It’s Official: Governor Youngkin Signs Budget

June 21, 2022 – Richmond, VA

It’s Official: Governor Youngkin Signs Virginia’s State Budget Including Additional Benefits for Some State Employees

This afternoon, Governor Youngkin gathered with hundreds of supporters, press, and witnesses, including our VGEA lobbyist, Dylan D. Bishop, for the ceremonial signing of the Virginia budget. Officially signed into law today, the 2023-2024 biennial budget becomes effective on July 1 and will remain in effect through June 30, 2024.

The location for the signing at Tom Leonard’s Farmer’s Market in Glen Allen, VA, was symbolic as the budget will eliminate the state’s 1.5% sales tax on groceries beginning on January 1, 2023, one of the many ways the Governor and the Virginia General Assembly hope to help Virginians hold on to more of their hard-earned money as they face rising costs.

And the state has money to give. You may recall that Virginia closed 2021 with a $2.6 billion surplus – the largest surplus in state history and a surplus that was far above any forecasts – so it makes sense that some of the surplus would be given back to Virginians.

The budget approval comes after months of heated debates and arguments and brings much relief to Virginia’s many state employees (just 10 days before the June 30 deadline), some of who had concerns about a possible government shutdown on July 1 if the overdue budget hadn’t been approved in time.

The Virginia General Assembly had reconvened last Friday in a special, eight-hour session to review 38 amendments that Governor Youngkin requested in addition to what they had already included in the budget approved on June 1. Though the Virginia House and Senate didn’t give a thumbs up to all of the Governor’s amendments (including a gas tax holiday), they were finally able to come to an agreement and approve the budget.

Budget Highlights for State Employees

When the General Assembly originally approved and presented its proposed biennial budget on June 1, the VGEA highlighted some of the benefits to state employees. Now fully approved, these benefits move from proposal to reality:

• A 5% salary increase in 2022 beginning with the August 1, 2022 paycheck
• A one-time bonus payment of $1000 on December 1, 2022
• Another 5% salary increase in July 2023 which will show on the first August 2023 paycheck

The final budget signed today brings even more benefits to some Virginia employees as the House and Senate unanimously adopted the following amendments that the Youngkin Administration requested:

• A $3,000 annual salary increase for probation and parole officers beginning in the second year of the budget
• Salary increases for Department of Juvenile Justice corrections staff that includes targeted salary adjustments, addresses compression issues for correctional officers in management roles, and provides competitive salaries consistent with other state-supported correctional positions beginning in the second year
• A one-time bonus payment to sworn law-enforcement employees of the Department of Conservation and Recreation and the Marine Resources Commission (law-enforcement personnel at other agencies had received a similar bonus payment in the 2020-2022 biennium, but the law-enforcement employees of these agencies were not eligible)

There’s good news for Virginia state retirees as well, as investments this year in the Virginia Retirement System (VRS) are projected to bolster the VRS and save state and local governments nearly $2 billion dollars over the next two decades.

And while the gas tax holiday wasn’t approved, other funding measures will bring good news to all Virginians including nearly $4 billion in income and sales tax cuts and $3 billion for education.

The VGEA is grateful that the budget has been approved, and we’re thankful for the ways that state workers, retirees, and citizens will benefit. That said, we recognize that there is still much work to do.

We will continue to work closely with the Youngkin Administration in 2022 and beyond to do what we always do: advocate for excellent pay, health care, and retirement benefits for our state workers – priorities that are the core of the VGEA’s mission.

As always, thanks for partnering with the VGEA on behalf of all state employees. Reach out to us at any time with questions, comments, concerns, or updates at info@vgea.org.