RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — With just seven weeks to go until the start of the 2024 Virginia General Assembly Session, lawmakers have pre-filed several bills, giving us a sneak peak at which issues will dominate the session.
Democrats filed several bills, including one to enshrine abortion rights in the Virginia Constitution.
“We heard loud and clear from Virginia voters that women value the right to make their own reproductive healthcare decisions,” said Democratic Senator Scott Surovell, who will serve as Senate Majority Leader. “They don’t want to lose their rights. They like the status quo. They don’t want Virginia law to change. That constitutional amendment would leave Virginia law in place for future generations.”
Democrats have also filed measures to increase the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2026, and to ban the possession or sale of assault weapons manufactured after July 1, 2024.
In a statement to 8News, Speaker Todd Gilbert (R) responded to Democrats’ proposals saying, “Virginia Democrats learned nothing from their time in the wilderness. With the filing of this extreme legislation they have mistaken their slim electoral margin for a mandate and fully signaled their intention to overreach once again.”
Meanwhile, Republicans have introduced a bill that would repeal a law that currently requires Virginia to adopt vehicle emissions standards in line with California. Currently, California’s standards will ban the sale of new gas cars by 2035.
