Dear Friend-
I write a General Assembly session recap every year. This year feels… um…. different.
Never have I written to you amid the kind of turbulence in Washington—and the world—that we are experiencing now. Never have I written to you about a session that in many ways feels overshadowed by the unprecedented events we are living through. But knowing that the highly engaged residents of the 6th district recognize the importance – and, given what is going on in D.C., the increasing importance – of what is happening in our Commonwealth, I ask you to take a moment and read my report about what took place in Richmond during the 2025 General Assembly session.
It was, in sum, a productive session. Despite another record-setting (or record-extending) number of Governor’s vetoes and the long shadow Washington casts on our Commonwealth, we made meaningful progress, passed several new laws that will improve Virginians’ lives, and produced an excellent budget. All this despite the fact that just 100 miles or so up the road the world seemed to be coming apart.
During our short session this year, I was proud of the 15 bills that I carried. Of the 15:
- 8 bills passed the General Assembly and were signed into law.
- 3 bills did not reach the Governor’s desk.
- 3 bills were vetoed by the Governor.
- 1 bill remains in limbo (as I write this letter) as we await the Governor’s action after we rejected his amendment during the Reconvene Session.
Passed Bills
Fusion Energy (HB 1779): Late last year I had the pleasure of being part of the process that brought Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS) to Virginia. CFS is the world’s leading fusion energy company, and it has announced that it will be building the world’s first commercial fusion power plant in Chesterfield, VA.
Fusion has always been science fiction, years and years away, but CFS hopes to be producing fusion energy by the early 2030’s. That would be a game changer for powering our state, and eventually the world, with limitless, safe, clean energy. Truly historic. And if it is going to happen somewhere, it might as well be here in Virginia.
HB 1779 made the initial changes to the Virginia Code defining fusion. I hope CFS is successful, and that we have to expand on the Code’s treatment of fusion energy in future sessions.
Children’s Ombudsman/Foster Kids (HB 1777): My favorite bill ideas are the ones I get from young people. A group of kids who had gone through our foster care system told me that they had never known they had access to the Virginia Children’s Ombudsman, who is charged with helping foster kids with issues or complaints. This bill fixes that and ensures that all foster children in Virginia will learn that they have confidential access to someone who can help them if their situation requires it.
Insurance Agents (HB 1778): I brought this bill at the request of the State Corporation Commission. It modernizes and streamlines the process for appointment of insurance agents.
Family Abuse Protective Orders (HB 1781): I brought this bill at the request of the Virginia Supreme Court. It clarifies that protective orders in family abuse cases that originate in other states are enforceable in Virginia.
Newborn Screening Requirements (HB 1782): Working with rare disease advocates, I brought this bill to update and accelerate the process by which Virginia’s newborn children are screened for newly identifiable disorders. Early detection is crucial to potential treatments.
Compensation for Wrongfully Incarcerated Individuals—Intentional Acts (HB 1914): Not often—but too often—our criminal justice system gets it wrong, and individuals are convicted of crimes they did not in fact commit. I have been working over the course of several sessions to improve the way Virginia compensates people who have been wrongfully imprisoned. While there is no way to really right these wrongs—we can’t go back in time, we can’t give these people back the portion of their lives they have missed— Virginia’s system is founded on paying them compensation based on the length of time they served and several other variables. In recent sessions we have made the process more accessible, more fair, and increased the amount paid per year—which had not been changed in many years and had fallen far behind other states and the federal government.
HB 1914 dealt with a new issue: in what we hope are rare cases, defendants are wrongfully convicted not because of mistakes or newly discovered evidence, but because of intentional acts by law enforcement. In other words, they are wrongfully convicted on purpose when, for instance, law enforcement withholds exonerating evidence, knowingly creates and presents false testimony or fabricated evidence, or takes other acts that result in law enforcement identifying and convicting someone it knows did not commit the crime. Truly heinous conduct by public servants sworn to uphold the law. I had two such cases this year. The facts were heartbreaking.
The law in Virginia already recognized that such conduct warrants different treatment—an enhanced payment, not unlike punitive damages or treble damages in a civil lawsuit. But a quirk in the law allowed the locality where the purposeful conduct took place to block any payment to the wrongfully incarcerated person. This gave localities veto power over the actions of the General Assembly. HB 1914 fixes that issue and ensures these wronged individuals get what is due them.
Compensation for Marvin Grimm, Jr. (HB 1776): Marvin Grimm was convicted in Richmond of sexually assaulting and killing a three-year-old girl in 1975. The crime rocked and terrified the community, which demanded the killer be found quickly. Mr. Grimm was convicted of the murder. He spent 45 years in prison until it finally came out that the police and medical examiner’s office had suppressed exonerating evidence and presented knowingly false testimony and evidence at trial.
Mr. Grimm is the longest-serving wrongfully convicted Virginian, and second longest in the country. He went to prison at age 20 and came out at age 65. He spent essentially his entire adult life in prison. His testimony in committee about what had been taken from him was deeply moving. I’ll never forget it.
