The special committee of members of the House of Delegates established by Speaker Scott to monitor and respond to federal funding and workforce reductions held its fourth meeting on June 20 at Norfolk State University. Issues under discussion included particular challenges facing Hampton Roads, as well as broader concerns about housing programs, K-12, and water quality, among others. Presentations from the meeting are available at this link.
Hampton Roads perspectives: Nancy Grden, President and CEO of the Hampton Roads Roundtable, and Nikki Johnson, Regional Economist with the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission, highlighted the large footprint of the federal government in the region, noting the significant presence of the military (with the region second only to San Diego in the list of top metropolitan areas for military employment), as well as significant numbers of civilian federal workers (Hampton Roads ranks third among metropolitan areas). The labor market in Hampton Roads is showing early signs of softening, with an uptick in unemployment and civilian job growth that is lagging the national rate. Ms. Grden stressed the importance of nurturing the region’s shipbuilding and offshore wind industries, as did Steve Cook, Chief Innovation Officer for the Hampton Roads Workforce Council, who emphasized the need for ongoing investment in workforce development to support the growing wind power industry.
Members also received a briefing from Dr. Vinod Agarwal with Old Dominion University about the effects of tariffs and workforce reductions on the region. Dr. Agarwal cited uncertainty as a key challenge; economic data tends to lag policy decisions, and there have been significant changes to tariff policy in the last several months, with effects that are difficult to predict. Container arrivals to the United States are expected to decline by more than 30 percent in June 2025 compared to the same month in 2024, with arrivals from China expected to decline even further (by almost 60 percent in June). Stephen Edwards, CEO and Executive Director of the Port of Virginia, noted that trade from China makes up a smaller proportion of the Port of Virginia’s business relative to other ports in the United States, and suggested that the Port could benefit from a national realignment towards other trading partners, citing the Port’s ability to adapt to previous challenges, such as absorbing traffic from the Port of Baltimore during its closure last year.
Water quality and resiliency: Jay Ford with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and Dr. Jessica Whitehead with the Institute for Coastal Adaptation and Resilience outlined a list of federal funding sources that support water quality and resiliency initiatives that have been proposed for reduction or elimination, including the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds, as well as several grants in Virginia that have already been cancelled. They expressed concern about potential changes that could make grant eligibility more restrictive in the future, and the expected increase in competition for remaining grant dollars. Mr. Ford noted that Virginia has historically invested in water quality as a supplement to federal support, a model that may be changing; he and Dr. Whitehead suggested revisiting how Virginia supports water quality and resilience by incorporating the “pay for outcomes” approach recently included in the state budget for nonpoint source pollution reduction into other grants and reevaluating state staffing in certain core areas, as well as looking at the ability of higher education to support resiliency or adaptation solutions.
Emergency management: William Drewery, Emergency Management Coordinator for Isle of Wight County, and Jared Hoernig, Director of Emergency Management at Old Dominion University, both representing the Virginia Emergency Management Association, cited the need for Virginia to develop a sustainable, long-term state funding source for emergency management, pointing out that 65 percent of the Virginia Department of Emergency Management’s core agency operations are funded by federal dollars, and noting that several federal grant sources have already been cancelled, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program. The Association supports a study of potential funding sources, and encouraged members to review Florida’s approach, which imposes an annual surcharge on insurance policies to fund an Emergency Management Preparedness and Assistance Trust Fund.
Housing: Christie Marra, Director of Housing Advocacy for the Virginia Poverty Law Center, raised concerns about proposals to reduce funding levels for federal housing programs and to convert others to block grants, highlighting the compounding effect of reductions in other safety net programs on vulnerable populations and pointing out that housing assistance programs may need to support more Virginians as displaced federal workers may struggle to afford rent. Ms. Marra strongly encouraged Committee members to enhance funding for the Virginia Eviction Reduction Program and to expand statutory provisions allowing certain tenants to end leases early to cover tenants who have suffered a loss of income as a result of federal actions; she also advocated for revisiting a pilot program proposed during recent General Assembly sessions that would provide rental assistance to families with children and increasing funding for Virginia Housing Trust Fund.
K-12: The meeting concluded with a panel of school superintendents representing the school systems in the City of Suffolk, Cumberland County, and the City of Newport News, as well as Dr. Denelle Wallace-Alexander, Dean of the School of Education at Norfolk State University. The superintendents (Dr. John B. Gordon, III, Dr. Chip Jones, and Dr. Michele Mitchell, respectively) provided perspectives from school divisions of varying sizes on how federal funding supports students and families, and the challenges they would face in replacing these funds if they were reduced or eliminated. Meeting mental health needs of students and staff, supporting students who are experiencing homelessness or housing instability, and serving students with special needs were several areas where federal funding provides substantial support to school divisions.
The Emergency Committee’s next meeting is planned for August, when the Committee plans to discuss a framework for its draft report.
VACo Contact: Katie Boyle