General Assembly moves forward with bill to allow localities to charge additional sales tax for school construction

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- Help could be on the way for school construction projects in Virginia.

“Localities all across Virginia have asked for additional tools to start to solve their own problems,” Senator Jeremy McPike (D-Prince William) told 8News. 

McPike has introduced a bill that would allow localities to charge an additional 1% sales tax with the money going toward school construction and renovation, but only if voters in that locality approve the increase through a referendum.

“That’s really the key," McPike explained. "It’s the choice of the local voter. They know the infrastructure of their schools. Their kids go there.”

McPike’s bill comes after a 2021 report found that over half of Virginia’s schools were more than 50 years old. That same report found that the cost of replacing those schools would be nearly $25 billion.

“When kids roll into school every day they can see whether their community's invested in their schools or not. We have leaky roofs. We have outdated technology all across Virginia,” McPike told 8News. 

However, some Republicans, like Senator Minority Leader Ryan McDougle (R-Hanover), oppose McPike’s idea.

“I don’t support it because I think that it's a tax increase,” McDougle said. “There are other things that we have put in the budget that are able to fund school construction. One of the deals with casinos was that a large portion of revenues that come from casinos go into a school construction budget.”

McPike’s bill is expected to be approved by the House of Delegates and sent to Governor Glenn Youngkin’s desk in the coming days. Last year, Youngkin vetoed similar legislation.