# Virginia SB827: Underground transmission lines; pilot program, clarifies qualifying projects, report.

Virginia SB827, Underground transmission lines; pilot program, clarifies qualifying projects, report., is a 2026 Regular Session Senate bill sponsored by Kannan Srinivasan (Democratic); status signed, last action 2026-04-13 (Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0864)); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB827-2026
- As of: 2026-10-12
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia SB827
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Underground transmission lines; pilot program, clarifies qualifying projects, report.
- Status: signed
- Chamber: Senate
- Introduced: 2026-01-23
- Last action: 2026-04-13, Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0864)
- Sponsor: Kannan Srinivasan (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Touches household money: yes
- Roll calls: 11 (284 yes, 144 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 4

## Summary

Pilot program for underground transmission lines; qualifying projects; levy; report. Authorizes the State Corporation Commission, in reviewing any application submitted by a public utility for a certificate of public convenience and necessity for the construction of an electrical transmission line of 500 kilovolts filed between January 1, 2025, and July 1, 2033, to approve up to four applications for qualifying projects to be constructed in whole or in part underground as part of the pilot program for underground transmission lines and to provide an expedited review of any such application. The bill removes certain provisions related to the existing pilot program.Under the bill, a project shall be qualified if (i) the Commission finds that an engineering analysis demonstrates that it is technically feasible to place the proposed line in whole or in part underground, (ii) the application contains certain information regarding projections of project costs, (iii) the application contains evidence that the governing body of each locality in which at least a portion of the proposed line will be placed underground supports the project's inclusion in the program and agrees to meet its related funding obligations, and (iv) the Commission finds the overall cost of the project reasonable and consistent with the public interest. The bill permits the Commission to deny an application for a project that otherwise meets the criteria to qualify, provided that the Commission publicly shares its rationale for doing so.The bill requires at least 50 percent of the marginal costs, as defined in the bill, of the portion of a qualifying project chosen to be placed underground within a locality pursuant to its provisions to be paid by such locality. The bill permits such a locality to meet such requirement through imposing a levy that meets certain requirements on electric utility customers within the locality, issuing a general obligation bond subject to a referendum, allocating its own funds, or any combination of such methods. The bill extends the Commission's final report deadline for the pilot program from December 1, 2024, to December 1, 2034. This bill is identical to HB 1487.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Stronger protections when utility taxes change: benefit, low. Localities converting qualifying electricity or gas taxes must avoid shifting the tax burden among customer groups. They must also keep annual tax revenue at its level when the conversion occurs. Electricity taxes change from a bill-dollar basis to kilowatt-hours used; gas taxes change to CCF, or h…
- Virginia expands underground power line testing: benefit, low. Virginia expands its underground transmission pilot from two projects to four and requires faster state review. General eligibility covers new lines of at least 500 kilovolts, partly underground and within one-quarter mile of residential zoning. Applications can be filed from January 1, 2025, throu…
- Customers can pay underground line charges: cost, low. A participating locality can adopt an extra electric bill levy to pay its underground project share. The residential levy is capped at $0.99 monthly per project, or $11.88 over a full year at the maximum. It is separate from the usual utility tax limit, and proceeds must go toward the locality’s pr…
- Localities share underground power line costs: mixed, low. Participating localities must pay at least 50% of the added underground construction cost within their borders. State regulators can assign them more when charging outside retail customers would harm the public interest. Localities sharing a project must coordinate how they divide costs. They can u…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Kannan Srinivasan (Democratic), Senate

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-03-14 | House | Conference report agreed to by House | pass | 62 | 34 |   |
| 2026-03-14 | Senate | Conference report agreed to by Senate | pass | 28 | 11 |   |
| 2026-03-12 | Senate | Senate acceded to request Block Vote | pass | 40 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-10 | Senate | House substitute rejected by Senate | fail | 0 | 40 |   |
| 2026-03-06 | House | Passed House with substitute | pass | 62 | 36 |   |
| 2026-03-03 | House | Reported from Labor and Commerce with substitute | pass | 15 | 7 |   |
| 2026-02-13 | Senate | Read third time and passed Senate | pass | 26 | 12 |   |
| 2026-02-12 | Senate | Committee substitute agreed to (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-11 | Senate | Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-11 | Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 1st reading) | pass | 40 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-09 | Senate | Reported from Commerce and Labor with substitute | pass | 11 | 4 |   |

