2020 General Assembly - Week 1
2020 General Assembly Session Convenes
The 2020 General Assembly convened this Wednesday in Richmond. Over the 60-day "long" session, legislators will consider thousands of bills. As of yesterday afternoon, over 2,300 bills have already been filed with over 1,000 more expected to be submitted before the January 17th deadline.

Along with the historic election of the Virginia House of Delegate's first female Speaker, both the House and the Senate have released their committee assignments for the 2020 legislative session. You can find the House Committee assignments and Senate Committee assignments by clicking on the corresponding links.

The Roanoke Regional Chamber advocates on behalf of the business community during session, standing up for policies that will strengthen our economic climate. We are monitoring legislation as it is introduced, and below you will find a selection of bills that we have identified that are of interest to our business community. If you have questions regarding legislation, contact Terry Durkin at tdurkin@roanokechamber.org.
General Assembly Bill Tracking
Economic Development

Del. Lee Carter
Right to work; repeals provisions of Code that refers to denial or abridgement.

  • 12/18/19 House: Committee Referral Pending

OPPOSE

Del. Mark Levine
Establishes a procedure by which a local alternative minimum wage may be imposed in any locality.

  • 01/01/20 House: Committee Referral Pending

OPPOSE

Del. Ken Plum
Increases the minimum wage from its current federally mandated level of $7.25 per hour to $10.10 per hour effective January 1, 2021.

  • 01/06/20 House: Committee Referral Pending

OPPOSE

Sen. Dick Saslaw
Minimum wage; increases to $10 per hour effective July 1, 2020.

  • 11/18/19 Senate: Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor

OPPOSE

Del. Terry Kilgore
Establishes the Virginia Brownfield Renewable Energy and Coal Mine Grant Fund and Program.

  • 01/07/20 House: Committee Referral Pending

SUPPORT

Del. Jennifer Carroll Foy
Paid family and medical leave program.

  • 01/07/20 House: Committee Referral Pending

OPPOSE

Del. Sam Rasoul
Study; Department of Rail and Public Transportation; Commonwealth Corridor passenger rail service; report

  • 01/06/20 House: Committee Referral Pending

SUPPORT

Sen. Dick Saslaw
Fair share fees

  • 01/07/20 Senate: Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor

OPPOSE

Sen. Mark Obenshain
Interstate 81 Corridor; motor vehicle fuels sales tax. Limits the application of the additional motor vehicle fuels sales tax imposed under current law in all counties and cities in Planning Districts 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 to those counties or cities in Planning District 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7 in which a portion of Interstate 81 is located

  • 01/07/20 Senate: Referred to Committee on Finance and Appropriations

OPPOSE

Del. Terry Austin
Transportation bonds; I-81. Authorizes issuance of bonds in an amount up to $2 billion for revenue-producing projects in the Interstate 81 corridor.

  • 01/07/20 Senate: Referred to Committee on Finance and Appropriations

SUPPORT
Workforce Development & Education

Del. Hala Ayala
STEAM programs; establishes STEAM Education Fund

  • 01/07/20 House: Committee Referral Pending
SUPPORT

Del. Terry Kilgore
DOE; experiential learning and workforce development opportunities in high-demand fields, report.

  • 01/07/20 House: Committee Referral Pending

SUPPORT

Sen. Bill DeSteph
Apprentice agreements; ratio of journeymen to apprentices

  • 01/06/20 Senate: Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology

SUPPORT

Sen. Bill DeSteph
Public institutions of higher education; State Council of Higher Education for Virginia; business advisory committee.

  • 01/08/20 Senate: Referred to Committee on Education and Health

SUPPORT
Research and Technology

Del. Jay Jones
Research and development tax credits; extends sunset date, aggregate caps.

  • 01/07/20 House: Committee Referral Pending

SUPPORT

Del. Mark Sickles
Commonwealth of Virginia Innovation Partnership Authority; created.

  • 01/07/20 House: Committee Referral Pending

SUPPORT

Sen. Louise Lucas
Authority of localities to provide broadband service

  • 01/06/20 Senate: Referred to Committee on Local Government

SUPPORT
Healthcare

Del. Chris Hurst
Health insurance; association health plans

  • 01/07/20 House: Committee Referral Pending

SUPPORT

Sen. Monty Mason
Group health benefit plans; bona fide associations; benefits consortium.

  • 01/08/20 Senate: Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor

SUPPORT

Sen. John Edwards
Virginia Health Benefit Exchange

  • 12/31/19 Senate: Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor

MONITOR