Gov. Abigail Spanberger and Virginia General Assembly Democrats gathered on the steps of the Virginia State Capitol on Tuesday to unveil an agenda for the 2027 legislative session built around affordability, with unexpectedly large medical bills and crushing medical debt at the top of the list. The session is set to begin in January, and Democratic leaders say they want to end by-right approval for data centers while rolling out a new medical debt forgiveness program.
As Richmond Times-Dispatch reporter Dave Ress detailed, Spanberger and General Assembly Democrats want to expand their efforts to make life more affordable for Virginians by tackling medical bills and the debt that drives so many into bankruptcy. Spanberger said affordability remains the cornerstone of the work the administration and legislature will be doing, framing the push as the next step in building what she called, per WHRO, a stronger, safer and more affordable Commonwealth.
Medical Debt Relief Takes Center Stage
Among the proposals, Democrats plan legislation allowing the state to partner with national nonprofits that buy medical debt and pay off creditors at a fraction of the debt's face value. The Richmond Times-Dispatch report also notes Democrats plan to require hospitals to offer payment plans so patients aren't overwhelmed by bills they cannot afford. Virginia law requires health carriers to provide an interactive mechanism through which a covered person can request and obtain an estimate for specified comparable services, under Virginia Code § 38.2-3463.
Democrats also plan a medical debt forgiveness program. The scale of the problem is significant: Virginia hospitals and medical providers filed 1.15 million lawsuits against patients to collect more than $1.4 billion in medical debt between 2010 and 2024, according to a report covered by Virginia Mercury. A 2021 study cited in that same report found VCU alone filed 17,806 court actions against patients between January 2018 and July 2020, the most of any institution reviewed.
Ending Automatic Approval for Data Centers
Spanberger said the state is ending by-right approval for any data center. She argued data center projects should not move forward without citizens having the right to be heard, and the Democrats' agenda includes greater oversight of data centers along with increased transparency in the approval process, according to WHRO.
The legislative package also includes measures aimed at keeping data centers from draining water supplies in areas where they are already tight. That concern is grounded in real numbers: a research paper covered by securewater.illinois.edu found data-center water use in Northern Virginia utilities rose roughly 86 percent between 2019 and 2023, with most existing and planned facilities sitting inside already water-constrained watersheds including the Potomac, Rappahannock, North Anna and James.
The Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin has projected continued growth in data-center water use in the Washington Metropolitan Area. Statewide, the picture is more mixed: Virginia's overall water withdrawals actually declined 5 percent, or 288.61 million gallons per day, from 2019 to 2024, even as JLARC estimated data centers used about 2.1 billion gallons of water in 2023 — an 86 percent jump from 2019 that still amounted to just 0.5 percent of the state's total water use, according to Cardinal News. The outlet also reported that Virginia localities have committed to supplying Amazon data centers with 19.6 million gallons of water a day, and that Google's Botetourt County facility is contracted for 2 million gallons daily, though the company has more recently said it expects to use 1.2 million gallons a day.
The data-center push follows executive actions Spanberger unveiled in September tightening oversight of the industry, including a review of diesel backup generators and accelerated noise regulations, as Politico reported at the time. The Associated Press separately reported on a state study calling for water regulations specific to data centers.
AI Guardrails
Spanberger said legislation will also ban artificial intelligence and machine-learning tools from setting wages in Virginia. Democrats' agenda also includes a ban on AI-generated child sexual abuse material.
A United Front After a Year of Vetoes
Spanberger issued a record number of vetoes amid intraparty disagreements. Democratic leaders sought to present a united front behind the new agenda.
Speaker Scott also called on Virginia Republicans to join Democrats and work together. Democratic leaders worked through bills over the summer.
