# Virginia HB65: Apple Board; repealing Board and Apple Fund effective July 1, 2028, delayed effective date, report.

Virginia HB65, Apple Board; repealing Board and Apple Fund effective July 1, 2028, delayed effective date, report., is a 2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by Dan I. Helmer (Democratic); status signed, last action 2026-03-31 (Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0023)); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB65-2026
- As of: 2026-10-12
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia HB65
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Apple Board; repealing Board and Apple Fund effective July 1, 2028, delayed effective date, report.
- Status: signed
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2025-12-30
- Last action: 2026-03-31, Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0023)
- Sponsor: Dan I. Helmer (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Touches household money: yes
- Roll calls: 7 (221 yes, 2 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 4

## Summary

Apple Board; repeal. Repeals the Apple Board and Apple Fund effective July 1, 2028, and provides that any funds remaining in the Apple Fund as of July 1, 2028, shall be transferred to the Governor's Agriculture and Forestry Industries Development Fund. The bill provides that the excise tax levied on apples grown in the Commonwealth shall not be collected for the 2026 harvest season and requires the chair of the Apple Board to file a report with the Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services no later than June 30, 2028, with a statement of total receipts and disbursements of the Apple Board for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2028. This bill is identical to SB 390.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Greater public access to apple sales records: benefit, low. The law removes a specific public-records exemption for Virginia apple producers' sales information submitted to the State Apple Board. That exemption no longer shields these records from disclosure. Another applicable exemption can still protect some records.
- Virginia apple growers stop paying excise tax: benefit, low. After July 1, 2026, Virginia stops collecting the excise tax on apples grown in the state. This removes that tax burden for affected growers. The provision gives no tax rate or savings amount.
- Virginia ends Apple Board and Fund: cost, low. The law ends Virginia's Apple Board and Apple Fund on July 1, 2028, including any remaining board member terms. No new board appointments are allowed after July 1, 2026. The board chair must file a report of money received and spent by June 30, 2028. On July 1, 2028, any remaining Apple Fund money…
- Workforce partners gain privacy, public access narrows: mixed, low. Virginia can withhold qualifying private or confidential information supplied by private or nongovernmental partners for approved apprenticeships or similar workforce partnerships. The information must not already be public. The workforce Commissioner and Secretary of Labor must find that the initi…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Dan I. Helmer (Democratic), House

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-03-02 | Senate | Passed Senate | pass | 40 | 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 |   |
| 2026-02-24 | Senate | Reported from Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources | pass | 11 | 2 |   |
| 2026-02-03 | House | Read third time and passed House Block Vote | pass | 98 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-28 | House | Reported from Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources | pass | 22 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-21 | House | Subcommittee recommends reporting | pass | 10 | 0 |   |

## Actions (27)

- 2026-03-31: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0023) (Governor)
- 2026-03-31: Approved by Governor - Chapter 23 (effective - see bill) (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)
- 2026-03-09: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB65) (House)
- 2026-03-06: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB65ER) (House)
- 2026-03-06: Enrolled (House)
- 2026-03-06: Signed by President (Senate)
- 2026-03-06: Signed by Speaker (House)
- 2026-03-02: Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-02-27: Passed by for the day (Senate)
- 2026-02-27: Read third time (Senate)
- 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)
- 2026-02-24: Reported from Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources (11-Y 2-N) (Senate)
- 2026-02-04: Referred to Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources (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 Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources (22-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-01-21: Subcommittee recommends reporting (10-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-01-21: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB65) (House)
- 2026-01-19: Assigned HACNR sub: Agriculture (House)
- 2025-12-30: Referred to Committee on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources (House)
- 2025-12-30: Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26103449D (House)

## Bill text

- Chaptered, 2026-03-31: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1214867.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1214866.PDF)
- Enrolled, 2026-03-06: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1193751.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1193750.PDF)
- Introduced, 2025-12-30: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1082219.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1082218.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/1214867.HTML)
- [Chaptered (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1214866.PDF)
- [Enrolled (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1193751.HTML)
- [Enrolled (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1193750.PDF)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1082219.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1082218.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-HB65-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).