# Virginia HB498: Motor carrier violations; authority of law-enforcement officers.

Virginia HB498, Motor carrier violations; authority of law-enforcement officers., is a 2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by Vivian E. Watts (Democratic); status signed, last action 2026-04-06 (Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0155)); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB498-2026
- As of: 2026-10-12
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia HB498
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Motor carrier violations; authority of law-enforcement officers.
- Status: signed
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2026-01-12
- Last action: 2026-04-06, Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0155)
- Sponsor: Vivian E. Watts (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Touches household money: yes
- Roll calls: 8 (315 yes, 1 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 2

## Summary

Motor carrier violations; authority of law-enforcement officers. Authorizes the enforcement of motor carrier violations of license, registration, and tax requirements and vehicle size limitations at locations other than permanent weighing stations and clarifies that law-enforcement officers, in addition to size and weight compliance agents, may enforce such provisions.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Unpaid trucking penalties can stop vehicle use: cost, high. Virginia State Police and other officers can use their criminal-law enforcement powers to enforce motor-carrier rules. Charged parties have 21 days after citation service to pay the penalty and processing fee or contest the charge. Service on the driver counts as service on the responsible owner, i…
- Trucking businesses face broader highway penalties: cost, low. Effective upon enactment, the law extends covered motor-carrier penalties to all Virginia highways, not just permanent weighing stations. It covers trucks and tractor-trailers weighing over 7,500 pounds and other covered commercial vehicles. Listed violations include missing registration, titles or…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Vivian E. Watts (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 | Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-23 | Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) | pass | 37 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-19 | Senate | Reported from Transportation | pass | 13 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-04 | House | Read third time and passed House Block Vote | pass | 97 | 1 |   |
| 2026-02-04 | House | Passed House Block Vote | pass | 98 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-29 | House | Reported from Transportation | pass | 21 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-27 | House | Subcommittee recommends reporting | pass | 10 | 0 |   |

## Actions (28)

- 2026-04-06: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0155) (Governor)
- 2026-04-06: Approved by Governor-Chapter 155 (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)
- 2026-02-27: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB498) (House)
- 2026-02-26: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB498ER) (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 (13-Y 0-N) (Senate)
- 2026-02-13: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB498) (House)
- 2026-02-05: Referred to Committee on Transportation (Senate)
- 2026-02-05: Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading) (Senate)
- 2026-02-04: Passed House Block Vote (98-Y 0-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-02-04: Reconsideration of passage agreed to by House (House)
- 2026-02-04: Read third time and passed House Block Vote (97-Y 1-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-02-03: Read second time and engrossed (House)
- 2026-02-02: Read first time (House)
- 2026-01-29: Reported from Transportation (21-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-01-27: Subcommittee recommends reporting (10-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-01-19: Assigned HTRAN sub: Department of Motor Vehicles (House)
- 2026-01-12: Referred to Committee on Transportation (House)
- 2026-01-12: Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26101542D (House)

## Bill text

- Chaptered, 2026-04-06: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1216758.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1216757.PDF)
- Enrolled, 2026-02-26: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1179670.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1179669.PDF)
- Introduced, 2026-01-12: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1084667.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1084666.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/1216758.HTML)
- [Chaptered (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1216757.PDF)
- [Enrolled (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1179670.HTML)
- [Enrolled (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1179669.PDF)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1084667.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1084666.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-HB498-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).