# Virginia HB40: Plastic firearms or receivers, etc., transfer, etc., prohibited; penalties. Virginia HB40, Plastic firearms or receivers, etc., transfer, etc., prohibited; penalties., is a 2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by Marcus B. Simon (Democratic); status signed, last action 2026-04-10 (Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0531)); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB40-2026 - As of: 2026-10-12 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: Virginia HB40 - State: Virginia - Session: 2026 Regular Session - Title: Plastic firearms or receivers, etc., transfer, etc., prohibited; penalties. - Status: signed - Chamber: House - Introduced: 2025-12-23 - Last action: 2026-04-10, Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0531) - Sponsor: Marcus B. Simon (Democratic) - Cosponsors: 0 - Touches household money: yes - Roll calls: 10 (229 yes, 104 no in all) - Economic provisions PRIA read: 4 ## Summary Manufacture, importation, sale, transfer, or possession of plastic firearms and unfinished frames or receivers and unserialized firearms prohibited; penalties. Creates a Class 5 felony for any person who knowingly manufactures or assembles, imports, purchases, sells, transfers, or possesses any firearm that, after removal of all parts other than a major component, as defined in the bill, is not detectable as a firearm when subjected to inspection by the types of detection devices, including X-ray machines, commonly used at airports, government buildings, schools, correctional facilities, and other locations for security screening. The bill updates language regarding the types of detection devices that are used at such locations for detecting plastic firearms. Under current law, it is unlawful to manufacture, import, sell, transfer, or possess any plastic firearm and a violation is punishable as a Class 5 felony. The bill also creates a Class 1 misdemeanor, which is punishable as a Class 4 felony for a second or subsequent offense, for any person to knowingly possess a firearm or any completed or unfinished frame or receiver that is not imprinted with a valid serial number or to knowingly import, purchase, sell, offer for sale, or transfer ownership of any completed or unfinished frame or receiver, unless the completed or unfinished frame or receiver (i) is deemed to be a firearm pursuant to federal law and (ii) is imprinted with a valid serial number. The bill also creates a Class 1 misdemeanor, which is punishable as a Class 4 felony for a second or subsequent offense, for any person to manufacture or assemble, cause to be manufactured or assembled, import, purchase, sell, offer for sale, or transfer ownership of any firearm that is not imprinted with a valid serial number. The provisions of the bill prohibiting unfinished frames or receivers and unserialized firearms have a delayed effective date of January 1, 2027; however, the provisions of the bill prohibiting the knowing possession of a firearm or any completed or unfinished frame or receiver that is not imprinted with a valid serial number have a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027. This bill is identical to SB 323. ## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read - Unlicensed gun builders face transfer limits: cost, medium. Beginning January 1, 2027, people without a federal manufacturing or assembly license generally cannot sell or transfer firearms made without that license. This covers guns they made, had an unlicensed person make, or know an unlicensed person made. The law also bans knowingly having another unlice… - Virginia gun owners face serial-number rules: cost, medium. Beginning January 1, 2027, making, assembling, arranging assembly, importing, buying, selling, offering, or transferring firearms generally requires a valid serial number. Knowingly importing, buying, selling, offering, or transferring completed or unfinished frames or receivers requires both feder… - Virginia bans firearms that evade screening: cost, medium. Beginning January 1, 2027, Virginia bans knowingly making, assembling, importing, buying, selling, offering, transferring, or possessing covered firearms. Having someone else make or assemble them is also banned. A covered plastic firearm contains less than 3.7 ounces of electromagnetically detecta… - Licensed gun businesses face marking rules: cost, low. Beginning January 1, 2027, authorized federal firearms licensees must follow specified rules when adding serial numbers to firearms or frames and receivers. This includes unfinished frames and receivers. Numbers must start with the first three and last five digits of the business's federal license,… ## Sponsors and cosponsors - Sponsor: Marcus B. Simon (Democratic), House ## Roll call votes | Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 2026-03-04 | House | Senate substitute agreed to by House | pass | 64 | 32 | | | 2026-03-02 | Senate | Passed Senate with substitute | pass | 21 | 19 | | | 2026-03-02 | Senate | Courts of Justice Substitute agreed to | pass | 0 | 0 | | | 2026-02-26 | Senate | Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 | | | 2026-02-26 | Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) | pass | 40 | 0 | | | 2026-02-25 | Senate | Reported from Finance and Appropriations | pass | 10 | 5 | | | 2026-02-23 | Senate | Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations | pass | 9 | 5 | | | 2026-02-05 | House | Read third time and passed House | pass | 63 | 34 | | | 2026-01-30 | House | Reported from Public Safety | pass | 15 | 6 | | | 2026-01-29 | House | Subcommittee recommends reporting | pass | 7 | 3 | | ## Actions (35) - 2026-04-10: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0531) (Governor) - 2026-04-10: Approved by Governor - Chapter 531 (effective - see bill) (Governor) - 2026-03-14: Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026 (Governor) - 2026-03-14: Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 14, 2026 (House) - 2026-03-12: Signed by Speaker (House) - 2026-03-11: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB40) (House) - 2026-03-11: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB40ER) (House) - 2026-03-11: Enrolled (House) - 2026-03-11: Signed by President (Senate) - 2026-03-04: Senate substitute agreed to by House (64-Y 32-N 0-A) (House) - 2026-03-02: Passed Senate with substitute (21-Y 19-N 0-A) (Senate) - 2026-03-02: Courts of Justice Substitute agreed to (Senate) - 2026-03-02: Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute (Senate) - 2026-02-27: Passed by for the day (Senate) - 2026-02-27: Read third time (Senate) - 2026-02-26: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB40) (House) - 2026-02-26: Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) (Senate) - 2026-02-26: Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) (40-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate) - 2026-02-26: Rules suspended (Senate) - 2026-02-25: Fiscal Impact statement From VCSC (2/25/2026 12:50 pm) (House) - 2026-02-25: Committee substitute printed 26108434D-S1 (Senate) - 2026-02-25: Reported from Finance and Appropriations (10-Y 5-N) (Senate) - 2026-02-23: Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations (9-Y 5-N) (Senate) - 2026-02-06: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice (Senate) - 2026-02-06: Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading) (Senate) - 2026-02-05: Read third time and passed House (63-Y 34-N 0-A) (House) - 2026-02-04: Read second time and engrossed (House) - 2026-02-03: Read first time (House) - 2026-01-30: Reported from Public Safety (15-Y 6-N) (House) - 2026-01-29: Subcommittee recommends reporting (7-Y 3-N) (House) - 2026-01-16: Assigned HPS sub: Firearms (House) - 2026-01-13: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB40) (House) - 2026-01-06: Fiscal Impact statement From VCSC (1/6/2026 2:07 pm) (House) - 2025-12-23: Referred to Committee on Public Safety (House) - 2025-12-23: Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26100452D (House) ## Bill text - Chaptered, 2026-04-10: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1218321.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1218320.PDF) - Enrolled, 2026-03-11: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1199255.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1199254.PDF) - Substitute, 2026-02-25: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1179291.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1179290.PDF) - Introduced, 2025-12-23: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1082078.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1082077.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/1218321.HTML) - [Chaptered (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1218320.PDF) - [Enrolled (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1199255.HTML) - [Enrolled (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1199254.PDF) - [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1179291.HTML) - [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1179290.PDF) - [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1082078.HTML) - [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1082077.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-HB40-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).