Governors don鈥檛 often change their minds about a measure they vetoed, but has on bills that would let people on probation shorten their time under supervision if they hit specific, not-terribly-easy goals.
It鈥檚 the first time Youngkin has made such a change.
While Youngkin did ask for amendments to and , his requests for the probation measure, unlike changes he wants in legislation to establish a right to contraception, will not gut the bill, advocates say.
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin speaks during a commemoration of Founding Father Patrick Henry鈥檚 鈥淕ive me liberty or give me death鈥 speech 250 years prior, Sunday, March 23, 2025, at St. John鈥檚 church in Richmond鈥檚 East End.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e basically technical. The spirit of the bills is absolutely there,鈥 said Shawn Weneta, a policy manager with REFORM Alliance, a nonprofit group focused on probation and sentencing reform.
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He said he鈥檚 hoping the General Assembly will accept Youngkin鈥檚 changes when it reconvenes Wednesday to consider his vetoes and proposed changes to legislation.
For the probation bill, it helped that this year, two conservative Republicans sponsored the measure 鈥 state Sen. Christie New Craig, R-Chesapeake, and Del. Wren Williams, R-Patrick. Craig argued that her years as a jail deputy convinced her that having hope of fewer years of probation check-ins would encourage people to work harder at staying out of trouble. State Sen. Barbara Favola, D-Arlington, and Del. Katrina Callsen, D-Charlottesville, carried the bills last year.
Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears weighed in with her support while conservative groups Americans for Prosperity Virginia and CPAC 鈥 the Conservative Political Action Conference, along with the Virginia Police Benevolent Association and the National Coalition of Public Safety Officers also supported the measures. Progressive groups Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy, Nolef Turns and The Humanization Project joined Weneta in advocating for the change.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 testimony to a lot of broad, bipartisan advocacy,鈥 Weneta said.
The final version of the bills passed with veto-proof majorities: a 67-30 House of Delegates vote on the final version of the House bill and a 37-3 Senate vote on the identical, final version of the Senate bill 鈥 with the three senators voting no changing their mind when the House bill came before them.
After the bills passed, Youngkin told the Richmond Times-Dispatch that he was concerned that the measure could undercut judges鈥 authority to decide appropriate sentences and probation. Advocates addressed that by pointing out language in the bills that says judges can revoke credits that would shorten probation time if they find a defendant poses an imminent threat to the health and safety of himself or others.
The bills say holding job with 30 hours a week or more for six months entitles someone on probation to a 15-day reduction in time under supervision.
Craig has said her experience with a sheriff鈥檚 department showed this is a particularly difficult goal for people to hit when released from jail or prison.
As written, the bills say hitting specific goals while attending school or completing mental health or substance abuse treatment programs could mean a 30-day reduction. Under Youngkin鈥檚 amendments, meeting these goals would earn a 15-day reduction.
These can be be a critical part of a former inmate鈥檚 goals for successfully completing probation.
The bills also would allow reductions in time for securing housing and health insurance.
Youngkin鈥檚 proposed changes to and that would establish a right to contraception were more sweeping. For example, his amendments would remove language on enforcement and giving individuals a right to sue providers who refuse to provide it.
Richmond speaks up: Letters to the editor for the week of Mar. 28, 2025
Our weekly round-up of letters published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
Republican leaders have reportedly told their members of Congress to not hold in-person town hall meetings (in other words, zip it!).
This makes sense if you're them. Like Mark Twain said: "It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt." This is the party dangling the idea of taking health care away from our most vulnerable neighbors. The party that gave license to an anti-leader who believes empathy is the problem with modern civilization, and used that license to drive the government off a cliff, or at least into a ditch. The party led by another anti-leader who casually remarks that his decisions may result in "a little disruption."
