Governor Glenn Youngkin is pulling out his veto pen again — this time to reject a bill on railroad safety.
How many people should be working on trains that come through Virginia? Democrats say all those trains should have at least a two-person crew, and they sent the governor a bill that requires that. But the governor is vetoing that bill. In his veto message, the governor says the proposed regulations disrupt the ability of railroad companies to access new markets.
"The governor did mention the importance of innovation in his veto statement," says Delegate Shelly Simonds, a Democrat from Newport News who introduced the bill. "But this industry seems to only use technology when it suits their business model, and every day these trains come barreling through our towns and our cities. And we have a right to know that they’re using technology for our safety. Not just profits."
Ronnie Hobbs is Virginia state director of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers, the union representing railroad workers.
"We have the opportunity to override a veto, and it simply comes down by two-thirds of the vote," Hobbs says. "So, I would definitely encourage all senators and all delegates here in the assembly to look past profit and look toward safety."
But getting two-thirds of lawmakers to agree with overriding the governor's veto would be an uphill climb for a bill that barely got out of the House and Senate on a party-line vote.
This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.
