RICHMOND, Va. — As the joint subcommittee adjourned on Jan. 6, Senator Suterlin criticized the consultants hired by the Commonwealth to assist the study, saying the work “did not produce what we would have hoped given how much money was given to them.”

"I don't think that it produced what we would have hoped given how much money was given to them. And I just hope that going forward, we will be reluctant to hire consultants," Senator Suterlin said, and she thanked legislative services and other contributors she found valuable.

Several committee members responded with context on the consultants’ performance and the funding available. Delegate Sickles said the committee had requested roughly twice the amount it was ultimately given to spend, which affected the consultants’ bandwidth and the number of organizations they could contact for feedback. Senator Voll said the study’s scope narrowed as funding was constrained and described the outcome as "a mile high and not as deep as we would have liked," while also saying he obtained some useful information.

Those remarks were part of closing comments and not a formal committee action. The joint subcommittee adopted its packets and adjourned after the exchanges; committee members thanked staff and volunteers for their work over multiple sessions.