They also seek to launch the multiyear process of amending the state constitution to ensure access to abortion and to automatically restore rights once individuals have completed their sentences for felonies.
Traditionally, bills No. 1 and 2 and the first joint resolutions — such as the proposed constitutional amendments — signal the priorities of a new session’s majority.
The amendments and bills on gun violence and minimum wage signal a session that will move Virginia forward, said Speaker of the House designee Don Scott Jr., D-Portsmouth.
Scott said he is especially glad to see the measure seeking automatic restoration of rights.
“With this, we are sending a message that there is no room for the spirit of Jim Crow that has plagued our commonwealth for far too long,” he said.
The resolutions for rights restoration and access to abortion — if they pass the legislature — would mark the first steps toward amending the constitution. In order to be added to the state constitution, a proposed amendment must pass the legislature in two different years with a vote for the House of Delegates in between, then go to voters for approval in a state referendum. The next election for the House is in 2025, which means a state referendum on a proposed amendment could not occur until 2026.
A governor cannot veto a proposed constitutional amendment.
“Throughout the campaign cycle, we told Virginians that a Democratic majority meant that abortion access would be protected,” said Del....
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