Democratic members of the General Assembly are expanding the scope of a special session already underway to address the federal workforce and spending cuts that impact the commonwealth.
“I believe absolutely we’re going to have to come back,” Speaker of the House Don Scott, D-Portsmouth, said during a press gaggle when asked by the Richmond Times Dispatch Friday morning.
The resolution was filed late Friday night to expand the scope of the special session.
The governor can call the General Assembly into a special session, or a supermajority in both chambers can do it, but neither of those options is likely as Republicans do not want to give Democrats a platform to attack President Donald Trump.
However, there is already an active special session from last year to address changes to VMSDEP, and Democrats can just change the scope of the work moving forward.
The House announced that on Saturday, they will gavel into the special session at 2 p.m., add the new language to expand its scope, and then gavel out.
They will then begin the final day of the regular session, vote on the final bills and budget, the adjourn SIne Die.
“We have to be responsive, and we have to be nimble to the things that are happening in DC,” Scott continued. “So we have a responsibility to come back. I already believe that we’re more than likely to have to come back to deal with some of the chaos that’s going on in DC.”
Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax, echoed that sentiment.
“I don’t see how we can avoid a Special Session given the extraordinary and illegal actions of Trump, DOGE and the capitulation by our governor and Congressional Republicans,” Surovell said in a statement to Virginia Scope.
“It looks like the governor won’t take any action that will deal with the challenges that Virginia’s are facing,” Scott said. “He’s only said that he’s ‘concerned,’ but his concern won’t help people be able to pay their mortgages and pay their rent. His concern won’t help people put groceries on the table for their kids. So here in the General Assembly, like we’ve done in this budget by addressing the issues facing Virginians with affordability.”
“It’s not about politics,” he continued. “It really is now because there are Republicans and Democrats being hurt by the chaos being caused by Elon Musk and Donald Trump.”
Republicans are not impressed and pointed to a bill that would provide unemployment insurance for some federal independent contractors but was not included in the budget that Democrats proposed.
“It’s fake outrage,” said Sen. Glen Sturtevant, R-Colonial Heights. “When Democrats had an opportunity to help these federal workers, they failed to put up the money to do so.”
The bill Sturtevant is referencing would have increased the duration for which Virginians who were independent contractors with the federal government could receive unemployment benefits.
Democrats in the Senate added an amendment that stated this legislation can only move forward unless funding is included in the budget.
“Their president burned down the house, and now they’re complaining when we don’t have the final cost on rebuilding it,” Surovell said.
The bill passed in the Senate, but the money to fund it was not included in the budget.
Stay tuned for more updates on this story.