Governor Glenn Youngkin twice referred to the budget proposed by the Virginia General Assembly as “backward” in remarks made Monday, setting the stage for a showdown with Democratic lawmakers in April.
Youngkin first said the commonwealth’s lawmakers created a “backward budget” in a post to X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
“I’m on my way to go pick up over 1,000 bills the General Assembly passed, there’s a ton of work to do,” said Youngkin in a video shot as he prepared to ascend a staircase in the Virginia State Capitol.
The governor added, “We’ve got to get it done in 30 days, and we’ve got a budget to fix.”
Virginia, we have a backward budget to fix. Let’s get to work! pic.twitter.com/OmWg0wrHYY
— Glenn Youngkin (@GlennYoungkin) March 11, 2024
Youngkin again declared the budget crafted by Democrats in the General Assembly is “backward” in comments made to 12 On Your Side later the same day.
“$2.6 billion in more costs on Virginians,” Youngkin said of the budget created by lawmakers. “It’s completely backward, and this is what we’ve got to go fix.”
While the governor asked lawmakers to decrease the commonwealth’s income tax and offset it by modernizing Virginia’s sales tax, he told the outlet that Democrats instead sought to raise the sales tax and create new taxes consumers could see on their utility bills.
Virginia lawmakers will return to Richmond on April 17 to conclude the legislative session. Before then, lawmakers must review any legislation amended or vetoed by Youngkin and negotiate a budget with the governor that will last the commonwealth until 2026.
When lawmakers return next month, Youngkin is widely expected to make another attempt at courting Democrats to support his plans to create the Potomac Yards Arena for the Washington Commanders and Capitals in Alexandria.
State Senator L. Louise Lucas (D-Portsmouth) successfully used her authority on the Senate Finance Committee to defeat the Senate version of a bill that would have created an agency to oversee the arena’s funding, then blocked the version passed by the House of Delegates.
Before Lucas killed the House bill, Youngkin held a press conference, during which he warned that Democrats were making a “colossal mistake” by turning down the arena while Lucas watched from above.
Lucas previously suggested she would support the arena, or that Virginia Democrats would work with Youngkin, if the governor agreed to sign legislation creating a $15 per hour minimum wage by 2026 and offered toll relief in Hampton Roads.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Georgia Star News, The Virginia Star, and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Glenn Youngkin” by Governor of Virginia. Background Photo “Virginia Capitol” by Anderskev. CC BY 3.0.
