# Virginia SB793: Court of Appeals of Virginia; increases maximum number of judges, hearings en banc.

Virginia SB793, Court of Appeals of Virginia; increases maximum number of judges, hearings en banc., is a 2026 Regular Session Senate bill sponsored by Scott A. Surovell (Democratic); status in committee, last action 2026-02-11 (Continued to 2027 in Finance and Appropriations (14-Y 1-N)) (as of 2026-10-11).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB793-2026
- As of: 2026-10-11
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia SB793
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Court of Appeals of Virginia; increases maximum number of judges, hearings en banc.
- Status: in committee
- Chamber: Senate
- Introduced: 2026-01-23
- Last action: 2026-02-11, Continued to 2027 in Finance and Appropriations (14-Y 1-N)
- Sponsor: Scott A. Surovell (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Subjects: Finance and Appropriations
- Touches household money: no
- Roll calls: 2 (23 yes, 7 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 0

## Summary

Maximum number of judges on the Court of Appeals of Virginia; hearings en banc. Increases from 17 to 21 the maximum number of authorized judges on the Court of Appeals of Virginia. The bill provides that the Supreme Court of Virginia shall prescribe by rule the number of judges needed for the Court of Appeals to sit en banc, and that such number shall not be fewer than 13 judges.

## Bill overview

No economic impacts identified for this bill.

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Scott A. Surovell (Democratic), Senate

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-02-11 | Senate | Continued to 2027 in Finance and Appropriations | pass | 14 | 1 |   |
| 2026-02-04 | Senate | Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations | pass | 9 | 6 |   |

## Actions (7)

- 2026-02-11: Continued to 2027 in Finance and Appropriations (14-Y 1-N) (Senate)
- 2026-02-06: Committee substitute printed 26106480D-S1 (Senate)
- 2026-02-04: Senate committee offered (Senate)
- 2026-02-04: Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations (9-Y 6-N) (Senate)
- 2026-02-02: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB793) (Senate)
- 2026-01-23: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice (Senate)
- 2026-01-23: Presented and ordered printed 26106064D (Senate)

## Bill text

- Substitute, 2026-02-06: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1132561.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1132560.PDF)
- Substitute, 2026-02-04: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1127670.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1127669.PDF)
- Introduced, 2026-01-23: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1095720.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1095717.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
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1132561.HTML)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1132560.PDF)
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1127670.HTML)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1127669.PDF)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1095720.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1095717.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)
- [All state legislation](https://policyrisk.com/state-bills)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB793-2026 (as of 2026-10-11).