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*New Virginia Majority Special Session Budget Priorities (2021)*
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Overview: 2021 Special Session Budget Priorities

As an organization that seeks to empower and lift up the voices of some of Virginia’s most vulnerable communities, New Virginia Majority (NVM) greatly appreciates the hard work of the administration, members of the General Assembly and their staff to address the urgent issues of today, while vigilantly building the infrastructure needed for tomorrow.

Our members and the communities that we organize year-round have been deeply impacted by the pandemic and the economic recession. The work of the administration and the General Assembly during the upcoming Special Session will be critical in providing much needed relief for Virginia families.

Below, you will find our key budget recommendations which are organized into four key areas:

  1. Improving Our Unemployment Insurance System
  2. Prioritizing Eviction Diversion and Tenants Right to Counsel
  3. Bolstering Utility Debt Relief and Forgiveness
  4. Equitably Funding our Schools Statewide

Best regards,

New Virginia Majority, Policy Team

Improving Our Unemployment Insurance System

 

Unemployment insurance benefits have been essential to keep families afloat during the pandemic and economic recession. The unemployment insurance system backlog is failing Virginians who are still awaiting their benefits. Virginians need relief to ensure that their families’ basic needs like food, rent, and utility payments are met. Below are our key recommendations that are in alignment with our partners in the Unemployment Action Coalition.

  1. Give a one-time $1000 Grant to Virginians Waiting Without Benefits for Deputy Adjudication: The General Assembly should create a program to provide a one-time grant of $1,000 to people who are waiting more than 30 days, without benefits, for deputy adjudication by the Virginia Employment Commission (VEC). The VEC’s role would be limited: as in Maryland, The Virginia Department of the Treasury (or another designated fiscal agency) should run the program. These one-time grants would help Virginia families bridge the gap with essential day-to-day expenses, until their claims are processed.

  1. Enact VEC & UI System Accessibility Enhancements for People who are Elderly, Disabled, Non-English-Speaking, &/or with Limited Access or Familiarity with Technology: Many Virginians experience particular challenges in seeking benefits and having access to information. ARPA funding can help the VEC overhaul its language accessibility, for example: translating important documents, creating a multilingual website, and creating a telephone infrastructure that supports the most common languages (beyond English) spoken in Virginia.  

  1. Complete a True, Reliable Modernization of Virginia’s UI Systems through both Internal and Contract Technical Support: The GA can set the VEC’s modernization on a surer pathway to success, by (a) creating a VEC digital services team (as presented in House budget amendment 131 #4h in 2021 Special Session I) and (b) by directing the VEC to contract with 18F, a branch of the federal General Services Administration that provides consulting and support to government agencies on implementing best-practice approaches to modernization.

Prioritizing Eviction Diversion and Tenants Right to Counsel

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Virginia had some of the highest eviction rates in the country. The housing legislation and eviction moratoria that led to decreased housing instability during the pandemic are set to expire soon, leading to an anticipated influx of evictions in the state. It is imperative to use this Special Session to slow the displacement of families, especially during the twin economic and public health crises which continue to disproportionately harm low-income Virginians of color. The following recommendations will decrease the number of tenants and families removed from their homes during the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to increased housing stability across Virginia.

  1. Restore the language related to rental assistance that expired on June 30, 2021 and make improvements to it by mandating that landlords must apply for rental assistance prior to filing an eviction for non-payment of rent: The rental protections that were included in the previous budget expired when the state of emergency ended on June 30, 2021. As many Virginians are still recovering from the pandemic and the recession, it is vital that these protections are included in the next iteration of the budget. Further, it is important that we build upon those protections. Under current law, landlords have the option to apply for rental assistance on behalf of tenants, but they are not required to apply. With the CDC eviction moratorium ending on July 31st, 2021 and rental assistance rolling out dangerously slow, a mandate for landlords to apply for rental assistance could prevent an influx of evictions across the state. We are recommending that if rent is unpaid when due, the landlord cannot terminate the lease and seek possession of the dwelling unit unless (a) the landlord provides a written notice to inform the tenant of the amount due, of the Virginia Rent and Mortgage Relief Program, and of a list of documents the tenant must provide the landlord to enable them to apply for rental assistance; (b) the landlord allows the tenant to apply for rental assistance if the landlord is not eligible to apply on behalf of the tenant; (c) the tenant did not contact the appropriate program to initiate an application for rental assistance within 45 days of receipt of the notice provided by the landlord; and (d) the landlord has not received or been approved to receive payment from the tenant or another source.

  1. Create and fully fund a tenants right to counsel (RTC) pilot program in Richmond and Hampton Roads: Prior to the pandemic, Virginia had some of the highest rates of eviction, with Richmond, Hampton, Norfolk, Newport News, and Virginia Beach facing the most severe rates. With the cessation of the CDC eviction moratorium this July, there will likely be a spike in eviction filings, especially in the aforementioned cities. From 2017 to the present day, cities and states around the country have been implementing RTC programs. During the first two years of RTC’s implementation in New York City, 84 percent of tenants with attorneys remained in their homes, and evictions in RTC zip codes declined by 30 percent. In April 2021, Charlottesville considered funding RTC for tenants at $460,000. An RTC program in Richmond and Hampton Roads would potentially cost around $3 million and $13.5 million respectively, commensurate with the populations of these areas and their higher rates of eviction. While these RTC pilot programs will greatly reduce evictions, it is important that the programs be extended to all tenants in need of legal assistance, not just those in need of immediate eviction assistance.

