March 25th Newsletter
We are approaching the end of March and now know that we will not wrap up our 2022 legislative session until next month. Please see below for more details on the outstanding budget and bills that we will be addressing in a special session starting April 4th.
The end of March also concludes Women’s History Month. I do not need to look far to find inspiring women in my life, starting with my mother, wife, and daughter. Who else but my mom would call out during my swearing-in ceremony in the House Chamber to let me know that I had forgotten to introduce my brothers to the assembled group? Although I have known my wife for more than 40 years, I still cannot finish her thoughts because she is always at least five thoughts ahead of me. And my daughter as a college freshman already is publishing articles on the public policy issues that I still am trying to understand as a legislator.
At a national level, two outstanding women are at the front of my mind this week. Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson has redefined the expression “grace under fire” during her Senate confirmation hearings for her historic nomination to the US Supreme Court. She combines the incredible judicial intellect required for the job with her background and compassion as a former public defender — she would become not only the first African American female justice but also the first justice to have served as a public defender.
Earlier this week, we lost one of the country’s most impactful leaders ever in international relations, male or female — former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. Short in stature, but tall in her understanding of the intricacies of dealing with world politics and its leaders, Albright was our representative on the frontlines of so many major international crises. Her many speeches, articles, and books are full of memorable lines but I like the quote that the Washington Post used in its editorial remembering Albright’s legacy: “It took me a long time to find my voice. But having found it, I’m not going to shut up.” We are fortunate as a country that she never did.
If you have any questions or need assistance with a state agency, please contact my office at delrwillett@house.virginia.gov or phone at 804-698-1073, and a member of my staff will be happy to assist you. I also will continue to keep you informed with relevant, accurate information via Twitter, Facebook, and my website. Please stay well and stay in touch.
Sincerely,
Rodney
New Information
Governor Youngkin Calls Special Session to Finish Work on 2022-2024 Budget
On Wednesday evening, Governor Youngkin issued a proclamation calling the members of the General Assembly into a special session on April 4th to address the unfinished work from the 2022 Regular Legislative Session. The announcement came at the same time as the Governor’s campaign political action committee launched a new TV commercial advocating for certain budget items including eliminating the grocery tax, reducing income tax for veterans, and rebates for Virginia taxpayers.
As a reminder, the General Assembly adjourned Sine Die from the 2022 Regular Legislative Session on Saturday, March 12th. Even-year sessions are 60 days, compared to odd-year 45-day sessions to allow more time for the legislature to pass a biennial budget. This year, however, we were not able to reach an agreement between the House and Senate on the 2022-2024 budget by the March 12th deadline. We adjourned from the 2022 regular session while carrying over the budget bills HB29/SB29 and HB30/SB30 as well as a few remaining pieces of legislation to the future special session.
With Freshman Delegates Clark (left) and Shin (center) as the House adjourned Sine Die from the 2022 Regular Session.
There are a number of differences between the proposed House and Senate versions of the 2022-2024 biennial budget, however, both budgets would provide one-time rebates and reduce the grocery tax while making record investments in education. The House version of the budget favors larger tax cuts, while the Senate budget favors larger investments in state resources and programs. The Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis has wonderful resources on its website that provide greater detail on the competing priorities within each chamber’s budget. Please see below for a brief overview of some of the major spending items that we will debate during the upcoming special session:
Taxes
Standard Deduction — The House budget doubles the state standard deduction to $9,000 for an individual and $18,000 for a married couple filing jointly. This action would reduce available state resources by about $2.1 billion over the next two-year budget as well as $1.3 billion in the subsequent two-year budget. The Senate budget does not propose any changes to the standard deduction. A number of bills that would have increased the standard deduction were continued in the Senate to the 2023 session with the intent of studying the issue further before taking action.
Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) — Virginia provides a state EITC of up to 20% of a family’s federal EITC. Unlike the federal EITC, Virginia has a nonrefundable state EITC, which caps the amount of the credit available to families. If a refundable credit exceeds the amount of taxes owed, the difference is paid as a refund. If a nonrefundable credit exceeds the amount of taxes owed, the excess is lost. Therefore, a refundable tax credit would most benefit working families with lower incomes. The Senate version of the budget would address this issue by making the state EITC fully refundable at 20% of the federal EITC. The House version of the budget removes language proposed by Governor Northam’s introduced budget that would have provided a partially refundable EITC equal to 15% of the federal EITC.
Military Retirement Benefits — Both the House and Senate budgets contain provisions phasing in tax exemptions for military retirement income. The House version of the budget phases in the exemption at $20k in tax year 2022, $30k in tax year 2023, and $40k in tax year 2024 for a total revenue reduction of $515 million. The Senate budget phases in the exemption at $5k in tax year 2022, $10k in tax year 2023, $15k in tax year 2024, and $20k in tax year 2025, for a total revenue reduction of $149 million.
