Greetings from your State Capital!

We will be ending our 2025 session tomorrow.  Therefore, all legislation will be either before the Governor for his consideration or dead for this year.  As we end our 2025 short session, my focus in this report will be on the overarching theme of this years’ session.

During my tenure in the assembly, there was always an acknowledgement that almost all bills have a constituent behind them. In the past, regardless of the majority party, almost all bills received a hearing before a committee or subcommittee so that the citizens voices may be heard.  This session we saw roughly 150 Republican bills never placed on a docket.  When the issue was raised on the floor, the explanation given by one of the Democrats was that there were groups who got their ideas heard and groups that didn’t.  I have always known that I was supposed to consider the perspective of all my constituents, not just those that agree with me.

My pledge to you all has always been, and always will be, being open, honest and accessible.  From my first year in office, I have always had a non-partisan advisory committee that meets at least 3 times a year to hear a detailed explanation of legislative actions, ask me questions, and voice their concerns.  Democracy can only exist when all sides of the issues are considered.  Anything else is autocracy, one sided governance.

This session we saw efforts to protect kids from dangerous social media addiction, punish drug dealers who kill with their drugs and other efforts to make our communities safer summarily dismissed.  After all of this, they did pass legislation to lessen the penalties for convicted felons, increase the costs of a new home and increase electrical costs.  Much of the legislation they passed was the same as bills vetoed by the Governor last year.

We will vote on the budget tomorrow, after which it will go to the Governor, with consideration of his amendments when we return for veto session in April.  I will share the details of the final budget and specific major policy changes at that time.

I welcome the opportunity to visit with constituents or groups to explain any of our legislative action, hear your concerns or attempt to assist with issues you may have with our state government.  As of Monday, 2/24/25, my local office will reopen with our regular hours, Monday/Wednesday/Friday 9-12, Tuesday/Thursday 9-5.  Phone (540)891-1322, email delborrock@house.virginia.gov.

As always, I’m humbled for the honor of representing you in our state legislature!