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Legislative committee seeks public input on priorities for 2027 General Assembly session
Summary
The council's legislative committee heard public testimony on the city's 2027 priorities — including opportunity-zone designation, tenant protections, transit funding, data-center regulation, and stormwater funding — and set a timeline to draft the agenda in August and finalize on Sept. 8.
Vice Mayor and committee chair Maguire opened the July 20 legislative committee public hearing, explaining the council aims to draft legislative priorities in August and finalize them at a Sept. 8 meeting ahead of outreach to state legislators in October. "What I'm hoping is that we will hear from the public on some of your priorities... then staff and counsel will provide feedback," Maguire said while outlining the timeline.
Speakers urged a range of state-level priorities. Alicia Grubb, president of the Mountain View Neighborhood Association, asked the council to push for designation of Census Tract 10 as a Qualified Opportunity Zone to help investment in Mountain View and Hurt Park. Dr. Virginia Sweet asked the city to support state codified tenant-protection measures and higher penalties for repeat code violators; she recommended amending Code of Virginia Title 36 to increase fines and limit continuances in court.
Transit advocates asked the city to seek recurring state funding for transit operations and to consider regional financing mechanisms; Laura Hartman said, "A great city deserves great transit," and urged the council to pursue dedicated revenue for operations and capital. Public commenters and advocates also pushed for stronger data-center transparency and regulatory tools at the state level, with several speakers citing bills from the last session (HB1515, HB496, SB334) and urging disclosure of water use and public hearings for large industrial land disposals.
Chair Maguire said staff has been compiling priorities and recommended breaking the agenda into topic groups (transportation, environment, civil liberties, governance). The committee scheduled follow-ups for Aug. 3 and Sept. 8 to refine the city's legislative positions before meetings with state legislators.
