This is the last week to talk with your legislators to ensure strong conservation policy comes out of this session. If you think the 2023 General Assembly session flew by, then it’s probably because it has—this year was a short session: only 45 days long.

Session adjourns next Saturday, February 25th. Keep checking our Bill Tracker to stay up-to-date on the status of our remaining bills. VCN will share the policy results from each of our issue areas, so keep an eye out for our General Assembly wrap-ups the first week of March!

Forest Lake in Earlysville, Virginia. Photo by Michael Proechel.

Creating exemptions for the harvesting of forest crops is a big threat to Virginia’s natural resources. The exemption bill would allow developers to clear-cut forest without abiding by local erosion, sediment, or stormwater runoff regulation—policies that are in place to protect our water, land, and wildlife.

“South Carolina spent $9 billion to dig a hole in the ground and then fill it back in.” Photo: Chuck Burton/AP

SMRs, aka Small Modular Nuclear Reactors, are being pushed by the Youngkin administration as a carbon-free energy alternative to renewable energy sources. Yet, while Virginia is currently developing an offshore wind energy project and is deploying proven and reliable solar energy sources, SMRs are still in the research and development stage.

Two bills will be heard by the Senate Commerce & Labor Committee that would bypass the research and development currently underway and put the thumb on the scale of this unproven and financially risky technology.

Recently, a South Carolina utility spent $9B ratepayer dollars to develop a conventional nuclear power plant that proved to be so expensive it had to be canceled. Customers are now paying billions for a project that will never produce any electricity. Let’s learn from others’ mistakes and oppose HB2333 and HB2197.

The House and Senate budget proposals are going to a Conference Committee: a closed-door budget committee composed of Senators and Delegates who will consolidate the proposals for the Governor’s approval. The committee members, aka “conferees,” will play a huge part in finalizing the Fiscal Year 2024 budget.

The Budget Conferees are:

• Senators Howell, Barker, Saslaw, Norment, Lucas, Hanger, Locke, Newman, and Deeds.
• Delegates Knight, Austin, Bloxom, Brewer, Torian, and Sickles.

The conference will propose a final budget for FY24. Typically, the budget is finalized before the end of session; however, in the case of last year, the budget was not finalized until well into late Spring, and it is looking likely that the budget may face a similar timeline this year. Senate Finance Co-Chair Janet Howell said this week, “I’m always hopeful we’ll settle it on time, but I’m prepared to sit here until July 1.”

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