Subcommittee hears SB 307 on youth violence; staff flags $520,889 incarceration estimate and no budget amendment on file

Senator Peake presented SB 307 to the Senate of Virginia public safety subcommittee, framing the bill as an effort to address unusually high youth homicide rates and gang activity in Lynchburg and to remove firearms from the streets. Staff told the committee a Woodrum amendment would be required and provided an incarceration cost estimate of $520,889; no budget amendment for that fiscal impact was on file.

During discussion, the chair noted the fiscal impact exceeded $500,000 and asked whether a budget amendment had been submitted; staff confirmed there was no amendment. Committee members cited tight budget constraints during the current biennium and questioned whether the fiscal exposure could be accommodated without a sponsor-filed appropriation. One member stated the committee was unlikely to take fiscal risk given the budget picture, and another seconded that position.

The transcript records discussion of the fiscal estimate and members’ concerns but does not record a formal roll-call vote or a final committee disposition for SB 307 in the subcommittee transcript. The committee then moved on to conclude its docket.