# Virginia SB136: Probation; decreasing period.

Virginia SB136, Probation; decreasing period., is a 2026 Regular Session Senate bill sponsored by Christie New Craig (Republican); status signed, last action 2026-04-06 (Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0077)) (as of 2026-10-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB136-2026
- As of: 2026-10-12
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia SB136
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Probation; decreasing period.
- Status: signed
- Chamber: Senate
- Introduced: 2026-01-06
- Last action: 2026-04-06, Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0077)
- Sponsor: Christie New Craig (Republican)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Touches household money: no
- Roll calls: 10 (227 yes, 39 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 2

## Summary

Decreasing probation period. Establishes criteria for which a defendant's supervised probation period shall be reduced, including completing educational activities, maintaining employment, completing treatment, or obtaining housing. The bill provides that a court may decrease a defendant's probation period if warranted by the defendant's conduct upon receipt of a request from the Department of Corrections and requires the Department of Corrections to request termination of a defendant's supervised probation period after 12 months in certain situations. This bill is identical to HB 149.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Shorter probation options for eligible defendants: benefit, low. Virginia courts can no longer use this section to extend probation. Courts can still shorten probation or revoke or change its conditions after a hearing, with reasonable notice to the defendant and prosecutor. Courts can also shorten probation without a hearing when the Department of Corrections r…
- Victim notice when supervised probation ends: benefit, low. Virginia’s Department of Corrections must make reasonable efforts to notify victims when supervised probation ends under this section. The duty covers victims as defined in § 19.2-11.01(B). The law sets no notice deadline or method and does not guarantee that victims receive notice.

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Christie New Craig (Republican), Senate

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-02-25 | Senate | House substitute agreed to by Senate | pass | 32 | 8 |   |
| 2026-02-23 | House | Passed House with substitute | pass | 82 | 15 |   |
| 2026-02-18 | House | Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute | pass | 19 | 3 |   |
| 2026-02-02 | Senate | Read third time and passed Senate | pass | 31 | 9 |   |
| 2026-01-30 | Senate | Courts of Justice Amendment agreed to | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-30 | Senate | Engrossed by Senate (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-29 | Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 1st reading) | pass | 40 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-29 | Senate | Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-28 | Senate | Reported from Finance and Appropriations | pass | 10 | 2 |   |
| 2026-01-19 | Senate | Reported from Courts of Justice with amendments and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations | pass | 13 | 2 |   |

## Actions (38)

- 2026-04-06: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0077) (Governor)
- 2026-04-06: Approved by Governor-Chapter 77 (effective 7/1/2026) (Governor)
- 2026-04-06: Approved by Governor-Chapter 77 (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)
- 2026-03-02: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB136) (Senate)
- 2026-02-27: Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB136ER) (Senate)
- 2026-02-27: Enrolled (Senate)
- 2026-02-27: Signed by President (Senate)
- 2026-02-27: Signed by Speaker (House)
- 2026-02-25: House substitute agreed to by Senate (32-Y 8-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-02-23: Passed House with substitute (82-Y 15-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-02-23: Engrossed by House - committee substitute (House)
- 2026-02-23: committee substitute agreed to (House)
- 2026-02-23: Read third time (House)
- 2026-02-20: Read second time (House)
- 2026-02-19: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB136) (Senate)
- 2026-02-18: Committee substitute printed 26108199D-H1 (House)
- 2026-02-18: Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute (19-Y 3-N) (House)
- 2026-02-05: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice (House)
- 2026-02-05: Read first time (House)
- 2026-02-05: Placed on Calendar (House)
- 2026-02-02: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB136) (Senate)
- 2026-02-02: Read third time and passed Senate (31-Y 9-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-01-30: Engrossed by Senate (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-01-30: Courts of Justice Amendment agreed to (Senate)
- 2026-01-30: Engrossed by Senate as amended (Senate)
- 2026-01-30: Read second time (Senate)
- 2026-01-29: Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-01-29: Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 1st reading) (40-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-01-29: Passed by for the day (Senate)
- 2026-01-29: Rules suspended (Senate)
- 2026-01-28: Reported from Finance and Appropriations (10-Y 2-N) (Senate)
- 2026-01-22: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB136) (Senate)
- 2026-01-19: Senate committee offered (Senate)
- 2026-01-19: Reported from Courts of Justice with amendments and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations (13-Y 2-N) (Senate)
- 2026-01-06: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice (Senate)
- 2026-01-06: Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26102589D (Senate)

## Bill text

- Chaptered, 2026-04-06: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1216187.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1216186.PDF)
- Enrolled, 2026-02-27: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1182090.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1182089.PDF)
- Substitute, 2026-02-18: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1169578.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1169577.PDF)
- Engrossed, 2026-01-30: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1104028.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1104027.PDF)
- Amendment, 2026-01-21: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1090093.HTML)
- Amendment, 2026-01-20: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1092030.HTML)
- Introduced, 2026-01-06: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1082975.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1082974.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/1216187.HTML)
- [Chaptered (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1216186.PDF)
- [Enrolled (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1182090.HTML)
- [Enrolled (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1182089.PDF)
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1169578.HTML)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1169577.PDF)
- [Engrossed (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1104028.HTML)
- [Engrossed (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1104027.PDF)
- [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1090093.HTML)
- [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1092030.HTML)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1082975.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1082974.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-SB136-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).