# Virginia HB1097: Driver communication improvement program; drivers diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, etc.

Virginia HB1097, Driver communication improvement program; drivers diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, etc., is a 2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by Amy J. Laufer (Democratic); status signed, last action 2026-04-06 (Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0263)); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB1097-2026
- As of: 2026-10-12
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia HB1097
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Driver communication improvement program; drivers diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, etc.
- Status: signed
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2026-01-14
- Last action: 2026-04-06, Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0263)
- Sponsor: Amy J. Laufer (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Touches household money: yes
- Roll calls: 8 (316 yes, 0 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 3

## Summary

Driver communication improvement program for drivers diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder; education for law-enforcement officers and emergency medical services providers; educational materials for driver training schools. Requires law-enforcement officers and emergency medical service providers, as a condition of such providers' certification and recertification, to undergo education on the driver communication improvement program for drivers diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. The bill directs the Department of Motor Vehicles to display information about the driver communication improvement program on its website and distribute educational materials to all driver training schools licensed by the Department of Motor Vehicles. As introduced, this bill is a recommendation of the Virginia Disability Commission.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Communication support for drivers with autism: benefit, low. The Blue Envelope Program supports communication between police and drivers diagnosed with autism. Virginia's emergency medical provider certification rules must include education about the program. The motor vehicle department must prominently explain participation steps and program benefits on it…
- Required police training on disability communication: benefit, low. Virginia must set required minimum and ongoing police training standards for communicating with people with intellectual or developmental disabilities. Training covers recognizing autism, preventing crises, calming situations, communication tools, and agency and community resources. The state must…
- Emergency medical certification drops resuscitation requirement: mixed, low. The law removes one required part of Virginia's emergency medical provider certification rules. Those rules no longer must include qualifications for providers to follow do-not-resuscitate orders. This change concerns certification rules; it does not itself cancel those orders. The law does not spe…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Amy J. Laufer (Democratic), House

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-02-24 | Senate | Passed Senate Block Vote | pass | 39 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-23 | Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) | pass | 37 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-23 | Senate | Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-19 | Senate | Reported from Transportation | pass | 15 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-11 | House | Passed House Block Vote | pass | 98 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-11 | House | Read third time and passed House Block Vote | pass | 96 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-05 | House | Reported from Transportation with amendment(s) | pass | 21 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-03 | House | Subcommittee recommends reporting | pass | 10 | 0 |   |

## Actions (32)

- 2026-04-06: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0263) (Governor)
- 2026-04-06: Approved by Governor-Chapter 263 (effective 7/1/2026) (Governor)
- 2026-03-10: Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026 (Governor)
- 2026-03-10: Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 10, 2026 (House)
- 2026-02-26: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB1097) (House)
- 2026-02-26: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB1097ER) (House)
- 2026-02-26: Enrolled (House)
- 2026-02-26: Signed by President (Senate)
- 2026-02-26: Signed by Speaker (House)
- 2026-02-24: Passed Senate Block Vote (39-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-02-24: Read third time (Senate)
- 2026-02-23: Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-02-23: Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) (37-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-02-23: Rules suspended (Senate)
- 2026-02-19: Reported from Transportation (15-Y 0-N) (Senate)
- 2026-02-12: Referred to Committee on Transportation (Senate)
- 2026-02-12: Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading) (Senate)
- 2026-02-11: Passed House Block Vote (98-Y 0-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-02-11: Reconsideration of passage agreed to by House (House)
- 2026-02-11: Read third time and passed House Block Vote (96-Y 0-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-02-11: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB1097) (House)
- 2026-02-10: Engrossed by House as amended (House)
- 2026-02-10: committee amendments agreed to (House)
- 2026-02-10: Read second time (House)
- 2026-02-09: Read first time (House)
- 2026-02-05: House committee offered (House)
- 2026-02-05: Reported from Transportation with amendment(s) (21-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-02-03: Subcommittee recommends reporting (10-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-01-30: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB1097) (House)
- 2026-01-29: Assigned HTRAN sub: Department of Motor Vehicles (House)
- 2026-01-14: Referred to Committee on Transportation (House)
- 2026-01-14: Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26105030D (House)

## Bill text

- Chaptered, 2026-04-06: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1217559.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1217558.PDF)
- Enrolled, 2026-02-26: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1179748.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1179747.PDF)
- Engrossed, 2026-02-10: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1131991.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1131990.PDF)
- Amendment, 2026-02-05: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1128056.HTML), [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1128334.HTML)
- Introduced, 2026-01-14: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1087430.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1087429.PDF)

## Related bills

- HB5: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties. (signed)
- SB199: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties. (signed)
- HB95: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies, noncompliance with rental agreement. (signed)
- HB1393: Electric utilities; pilot program for energy assistance and weatherization for certain individuals. (signed)
- HB834: Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage, termination by landlord. (signed)
- HB675: Protection of employees; coercion or threat based on immigration status, civil penalty. (signed)

## Sources
- [Chaptered (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1217559.HTML)
- [Chaptered (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1217558.PDF)
- [Enrolled (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1179748.HTML)
- [Enrolled (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1179747.PDF)
- [Engrossed (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1131991.HTML)
- [Engrossed (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1131990.PDF)
- [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1128056.HTML)
- [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1128334.HTML)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1087430.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1087429.PDF)

## Related
- [HB5: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB5-2026)
- [SB199: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB199-2026)
- [HB95: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies, noncompliance with…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB95-2026)
- [HB1393: Electric utilities; pilot program for energy assistance and weatherization for…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB1393-2026)
- [HB834: Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage, terminat…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB834-2026)
- [HB675: Protection of employees; coercion or threat based on immigration status, civil…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB675-2026)
- [Virginia bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/virginia/bills)
- [Virginia state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/virginia)
- [All state legislation](https://policyrisk.com/state-bills)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB1097-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).