Bolstering Utility Debt Relief and Forgiveness

Bolstering utility assistance is critical for utility customers who continue to face economic hardship and be on-the-hook for both current monthly energy costs in addition to mounting utility debt accrued during the COVID-19 pandemic. Eligible ARPA funds should be used to sustain the ongoing utility debt relief and forgiveness efforts by investor-owned utilities, electric cooperatives, and municipal power companies that are guided by CARES Act funding and budget requirements set-out during the 2020 Special Session.

  1. Provide utility debt forgiveness for Dominion customers who have account balances that are more than 30-days in arrears: The existing moratorium on utility service disconnections is set to expire 60 days after the state of emergency, officially ending on August 29, 2021. The CARES Act funding accompanying the moratorium on utility service disconnections for “Direct Utility Assistance to Customers”  supported electric cooperatives and municipal utilities and it is set to expire in December 2021. In the Dominion territory, the investor-owned utility was directed to do “write-offs” for customers 30 days in arrears as of December 31, 2020. ARPA funds used for utility debt relief and forgiveness must, as recommended by House Appropriations Committee Staff,  “account for Dominion, which represents the largest share of utility customer arrearages”. Any utility assistance allocated with the support of eligible state ARPA funds should continue to target debt relief and forgiveness funding for both customers with account balances that are more than 60 days in arrears and those that are more than 30 days in arrears.

  1. Retain customer protections, such as the COVID-19 Relief Repayment Plan requirements, in the budget: After the universal disconnection moratorium expires on August 30, 2021, utilities may resume reporting any default on the Repayment Plans to consumer reporting agencies, and utility service providers will not be required to notice and offer customers an up to 24-month Repayment Plan for past due accounts. These requirements should be retained in the budget to provide households who continue to face economic hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic with customer protections that can prevent service disconnections after the expiration of the moratorium and help safeguard their creditworthiness.

  1. Prioritize utility assistance to customers who have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 health pandemic: In the U.S. Treasury Interim Final Rule for the allocation of ARPA funds, it notes that given the disproportionate impacts of COVID-19 and the pandemic-induced recession, low-income households may be at risk for not only increased economic hardship in the short-term, but long-term harm to their economic prospects. Legislators should prioritize the U.S. Treasury Secretary's strong recommendation to recipients to provide assistance to those most disproportionately impacted by the pandemic in any effort to sustain COVID-19 related utility debt relief and forgiveness with eligible ARPA funds.

Equitably Funding our Schools Statewide

With an unprecedented amount of one-time federal funding available to Virginia from the American Rescue Plan, the state has a significant opportunity to invest in students and communities who have been historically under-resourced and most harmed by the pandemic. While these new federal resources can make a meaningful difference, ultimately an equitable long-term recovery solution will require the state to provide new ongoing support to divisions with a high share of students from historically marginalized backgrounds.

New Virginia Majority and our partners in the Fund Our Schools Coalition have identified four major priorities for appropriating the ARP state discretionary funding, in addition to existing state resources. We believe investing in these four critical areas will prioritize attending to students who have been most negatively impacted by the pandemic, and lay the groundwork for sustainable infrastructure and service models that will outlast the one-time funding.

  1. School-Based Wraparound and Support Services: Investing in community school models and system navigators can provide a hub of social services at school sites and support for families and students to access education and other ARP services, such as shelter, food, utilities, housing and rental assistance, child care, Head Start, unemployment, broadband and tax credits. Additionally, many English Learner students live in immigrant families that have faced unique barriers over the past year and may not have qualified for federal aid programs. The state should invest further in community-based organizations that serve students in immigrant families during this time.

  1. Create and Fully Invest in the Equity Fund: More than ever, our children attending high-poverty schools need critical investments in their future that address the many barriers they have faced over the past year and beyond. The state should create the Equity Fund, as recommended by experts in the Virginia Board of Education, and invest $62 million per year through fiscal year 2024.

  1. Fully Invest in Allowable General School Infrastructure: Fund Our Schools has released a fact sheet citing the substantial breadth of research on the positive impacts school infrastructure investments can have on student health and safety and on economic growth. While the recent Treasury guidance restricts many uses, the state is allowed to invest the full differential of the revenue loss provision and should do so to make a meaningful downpayment on this long-neglected state priority.

  1. Invest in Broadband Access and Affordability: The state should use federal funds to follow through on its longstanding goal to fully expand broadband across the Commonwealth under the VATI program. Furthermore, the state should also tackle affordability challenges for families by looking to scale innovative past proposed legislation and voucher options for schools to help low-income families pay for high speed services at home.

New Virginia Majority: American Rescue Plan Act Budget Recommendations


[1] CBO: Interim Economic Projections for 2020 and 2021 (May 2020)