Richmond – Education advocates across the Commonwealth are celebrating the passage ofHB298, Delegate Delores McQuinn’s bill to prioritize evidence-based restorative justice programs in K-12 schools. The legislation, which was signed into law yesterday by Governor Abigail Spanberger, replaces traditional enforcement mechanisms like suspension or expulsion that remove students’ access to education with practices that bring students […]
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Press Release
Trump Takes a Break From Delicate Iran Negotiations For An Attempted Fundraiser In A City That Hates Him
Charlottesville– On Wednesday night, just a day after Trump spent 24 hours threatening genocide in Iran, reports started appearing in the local press that the FAA would be closing the airspace around Charlottesville and limiting flights to aircraft “DIRECTLY SUPPORTING THE UNITED STATES SECRET SERVICE (USSS) AND THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES”. Yesterday, residents learned that Trump […]
Press Release
The 2026 General Assembly: Protecting Working Families, Failing on Revenue
Richmond – With the 2026 General Assembly session now concluded, our community is reflecting on a legislative session that delivered significant progress on constitutional rights, economic justice, public safety, and support for working families, but missed significant opportunities to build out avenues for new revenue and to regulate the data centers that destabilize our energy grid and […]
Press Release
Virginia General Assembly Budget Amendments Include Key Investments but Fail to Advance Fair Share Revenue
Richmond– On Sunday, the money committees in the House and Senate released their respective budgets, which provide a sharp change of course from the budget outlined by former Governor Youngkin. While lawmakers rejected many of the former Governor’s proposed tax cuts and made several meaningful investments in housing, education, and support for working families, they […]
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Right to Contraception Passes Senate, Heads to Governor Spanberger’s Desk
Richmond, Virginia— Advocates for reproductive health care access are celebrating today as HB6, sponsored by Delegate Marcia Price, passed the Senate on a vote of 23-15 today and will now move to the Governor’s desk. The bill would require health insurance companies to provide no-cost birth control to patients, mirroring the already popular provision of the […]
Press Release
Workers Celebrate as Virginia House of Delegates Passes Paid Sick Days Legislation
Richmond—Workers and advocates across the Commonwealth are celebrating today as HB5, legislation sponsored by Delegate Kelly Convirs-Fowler that guarantees paid sick days for working Virginians, passed the Virginia House of Delegates on a vote of 65-35. When working people get sick, far too many are forced into an impossible decision: go to work sick and risk […]
Press Release
Bill Ensuring Counsel at First Appearance Passes House of Delegates
Richmond, Virginia— Advocates across the Commonwealth are celebrating the successful passage of HB127, Counsel at First Appearance, sponsored by Delegate Katrina Callsen, through the Virginia House of Delegates on a vote of 84-10. The legislation guarantees that people accused of a crime will have access to a lawyer the very first time they appear before a […]
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Two Bills Limiting Aggressive ICE Enforcement Tactics In Virginia Pass The House of Delegates
Delegate Charlie Schmidt’s bill HB1482 prevents law enforcement officers from wearing masks outside the context of a public health emergency, addressing and restricting a common tactic used by ICE and other federal immigration enforcement agencies. Delegate Alfonso Lopez’s bill HB1441 restricts anyone acting in a law enforcement role from cooperating with any federal immigration agency or facilitating immigration enforcement […]
Press Release
Bill Extending Minimum Wage Protections To Farm Workers Passes House
Richmond, Virginia—Advocates across the Commonwealth are celebrating the passage of HB20, sponsored by Delegate Adele McClure, legislation that removes the long-standing exemption allowing farm workers to be paid less than the minimum wage. The bill passed the House of Delegates on a vote of 65-35, and it will now crossover to the Senate for another vote. […]
Press Release
Advocacy Organizations Express Strong Support in Defending Immigrant Rights with the Virginia Community Safety & Trust Agenda
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 4, 2026 MEDIA CONTACT: David Aldridge, daldridge@vac4progress.org Advocacy Organizations Express Strong Support in Defending Immigrant Rights with the Virginia Community Safety & Trust Agenda To Governor Spanberger, Speaker Scott, Senator Lucas, Senator Surovell, and Delegate Torian and all Virginians: The undersigned organizations write to express our profound gratitude and support for Governor […]