The Governor’s amendments maintained, and in some cases increased, funding for many programs protecting our natural resources. However, some key programs saw cuts, and there remained missed opportunities for critical investments.
After advocating for full conservation funding throughout the General Assembly session, we finally see how Virginia's conservation budget turned out for the next biennium.
Now is the time to let your legislators know that it is critical to support a strong conservation budget for Virginia!
Governor Northam's outgoing budget proposal prioritized our natural resources through historic investments in Virginia’s natural resources - fully funding nearly all of the Virginia conservation community’s budget asks which we outlined in Our Common Agenda.
This Special Session, legislators met to allocate funding from the American Rescue Plan Act, and VCN tracked funding allocated for energy, water, and land conservation.
Virginia Conservation Network supports the Governor’s Amendment #10, which directly appropriates $3.5M from the general fund for the preservation of historic tribal lands of the Chickahominy Tribe.
VCN's fifth and final wrap up from the 2021 general session covers how our conservation priorities fared in the 2021-2022 biennial budget conference report released by the General Assembly.