## Actions (45)

- 2026-04-13: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0864) (Governor)
- 2026-04-13: Approved by Governor-Chapter 864 (effective 7/1/2026) (Governor)
- 2026-04-06: Fiscal Impact Statement from State Corporation Commission (SB827) (Senate)
- 2026-03-31: Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026 (Governor)
- 2026-03-31: Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 31, 2026 (Senate)
- 2026-03-31: Signed by Speaker (House)
- 2026-03-30: Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB827ER) (Senate)
- 2026-03-30: Enrolled (Senate)
- 2026-03-30: Signed by President (Senate)
- 2026-03-24: Fiscal Impact Statement from State Corporation Commission (SB827) (Senate)
- 2026-03-14: Conference report agreed to by Senate (28-Y 11-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-03-14: Conference report agreed to by House (62-Y 34-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-03-13: Conference Report released
- 2026-03-12: House Conferees: Singh, Sullivan, O'Quinn (House)
- 2026-03-12: Conferees appointed by House (House)
- 2026-03-12: Senate acceded to request Block Vote (40-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-03-12: Conferees appointed by Senate (Senate)
- 2026-03-12: Senate Conferees: Srinivasan, Surovell, Stanley (Senate)
- 2026-03-11: House requested conference committee (House)
- 2026-03-11: House insisted on substitute (House)
- 2026-03-10: House substitute rejected by Senate (0-Y 40-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-03-06: Passed House with substitute (62-Y 36-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-03-06: Engrossed by House - committee substitute (House)
- 2026-03-06: committee substitute agreed to (House)
- 2026-03-06: Read third time (House)
- 2026-03-05: Read second time (House)
- 2026-03-03: Committee substitute printed 26109087D-H1 (House)
- 2026-03-03: Reported from Labor and Commerce with substitute (15-Y 7-N) (House)
- 2026-02-26: Fiscal Impact Statement from State Corporation Commission (SB827) (Senate)
- 2026-02-24: Referred to Committee on Labor and Commerce (House)
- 2026-02-24: Read first time (House)
- 2026-02-24: Placed on Calendar (House)
- 2026-02-13: Read third time and passed Senate (26-Y 12-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-02-12: Committee substitute agreed to (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-02-12: Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-02-12: Read second time (Senate)
- 2026-02-11: Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-02-11: Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 1st reading) (40-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-02-11: Rules suspended (Senate)
- 2026-02-10: Committee substitute printed 26107558D-S1 (Senate)
- 2026-02-09: Senate committee offered (Senate)
- 2026-02-09: Reported from Commerce and Labor with substitute (11-Y 4-N) (Senate)
- 2026-02-05: Fiscal Impact Statement from State Corporation Commission (SB827) (Senate)
- 2026-01-23: Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor (Senate)
- 2026-01-23: Presented and ordered printed 26106042D (Senate)

## Bill text

- Chaptered, 2026-04-13: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1223020.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1223019.PDF)
- Enrolled, 2026-03-30: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1214587.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1214586.PDF)
- Conference Report, 2026-03-13: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1211207.HTML)
- Substitute, 2026-03-13: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1211204.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1211203.PDF)
- Substitute, 2026-03-03: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1191712.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1191711.PDF)
- Substitute, 2026-02-10: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1136078.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1136077.PDF)
- Substitute, 2026-02-09: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1135562.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1135561.PDF)
- Introduced, 2026-01-23: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1096287.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1096286.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/1223020.HTML)
- [Chaptered (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1223019.PDF)
- [Enrolled (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1214587.HTML)
- [Enrolled (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1214586.PDF)
- [Conference Report (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1211207.HTML)
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1211204.HTML)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1211203.PDF)
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1191712.HTML)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1191711.PDF)
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1136078.HTML)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1136077.PDF)
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1135562.HTML)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1135561.PDF)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1096287.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1096286.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-SB827-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).