# Virginia HB868: Political campaign advertisements; synthetic media, penalty.

Virginia HB868, Political campaign advertisements; synthetic media, penalty., is a 2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by Rae Cousins (Democratic); status in committee, last action 2026-02-06 (Continued to 2027 in Privileges and Elections (Voice Vote)) (as of 2026-10-11).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB868-2026
- As of: 2026-10-11
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia HB868
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Political campaign advertisements; synthetic media, penalty.
- Status: in committee
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2026-01-13
- Last action: 2026-02-06, Continued to 2027 in Privileges and Elections (Voice Vote)
- Sponsor: Rae Cousins (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Subjects: Privileges and Elections
- Touches household money: no
- Roll calls: 2 (6 yes, 2 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 0

## Summary

Elections; political campaign advertisements; synthetic media; penalty. Prohibits electioneering communications containing synthetic media, as those terms are defined in the bill, from being published or broadcast without containing the following conspicuously displayed statement: "This message contains synthetic media that has been altered from its original source or artificially generated and may present conduct or speech that did not occur." The bill creates a civil penalty not to exceed $25,000 for a violation of such prohibition and a Class 1 misdemeanor for a willful violation. The bill permits any registered voter who receives an electioneering communication in violation of this requirement to institute an action for preventative relief to prohibit the publication or dissemination of such electioneering communication, including an application for a permanent or temporary injunction.

## Bill overview

No economic impacts identified for this bill.

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Rae Cousins (Democratic), House

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-02-06 | House | Continued to 2027 in Privileges and Elections (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-03 | House | Subcommittee recommends reporting | pass | 6 | 2 |   |

## Actions (6)

- 2026-02-06: Continued to 2027 in Privileges and Elections (Voice Vote) (House)
- 2026-02-03: Subcommittee recommends reporting (6-Y 2-N) (House)
- 2026-01-28: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB868) (House)
- 2026-01-25: Assigned HPE sub: Campaigns and Candidates (House)
- 2026-01-13: Referred to Committee on Privileges and Elections (House)
- 2026-01-13: Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26103803D (House)

## Bill text

- Introduced, 2026-01-13: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1086247.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1086246.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
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1086247.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1086246.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)
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- [Virginia state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/virginia)
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Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB868-2026 (as of 2026-10-11).