Sales Tax on Grocery and Hygiene Products — Both parties agree that eliminating the grocery sales tax will benefit low-income Virginians who spend a higher portion of their income on essential goods. However, the grocery tax also provides an important funding source for state and local education budgets. The Senate budget proposed eliminating the state portion of sales tax on grocery and hygiene products effective January 1, 2023, while leaving in place the 1% local sales tax option that exists for localities. The Senate version would lead to a revenue loss of $372.4 million. The House budget proposes to eliminate both the 1.5% state sales tax on groceries and personal hygiene products and the 1% local sales tax that applies to those items. The House bill would replace revenues for school divisions and localities, partly using a formula based on local sales tax collections. The total revenue loss for the House version of this initiative is over $1 billion.
One-Time Tax Rebates — The Senate budget includes one-time tax rebates of up to $250 per individual or up to $500 per married couple, with an estimated budget impact of $1.0 billion. The House budget includes one-time tax rebates of up to $300 per individual or up to $600 per married couple, with an estimated budget impact of $1.25 billion. These tax rebates would be nonrefundable, meaning that many families with lower incomes may not receive the full value of this rebate.
Fuel Tax — In the 2020 session, the legislature increased the gas tax to $0.262 per gallon to provide a funding source for desperately needed infrastructure maintenance. The legislature also structured the gas tax to be indexed to inflation beginning on July 1, 2022. The House version of the budget pauses the scheduled increase for one year, maintaining the current gas tax level until July 1, 2023. Governor Youngkin has also signaled that he will introduce emergency legislation in the 2022 Special Session to suspend the entire gas tax for three months at a roughly $437 million cost to the state.
Education
Teacher and Staff Pay — The Senate budget proposes a 5% increase per fiscal year (2023 and 2024) for teachers and school staff, for a total cost of $751.0 million over the biennium. The Senate budget also uses $137.4 million of America Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding to pay for a $1,000 bonus for teachers and staff this year. The House version of the budget proposes a 4% salary increase over each year of the biennium and a 1% bonus, for a total cost of $682.6 million over the biennium.
At-Risk Add On — At-Risk Add On is a state program that provides additional funding to divisions based on the share of their students living in poverty. This typically benefits school districts in rural areas or school districts that have a majority of students of color. The Senate budget proposes $268.5 million for the At-Risk Add-On program, while the House budget provides only $58.3 million over the 2023-24 biennium.
English Learner Teachers — English Learner (EL) teachers provide support to Virginia children who are currently learning English. The state currently funds 20 EL instructional positions for every 1,000 students. The Senate’s proposal would increase the ratio to 22 positions for every 1,000 students (one teacher for every 45.5 students) with an investment of $22 million. The House budget maintains the existing ratio of EL instructors to students.
Support Cap — The support cap was imposed to reduce state expenses during the Great Recession, and arbitrarily capped the number of support positions, including social workers, custodians, and food service staff in schools. The Senate’s budget would partially remove the cap, providing nearly $272 million to increase support staff positions. The House budget makes no change to the current support cap policy.
Health and Housing
Medicaid Dental Reimbursement Rates — In the 2021 Legislative Session, the General Assembly provided $35 million to expand Medicaid coverage to include dental care. Routine dental care can help prevent oral disease, transform overall health, and can make it easier for a worker to get hired in a new job. However, access to care is only beneficial when there are enough providers available to meet the demand. To incentivize more dental providers to participate in Virginia’s Medicaid program, the House budget proposals include a 5% increase in dental service reimbursement starting in the budget year that begins July 1, 2023 (fiscal year 2024). This has an estimated budget impact of $7.4 million. The Senate proposal includes a 30% increase in dental service reimbursement starting in FY 2023 (estimated budget impact $84.8 million).
Housing Trust Fund — The Housing Trust Fund provides competitive, low-interest loans for the production and preservation of affordable rental and homebuyer housing and grants for reducing homelessness. The Senate budget proposes increasing funding by $70 million in the budget year that begins July 1, 2022 (FY2023) and $120 million in FY 2024, for a total of $125 million in FY 2023 and $175 million in FY 2024. The House budget proposes to keep funding at current-year levels, for a total of $55 million each year.
In addition to the budget, the General Assembly will use the special session to finish work on a few remaining pieces of legislation that were left in conference committee in the 2022 regular session. Please see below for a list of some of the notable remaining bills:
SB727 — Creates the Virginia Football Stadium Authority to finance a football stadium for the Washington Commanders.
SB440 — Creates criminal penalties for hazing.
HB346 — Expands the authority to create college partnership laboratory schools.
SB473 — Creates the School Construction Fund and Program to address long-underfunded school construction, renovation, and maintenance needs.
HB305 — Makes the Board of Elections more independent by expanding the Board and removes the Governor's ability to appoint a deputy commissioner or a confidential policy advisor to the Department of Elections.
SB487 — Establishes the Firearm Violence Intervention and Prevention Center within the Department of Criminal Justice Services.
The above information is a preview of what to expect when we reconvene on April 4th for the 2022 Special Session but it is by no means an exhaustive list. I will keep you informed with the latest information through my newsletters and on my Twitter and Facebook pages. Unlike a regular session, a special session is not time-limited. We have seen some be as brief as 90 minutes, while others have dragged on for nearly 90 days. As always please do not hesitate to contact my office if you have questions about the legislative process.
