Episode 72: Why are Virginia legislators in session for just 2 months?

Here at Bold Dominion, we pubish a new episode every two weeks. We have seventy something episodes under our belt, and still so much more to talk about. Keeping up with politics is a year-round job.

But for Virginia legislators, it’s not actually year-round. Not really. In odd numbered years, lawmakers are in Richmond for 60 days, and in even years, just a month. That’s often extended by a few more weeks. But in most years, Virginia legislators start in mid-January and are packed up and ready to head home by March.

Why so short? And what does that mean for Virginia politics?

To unpack this, we're talking with Randolph-Macon politics professor Richard Meagher, as well as Richmond Times Dispatch reporter Charlotte Rene Wood (we discuss reporting she did with Charlottesville Tomorrow). We also get to hear from Virginia Delegate Kelly Fowler, who represents the Virginia Beach area in District 21.

Read the report Wood mentioned on model bills here.