Accomack County sets legislative priorities

Accomack County is preparing a list of legislative priorities for the county’s state lawmakers to consider during the upcoming General Assembly session. Representatives are scheduled to meet with Delegate Bloxom and Senator DeSteph on Thursday August 27.

One priority is reversing what county officials describe as the shifting of costs from the state to local governments.

Officials say recent state budgets have placed additional financial responsibilities on localities, and the county would like to see some of those costs returned to the state.

Another major concern is local land-use authority.

County officials want state lawmakers to oppose further efforts to limit local control over land-use decisions. They point to recent state legislation involving the siting of solar facilities and battery energy storage systems as examples of increased state involvement in local zoning.

The county also wants a change in state law involving land-use taxation.

Officials would like to eliminate the requirement that certain properties be located in an Agricultural and Forestal District, or A-F-D, to qualify for land-use taxation.

They say the requirement can create unnecessary delays for property owners seeking to subdivide land or make other changes, even when approval is expected.

Childcare is another proposed priority.

County officials say state childcare subsidies have not increased since 2022, putting pressure on local childcare providers.

They want the state to consider increasing the subsidies and possibly indexing them to inflation.

Officials also want childcare to be recognized as essential economic-development infrastructure, making childcare facilities eligible for more economic-development grants.

The proposals will be included in Accomack County’s legislative priorities and presented to the county’s state delegation ahead of the next General Assembly session.

NOTE: A previous version of this story incorrectly included items from last year’s proposed priorities.  We apologize for the confusion.