Virginia's General Assembly has successfully finalized the state's two-year budget, incorporating Governor Abigail Spanberger's 14 amendments, just hours before the critical June 30 deadline. The $207 billion spending plan introduces a new tax on data centers for their energy consumption, while preserving their sales and use tax exemption, and establishes Virginia's first-ever paid sick leave, paid family and medical leave, and child care assistance programs.
Among other significant legislative actions, the General Assembly approved the retail sale of recreational marijuana, set to begin on July 1, 2027, with up to 350 licensed shops across the Commonwealth. However, a new ban on the open carry of assault weapons in public places has been delayed for a year. Governor Spanberger said this delay was necessary to "provide additional time to avoid creating a dangerous loophole in gun violence prevention laws" that would have inadvertently legalized the open carry of large capacity detachable magazines where currently prohibited.
Separately, a Virginia judge issued a statewide injunction blocking the enforcement of a newly passed ban on the sale, purchase, manufacturing, and transfer of high-capacity semi-automatic weapons and magazines. The judge ruled this ban violates a 1971 provision of the Virginia Constitution, a decision Attorney General Jay Jones said his office would appeal.
Numerous other laws are set to take effect on July 1, including an increase in the minimum wage, new protections against life insurance discrimination for individuals taking PrEP medication, and the expansion of a ban on expanded polystyrene (Styrofoam) food containers to all food outlets. Additionally, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that law enforcement must obtain warrants for cellphone location data, affirming Fourth Amendment protections for digital privacy.