Here are the 10 executive orders signed by VA Gov Abigail Spanberger upon taking office

Newly inaugurated Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger signed 10 executive orders on her first day in office, including one ending cooperation between law enforcement in the state and federal immigration authorities.

The new Democrat leader said in a statement, "Today, we are responding to the moment. We are setting the tone for what Virginians can expect over the next four years: pragmatic leadership focused on lowering costs and delivering results. My administration is getting to work on Day One to address the top-of-mind challenges facing families by lowering costs for Virginians in every community, building a stronger economy for every worker, and making sure that every student in the Commonwealth receives a high-quality education that sets them up for success. These executive orders represent the first steps in our work to create a stronger, safer, and — critically — more affordable future for our Commonwealth."

The first order signed by Spanberger directs her secretaries and all executive branch agencies to submit reports "identifying immediate, actionable budgetary, regulatory, or policy changes that would reduce costs for Virginians," with the reports being required to address "cost savings in areas such as housing, healthcare, energy, education, childcare, and everyday living expenses (groceries), where relevant to the agency or secretariat."

This was followed by an order establishing the cross-agency Interagency Health Financing Task Force to develop a "unified financing strategy for all state agencies within that secretariat to maximize federal funding, reduce duplicative spending, and strengthen Virginia’s long-term healthcare infrastructure." This includes "identifying initiatives and services most at risk for losing funds, especially as a result of implementation of federal policies such as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act," "directing a comprehensive inventory of all federal and state health-related funding streams and programs to identify inefficiencies, overlapping programs, and opportunities to use non-state fund," among other directives.

She signed an order directing a comprehensive, multi-agency review of "regulations and permitting practices that affect housing development, with the goals of eliminating unnecessary requirements, streamlining approvals, and reducing barriers to housing production," saying in the executive order that "Virginia faces a deficit of nearly 300,000 affordable rental homes, and thousands of supported rental homes are at risk of losing their affordability covenants in the next 5 years."

Spanberger signed an order directing the state’s Department of Education to "strengthen core instructional systems in literacy, mathematics, school accountability, and assessment." The order also directs the Secretary of Education and the Superintendent of Public Instruction to host a "statewide listening tour" within 100 days of the order to "hear directly from students, parents, educators, school leaders, superintendents, school board members, and community members about the challenges and successes facing their schools."

Also signed was an order establishing the "Economic Resiliency Task Force that will conduct "a statewide response to federal workforce reductions, funding cuts, tariffs, and immigration impacts, including an assessment of federal funding losses or projected losses and recommendations for potential mitigation measures." Her order claimed that "haphazard federal trade policy and higher tariffs have created economic disruption across the Commonwealth as well," stating that the Port of Virginia "recorded an 8.1% year-over-year drop in cargo volume as of December 2025, signaling weaker trade activity." She also wrote, “Cuts to Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (“SNAP”) will harm Virginia families and their ability to learn and fully participate in our economy."

The order also stated, "Immigrants play an important role in Virginia’s economy, working in sectors from agriculture to child care to technology and paying hundreds of millions of dollars in state and local taxes each year. However, recent federal immigration actions, such as increasing H1-B visa fees for employers seeking to hire foreign workers with specialized expertise, risk harming Virginia businesses, ultimately impacting the Commonwealth’s broader economy."

An order was signed directing the Department of Education to review and evaluate "the process for appointing members to public higher education governing boards," including recommending legislative and policy changes, such as term limits.

An order allowing the Chief of Staff and other designated cabinet officials to declare a state emergency, activate the state’s National Guard, or "certify the Governor’s temporary inability to serve when the Governor is unreachable or incapacitated." The order states, "Use of this delegation is contingent upon my being unable to be reached so as to give my approval for the declaration of a state of emergency … or use of the Virginia National Guard." She also signed an order delegating "significant planning, budgetary, personnel, and administrative authority to the Governor’s Chief of Staff" on matters such as "proposed expenditures, compensation plans, and legislative submissions/reports.”

An order was also signed establishing "a comprehensive non-discrimination policy across the facets of state government by prohibiting discrimination in employment, appointments, procurement, and public services on a broad range of protected characteristics, while protecting veterans and people with disabilities." The order states, "This policy specifically prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, sex, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, political affiliation, or against otherwise qualified persons with disabilities."

The final order signed by Spanberger on her first day in office rescinds former Governor Glenn Youngkin’s Executive Order 47, signed into law in February of 2025. The Youngkin order had directed the Virginia State Police and Virginia Department of Corrections to enter into 287(g) memorandums of understanding with ICE, establishing cooperation between state and federal authorities on the issue of immigration enforcement.

A summary of Spanberger’s order stated, "This executive order rescinds Executive Order 47, which requires and encourages state and local law enforcement to divert their limited resources for use in enforcing federal civil immigration laws. Ensuring public safety in Virginia requires state and local law enforcement to be focused on their core responsibilities of investigating and deterring criminal activity, staffing jails, and community engagement."