Within hours of being sworn in as Virginia’s 75th governor on January 17, Abigail Spanberger set the tone for her administration by signing ten executive orders on matters ranging from general affordability to law enforcement.
The first executive order requires all Cabinet secretaries to write a report within 90 days outlining ways that a wide variety of consumer costs might be reduced.
“Whether it’s cutting red tape within the government or enacting policy that provides relief, we must address high housing costs, health care, childcare and energy costs,” Spanberger said.
The second delves deeper into the costs of healthcare by creating an interagency task force to review changes coming at the federal level with the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, to look for potential overlaps in service, and identify areas that are underfunded. This group has to complete their report by May 1.
The third order establishes the Commission on Unlocking Housing Production to find ways to speed up the development of new living spaces.
“We need more homes that Virginians can afford to rent or to buy and I am confident that we can eliminate or change some unnecessary requirements, that we can streamline approvals, and ultimately we can build more,” Spanberger said.
Executive Order Four has the title “High-Quality Public Education Directive” calling for improvements to the public education as well as implementation of a 2025 report from the Joint Legislative Audit Review Committee. Take a look at that report here.
The fifth executive order returns to the ongoing shift in the federal government away from public investment and the impacts that continue to be felt in Virginia.
“In 2025, the Commonwealth experienced a significant reduction in federal jobs – with estimates showing a drop of more than 20,000 positions – directly affecting these workers and their families,” reads the fifth order.
The order establishes the Economic Stabilization Task Force.
“This Task force will coordinate a statewide and long overdue response to DOGE federal funding cuts, lost research dollars, reckless tariff policies and more,” Spanberger said.“We need a full assessment of the Federal funds that have been cut, delayed, reduced or potential projected impacts that we may see in the future and we need recommendations for how we can mitigate the damage.”
The sixth relates to the reformation of governance of Virginia’s public colleges and universities.
“We are responding to the challenges of political interference that we have seen at our world class public universities,” Spanberger said.
The order seeks to create recommendations for legislative changes to alter the way members of Boards of Visitors are appointed. University of Virginia President James Ryan resigned last June after a federal investigation and his successor was appointed in December after Spanberger asked the Board to pause a search.
The next three are related to government personnel and government recognition of people.
- The seventh executive order relates to the chain of command during emergencies or disasters.
- The eighth order relates to powers held by the Governor’s Chief of Staff and you can read that here.
- The ninth is intended to ensure equal opportunity.
The tenth executive order repeals former Governor Glenn Youngkin’s Executive Order 47 which directed state and local law enforcement officers to work with federal immigration enforcement efforts.
“Virginia State and local law enforcement officers must be able to focus on their rapport responsibilities investigating crime and community policing,” Spanberger said.
What will any of these mean for implementation? The tone has been set for coverage on a great variety of things.
Spanberger also named ten new people to the UVA Board of Visitors and some of the new members’ biographies are online.
- Mike Bisceglia — President and Co-Founder of the Stauer Watch and Jewelry Company
- Carlos Brown
- Robert Bryon — Chairman, Co-CEO and Co-Founder of Blue Vista Capital Management
- Peter Grant — Founding partner of Anchormarck Holdings
- Owen Griffin
- Victoria Harker – Former Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of TEGNA
- Elizabeth Hayes — Retired attorney
- Rudene Mercer Haynes — Attorney
- Evans Poston — Director at Troutman Strategies
- Moshin Syed
The next meeting is still listed as being held on March 5.
Before you go: Paid subscribers cover the cost of conducting research for this article which was originally published in the January 21, 2026 edition of Charlottesville Community Engagement. You can either subscribe through Substack, make a monthly contribution through Patreon, or consider becoming a sponsor. The goal of Town Crier Productions is to increase awareness about what is happening at the local, regional, state, and federal government levels. Please share the work with others if you want people to know things.
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