Virginia Senate rejects Youngkin’s amendments to Right to Contraception Act, other high-profile bills

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- The General Assembly reconvened April 2 to discuss Gov. Glenn Youngkin's proposed amendments to bills that passed in the Virginia Senate and House of Delegates during the legislative session earlier this year.

Things got off to a very slow start in the Senate chambers, but ultimately, senators made some big decisions — rejecting a large portion of the governor's amendments to key pieces of legislation.

One high-profile bill that the state Senate rejected Youngkin's amendments to was the Right to Contraception Act. This rejection means the bill goes back to the governor's desk as it was originally written -- and as it initially passed through the General Assembly.

The act seeks to secure every Virginian's right to contraception. The governor's changes water it down a bit by allowing some exceptions -- like allowing providers to refuse if it goes against their religious or ethical beliefs.

It's worth noting, this is the exact same chain of events that led to a dead-end with identically-themed legislation last year.

The Senate accepted Youngkin's changes to up the ante on proposed social media restrictions for kids. This bill now limits all kids under the age of 18 -- instead of just 16-year-olds and younger, which is the version that initially passed in the General Assembly -- to one hour on social media per day.

The amendments also restrict certain addictive algorithms without parental permission.

MORE: General Assembly rejects most of Youngkin’s proposed budget amendments, including those on education and immigration

Senators rejected Youngkin's amendments to another key, high-profile piece of legislation -- the governor's proposal to charge fentanyl dealers with felony homicide if someone they sell drugs to dies.

The version originally passed through the General Assembly charged them with the lesser, involuntary manslaughter charge. Youngkin's amendments also removed a "safe harbor" element, which had the Senate divided.

Senate Minority Leader Ryan McDougle (R-Hanover) and Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell (D-Fairfax) spoke about the bill prior to the vote.

"The governor's recommendation has a significantly harsher penalty for those who sell drugs to our children and result in their death, but both versions of the bill have an increased penalty," McDougle said, in favor of accepting Youngkin's changes.

Surovell responded by emphasizing that Youngkin's proposed removal of the safe harbor clause could be deadly, going against the entire purpose of the legislation.

"We want to incentivize people to call for help when a situation arises," Surovell said. "We don't want to incentivize people to throw a body in a ditch and walk away. The governor's bill here will actually -- probably, if we were to adopt this -- would actually result in more people dying, because they're scared to go get help."

Bills with approved amendments go to the House for review. If approved, those become law.

In cases where the Senate rejected Youngkin's changes, the legislation goes back to the governor's desk in its previous, un-amended form.