FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
Brennan Gilmore, Clean Virginia Executive Director
March 23, 2026
Lawmakers largely fail to protect Virginians from rising electric bills and data center impacts, Governor can still act
RICHMOND, VA – The 2026 General Assembly session unfolded as Virginians opened record-high electric bills and with national attention focused on whether Democratic leaders could deliver on their promises for affordability. While the session saw frequent debate on rising electric bills and the rapid expansion of data centers, the legislature chose not to act on many major reforms to protect families and small businesses from rising costs.
“Lawmakers had a clear opportunity and mandate to hold powerful interests accountable and provide real relief to Virginians,” said Brennan Gilmore, executive director of Clean Virginia. “Instead, reforms to protect families and small businesses from subsidizing the massive energy demands of the world’s wealthiest corporations were left on the table, while other decisions will make energy bills even harder to afford.”
Lawmakers introduced several proposals aimed at improving oversight of Virginia’s regulatory system, protecting customers from subsidizing data center energy demand and addressing the influence of money in politics. The legislature made some progress, advancing a performance-based regulation study process with potential to shift the outsized influence of utility profits on energy policy (SB 251 / HB 903 championed by Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell (D – SD 34) and Delegate Rip Sullivan (D – HD 6)). However, most pro-consumer proposals did not pass, including:
At the same time, lawmakers approved measures that will add to customer bills, including extending Dominion Energy’s Strategic Underground Program (SUP) from 2028 to 2033 (SB 253). The program is already projected to cost the average residential customer $4.88 per month in 2026, with customers continuing to pay these charges into at least the mid-2040s, locking in decades of additional costs.
Lawmakers also left Richmond without agreeing to a state budget due to disagreement over Virginia’s sales and use tax exemption for data centers. Originally expected to cost only a few million dollars when first adopted, this tax giveaway to the wealthiest corporations in the world has ballooned to roughly $1.9 billion each year. Those lost revenues could support essential services such as affordable childcare, healthcare access, school modernization, teacher pay raises and tax relief for working families.
Now, Clean Virginia is calling on the governor to use the veto session to change course.
”The General Assembly missed its chance to deliver real relief, and it’s up to Governor Spanberger to step in, reject policies that increase costs and push for solutions that reduce the immediate financial burden on households,” Gilmore said.
While legislation to better harness the grid and expand cheap renewables promises some relief in the long-term, the twin drivers of Virginia’s energy affordability crisis – data center demand and inflated utility profit – remain largely unaddressed and must be tackled comprehensively and urgently.
“As long as monopoly utilities are allowed to over-earn and corporate money continues to drive policies, families will pay the price,” Gilmore said.
Several other key reforms did pass through the General Assembly that Clean Virginia urges the Governor to sign. While these reforms will largely not translate to immediate bill relief, they support long-term efforts for a better-managed electric grid, including:
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Clean Virginia is a 501(c)4 independent advocacy organization with an associated Political Action Committee, Clean Virginia Fund. Clean Virginia works to fight corruption in Virginia politics in order to promote clean and affordable energy. We are motivated by the core belief that our democracy should serve everyday Virginians over special interests.