All Roll Calls
Yes: 394 • No: 5
Sponsored By: Alfonso H. Lopez (Democratic)
Became Law
Electric utilities; licensed retail suppliers; notice period for return to service. Permits an individual nonresidential retail customer of electric energy of Appalachian Power or Dominion Energy Virginia whose noncoincident peak demand exceeded five megawatts during the most recent calendar year to purchase electric energy from a licensed supplier within the Commonwealth. Currently, such a customer may only purchase electric energy from a licensed supplier if the customer's peak demand did not exceed one percent of the incumbent electric utility's peak load during the most recent calendar year unless the customer had a noncoincident peak demand of more than 90 megawatts. The bill changes from five years to eighteen months the advance notice period required for such a customer to return to service by an incumbent electric utility. This bill is identical to SB 818.
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5 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 0 costs, 4 mixed.
A Phase I or II utility may ask the Commission to change generation and distribution rates only to reassign costs tied to customers switching to or from licensed suppliers. The petition is allowed only for a net load change of 100 megawatts or more on or after July 1, 2026. Approved changes can shift bills among remaining customers.
Utilities that own or control transmission must join or create a regional grid group and hand over operational control of their transmission system to it. The law also keeps electric generation under state regulation. This changes who runs the grid and how plants are overseen, which can affect planning and reliability.
If your utility does not offer an approved 100% renewable tariff, you can buy 100% renewable power from any licensed supplier. If you already have a power purchase agreement when the utility files such a tariff, you may keep it until it ends. For cooperatives, a tariff filed on or after July 1, 2010 (residential) or July 1, 2012 (nonresidential) counts as 100% renewable if the co‑op retires renewable energy certificates equal to all energy sold under that tariff.
The law limits who can buy from non-utility suppliers. Only individual nonresidential customers with peak demand over 5 megawatts and no more than 1% of their utility’s peak may shop, unless they exceeded 90 megawatts in 2006 or later. Residential customers and nonresidential customers at 150 kilowatts or less cannot shop. You cannot combine separate sites to qualify, but small nonresidential customers (each 5 MW or less) can jointly ask the Commission to aggregate if it finds no harm and sets oversight. If an eligible customer does not choose a supplier, the incumbent utility supplies the power.
After capped rates ended, a customer that buys from a licensed supplier must give 18 months’ written notice before returning to the incumbent utility. The Commission can grant an exemption after a hearing when the supplier failed or is about to fail; during the rest of the notice period you pay the utility’s market-based costs, including energy, transmission, losses, ancillary services, and a reasonable margin. After the notice period, you can take service under the utility’s filed rates. Anyone who returns must stay with the utility for at least 12 months. If your utility chose the Fixed Resource Requirement as of February 1, 2019 and keeps it, customers who buy from suppliers still pay that utility for non-fuel capacity and transmission, and must give three years’ advance notice, with limited exceptions for older deals.
Alfonso H. Lopez
Democratic • House
There are no cosponsors for this bill.
All Roll Calls
Yes: 394 • No: 5
Senate vote • 2/26/2026
Passed Senate
Yes: 36 • No: 4
Senate vote • 2/26/2026
Passed Senate
Yes: 40 • No: 0
Senate vote • 2/26/2026
Reconsideration of Senate passage agreed to by Senate
Yes: 40 • No: 0
Senate vote • 2/25/2026
Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading)
Yes: 40 • No: 0
Senate vote • 2/25/2026
Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote)
Yes: 0 • No: 0
Senate vote • 2/23/2026
Reported from Commerce and Labor
Yes: 13 • No: 1
House vote • 2/11/2026
Passed House Block Vote
Yes: 98 • No: 0
House vote • 2/11/2026
Read third time and passed House Block Vote
Yes: 96 • No: 0
House vote • 2/5/2026
Reported from Labor and Commerce with substitute
Yes: 22 • No: 0
House vote • 2/3/2026
Subcommittee recommends reporting with substitute
Yes: 9 • No: 0
Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0707)
Approved by Governor-Chapter 707 (effective 7/1/2026)
Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026
Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 10, 2026
Fiscal Impact Statement from State Corporation Commission (HB921)
Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB921ER)
Enrolled
Signed by President
Signed by Speaker
Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N 0-A)
Reconsideration of Senate passage agreed to by Senate (40-Y 0-N 0-A)
Passed Senate (36-Y 4-N 0-A)
Read third time
Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote)
Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) (40-Y 0-N 0-A)
Rules suspended
Reported from Commerce and Labor (13-Y 1-N)
Fiscal Impact Statement from State Corporation Commission (HB921)
Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor
Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading)
Passed House Block Vote (98-Y 0-N 0-A)
Reconsideration of passage agreed to by House
Read third time and passed House Block Vote (96-Y 0-N 0-A)
Engrossed by House - committee substitute
committee substitute agreed to
Chaptered
4/13/2026
Enrolled
3/3/2026
Substitute
2/6/2026
Substitute
2/4/2026
Substitute
2/3/2026
Introduced
1/13/2026
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