Our annual lobby day, Day for All People, was an incredible success! Over 420 people filled the elevators and halls of the General Assembly, meeting with their legislators about our priority bills.
We're deeply grateful to our partners at Virginia Interfaith Power and Light, whose team joined ours in facilitating workshops that allowed participants to explore our policy areas in greater depth. We also extend our thanks to Dr. Bernice Tavers, Rev. Florian Jones-Staff, Farah Hottle-Salam, Tsion Tesfaye, and Eli Weinger for sharing their voices and perspectives on our Generations in Justice lunchtime panel.
Legislative Progress Update
While we were connecting at the Capitol, our priority bills continued advancing through the General Assembly. Here's where things stand:
Bills That Passed Committee:
HB1 – Raising the Minimum Wage – This bill would raise the minimum wage to $15 by January 1, 2028. It passed the House Labor and Commerce Committee (15-7).
SB4 – Free School Breakfast for Students – This bill would provide school breakfast at no cost to students. It passed the Senate Education and Health Committee unanimously (15-0).
SB134 – Child Care Funding – This bill requires the Department of Education to establish a funding formula for early childhood care and education. It passed the Senate Public Education Subcommittee (5-0).
Bills on Today's Docket:
HB5 – Paid Sick Days – This bill would require all employers to provide paid sick leave to all workers in Virginia.
HB594 – Expediting Affordable Housing – This bill would allow localities to create an expedited administrative approval process to rezone land for affordable housing.
HB20 – Farm Worker Minimum Wage Exemption – This bill would remove the exemption that currently excludes farm workers from minimum wage eligibility.
SB33 – School Nurses Funding - This bill allows schools to use “at risk add-on” funding to pay for nurses
Bills on Friday’s Docket:
SB133 – This bill protects mothers and babies in pregnancies with substance exposure. It removes criminal and CPS penalties for moms who get prenatal care and rehab if needed.
SB22 – Implicit Bias - This bill requires medical practitioners to complete two hours of continuing education on unconscious bias and cultural competency.
Please watch for our action alerts and reach out to your legislators to let them know how you'd like them to vote on these important bills.
Have a warm and safe weekend!
In solidarity,
Keisha
Rev. Dr. LaKeisha Cook
Executive Director | 
