# Virginia SB1: Minimum wage; increases incrementally to $15.00 per hour by January 1, 2028.

Virginia SB1, Minimum wage; increases incrementally to $15.00 per hour by January 1, 2028., is a 2026 Regular Session Senate bill sponsored by L. Louise Lucas (Democratic); status signed, last action 2026-04-08 (Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0351)); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB1-2026
- As of: 2026-10-12
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia SB1
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Minimum wage; increases incrementally to $15.00 per hour by January 1, 2028.
- Status: signed
- Chamber: Senate
- Introduced: 2025-11-17
- Last action: 2026-04-08, Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0351)
- Sponsor: L. Louise Lucas (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Touches household money: yes
- Roll calls: 8 (154 yes, 71 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 1

## Summary

Minimum wage. Increases the minimum wage incrementally to $15.00 per hour by January 1, 2028. The bill codifies the adjusted state hourly minimum wage of $12.77 per hour that is effective January 1, 2026, and increases the minimum wage to $13.75 per hour effective January 1, 2027, and to $15.00 per hour effective January 1, 2028. Effective January 1, 2029, and annually thereafter, the bill requires the minimum wage to be adjusted to reflect increases in the consumer price index. This bill is identical to HB 1.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Higher minimum pay for Virginia workers: benefit, high. Virginia employers must pay covered workers at least the higher of the state or federal minimum wage. The state rate is $12.77 an hour from January 1, 2026, through December 31, 2026. It rises to $13.75 on January 1, 2027, and $15.00 on January 1, 2028. Beginning January 1, 2029, annual increases u…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: L. Louise Lucas (Democratic), Senate

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-02-27 | House | Passed House | pass | 62 | 34 |   |
| 2026-02-24 | House | Reported from Labor and Commerce | pass | 15 | 7 |   |
| 2026-02-16 | Senate | Read third time and passed Senate | pass | 20 | 19 |   |
| 2026-02-13 | Senate | Engrossed by Senate (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-12 | Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 1st reading) | pass | 40 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-12 | Senate | Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-11 | Senate | Reported from Finance and Appropriations | pass | 10 | 5 |   |
| 2026-02-02 | Senate | Reported from Commerce and Labor and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations | pass | 7 | 6 |   |

## Actions (28)

- 2026-04-08: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0351) (Governor)
- 2026-04-08: Approved by Governor-Chapter 351 (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 (Senate)
- 2026-03-05: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB1) (Senate)
- 2026-03-04: Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB1ER) (Senate)
- 2026-03-04: Enrolled (Senate)
- 2026-03-04: Signed by President (Senate)
- 2026-03-04: Signed by Speaker (House)
- 2026-02-27: Passed House (62-Y 34-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-02-27: Read third time (House)
- 2026-02-26: Read second time (House)
- 2026-02-24: Reported from Labor and Commerce (15-Y 7-N) (House)
- 2026-02-19: Referred to Committee on Labor and Commerce (House)
- 2026-02-19: Read first time (House)
- 2026-02-19: Placed on Calendar (House)
- 2026-02-16: Read third time and passed Senate (20-Y 19-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-02-13: Engrossed by Senate (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-02-13: Read second time (Senate)
- 2026-02-12: Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-02-12: Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 1st reading) (40-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-02-12: Rules suspended (Senate)
- 2026-02-11: Reported from Finance and Appropriations (10-Y 5-N) (Senate)
- 2026-02-02: Reported from Commerce and Labor and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations (7-Y 6-N) (Senate)
- 2026-01-23: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB1) (Senate)
- 2026-01-20: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB1) (Senate)
- 2025-11-17: Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor (Senate)
- 2025-11-17: Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26102073D (Senate)

## Bill text

- Chaptered, 2026-04-08: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1217591.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1217590.PDF)
- Enrolled, 2026-03-04: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1187722.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1187721.PDF)
- Introduced, 2025-11-17: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1081229.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1081228.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/1217591.HTML)
- [Chaptered (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1217590.PDF)
- [Enrolled (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1187722.HTML)
- [Enrolled (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1187721.PDF)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1081229.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1081228.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)
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Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB1-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).