The Virginia Probation and Parole Association is constantly working with lawmakers at the Virginia General Assembly to ensure legislation is in the best interest of Virginia Probation and Parole Officers.  During the General Assembly sessions this page will be updated with lobbying efforts of current legislation.

VPPA Legislative Update 1/28/2025

Several members went to the General Assembly on 1/20/25 and met with their Legislators in the morning. At noon, we were seated in the Gallery of the House of Delegates and we were introduced by Delegate Betsy Carr.

I had the opportunity to meet with Michael Jay, a staff member for the Appropriations Committee and he gave me a copy of the Decision Package that was put forward by the Department of Corrections referencing a Career Progression process to address the many issues PPO’s are facing in the current climate, including salary compression, vacancies and turnover rates. This package was, unfortunately, not put forward by the Governor and so it is not being looked at currently as part of the Budget Bill. Stephanie M. and I talked to several folks on the respective “money” committees of the House and the Senate and none had heard/seen the Decision Package. The consensus is that in order for the package to move forward, we need someone on either the House Appropriations Committee or the Senate Finance Committee to put it back into the Budget Bill currently being negotiated. If our membership can email the members of the Appropriations Committee and the Senate Finance Committee, that could maybe move this forward. That information can be found here: https://lis.virginia.gov/ and https://virginiageneralassembly.gov/membersAndSession.php?secid=1&activesec=0#!hb=1&mainContentTabs=0.

Another Bill that we discussed with members of the General Assembly was HB2318, which ostensibly removed arrest authority from PPO’s. We spoke with the Patron of that bill, Del. Will Davis, and he informed us that he planned to kill that bill. He indicated that the goal of that Bill was to bring attention to the situation he had been made aware of where a probationer had been incarcerated for 3-4 months without a Court appearance after being arrested on a PB15.

I encourage all concerned members to dig into the LIS website and look at other bills that involve PPOs. AND, please email the members of the House Appropriations Committee and the Senate Finance Committee to let them know that we need someone to move the Decision Package forward to address the ongoing needs of the PPO’s in Virginia.

Click Here for the Decision Package

Click here for List of Appropriations Committee Members