RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam has signed off on a new state budget without vetoing a section that blocks the state from participating in a carbon cap-and-trade program.
The Democratic governor signed the budget Thursday. He said he was disappointed the GOP-led General Assembly put in language effectively prohibiting Virginia from joining the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.
The Northam administration has ordered cuts in carbon emissions and made joining RGGI a top priority, but the governor believed he did not have the legal authority to veto those provisions without vetoing the entire budget.
Environmentalists said Northam let them down by not vetoing that part of the budget.
Northam also blasted Republicans for blocking state funds to purchase police body cameras or pay for abortions in rare cases involving certain fetal anomalies.
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