How Virginia Is Tackling Energy Affordability
This op-ed, penned by our Co-Chair, former Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe, was originally published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
Energy affordability is one of the defining economic challenges facing families, businesses and state governments across the country. This year’s legislative session in Virginia offered a practical example that other states should study.
Governor Spanberger and the General Assembly kept their focus where it belonged: lowering costs, growing the economy, protecting ratepayers and keeping the commonwealth competitive. They delivered a forward-looking budget that invests in public education, housing, healthcare, infrastructure and economic growth while confronting the power needs that will shape jobs and investment.
As a former governor, I know those choices are never simple. You balance today’s bills with tomorrow’s growth, protect families while giving employers confidence to invest, and keep the lights on while building a cleaner, stronger economy.
That is why an all-of-the-above strategy matters. The answer is not partisan. It is abundance, reliability and balance. States can lower costs, create jobs, and preserve clean energy progress by pairing natural gas with renewables, strengthening the grid for businesses and consumers alike, and bringing new generation online.
Virginia Democrats have long understood that. Govs. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine knew energy policy had to serve families, employers and competitiveness. As governor, my administration delivered historic growth in solar, laid the groundwork for the offshore wind project that has become the largest in the nation, advanced efficiency, and recognized that nuclear and natural gas remained essential to a reliable, affordable system. We did all of that while creating record jobs and bringing in record investment. Governor Northam carried that progress forward with the groundbreaking VirginiaClean Economy Act. Now, Governor Spanberger and the General Assembly are applying the same practical mindset to a new cost challenge.
Recent polling shows 78% of residents across the commonwealth are concerned about their personal economic situation, and 87% say electricity prices are a key issue. Combined with rising costs for housing and healthcare, higher utility bills are unsustainable.
The pressure on the grid is just as serious. Over 56% of Virginia‘s energy usage relies on natural gas, and the commonwealth imports more electricity than any state except one. Most households and businesses depend on natural gas for everyday electricity needs. Demand keeps climbing as the population and economy grow, and as data centers and manufacturing add to the load.
This session also produced concrete progress on energy costs. Governor Spanberger and the General Assembly included $25 million for weatherization and energy-efficiency programs that help families, especially low-income Virginians, use less energy and lower their monthly bills. They also restored Virginia’s participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a market-based program I entered the commonwealth into as governor, and made sure its benefits flow more directly to the people paying the bills. The budget includes a RGGI credit for residential customers, small businesses and houses of worship. At the same time, revenues will continue supporting upgrades that cut waste, reduce pollution and make the electric system more affordable.
Additionally, the compromise data center energy consumption tax passed by VirginiaDemocrats this year helps ensure one of Virginia’s fastest-growing industries pays its fair share and does not shift the burden onto households and small businesses. That is responsible governing: welcome innovation, grow the economy, protect ratepayers and keep costs at the center.
Other states face the same test. Population growth, electrification, reshored manufacturing and new commercial investment are straining grids built for a different era. Leaders are asking how to keep the lights on, lower bills and keep the economy humming.
Natural gas and renewables should not be treated as rivals. Together, they can deliver steady, affordable electricity while helping businesses expand with confidence. Virginians understand this. Sixty-seven percent of voters are more inclined to back their state legislator if they support building more natural gas power plants. They know natural gas is essential to keeping energy inexpensive and meeting rising demand.
Virginia is stronger because of the work already done this session. The path forward is not to abandon clean energy goals or to choose one source over another. It is diversifying the portfolio, bringing a new generation online, and expanding natural gas capacity alongside renewable resource development.
The lesson for other states is straightforward: be practical, be ambitious, build more, lower costs, create jobs and protect progress. Virginia’s legislative session showed that Democrats can govern with that mindset and win the argument on one of America’s most important economic issues.
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