Governor Amends Virginia's Budget Bill To Increase Rainy-day Reserves Over Changes In Washington

Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin said on Monday that he hoped to bolster Virginia's rainy-day fund by 300 million in light of economic uncertainty surrounding the White House's overhaul of federal jobs and its impact on the state's workforce.

At a news conference, Youngkin announced he had more than 200 amendments to a bipartisan budget bill adopted last month by the Virginia General Assembly, including trimming state spending to add additional funds to Virginia's coffers.

The 300 million would be on top of nearly 295 million already slated to be set aside over the biennium. Youngkin said the reserved revenue would give Virginia a cushion of 5 billion.

"It enables us to feel confident that if there is a bump in the road, we can deal with it," he said.

Youngkin's announcement comes after a mix of roughly 1,000 Virginian federal workers and contractors have filed claims for unemployment since the end of January after President Donald Trump and adviser Elon Musk began cutting jobs and programs in Washington, state officials have said.