# Virginia HB1361: Virginia Residential Landlord & Tenant Act; civil action for unlawful detainer, termination notice.

Virginia HB1361, Virginia Residential Landlord & Tenant Act; civil action for unlawful detainer, termination notice., is a 2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by Michelle Lopes Maldonado (Democratic); status signed, last action 2026-04-13 (Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0783)); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB1361-2026
- As of: 2026-10-12
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia HB1361
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Virginia Residential Landlord & Tenant Act; civil action for unlawful detainer, termination notice.
- Status: signed
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2026-01-20
- Last action: 2026-04-13, Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0783)
- Sponsor: Michelle Lopes Maldonado (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Touches household money: yes
- Roll calls: 9 (256 yes, 66 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 6

## Summary

Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; civil action for unlawful detainer; termination notice; energy submetering equipment. Provides that no landlord shall file or maintain an action for unlawful detainer against a residential tenant for any alleged lease violation until the landlord has provided the tenant with a proper and effective termination notice and that no notice of termination of tenancy for nonpayment of rent pursuant to the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act shall be effective unless such notice contains a written statement of charges and payments over the course of the tenancy or the past 12 months, whichever is shorter, and any late charges, attorney fees, costs, and other charges or damages as contracted for in the rental agreement that are due and owing. The bill requires such notice to also include debits and credits incurred by the tenant for energy and utility bills and any additional charges permitted as applicable. The bill also requires the owner of any residential building to maintain adequate records indicating how monthly energy and utility billing fees are calculated and including a history of billing fee payments for each tenant over the duration of the tenancy or the past 12 months, whichever is shorter. Such records shall be made available to the tenant upon request. Finally, the bill removes a provision allowing for the collection of fees when a tenant requests such records. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027. This bill is identical to SB 294.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Assisted renters get legal aid contacts: benefit, low. Beginning July 1, 2027, public housing termination notices must list local legal aid contacts on the first page. The required details are the program's name, address, and phone number, if a program serves the area. Private landlords must put the statewide legal aid phone number and website on the f…
- Stronger eviction notice protections for renters: benefit, low. Beginning July 1, 2027, landlords cannot file or continue a residential lease-violation eviction case without a proper, effective termination notice. Courts cannot award possession or judgment unless that notice is presented and accepted as evidence. A nonpayment notice is ineffective without a wri…
- Renters can face local fee bills: cost, low. Beginning July 1, 2027, residential building owners, managers, and operators can divide actual or expected local government fees among tenants. They can bill these separately instead of raising rent, but the lease must clearly state the allocation program and formula. Allowed formulas include floor…
- Renters may pay for utility records: cost, low. Beginning July 1, 2027, building owners can charge tenants before providing copies of covered utility billing records. This covers energy and water/sewer submetering, energy allocation, and ratio utility billing records. Charges must be reasonable and limited to actual copying materials and labor c…
- Faster hearings for unauthorized home occupants: mixed, medium. Beginning July 1, 2027, courts must hold emergency eviction hearings for qualifying unauthorized occupants of single-family homes. The court must find that no rental agreement exists or ever existed and the occupant lacks the owner's permission. The owner must give written notice to vacate at least…
- Renters and landlords get faster hearings: mixed, low. Beginning July 1, 2027, initial eviction hearings under Virginia's residential landlord-tenant law must happen as soon as practicable. The usual deadline is 21 days after filing, or 30 days if a hearing within 21 days is impossible. If the party filing requests a date after day 21, the court schedu…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Michelle Lopes Maldonado (Democratic), House

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-03-11 | House | Senate amendment agreed to by House | pass | 71 | 28 |   |
| 2026-03-10 | Senate | General Laws and Technology Amendment agreed to | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-10 | Senate | Passed Senate with amendment | pass | 21 | 19 |   |
| 2026-03-06 | Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) | pass | 39 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-06 | Senate | Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-04 | Senate | Reported from General Laws and Technology with amendment | pass | 14 | 1 |   |
| 2026-02-17 | House | Read third time and passed House | pass | 79 | 18 |   |
| 2026-02-11 | House | Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute | pass | 22 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-04 | House | Subcommittee recommends reporting with substitute | pass | 10 | 0 |   |

## Actions (37)

- 2026-04-13: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0783) (Governor)
- 2026-04-13: Approved by Governor-Chapter 783 (Effective 7/1/2027) (Governor)
- 2026-04-01: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB1361) (House)
- 2026-03-31: Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026 (Governor)
- 2026-03-31: Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 31, 2026 (House)
- 2026-03-31: Signed by Speaker (House)
- 2026-03-30: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB1361ER) (House)
- 2026-03-30: Enrolled (House)
- 2026-03-30: Signed by President (Senate)
- 2026-03-11: Senate amendment agreed to by House (71-Y 28-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-03-10: Passed Senate with amendment (21-Y 19-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-03-10: General Laws and Technology Amendment agreed to (Senate)
- 2026-03-10: Engrossed by Senate as amended (Senate)
- 2026-03-10: Read third time (Senate)
- 2026-03-09: Passed by for the day (Senate)
- 2026-03-06: Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-03-06: Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) (39-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-03-06: Rules suspended (Senate)
- 2026-03-04: Reported from General Laws and Technology with amendment (14-Y 1-N) (Senate)
- 2026-03-03: Senate committee offered (Senate)
- 2026-02-25: Assigned GL&T sub: Housing (Senate)
- 2026-02-18: Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology (Senate)
- 2026-02-18: Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading) (Senate)
- 2026-02-17: Read third time and passed House (79-Y 18-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-02-17: Moved from Uncontested Calendar to Regular Calendar (House)
- 2026-02-16: Engrossed by House - committee substitute (House)
- 2026-02-16: committee substitute agreed to (House)
- 2026-02-16: Read second time (House)
- 2026-02-13: Read first time (House)
- 2026-02-12: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB1361) (House)
- 2026-02-11: Committee substitute printed 26107222D-H1 (House)
- 2026-02-11: Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute (22-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-02-04: Subcommittee recommends reporting with substitute (10-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-02-02: Assigned HCJ sub: Civil (House)
- 2026-01-26: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB1361) (House)
- 2026-01-20: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice (House)
- 2026-01-20: Presented and ordered printed 26104734D (House)

## Bill text

- Chaptered, 2026-04-13: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1222856.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1222855.PDF)
- Enrolled, 2026-03-30: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1212472.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1212471.PDF)
- Amendment, 2026-03-10: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1204058.HTML)
- Amendment, 2026-03-05: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1196425.HTML)
- Amendment, 2026-03-03: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1191822.HTML)
- Substitute, 2026-02-11: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1142365.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1142364.PDF)
- Substitute, 2026-02-04: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1127565.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1127564.PDF)
- Introduced, 2026-01-20: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1091322.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1091321.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/1222856.HTML)
- [Chaptered (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1222855.PDF)
- [Enrolled (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1212472.HTML)
- [Enrolled (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1212471.PDF)
- [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1204058.HTML)
- [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1196425.HTML)
- [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1191822.HTML)
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1142365.HTML)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1142364.PDF)
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1127565.HTML)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1127564.PDF)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1091322.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1091321.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-HB1361-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).