# Virginia SB281: Waverly, Town of; amending charter, transitioning town government.

Virginia SB281, Waverly, Town of; amending charter, transitioning town government., is a 2026 Regular Session Senate bill sponsored by Lashrecse D. Aird (Democratic); status signed, last action 2026-04-06 (Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0339)) (as of 2026-10-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB281-2026
- As of: 2026-10-12
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia SB281
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Waverly, Town of; amending charter, transitioning town government.
- Status: signed
- Chamber: Senate
- Introduced: 2026-01-13
- Last action: 2026-04-06, Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0339)
- Sponsor: Lashrecse D. Aird (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Touches household money: no
- Roll calls: 8 (220 yes, 0 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 4

## Summary

Charter; Town of Waverly; emergency. Amends the charter for the Town of Waverly in Sussex County by transitioning the town from a strong mayor form of government to a council-manager form of government. Additional changes to the charter in the bill include (i) shifting town council elections from May to November, (ii) appointing a town manager, (iii) shifting certain duties from an elected mayor to a town manager, and (iv) repealing numerous outdated provisions. The bill contains an emergency clause.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Waverly council can pay officials stipends: benefit, low. Beginning April 6, 2026, Waverly’s council may approve monthly stipends for its members, paid from town funds. The mayor and vice mayor may receive larger stipends, but neither receives a salary. The council sets the amounts; the law sets no dollar amounts. The council may also approve reasonable p…
- Waverly changes rules for public meetings: mixed, low. Beginning April 6, 2026, Waverly council meetings must be open to the public unless Virginia law allows a closed meeting. The charter’s old requirement for a recorded four-fifths vote to close a meeting is removed.
- Waverly council chooses mayor, replacing voters: mixed, low. Beginning April 6, 2026, Waverly has a five-member elected council; the mayor is not an extra member. The mayor and vice mayor have full council votes, replacing the mayor’s tie-breaking-only vote. Beginning with the November 2026 general election, voters no longer elect the mayor directly. At each…
- Waverly manager runs operations and police: mixed, low. Beginning April 6, 2026, Waverly’s council must appoint a town manager who reports to it and serves at its pleasure. The manager runs daily operations, departments and property, and prepares and carries out the annual budget. The manager hires, supervises, disciplines and dismisses employees, excep…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Lashrecse D. Aird (Democratic), Senate

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-02-25 | House | Passed House Block Vote | pass | 97 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-20 | House | Reported from Counties, Cities and Towns | pass | 21 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-20 | House | Subcommittee recommends reporting | pass | 7 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-22 | Senate | Read third time and passed Senate Block Vote | pass | 40 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-21 | Senate | Engrossed by Senate Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-20 | Senate | Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-20 | Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 1st reading) | pass | 40 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-19 | Senate | Reported from Local Government | pass | 15 | 0 |   |

## Actions (28)

- 2026-04-06: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0339) (Governor)
- 2026-04-06: Approved by Governor-Chapter 339 (effective 4/6/2026) (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)
- 2026-02-27: Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB281ER) (Senate)
- 2026-02-27: Enrolled (Senate)
- 2026-02-27: Signed by President (Senate)
- 2026-02-27: Signed by Speaker (House)
- 2026-02-25: Passed House Block Vote (97-Y 0-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-02-25: Read third time (House)
- 2026-02-24: Read second time (House)
- 2026-02-20: Reported from Counties, Cities and Towns (21-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-02-20: Subcommittee recommends reporting (7-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-02-17: Assigned HCCT sub: Subcommittee #1 (House)
- 2026-02-03: Referred to Committee on Counties, Cities and Towns (House)
- 2026-02-03: Read first time (House)
- 2026-02-03: Placed on Calendar (House)
- 2026-01-22: Read third time and passed Senate Block Vote (40-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-01-21: Engrossed by Senate Block Vote (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-01-21: Read second time (Senate)
- 2026-01-20: Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-01-20: Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 1st reading) (40-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-01-20: Passed by for the day (Senate)
- 2026-01-20: Rules suspended (Senate)
- 2026-01-19: Reported from Local Government (15-Y 0-N) (Senate)
- 2026-01-13: Referred to Committee on Local Government (Senate)
- 2026-01-13: Prefiled and ordered printed with emergency clause; Offered 01-14-2026 26100473D (Senate)
- 2026-01-13: Emergency clause added (Senate)

## Bill text

- Chaptered, 2026-04-06: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1217567.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1217566.PDF)
- Enrolled, 2026-02-27: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1181496.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1181495.PDF)
- Introduced, 2026-01-13: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1088533.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1088532.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/1217567.HTML)
- [Chaptered (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1217566.PDF)
- [Enrolled (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1181496.HTML)
- [Enrolled (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1181495.PDF)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1088533.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1088532.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-SB281-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).