An effort to enhance and streamline emergency preparedness is among the slate of legislative priorities laid out by Gov. Abigail Spanberger and Democratic leadership on Tuesday, ahead of the 2027 General Assembly session.
House of Delegates Majority Leader Charniele Herring, D-Alexandria, said that efforts to strengthen the commonwealth’s ability to respond to natural disasters and other emergencies is a top priority. The General Assembly plans to take up legislation to establish the Governor’s Declaration of Preparedness, which would allow the commonwealth to mobilize preparation ahead of an expected disaster or emergency.
“Two years after [Hurricane] Helene destroyed parts of Southwest Virginia, we know it’s not a matter of if the next disaster happens, but when,” Herring said during a press conference in Richmond on Tuesday. “It is imperative we have the systems in place to communicate quickly, coordinate effectively and respond decisively when the unexpected happens.”
She added that resources, training and support for first responders is also critical to protect communities across the commonwealth.
The General Assembly plans to codify into law “key aspects” of an executive order signed by Spanberger in August. That executive order aimed to modernize Virginia’s emergency preparedness systems and establish a framework for disaster readiness.
Stanley Meador, Virginia’s secretary of public safety and homeland security, said the effort stems from seven regional readiness summits led by the governor’s office over the summer to identify gaps in resources and disaster preparedness in different parts of the commonwealth.
“It’s meant to unify the commonwealth to ensure that we’re taking care of every community, in that what we see in Hampton Roads that may affect that area, if there’s resources that could help in Southwest Virginia, that we’re coordinating that effort,” he said in an interview Tuesday.
Those regional summits helped the governor’s office identify four areas that needed improvement regarding disaster readiness: communication, interoperability, joint planning, training and workforce. A subsequent statewide emergency preparedness summit in October yielded about 16 recommendations. Those recommendations were not yet available to the public as of Tuesday, Meador said.
“When you think about a state declaration, the crisis has occurred — there’s been a massive natural disaster, a landslide, hurricane, snowstorm — and then the declaration is declared and then resources come in and funding mechanisms are established,” he said, and added that having a standing pre-disaster declaration would help streamline response and recovery.
Legislation to establish the Governor’s Declaration of Preparedness and to codify aspects of Spanberger’s executive order had yet to be filed with the Legislation Information Services as of Tuesday.
Data centers, medical debt, AI among other Democratic priorities
Gov. Abigail Spanberger and Democratic leaders said that their slate of priorities would help to make healthcare, housing and energy more affordable.
House Minority Leader Terry Kilgore, R-Scott County, said he heard nothing at the press event that would lead to lower prices for Virginians.
“There was nothing that would bring down power bills, nothing that will end the car tax, nothing that would end the grocery tax, nothing that will help young people get started in life,” he said in an emailed statement. “In the near future, House Republicans will bring forward an agenda that will cut taxes on working families, lower their power bills, and do what voters said they wanted last Tuesday — make life more affordable and increase economic opportunity for all.”
Democrats control the General Assembly as well as the governor’s mansion.
Other legislative priorities laid out by Democratic lawmakers Tuesday include:
- Establishing a medical debt forgiveness program;
- Increasing healthcare price transparency by requiring providers to give patients cost estimates ahead of procedures;
- Building affordable housing near public transportation;
- Increasing incentives for building solar farms in brownfields and expanding agrivoltaics;
- Limiting screen time in schools;
- Expanding apprenticeship programs;
- Banning artificial intelligence-generated child sex abuse material;
- Strengthening the Virginia Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity;
- Banning the local use of nondisclosure agreements for data centers;
- Eliminating by-right approval and requiring local approval for data centers using more than 25 megawatts of power;
- Directing data centers to minimize the use of water for cooling purposes and codifying Cooling Water Scarcity Areas; and
- Banning the use of AI to set worker salaries and wages.
— Elizabeth Beyer
