# Virginia HB637: Possession of residue of a controlled substance unlawful; penalties, exceptions.

Virginia HB637, Possession of residue of a controlled substance unlawful; penalties, exceptions., is a 2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by Katrina Callsen (Democratic); status vetoed, last action 2026-04-22 (House sustained Governor's veto) (as of 2026-10-11).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB637-2026
- As of: 2026-10-11
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia HB637
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Possession of residue of a controlled substance unlawful; penalties, exceptions.
- Status: vetoed
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2026-01-13
- Last action: 2026-04-22, House sustained Governor's veto
- Sponsor: Katrina Callsen (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Touches household money: no
- Roll calls: 7 (160 yes, 62 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 0

## Summary

Possession of an item containing residue of a controlled substance; penalty. Creates the offense of possession of residue of a controlled substance with a tiered system of punishment. Currently, possession of any amount of a controlled substance has a tiered system of punishment as if there is a usable amount of such controlled substance.

## Bill overview

No economic impacts identified for this bill.

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Katrina Callsen (Democratic), House

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-03-10 | Senate | Passed Senate | pass | 23 | 17 |   |
| 2026-03-09 | Senate | Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-09 | Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) | pass | 40 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-05 | Senate | Reported from Courts of Justice | pass | 10 | 4 |   |
| 2026-02-17 | House | Read third time and passed House | pass | 63 | 33 |   |
| 2026-02-11 | House | Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute | pass | 16 | 6 |   |
| 2026-02-06 | House | Subcommittee recommends reporting with substitute | pass | 8 | 2 |   |

## Actions (31)

- 2026-04-22: House sustained Governor's veto (House)
- 2026-04-14: Vetoed by Governor (Governor)
- 2026-04-01: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB637) (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 (HB637ER) (House)
- 2026-03-30: Enrolled (House)
- 2026-03-30: Signed by President (Senate)
- 2026-03-10: Passed Senate (23-Y 17-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 (10-Y 4-N) (Senate)
- 2026-02-18: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice (Senate)
- 2026-02-18: Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading) (Senate)
- 2026-02-17: Read third time and passed House (63-Y 33-N 0-A) (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 (HB637) (House)
- 2026-02-11: Committee substitute printed 26105603D-H1 (House)
- 2026-02-11: Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute (16-Y 6-N) (House)
- 2026-02-06: House subcommittee offered (House)
- 2026-02-06: Subcommittee recommends reporting with substitute (8-Y 2-N) (House)
- 2026-02-03: Assigned HCJ sub: Criminal (House)
- 2026-01-29: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB637) (House)
- 2026-01-13: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice (House)
- 2026-01-13: Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26104914D (House)

## Bill text

- Veto Explanation, 2026-04-14: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1219295.HTML)
- Enrolled, 2026-03-30: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1210811.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1210810.PDF)
- Substitute, 2026-02-11: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1142339.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1142338.PDF)
- Substitute, 2026-02-06: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1133713.HTML), [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1133814.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1133712.PDF), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1133813.PDF)
- Introduced, 2026-01-13: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1085295.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1085294.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
- [Veto Explanation (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1219295.HTML)
- [Enrolled (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1210811.HTML)
- [Enrolled (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1210810.PDF)
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1142339.HTML)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1142338.PDF)
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1133713.HTML)
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1133814.HTML)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1133712.PDF)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1133813.PDF)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1085295.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1085294.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-HB637-2026 (as of 2026-10-11).