Compensation for Gilbert Merritt III (HB 1780): Gilbert Merritt was convicted in Norfolk in 2001 of first-degree murder and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. His conviction was engineered by infamous former Norfolk homicide detective Robert Glenn Ford, who was subsequently found guilty of federal crimes including extortion under color of official right and making false statements. Chillingly, the court concluded in Mr. Merritt’s case that “the evidence…establishes that Ford’s conduct was aimed at engineering a specific outcome in which Merritt would be wrongfully convicted and Ford would take credit for solving a homicide.”
Mr. Merritt served 20 years in prison at the hands of Detective Ford. His testimony before the General Assembly committees was riveting, and heartbreaking.
Bills That Did Not Pass
Internships (HB 2125): An internship can offer a young person a pathway to a career. Virginia’s state government is constantly working to attract talented employees to careers in public service. This bill would connect those two points. It would increase the number of internships in state government and create an internship coordinator who would coordinate and expand these opportunities. Though it was included in the House budget, it failed to pass the Senate’s Finance Committee. I’ll try again next year.
Siting of Energy Facilities (HB 2126): I continued my leadership this session in one of the most important policy questions facing Virginia: how do we stay on track toward meeting our statewide energy transition goals, while recognizing the role of localities in making land use decisions?
Virginia’s increasing energy demand requires that we build quality renewable energy projects to meet our energy goals and keep our grid reliable and our energy affordable. Unfortunately, some localities are denying quality energy projects that would benefit the landowners who want to build the projects, the locality, and all of Virginia. Some guard rails are needed to ensure that localities are giving these projects a fair review. HB 2126 would provide localities with needed technical support for reviewing energy (solar and battery) projects and provide a higher standard that localities would have to meet to deny a project. The bill did not pass, but it continued to shine a spotlight on the challenge. I will continue to work on this crucial issue.
Data Center Energy Efficiency (HB 2578): Virginia is “The Data Center Capital of the World.” The growing demand they are putting on our electric grid is creating a new challenge for keeping our grid reliable and our energy affordable. HB 2578 would require that data centers meet stringent energy efficiency standards and use increasing amounts of clean energy. It also directs the Department of Energy to explore the use of the heat generated by data centers for other nearby heating needs. We are far behind the rest of the world on this issue. For example: the pool at the 2024 Paris Olympics was heated by the heat from a nearby data center. In other places, nearby businesses or even housing developments are heated by a data center. These are the kind of creative new technologies on which Virginia needs to become a leader.
I was disappointed that this bill failed to pass, but I will continue to push these issues. I have no doubt that data centers will again be a major topic in our 2026 session.
Vetoes
Reform of Divorce Law (HB 1775): This bill came to me from the Family Law Coalition, the statewide group of lawyers who specialize in family law. It would make the divorce process less confrontational, less harmful to children, and less expensive. It did nothing to make it easier or faster to get divorced.
The Governor, frankly, seems to have misunderstood the bill, thinking it would reduce the opportunity for reconciliation. That is not so. I’ll bring it back next session.
Electric Vehicle (EV) Rural Charging Infrastructure (HB 1791): I have carried this bill for four years, and each time it gets a little further in the process. This time it reached the Governor’s desk, only to be vetoed. The bill recognizes that all Virginians should have access to EV charging infrastructure as we make the transition to EV’s, and it makes great business sense for our tourism industry because it would put charging stations in and near our state and national parks and other rural destinations.
We need visitors to know they can confidently drive their EV’s to every corner of our beautiful Commonwealth. I would have thought the Governor would see its economic benefits and importance, but no such luck.
Loud Muffler Noise Abatement (HB 2550): We all have endured the incredibly loud sound of after-market mufflers, which are not only illegal but a nuisance having an enormous impact on our quality of life. But the law banning them is very difficult to enforce; the offender is long-gone before a police officer can respond to a complaint.
This bill would have enabled Fairfax County and other Northern Virginia localities to conduct a pilot program using new technology to identify and ticket offenders. The technology is essentially a roadside microphone equipped with a camera—not unlike the roadside emissions inspection detectors we now see by the side of the road.
For some reason the Governor was more concerned about the offenders than he was about those of us who have to endure the noise. He worried in his veto statement that it would create “inconsistent enforcement and confusion for motorists across the state,” meaning someone breaking the law would be confused as to where they would get caught and where they wouldn’t. In my view, that’s their problem! I wish the Governor had signed the bill—all of our ears would have been grateful—so I’ll have to bring the bill again next session.
Governor’s Recommendation
Energy Storage (HB 2537): This bill would have upped Virginia’s game on developing the latest technologies for storing energy by increasing the goals already required by the Clean Economy Act. The Governor, rather than veto the bill, suggested re-writing it. But he didn’t make any constructive suggestions for improving the bill. Instead, he removed all mention of energy storage and turned it into a bill that would repeal the Virginia Clean Economy Act.
