The chairs of both of the House of Delegates and state Senate finance committees have agreed that data centers need to pay their “fair share,” but differ on how to accomplish that goal.
Elizabeth Beyer
Elizabeth Beyer is our Richmond-based state politics and government reporter.
Posted inPolitics
General Assembly rejects more than a dozen of Spanberger’s amendments
Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger amended 180 of the bills passed by the Democratic-controlled state legislature. She vetoed eight bills.
Posted inPolitics
No state budget expected until June, speaker says
Data center tax exemptions remain the sticking point amongst budget negotiators, with the Senate in support of ending those exemptions 8 years early in 2027 and the House opposed.
Posted inPolitics
Virginians narrowly approve mid-decade redistricting effort
The Democrat-backed referendum will temporarily amend the state’s constitution ahead of the 2026 midterms. Republicans are expected to continue the fight in the courts.
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Spanberger’s amendment would change who investigates VMI. Critics say that waters down the bill.
Del. Dan Helmer, D-Fairfax, patroned a bill to create a task force to investigate racism and sexism on the VMI campus. An amendment by Gov. Abigail Spanberger would put the VMI Board of Visitors in charge of that effort. Helmer says he’s OK with that.
Posted inEducation
Virginia Tech board changed bylaws to allow Rocovich to serve third term as rector; now he oversees presidential search
The board voted last year to allow the Roanoke lawyer, who had served two terms earlier in the century, to serve a third time. He is now in charge of what he says “is the single most important thing a board does” — pick a president.
Posted inPolitics
Spanberger riles up Democrats on Senate Finance Committee for reducing expected revenues
The governor vetoed or amended two bills that Democrats were counting on to provide additional revenue.
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‘Dark money’ is fueling both sides of Virginia’s redistricting campaign
More than $79 million has been spent on Virginia’s “yes” and “no” redistricting referendum campaigns since February; roughly $76 million of that is from “dark money” groups that don’t have to disclose their donors.
Posted inPolitics
Spanberger greenlights incentive packages for Hitachi and Avio
The energy generation equipment and rocket ship motor manufacturers are expected to bring hundreds of jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars in capital investment to Southside Virginia.
Posted inPolitics
Bipartisan civility was the rule at Cardinal Way luncheon — but redistricting struck a nerve
The event brought together House Speaker Don Scott and House Minority Leader Terry Kilgore to talk about hot-button issues. The two agreed on much, but not on redistricting.