Virginia Department of Labor and Industry’s Worker Safety Board Votes to Remove COVID-19 Workplace Restrictions
On Monday night, the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry’s Worker Safety Board voted to remove Virginia’s COVID-19 workplace restrictions. Virginia was the first state in the nation to implement COVID-19 workplace safety standards in July 2020. In January 2021, the Board voted to make the temporary standards permanent and required employers to enforce rules such as mask mandates and sanitation standards.
The Board voted unanimously to remove these safety standards one week after Governor Youngkin and the Department of Labor and Industry released a draft of new workplace guidelines for COVID-19 mitigation. These guidelines for employers include:
Facilitate employees getting vaccinated and boosted;
Encourage any workers with COVID-19 symptoms to stay home from work and seek advice on testing and treatment from their physician;
Require all workers infected with COVID-19 virus to stay home;
Provide workers with face coverings or surgical masks, as appropriate;
Encourage good sanitary work habits such as frequent hand washing;
Educate workers on your COVID-19 policies and procedures using accessible formats and in languages they understand;
Operate and maintain ventilation systems in accordance with manufacturers' specifications to achieve optimal performance;
Record and report COVID-19 infections and deaths which are mandatory under VOSH regulations part 1904; and,
Follow other applicable mandatory VOSH standards.
See more information on this announcement online here.
Virginia War Memorial Vietnam Veterans Pinning Ceremony — March 29
Next Tuesday, March 29th, is National Vietnam War Veterans Day and Vietnam War Veterans Day in Virginia, a day to honor the men and women who served and sacrificed during the Vietnam War. To honor their sacrifice, the Virginia War Memorial invites all Vietnam Veterans to join an official ceremony in the Shrine of Memory on Tuesday, March 29th, from 11:00 am - 12:00 pm for an official pinning ceremony.
All Vietnam-era Veterans will receive a pin honoring their service. No registration is required to attend this event. But if you or a friend or family member would like to register in advance to receive a pin during the ceremony, please do so online here.
Virginia Mortgage Relief Program Expands to Provide More Assistance to Homeowners
The Virginia Mortgage Relief Program recently announced that the total relief homeowners may be eligible for has increased to $40,000, with no cap on the number of months past due. The change increases the maximum amount available to a homeowner by $10,000. The previous level of assistance was capped at the lesser of 20 months or $30,000 per household.
The Virginia Mortgage Relief Program was launched on January 3, 2022, and the increased levels of support took effect on March 17. Homeowners who are experiencing financial hardship as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic after Jan. 21, 2020, with a delinquency amount at or under $40,000, may now be eligible for assistance. Homeowners not eligible for VMRP are encouraged to contact their mortgage loan servicer to discuss loss-mitigation options.
Applicants who were previously deemed ineligible due to the original program cap policy should contact a program representative at 1-833-OUR-VMRP (833-687-8677), Monday through Friday, from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm to begin the appeal process.
Virginia homeowners seeking financial assistance with past due mortgage and other housing-related expenses should visit www.VirginiaMortgageRelief.com for details.
Richmond and Henrico Health District Offers At-Home COVID-19 Vaccinations Through Doses on Demand Program
Starting this Wednesday, March 23rd, any Richmond or Henrico resident who is interested in a free COVID-19 vaccine can call the Richmond and Henrico Health District (RHHD) hotline to schedule a time for nurses to come to your home to give you a COVID-19 vaccine. The program, called Doses on Demand, is available for adult and child primary series and booster doses and will offer all vaccine types.
RHHD previously offered this program for residents who were very ill, elderly, or who had extreme difficulty leaving their homes. However, as demand for vaccinations has decreased, the health department is now about to offer more individualized services to all residents, with the goal of making it as easy as possible for residents to get vaccinated.
Individuals who are interested in receiving a COVID-19 vaccine from Doses on Demand can call 804-205-3501 to schedule an appointment with an RHHD representative. The program is available to everyone who lives in Richmond and Henrico, is free, and does not require health insurance.
Doses on Demand appointments are typically offered about two weeks out from when an individual calls, but there are many same-day walk-in COVID-19 vaccine clinics available in our community. To find a walk-in clinic or make an appointment, visit vax.rchd.com or call 804-205-3501.
Know Your Rights Tenant Outreach Event — March 31 at Tuckahoe Library
Next Thursday, March 31st, at the Tuckahoe Library attorneys from the Virginia Poverty Law Center will present an educational program on tenants’ rights. After the program, attendees will have the opportunity to speak to attorneys from the Central Virginia Legal Aid Society about rent relief application assistance. With eviction protections ending this summer, this is a great opportunity to learn more about available support.
What: Know Your Rights Tenant Outreach Event
When: Thursday, March 31, 2022, 6:00 - 8:30 pm
Where: Tuckahoe Library, 1901 Starling Dr, Henrico, VA 23229