The fact is that whether you like the Clean Economy Act or not, there simply is no dispute that an important part of our drive to meet our energy needs— and to keep the grid reliable and our electricity affordable for Virginia’s families—will necessarily involve accelerating our energy storage capabilities. The Governor’s amendment was a missed opportunity to do just that.
I might add that this was the most closely and extensively negotiated bill among stakeholders that I’ve been involved with since I negotiated the Clean Economy Act. It has broad support— including from Dominion–and received a unanimous vote in the Senate for the identical Senate version. It fits perfectly into the Governor’s “all of the above” energy strategy, and his economic development goals, since it would bring all sorts of business, jobs, and new companies to the Commonwealth. Other competitor states are beginning to take steps to encourage long duration energy storage development, and HB 2537 would make Virginia a national leader in storage. The Governor’s amendment leaves us falling behind.
The General Assembly rejected his suggestion and sent the bill back to the Governor in its original form. As I write this, he is deciding whether to veto the bill or sign it. I hope he signs it—he’d be doing the right thing for Virginia.
Casino: The issue I heard about from constituents most frequently this session was the proposed Tysons casino. The proposal to put a casino in Tysons—which I have steadfastly opposed—failed. Again. I suspect it will be back. Again. Like Miracle Max said in the Princess Bride: It is only mostly dead. Stay tuned for developments as next session approaches.
Constitutional Amendments
The first (and perhaps most important) action we took this session was passing three proposed amendments to Virginia’s Constitution. The Governor is not involved at all in the amendment process, so he was unable to block us. If these same amendments pass the General Assembly again in 2026 (assuming Democratic control), they will go before Virginia voters in the election in November 2026. The amendments we passed were:
- Marriage Equality: Believe it or not, marriage is still defined as solely between one man and one woman in Virginia’s Constitution. Though the U.S. Supreme Court nullified such state restrictions, the vote this session to amend our Constitution to recognize and protect that Supreme Court ruling went mostly along party lines. Apparently many of my colleagues remain hopeful that a future Supreme Court will go backward on this issue.
- Reproductive Rights: Virginia is the last state in the south to NOT pass new and draconian restrictions on a woman’s reproductive freedom in the wake of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade. Passed by another mostly party-line vote, this amendment would ensure that Virginia remains a state that recognizes and protects a woman’s fundamental right to control her own body.
- Voting Rights: This amendment would protect all Virginians’ right to vote, including Virginians who have paid their debt to society and been released from prison after a felony conviction. Most states automatically restore voting rights to returning citizens. But in Virginia, Jim-Crow era policies give this power to the Governor, who can restore or not restore voting rights for any reason, or no reason. The amendment would have Virginia join the mainstream by ensuring the automatic return of voting rights.
Budget
The budget is perhaps the most impactful work that the General Assembly undertakes during any General Assembly session. I was proud to support the budget this year that provides a historic investment of $2.1 billion in public education (including teacher raises and removing the support staff cap, and adding support for special education), a pay raise for state employees, increased funds for developmental disability waivers, a tax rebate for all Virginia taxpayers and other tax reforms reducing the tax burden on hard working Virginia families (including a permanent increase in the standard deduction), money to keep higher education affordable and limit tuition increases at our public institutions of higher education, new investments in early childhood education, mental health services, and helping families afford childcare. In short it balances fiscal responsibility with bold investments, building a stronger and more prosperous Virginia for all.
As I write this the Governor has not yet decided whether to sign the budget bill. I hope he does the right thing.
Washington Chaos
I can’t finish this session recap without addressing the immense impact events in Washington are having – and will continue to have – on our region and the broader Commonwealth. House Speaker Don Scott has appointed a bi-partisan Emergency Committee on the Impacts of Federal Workforce and Funding Reductions, which is conducting hearings across the Commonwealth looking in depth into what Virginia faces as a result of DOGE and other Trump administration actions.
We will likely have to convene a special session of the General Assembly this summer, since the prospects are dire. Just one example: if the federal government’s Medicaid contribution is cut, more than 600,000 Virginians will lose their medical coverage, and hospitals all across the Commonwealth will face financial calamity. We may have to make hard choices about what to do with what used to be a budget surplus.
Thank you for reading this far. As regular readers of this space have come to expect
(and new readers have by now realized), this letter is far too long. But I have found 6th
District residents to be very engaged and eager to know about developments in
Richmond. And I had a lot to report!
My staff and I are here to help the residents of the 6th District. If you need assistance, please do not hesitate to call my office at 571-210-5876 or email me at
delrsullivan@house.virginia.gov.
For more information, please visit my website: www.ripsullivan.com. You can also follow
me on X (twitter) at @Ripsullivan6 or on Facebook at facebook.com/RipSullivanVA.
My best wishes to you and yours. I hope you have a great summer.
Best,
Richard C. (Rip) Sullivan, Jr.
Delegate, 6th District
