Youngkin talks vetoes and amendments
Today is the last day for Youngkin to take action on legislation.
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Youngkin talks budget amendments
Gov. Glenn Youngkin held a press conference Monday to discuss his budget amendment proposals on the final day for him to take action on legislation.
Sources say that Youngkin will veto more than 160 bills, amend more than 150, and propose more than 200 budget amendments. He will also have eight line-item vetoes.
His office has not released the full list of bills that he will veto or amend, but he did foreshadow his decisions during a gaggle with the press Monday afternoon.
“You can imagine, that if I vetoed it last year, there is a reasonable chance I will this year,” he said.
Youngkin vetoed more than 200 bills in 2024.
During his speech, he discussed some of his amendments for bills that Democrats killed during session. Those bills include establishing a Virginia Gaming Commission, which would oversee the gambling industry in Virginia.
“Given the rapid growth of gaming around Virginia, it is imperative that we establish a consolidated, coordinated, professional oversight,” Youngkin said.
The House passed this legislation, but it did not make it out of the Senate.
Youngkin also included an amendment to provide opportunity scholarships for low-income students to use in private education, which was killed by Democrats who said it would take money away from public education.
“We are not taking any money away from public education,” Youngkin said when he was asked about the amendment. “Everybody has seen the numbers. We have had record budgets every year, and we have added record amounts to them every year, and we're doing it again, an incremental $450 million through this amendment package going to K-12 education.”
A family must be at 200% below the federal poverty level to be eligible for the scholarship.
“When you run a $3.2 billion surplus, you can step back and say, what new things would we want to invest in the Virginia opportunity scholarships are exactly that,” Youngkin said.
The governor also wants to add $300 million to the reserve, which would be on top of the $294 constitutionally required funding that will already be added. He said this is a response to the actions being taken by President Donald Trump to cut the federal workforce.
While he is making moves to prepare for the consequences of Trump’s actions, Youngkin still believes the president is making the right moves.
“Let's be clear, just as President Trump has acknowledged, there is risk in financial disruption as they take the needed actions to restore fiscal discipline in Washington,” he said.
The full list of the governor’s vetoes will become available sometime today.
Stay tuned.