Virginia Senate passes bill to strip Confederate organizations of tax breaks

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) - The Virginia Senate has approved a bill to strip certain Confederate organizations of their tax-exempt statuses.

“Our code should reflect our values and what we want the Commonwealth to be now,” said the bill's patron, delegate Alex Askew (D-Virginia Beach).

Askew’s bill, along with a companion measure in the Senate, would require several organizations, including the United Daughters of the Confederacy, to pay certain property taxes if the bill becomes law. 

Askew says the bill is intended to ensure fairness throughout the state’s tax code.

“It doesn’t mention historic organizations like NAACP and other groups that are really moving things and have had connections within our community in pushing what we believe forward,” Askew explained. 

In recent hearings, members of the Daughters of the American Revolution spoke against the bill. 

“I have done a lot of work in the Civil War, the war between the states,” said one member of the Daughters of the American Revolution. “We would all do well to learn and really not punish the soldiers and the families of those who lose ones in that struggle.” 

Askew says his bill does nothing to prevent the United Daughters of the Confederacy from continuing to operate. 

“It’s about who we are giving special privileges to and what they stood for,” said Askew. “We know that the United Daughters of the Confederacy has continued to push the narrative of the lost cause and we don’t need to continue to support that in our tax code.” 

The bill has already passed both the House and Senate, but because the Senate added an amendment, the amendment will need to be approved by the House before heading to Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s desk. 

The Senate has already approved the companion Senate bill, but it is awaiting a hearing in the House of Delegates.

Nexstar's WRIC reached out to the United Daughters of the Confederacy via phone and email in an effort to receive their response to the bill but have not yet heard back.