2016 General Assembly Session Review
The Virginia General Assembly adjourned its sixty-day session sine die on March 11, which was one day ahead of schedule and is the second time in two years that the legislature completed their legislative business early. The 2016 Session passed by at a frenzied pace as legislators considered thousands of bills and resolutions in addition to crafting the Commonwealth's biennial budget. Indeed, when the General Assembly adjourned on Friday, March 11 th , legislators had considered 3,286 introduced bills and resolutions of which over 1,803 passed. As of March 28 many bills await action by the Governor during the 30-day bill review process and any amendments or vetoes proposed to these bills will be considered at the annual Reconvened Session scheduled for April 20, 2016.
The top priority of the General Assembly this year was crafting a new biennial budget. As most legislators observed, the budget as introduced by the Governor was structurally sound and made several strategic investments in core government functions. Throughout the session, the House and Senate worked in a collaborative fashion and ultimately approved a biennium budget that reflects the key priorities of the Commonwealth.
The FY2016 - FY2018 Budget totals $105 billion over the biennium. The most significant priority in the budget was the increased funding for K-12 education of $892 million over the current biennium. In addition, the budget invests over $115 million for Virginia colleges and universities and makes several strategic investments into economic development programs aimed at growing Virginia's economy.
The General Assembly also approved a $2.1 billion bond package that included projects for state parks, colleges, universities, museums, and the Department of Corrections. Most notably, the bond package includes $350 million to expand capacity of the Norfolk International Terminal at the Port of Virginia.
Transportation was a major theme during the 2016 Session. In addition to the $350 million allocated for the Port of Virginia, the General Assembly also approved $50 million in non- general funds over the biennium to lower enplanement costs at Dulles Airport. The total funding for all transportation agencies over the biennium is $13.4 billion. The only earmark in the budget for a specific transportation project directs spending of up to $140 million for a third eastbound travel lane on Interstate 66 Inside the Beltway to Ballston (from mile marker 67 to mile marker 71).
The General Assembly approved a new statewide tolling policy that restricts tolling on any existing lanes open to all traffic 24/7 without legislative approval. It also requires relinquishment of the federal pilot tolling slot for I-95 South of Fredericksburg. These tolling restrictions do not impact the express lanes projects in Northern Virginia.
The Vectre team delivered a number of significant legislative victories for new clients during the 2016 Session. In particular, Vectre was part of a lobbying effort that succeeded in promoting legislation that established a non-refundable research and development tax credit for major innovators that conduct research and development in the Commonwealth. This was a top priority for many innovators in Virginia because of their significant footprint in the Commonwealth and the recognition that Virginia must remain competitive with other states that are investing in business incentives.
The most important health care issue before the 2016 Session of the Virginia General Assembly was legislation regarding Certificate of Public Need (COPN) for hospitals. Virginia's COPN program helps to promote health care access, control costs and support charity care in the Commonwealth. The COPN Program requires owners and sponsors of identified medical care facility projects to secure a COPN from the state health commissioner prior to initiating projects such as acute care services, general surgical services and diagnostic imaging. A number of bills were introduced proposing a range of options from reforms to piecemeal and wholesale deregulation of COPN. Vectre was engaged in working to promote responsible COPN deregulation and the health care funding necessary to stabilize an imbalanced system in which hospitals provide significant charity care and must comply with government mandates to deliver free and discounted care. Without such a balanced approach to assure the financial viability of hospitals, Vectre was involved in opposing piecemeal or wholesale deregulation. No legislation was adopted at the 2016 session but this will be an issue that will be considered in the interim and will be before the 2017 Session of the Virginia General Assembly.
These initiatives were in addition to the advocacy work Vectre did on behalf of its existing clients. There were a significant number of legislative proposals introduced in the 2016 Session related to the budget, transportation, tax policy, data privacy, health care, procurement, commercial development and higher education which impacted Vectre clients. Our team responded by successfully advocating our clients' positions to members of the General Assembly.
The 2016 Session was a productive one for the Commonwealth, its citizens and Vectre's clients.