On the evening of Feb. 22, the Virginia General Assembly adjourned after a short, 45-day session. The session got off to a rocky start after a winter storm and power outage disrupted the water supply system in Richmond and the surrounding area, delaying the start to the session.

During that short time we saw some incredibly engaged activists who sent over 1,400 letters to legislators as well as making dozens of calls to offices during call-in events that we hosted in January and February.

In the beginning of the session there were nearly 2,000 bills introduced. Of those, roughly 900 are headed to the desk of Gov. Glenn Youngkin. He now has until March 24 to sign, amend or veto each of these bills. After he has done that, the general assembly will return to Richmond on April 2 to vote on the governor’s actions. The bills that the governor and both chambers agree to then become law on July 1.

Here are a few highlights from the General Assembly this year. We’ll share more updates on the bills we’ve worked on after the governor’s veto session wraps up on April 2 and we know which bills are becoming law! 

Defending the Virginia Clean Economy Act

In 2020, Virginia passed major legislation to reduce carbon emissions and shift to a 100% clean energy economy by mid-century with the Virginia Clean Economy Act. However, powerful fossil fuel interest groups would like to weaken or repeal Virginia’s landmark clean energy law. This year we worked to ensure that this law was not watered down. 

Bills to weaken the act included several measures that would add polluting resources like methane gas to the legal definition of “renewable energy” or allow gas to qualify for Virginia’s clean energy standard. Some bills took a bold approach, repealing or deleting broad sections of the VCEA. Others took a more nuanced approach; for example, multiple bills would have made compliance with the VCEA’s clean energy standard more of a suggestion than a requirement. Others would have suspended compliance with environmental laws and regulation for a few years in the name of “innovation”. We are thankful that the General Assembly defeated these bills; it would not have been possible without your outreach to legislators and work with partners across the state.

Rate relief for Appalachian Power customers

The 2025 legislative session saw broad, bipartisan support for helping customers of Appalachian Power Co. (often referred to as AEP by folks in Southwest Virginia) get some relief from their extremely high electricity bills. The typical bill for residential customers has risen 158% since 2007, with much of that increase happening much more recently. Just since 2021, APCo’s typical residential bill has gone up a whopping 47 percent. Thankfully, legislators passed HB 2621 (Ballard) and SB 1076 (Peake), which would do a number of things to provide some relief to ratepayers like you and me. 

First, these bills allow the utility to sell down some debt to lower expenses through a process known as securitization. Securitization allows a utility to sell bonds and use the cash generated to pay down more expensive debt associated with expensive and polluting power plants or other unexpected costs, such as severe storm damage. Securitization both helps the utility’s balance sheet and also puts downward pressure on customer bills in the short term.

The legislation also prevents Appalachian Power from raising its rates during the expensive winter months, when we’re using our lights more often and many folks heat their homes using electricity. These bills also help people who are behind on their power bills by prohibiting interest and late fees through the end of 2025, and by prohibiting reconnection fees for customers who have been disconnected through March 1, 2026. These bills went through a number of changes throughout the session, but the final versions allow for some relief for customers in Southwest Virginia and are awaiting the governor’s signature.

Pipeline safety

In Virginia, large fracked-gas transmission pipelines are not required to add an odorant to the gas traveling through the pipeline. Odorant is a chemical additive specifically designed to give a noticeable scent to otherwise odorless or low-odor gases as a safety precaution to help detect leaks. This year, Del. Sam Rasoul (Roanoke) introduced HB 2545, which would have promoted community safety by requiring the addition of odorant to intrastate gas transmission pipelines that travel through our communities. Unfortunately, this bill did not advance out of a House committee.

Check back with us and stay tuned for more updates after the Virginia General Assembly votes on the governor’s amendments to bills on April 2.