Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) campaigned as a centrist who promised to make Virginia more affordable for families. But her existing energy policies are poised to make electricity more expensive for ratepayers next year, and the full energy plan she released last week would make energy more expensive for decades to come.

Shortly after taking office in January, Spanberger announced to the General Assembly that she would direct the commonwealth to rejoin the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a multi-state cap-and-trade program that requires fossil-fuel power plants to buy allowances for their carbon dioxide emissions. Her Republican predecessor, former Gov. Glenn Youngkin, withdrew Virginia from the program in 2024, and his administration estimated that the decision saved consumers almost $1 billion over two years.