City staff briefs council on General Assembly session: paid leave, housing changes, PFAS and budget items affecting Richmond

Devon Cabot of 2 Capitals Consulting gave the Richmond City Council a wide‑ranging review of the recent General Assembly session and pieces of legislation that will affect the city.

Cabot highlighted the new statewide Paid Family Medical Leave program (carried by Delegate Sewell and Senator Boisco), which establishes 12 weeks of leave administered through the Virginia Employment Commission. Payroll contributions are set to begin in April 2028 and benefits are to be distributed starting December 1, 2028, Cabot said. She also reviewed several major bills that were vetoed after the governor proposed amendments: adult‑use cannabis, skill games (electronic gaming devices), and collective bargaining legislation.

Housing was the city's top priority this session. Cabot said an omnibus inclusionary zoning bill carried by Delegate Cousins and Senator McPike was signed and will affect local incentive packages; other measures that became law include codifying an eviction reduction program and a vacant‑building registration requirement. Cabot flagged the "faith in housing" bills (allowing certain housing on tax‑exempt nonprofit land) with a delayed effective date of January 1, 2027 and a sunset of January 1, 2031.

Environmental and public‑health items include new PFAS reporting/testing requirements for certain industrial users and a Senator Stewart bill that bans the land‑application of biosolids that contain PFAS above a set threshold; Cabot noted the city has not broadly tested biosolids and if tests exceed the threshold the city could face added disposal costs (she cited an approximate $750,000 annual cost to send biosolids to landfill instead of agricultural reuse).

On the state budget, Cabot said Richmond requested $100 million per year (biennium) for combined sewer outflow work; both House and Senate included $50 million in the first year. The city also sought $40 million per year for a water treatment plant; the Senate proposal included $20 million in year one with language creating a regional work group housed at the Office of Drinking Water to provide oversight and coordination. Budget conferees were still reconciling a roughly $1 billion gap tied largely to data‑center tax treatment; the clerk had called the House and Senate back for votes in mid‑June.

Council members asked follow‑ups on enforcement and tax treatment (for example, whether nonprofit 'by‑right' housing triggers unrelated revenue tax issues) and asked staff to identify which new authorities require local ordinances versus administrative action. Cabot offered to follow up on specific enforcement and penalty questions for recovery residences and to assist the council in preparing a 2027 legislative package beginning with a July retreat.