Fairfax County elected officials seem in alignment on their top priority for the 2026 Virginia General Assembly session.
“Number one is always K-12 education funding,” Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay said at the annual legislative public hearing, held Saturday (Jan. 10) at the Fairfax County Government Center.
About 20 members of the state Senate and House of Delegates were on hand to hear about public priorities in advance of the 60-day session, which opens Jan. 14.
McKay told legislators some progress has been made in securing additional state funding for education, but “there’s a lot of work yet to do.” His comments were echoed by School Board Chair Sandy Anderson.
Outgoing Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s budget proposal has some improvements but “falls short of the true cost” of meeting state commitments, Anderson said.
She pushed for “additional and meaningful investments” in education spending at the state level, including addressing cost-of-living disparities in different areas of the commonwealth.
While state funding has not been at the level school leaders seek, “we are grateful for the progress” that has been made, Anderson said.
In his remarks, McKay said the Board of Supervisors is hoping to see progress in addressing housing affordability, transit funding and the impacts of Trump administration actions during the state legislative session.
Supervisor Andres Jimenez (Mason) zeroed in on that last issue.
“The impact [of Trump actions] here is immediate and profound,” he said. “It’s very hard in Fairfax County to know a neighbor, a loved one, a family member who hasn’t been impacted.”
Jimenez is now serving as chair of the supervisors’ legislative committee. He succeeded James Walkinshaw, who was elected to Congress in September.
He related the story of one of his college roommates, whose family moved out of Virginia last year after he and his wife saw their federal positions eliminated.
“It is not only a loss of jobs, but a brain drain,” Jimenez said of those leaving for more affordable communities.
He pressed for collaboration between the state government and localities.
“You can’t do it alone, we can’t do it alone,” Jimenez told legislators. “We have to find a way, a bridge.”
Anderson, who represents the Springfield District on the school board, said elected officials at all levels need to be nimble in what she termed “an extremely volatile time.”
“We don’t know what’s going to happen next,” she said.
The entire Fairfax County delegation to the General Assembly, nine of 10 county supervisors and all 12 School Board members are Democrats.
Democrats also picked up all three statewide elected offices in last November’s election, and took a commanding majority in the House of Delegates, setting up the 2026 session as a chance for the party to pass legislation vetoed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) during his four-year term.
Elected officials speaking at the Jan. 10 public hearing said they hoped Democratic legislators don’t squander the opportunity given them by voters.
“We have the same mandate and vision. Let’s go to work for our constituents,” Jimenez said.
At the same time, county leaders acknowledge they will need to find friends in other parts of the state to build coalitions on certain issues.
McKay, who has acknowledged that those outside Northern Virginia sometimes can unite against Fairfax County and its leadership, pointed to transit funding as one area where alliances are vital.
“This is a statewide issue that needs to be addressed in a statewide framework,” he said of proposals to provided new, dedicated funding streams for transit operations.
Del. Vivian Watts (D-14), who chaired the legislative hearing, said she and other legislators appreciated the “spirit of cooperation” from Fairfax County’s elected officials.
But she worked to tamp down expectations of what the 2026 legislative session might deliver.
“We have challenging issues ahead of us,” Watts said.
