ease some concerns raised by local governments. My overriding desire is to help the “Yes in God’s Backyard” group achieve its affordable housing goal. It is important that Governor Spanberger gets a chance to review a legislative proposal in this space. Improving affordability is a key tenet of the Spanberger administration and the Democratic majorities in the General Assembly.

Delegate Cole’s bill (HB1279) passed the house this week (with the by-right language requested by the advocacy groups) but it also has a re-enactment clause. HB1279 would not take effect until September 1, 2027, and only if the General Assembly passes the bill again and it is signed into law during the 2027 session. Other bills on this topic are still going through the amendment process.

Education & Health:

As chair of the Senate Education & Health Committee, I have managed the deliberations and ensured that necessary bill revisions were made on 140 bills thus far. It is one of the busiest committees in the Senate.

Important Highlights: This week the Senate Education & Health Committee acted on key legislative proposals that guarantee a right to contraception, improve oversight of nursing homes when there is a change in ownership (my bill), and ensure that all children residing in the Commonwealth are afforded an appropriate public education. My stewardship of these bills enabled us to get bi-partisan support for all three proposals. The oversight of nursing homes and ensuring an appropriate education for Virginia’s children, which is also stated in the Virginia’ constitution, were easy bi-partisan votes.

However, two Republican Senators also voted for the contraception bill in committee once they understood that only governmental entities, not any individual or organization in the private sector, would be responsible for ensuring that barriers to contraception did not exist.

The “Right to Contraception Bill”, Senator Carroll Foy’s SB596, prohibits Virginia or any locality from implementing policies that would infringe on access to contraception. The bill does not remove Virginia’s existing parental consent laws. A private right of action is included in the bill, a common element in legislation intended to protect a right. Codifying access to contraception gives women the ability to exercise autonomy over their bodies and to plan for the size of their families. We all know that access to contraception results in healthier moms and healthier babies. Governor Youngkin vetoed this legislation last year. We are hopeful that Governor Spanberger will sign SB596.

Senator Favola Charing the Senate Education & Health Committee.

My Bills Moving The Legislative Process:

My bills are continuing to make their way through the legislative process. The two bills described below added to the eight of mine that have already passed the Senate represent a very good pass rate. More of my bills are expected to pass the Senate chamber this week. You can view a full list of my bills here.

Voted on the Floor:

Ensuring Mental Health Assessments for Justice-Involved Youth (SB35): Authorizes courts to request a mental health or disability needs evaluation before sentencing a juvenile deemed to be delinquent. This bill is intended to encourage judges to seek a full picture of a juvenile’s challenges. This use of this authority will, hopefully, spark interest in diverting the juvenile to appropriate treatment options rather than detention. This bill passed out of the Senate on the uncontested calendar, meaning it was voted out unanimously.

Prohibiting Use of AI in Therapeutic Settings (SB269): This bill came to me from the Virginia chapter of the National Association of Social Workers and other counseling associations. The legislative proposal is intended to ensure that mental health professionals provide the highest standard of care by prohibiting the use of artificial intelligence in direct counseling. The bill specifies that AI may only be used for administrative tasks such as scheduling or notetaking (and this use requires consent from the patient). SB269 garnered the support of psychologists, psychiatrists, counselors, and the telehealth industry. It passed out of the Senate unanimously and now has crossed over to the House.

Making Their Way to the Senate Floor:

Keeping Firearms Out of the Hands of Domestic Abusers (SB38): I reintroduced SB38 after Governor Youngkin vetoed the bill in 2024 and 2025. This bill relates to the transfer of firearms from a person either convicted of assault and battery of a household member or is the subject of a protective order. SB38 aims to prevent subject individuals from bypassing the current firearm prohibitions by transferring their firearm to someone residing in their household or to an individual not otherwise legally eligible to possess a firearm. In short, SB38 is an enforcement bill. The legislation requires the offender to file a court form identifying the firearm recipient and affirming that the recipient is at least 21 years of age, does not live in the same household, and is legally eligible to possess a firearm. This bill has passed out of the Courts of Justice and the Finance Committee on a party-line vote, and I expect it to be heard on the floor next week. The Republicans used to be passionate about passing enforcement legislation. Unfortunately, that passion has evaporated.

Improving Quality of Nursing Home Operators (SB247): Establishes change of operator obligations on nursing homes when there is a change of nursing home ownership. These obligations include a requirement for new operators to obtain a change of operator license from VDH. The license application must include details on the financial history and quality reviews of care provided by the new operator. This bill is a step forward on ensuring better quality of care in Virginia's nursing homes. The proposal reported out of the Education & Health and Finance Committees, unanimously, and I expect it to be on the floor next week.

Permitting Access to Medical Marijuana for Patients in Hospitals (SB332): Allows the use of medical marijuana oil in hospitals for patients who have a prescription. Currently, such medical marijuana is permitted in nursing homes, hospice centers, and assisted living facilities, so my bill simply adds hospitals to the list. Allowing medical marijuana oil in hospitals provides a noninvasive way of managing pain, this bill was reported from Education & Health this week and will be voted on by the Senate next week.

Increasing Affordability of Prescriptions (SB418): This bill was a recommendation of a study group formed by a bill that I carried last session. SB418 authorizes pharmacists to perform therapeutic interchanges, which means a generic drug that has the same therapeutic effects as a brand name drug can be substituted for the brand name drug. The benefits of therapeutic exchanges mean a less costly drug is available to the consumer and in some cases, there is a shortage of the brand name drug, so a therapeutic exchange makes a needed prescription available. This bill will save a consumer multiple trips to the pharmacy. Therapeutic interchanges will be regulated by the Virginia Board of Pharmacy. This bill reported out of the Education & Health Committee unanimously and I expect it to move through the Senate next week.

Bolstering Accessibility of Opioid Use Disorder Treatment Medications (SB421): Under current law, nurse practitioners may prescribe opioid treatment medications but a pharmacist must be on site to enable the patient to leave the premises with the medication. In many parts of the Commonwealth, there is a severe shortage of pharmacists. My bill allows a licensed pharmacist to supervise the assembly of a prescribed opioid antagonist medication, virtually. This change will enable patients to leave the treatment clinics with the medications they need, thereby ensuring a more continuous safety-net of care. SB421 reported out of the Education & Health Committee unanimously and should move to the Senate floor shortly.

In Conclusion:

Thank you for the ongoing calls and emails. The volume of correspondence from constituents and others has been very high. But I always appreciate hearing from you.

I hope you’ll visit my website at BarbaraFavola.org and subscribe to my regular newsletters. I also have a dynamic social media presence through Facebook and X (formerly Twitter). I hope you’ll follow my work using one or both of those platforms. You may also track legislation through Virginia’s Legislative Information System. The Commonwealth’s General Assembly website is a useful tool as well. You can follow events, find pertinent information, observe sessions, and monitor committee meetings through the site.

It is an honor and privilege to represent you in Richmond.

Sincerely,

Barbara Favola

Representing District 40