Faced with a global pandemic and evidence of police brutality, lawmakers are working their way through a hectic special session – but it’s not entirely without precedent.
The year was 1986 and Virginia’s transportation infrastructure was a mess. So lawmakers converged in Richmond for a special session that would ultimately bring about tax increases to fund airports, seaports and roads.
“All of this was something that was recognizing that to move literally into the 21st century we needed to have a major restructuring and overhaul," says Vivian Watts. She was the state’s transportation secretary back then. Now, she’s a Delegate trying to restructure the criminal justice system and pass a COVID-era budget.
And while members of the House have submitted budget amendments, Senators have not. Instead, they’re working off of Governor Northam’s proposal.
Senator George Barker explains that’s because his chamber is operating on a tradition that goes back at least to that 1986 special session.
“It was a precedent and we’ve continued in every special season since then, so we have basically said we’re going to stick with the priorities we already have,” he says.
Those priorities, he says, include solving a $2 billion problem: what to do about planned spending that lawmakers put on hold because of the pandemic.
Whatever their answer, 2020 is bound to set a precedent of its own.
This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.