# Virginia HB198: Local government; review of decision by board of zoning appeals, procedures for filing petition.

Virginia HB198, Local government; review of decision by board of zoning appeals, procedures for filing petition., is a 2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by Joshua E. Thomas (Democratic); status signed, last action 2026-04-08 (Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0368)); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB198-2026
- As of: 2026-10-12
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia HB198
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Local government; review of decision by board of zoning appeals, procedures for filing petition.
- Status: signed
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2026-01-07
- Last action: 2026-04-08, Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0368)
- Sponsor: Joshua E. Thomas (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Touches household money: yes
- Roll calls: 7 (217 yes, 1 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 4

## Summary

Local governing body; review of decision by board of zoning appeals; procedures for filing petition. Makes various changes and clarifications to the procedures following the filing of a petition in a circuit court by a party aggrieved by a decision of the board of zoning appeals. Current law provides that a circuit court, upon presentation of the petition, shall allow a writ of certiorari to review such decision and includes certain timing requirements for service upon and response by the board of zoning appeals. The bill clarifies that the petition shall be served upon the secretary or chair of the board of zoning appeals within 30 days after the petition is filed with the clerk of the circuit court and that, within 21 days of being served with the petition, the secretary of the board of zoning appeals shall file the record of the proceedings at issue in the petition. The bill also updates other procedures, such as the time requirements for the filing of responsive pleadings, to be consistent with the various changes and clarifications throughout the bill. This bill is a recommendation of the Boyd-Graves Conference.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Older zoning actions stay valid: benefit, low. Plans or ordinances adopted or changed before March 1, 1968 are not invalid just because notice or multiple hearings were missing. This protection applies only if the governing body held a public hearing before adoption or amendment.
- 30 days to challenge local rezoning: cost, low. You must file any court action challenging a local governing body’s zoning decision within 30 days of that decision. This includes adopting or not adopting a zoning ordinance or amendment, or granting or not granting a special exception. The 30‑day filing deadline is mandatory and jurisdictional.
- Faster, clearer steps for local rezoning: mixed, medium. Planning commissions prepare proposed zoning ordinances and must hold at least one public hearing. The governing body must send amendments to the commission, and if the commission does not report within 100 days after its first meeting, the proposal is deemed approved unless withdrawn. To shorten t…
- Tight timelines for zoning board appeals: mixed, medium. If you are aggrieved by a zoning board decision, you must file in circuit court within 30 days of the final decision. You must name the governing body, the BZA applicant, and the landowner of record; the board itself is not a necessary party. You must serve all necessary parties and the BZA secreta…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Joshua E. Thomas (Democratic), House

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-03-10 | Senate | Passed Senate | pass | 40 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-09 | Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) | pass | 40 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-09 | Senate | Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-05 | Senate | Reported from Courts of Justice | pass | 11 | 0 | 3 |
| 2026-02-03 | House | Read third time and passed House Block Vote | pass | 98 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-28 | House | Reported from Courts of Justice | pass | 19 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-21 | House | Subcommittee recommends reporting | pass | 9 | 1 |   |

## Actions (24)

- 2026-04-08: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0368) (Governor)
- 2026-04-08: Approved by Governor-Chapter 368 (effective 7/1/2026) (Governor)
- 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 (HB198ER) (House)
- 2026-03-30: Enrolled (House)
- 2026-03-30: Signed by President (Senate)
- 2026-03-10: Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-03-10: Read third time (Senate)
- 2026-03-09: Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-03-09: Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) (40-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-03-09: Rules suspended (Senate)
- 2026-03-05: Reported from Courts of Justice (11-Y 0-N 3-A) (Senate)
- 2026-02-04: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice (Senate)
- 2026-02-04: Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading) (Senate)
- 2026-02-03: Read third time and passed House Block Vote (98-Y 0-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-02-02: Read second time and engrossed (House)
- 2026-01-30: Read first time (House)
- 2026-01-28: Reported from Courts of Justice (19-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-01-21: Subcommittee recommends reporting (9-Y 1-N) (House)
- 2026-01-19: Assigned HCJ sub: Civil (House)
- 2026-01-07: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice (House)
- 2026-01-07: Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26103516D (House)

## Bill text

- Chaptered, 2026-04-08: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1217711.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1217710.PDF)
- Enrolled, 2026-03-30: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1210622.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1210621.PDF)
- Introduced, 2026-01-07: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1083035.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1083034.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/1217711.HTML)
- [Chaptered (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1217710.PDF)
- [Enrolled (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1210622.HTML)
- [Enrolled (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1210621.PDF)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1083035.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1083034.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)
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Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB198-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).