Virginia lawmakers consider limiting state studies and commissions following similar actions in other states to streamline government, reduce bureaucracy, centralize oversight and cut regulatory barriers.
The Virginia government is sponsoring around 200 interim studies and commissions created through various actions by the state legislature and governor’s office, and that number is expected to grow with pending legislation. But several lawmakers are now saying there are too many of these initiatives.
Shortly before the session ended last Saturday, state leaders, including Senate Democratic Caucus Chair Sen. Mamie Locke, D-Hampton, told the Mercury that the number of studies and commissions has become “ridiculous.”
“People need to stop turning legislation into studies, and that’s what’s been happening,” Locke said. “These pieces of legislation get into a committee and get turned into a study, and that’s why you get the proliferation of the studies. Just kill the bill.”
Senate Pro Tempore Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, recently criticized members of her own party and committee chairs for failing to reject unpopular bills, which often morph into studies. Legislators should “grow a backbone and kill bills that they don’t feel worthy of passage instead of sending them all to me to kill for them,” Lucas posted on X, formerly Twitter.
House Speaker Don Scott, D-Portsmouth, along with Locke, said they want to continue pushing for time limits and caps on new study panels, conduct a review of older ones to prevent staff from being overwhelmed, and ensure studies lead to real policy.
Studies and Commissions: What do they do?
The state already utilizes the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) to conduct new and ongoing studies raised by state lawmakers.
But because the legislature meets just three months a year and faces a huge swell of bills, they lack the time for in-depth policy study. Instead, they often rely on interim studies and commissions tasked with analyzing complex issues and generating policy recommendations to fill the gap.
“In a part-time legislature, commissions can actually serve a function in the way that standing committees often do in full-time legislatures,” said Richard Meagher, a professor and chair of the political science department at Randolph-Macon College, in a phone interview.
Meagher said commissions and studies enable oversight by examining issues, create forums for discussing complex topics, and unite advocates and legislators outside of session.
However, Meagher also pointed out that creating a commission is often a way to “make it look like you’re doing something about an issue without actually having to do something about it.”
He also noted a related but separate concern: bureaucratic clientelism.
Even when a board or commission is actually accomplishing something, the creation of such bodies can produce a network of clients — such as advocacy groups and affected communities — who depend on its continued existence. Once a board or commission is established, it becomes very difficult to dismantle, which can entrench both the bureaucracy and its associated interests.
Unless a commission has a set end date, it usually persists, he said.
Last year, states such as Indiana and Nevada faced similar issues and worked to reduce or consolidate state boards and commissions to streamline government, reduce bureaucracy, centralize oversight and cut regulatory barriers.
Those discussions focused on concerns that the moves would increase political influence over regulation.
House Minority Leader Terry Kilgore, R-Scott, said the caucus would be open to similar measures for Virginia. House Republicans identified over 400 studies that were proposed this session.
“These cost money, time and resources,” Kilgore said. “Whether it’s a legislative commission or a study or an administration study, it still takes away from folks who could be helping their constituents in other ways.”
House Caucus Chair Scott Wyatt, R-Mechanicsville, criticized the number of studies as “poor legislation that affects citizens,” and called it a reflection of the lack of unity in the Democratic party, which controls both chambers and the executive branch.
“We need to get back on track and be an appropriate, straight business state, (and) continue to grow the economy so folks increase salaries to really compete with the states further to the south,” Wyatt said.
“We don’t want to emulate what has happened in the state of Maryland or California, where I see the direction with this General Assembly session, is the direction they want to take Virginia.”
Meagher said some Virginia studies and commissions are crucial, including JLARC, the Freedom of Information Act Council, and the Chesapeake Bay Commission. Others fizzle out because they are obscure, inactive, have served their purpose, or could be important far in the future, like the autonomous driving work group.
Despite the number of existing studies and commissions, Scott said there are some benefits to creating interim studies and commissions through legislation by the General Assembly.
The speaker pointed to initiatives including studying how the forage fish menhaden are faring in the Chesapeake Bay, and reviewing the impact of data centers, which were at the center of legislative and budget discussions this year.
“These studies are important because they inform the legislation, and you can’t make good legislation if you don’t understand it,” Scott said.
Still, Scott said the growing number has warranted a review, which consequently falls to the staff. He said setting limits on the number of studies and commissions created each session helps lawmakers and staff.
“It’s helpful for the lawmakers and it’s helpful for the staff, so they can have some predictability about what needs to be done because the staff does a lot of work,” Scott said. “DLS staff, the clerks that support us, this is their full-time job, and so it can be overwhelming if they don’t know when these things have been called and when they will end.”
Locke and Scott said they have started meeting before each session to set limits on the number of studies and commissions the legislature will adopt. No other measure was provided beyond their practice.