GOVERNOR'S VETO

Pursuant to Article V, Section 6, of the Constitution of Virginia, I veto House Bill 382, which prohibits the vast majority of state agencies within the executive branch from adopting any regulation or workplace rule that prohibits employees from storing firearms in their automobiles.

As Governor, I am the Chief Personnel Officer of the state workforce. I believe there is a need to establish and enforce workplace violence prevention policies that focus on employee safety and an atmosphere of workplace safety. An essential component of workplace violence prevention is the regulation of the possession, brandishing, or use of weapons on-site and during work-related activities. Our current state policy is aligned with and reinforces this best practice.

Section 2.2-1201 of the Code of Virginia gives the Department of Human Resource Management the authority to set policies related to the personnel administration of state government agencies. The current Workplace Violence policy, applicable to state government employees, prohibits possession of a weapon not required by the individual's position while the employee is on state premises or engaged in state business. This policy was established to mitigate the potential for workplace violence or accidental injury. The policy's prohibitions are a responsible approach to ensuring the safety of all employees and protection from disgruntled or troubled employees who might inflict harm if given easy access to firearms, regardless of whether the employee is licensed to carry such weapons.

This bill that inhibits our ability to establish and enforce workplace violence prevention policies that focus on employee safety and an atmosphere of workplace safety.

Accordingly, I veto this bill.