(HB2520)

GOVERNOR'S VETO

Pursuant to Article V, Section 6, of the Constitution of Virginia, I veto House Bill 2520, which establishes the Sexual Offense Prevention and Response Program within the Virginia Military Forces and creates a full-time sexual offense prevention and response officer position.

The Commonwealth shares the goal of preventing and responding effectively to incidents of sexual assault within the Virginia National Guard. However, this bill duplicates an existing, federally mandated program—the Department of Defense's Sexual Assault Prevention and Response (SAPR) program—which already applies to all National Guard units, including those in Virginia. The SAPR program provides comprehensive training, victim support services, investigative procedures, and data reporting requirements governed by federal law.

Establishing a separate state-level program could introduce legal and operational conflicts, as the state cannot impose mandates that supersede or interfere with federal military requirements. Moreover, the bill does not provide additional authority or tools to enhance current prevention or response efforts, rendering its effectiveness unclear.

Additionally, as the enrolled bill is written, the same officer assigned to advocate for the victim is also responsible for deciding whether to issue the protective order. This dual role undermines the due process rights of the accused, who—like the victim—is entitled to a fair and impartial process. Just as victims deserve an advocate, the accused deserves a neutral decision-maker.

Rather than creating duplicative structures, I proposed an amendment to explore actionable solutions that work within the legal framework and improve outcomes for service members. Unfortunately, that amendment was rejected. Additionally, the bill contains other issues that were hastily added in the conference report which creates significant due process concerns for the victim and alleged offender.

Given the bill's redundancy, potential for legal challenge, and lack of enforceable improvements to existing federal protections, it does not represent a practical or effective policy approach. However, in the coming weeks I will be issuing an executive directive to direct the Virginia National Guard to share data from the already existing program with the General Assembly to help ensure transparency and effectiveness.

Accordingly, I veto this bill.