This week in a House Counties, Cities and Towns subcommittee, SB697 (VanValkenburg) was continued to 2025. The subcommittee expressed concerns about the bill’s impact on their localities and wanted to continue the conversation on how to meet energy goals imposed by the Virginia Clean Economy Act while respecting local government authority. This discussion is not over, and Virginia Farm Bureau will continue to advocate for the maintenance of local government authority and placement of solar facilities on subprime lands to protect our farm and forest lands. More than 700 of you responded to the Farm Bureau action alert on this bill, and your voices were heard! Thank you for your participation.