# Virginia SB315: Safeguarding American Veteran Empowerment Act; created, prohibited practices, penalties.

Virginia SB315, Safeguarding American Veteran Empowerment Act; created, prohibited practices, penalties., is a 2026 Regular Session Senate bill sponsored by Adam P. Ebbin (Democratic); status signed, last action 2026-04-13 (Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0603)); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB315-2026
- As of: 2026-10-12
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia SB315
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Safeguarding American Veteran Empowerment Act; created, prohibited practices, penalties.
- Status: signed
- Chamber: Senate
- Introduced: 2026-01-13
- Last action: 2026-04-13, Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0603)
- Sponsor: Adam P. Ebbin (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Touches household money: yes
- Roll calls: 8 (232 yes, 13 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 2

## Summary

Safeguarding American Veteran Empowerment Act; prohibited practices; penalties. Creates the Safeguarding American Veteran Empowerment Act to regulate the practices of persons seeking to receive compensation for preparing, presenting, prosecuting, advising, consulting, or assisting any individual regarding any veterans' benefits matter, as defined in the bill. The bill provides that a violation of its provisions constitutes a prohibited practice under the Virginia Consumer Protection Act. This bill is identical to HB 398.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Fee limits protect veterans seeking benefits: benefit, medium. Paid benefits services must tie fees to a benefit increase and cap them at five times the monthly increase. Both parties must sign a fee agreement before work starts; initial and nonrefundable fees are banned. Providers must refund collected fees if an award is reversed, except when benefits fall b…
- Stronger safeguards for veterans using benefits services: benefit, low. At the start, paid providers must disclose their lack of specified veterans' affiliations and that free services and other benefits may be available. Veterans must sign this clear notice, printed in at least 12-point type; providers must keep it one year after services end. Paid providers cannot us…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Adam P. Ebbin (Democratic), Senate

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-02-26 | Senate | House substitute agreed to by Senate | pass | 38 | 2 |   |
| 2026-02-24 | House | Passed House with substitute | pass | 91 | 5 |   |
| 2026-02-19 | House | Reported from Labor and Commerce with substitute | pass | 19 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-27 | Senate | Read third time and passed Senate | pass | 34 | 4 |   |
| 2026-01-26 | Senate | Engrossed by Senate (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-23 | Senate | Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-23 | Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 1st reading) | pass | 39 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-21 | Senate | Reported from General Laws and Technology | pass | 11 | 2 | 2 |

## Actions (34)

- 2026-04-13: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0603) (Governor)
- 2026-04-13: Approved by Governor-Chapter 603 (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 (SB315) (Senate)
- 2026-03-02: Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB315ER) (Senate)
- 2026-03-02: Enrolled (Senate)
- 2026-03-02: Signed by President (Senate)
- 2026-03-02: Signed by Speaker (House)
- 2026-02-26: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB315) (Senate)
- 2026-02-26: House substitute agreed to by Senate (38-Y 2-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-02-24: Passed House with substitute (91-Y 5-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-02-24: Engrossed by House - committee substitute (House)
- 2026-02-24: committee substitute agreed to (House)
- 2026-02-24: Read third time (House)
- 2026-02-24: Moved from Uncontested Calendar to Regular Calendar (House)
- 2026-02-23: Read second time (House)
- 2026-02-19: Committee substitute printed 26108164D-H1 (House)
- 2026-02-19: Reported from Labor and Commerce with substitute (19-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-02-10: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB315) (Senate)
- 2026-02-03: Referred to Committee on Labor and Commerce (House)
- 2026-02-03: Read first time (House)
- 2026-02-03: Placed on Calendar (House)
- 2026-01-27: Read third time and passed Senate (34-Y 4-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-01-26: Engrossed by Senate (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-01-26: Engrossed by Senate (Senate)
- 2026-01-26: Read second time (Senate)
- 2026-01-23: Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-01-23: Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 1st reading) (39-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-01-23: Passed by for the day (Senate)
- 2026-01-23: Rules suspended (Senate)
- 2026-01-21: Reported from General Laws and Technology (11-Y 2-N 2-A) (Senate)
- 2026-01-13: Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology (Senate)
- 2026-01-13: Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26100649D (Senate)

## Bill text

- Chaptered, 2026-04-13: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1219010.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1219009.PDF)
- Enrolled, 2026-03-02: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1186670.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1186669.PDF)
- Substitute, 2026-02-19: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1170843.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1170842.PDF)
- Introduced, 2026-01-13: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1088869.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1088868.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/1219010.HTML)
- [Chaptered (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1219009.PDF)
- [Enrolled (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1186670.HTML)
- [Enrolled (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1186669.PDF)
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1170843.HTML)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1170842.PDF)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1088869.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1088868.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-SB315-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).