Bills & Legislation

Public schools; certain calculations in Standards of Quality, support services.

Public schools; Standards of Quality; certain calculations; support services. Requires the Department of Education, (i) in calculating the deduction of federal funds in the Standards of Quality funding formula, to examine actual school division spending on support costs as a percentage of actual school division spending on all public education costs, with certain exceptions such as food service, and (ii) in calculating the costs in the Standards of Quality funding formula beginning with fiscal year 2029, to include all employee benefit costs incurred by a majority of school divisions, including costs related to retirement, health care, life insurance, and payout of earned but unused leave. The bill also requires support services positions to be funded based on a calculation of prevailing costs and prohibits such positions from being subject to any method of funding calculation that caps the number of funded support services positions based on a ratio of such positions to students enrolled in the school division, with the exception of certain support services positions enumerated in the bill. This bill was incorporated into HB 1954.

Shelly A. SimondsDemocrat

Electric utilities; customer energy choice, customer return to service, subscription cap and queue.

Electric utilities; customer energy choice; customer return to service; subscription cap and queue. Removes certain restrictions on the ability of individual retail customers of electric energy within the Commonwealth, regardless of customer class, to purchase electric energy matched 100 percent by renewable energy certificates from any supplier of electric energy licensed to sell retail electric energy within the Commonwealth. The bill requires a licensed supplier to match a percentage of each retail electric customer's annual load with renewable energy certificates from within the PJM transmission region. The bill decreases from five years to six months the required written notice period for certain electric energy customers to return to service by an incumbent electric utility after purchasing electric energy from other suppliers. The bill also directs the Commission, by October 1, 2026, to establish a subscription cap allowance for certain utility customers seeking to participate in purchasing electric energy from a licensed supplier. The Commission is required to review the subscription cap allowance every two years starting on January 1, 2028, and electric utilities are required to file their subscription queues with the Commission by January 15, 2027, and annually thereafter. The bill contains an exception to the subscription cap allowance for customers seeking to expand usage at an existing or new facility. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2026, unless the rules and regulations of the Commission promulgated pursuant to the bill specify a commencement date.

Kannan SrinivasanDemocrat

Richmond, City of; amending charter, qualifications for Director of Public Utilities.

Charter; City of Richmond. Amends the charter for the City of Richmond by setting out the minimum qualifications for the director of public utilities.

Glen H. Sturtevant, Jr.Republican

Electric utilities; renewable energy standard eligible sources.

Electric utilities; renewable energy standard eligible sources; zero-carbon electricity generating nuclear facilities. Provides that, for the purposes of the renewable energy portfolio standard, eligible sources include zero-carbon electricity generating nuclear facilities located in the Commonwealth.

T. Travis HackworthRepublican

Earned sentence credits; inchoate offenses, concurrent and consecutive sentences.

Enhanced Earned sentence credits; inchoate offenses; concurrent and consecutive sentences. Provides that a person who is convicted of an inchoate offense will earn sentence credits at the same rate as someone who is convicted of the completed offense for certain enumerated offenses. The bill also specifies that the provision in current law providing that a person who has been convicted of certain enumerated offenses may earn a maximum of 4.5 sentence credits for each 30 days served on any sentence for such offenses also applies to any other sentence that is to be served concurrent with or consecutive to any such sentence. The bill specifies that such provisions shall apply to the sentence of any person convicted of a felony offense committed on or after July 1, 2025, and who is sentenced to serve a term of incarceration in a state or local correctional facility.

Mark J. PeakeRepublican

Motor vehicle collisions; collection of certain mobile telephone data, collision reports.

Motor vehicle collisions; collection of certain mobile telephone data; collision reports. Requires that a law-enforcement officer include on any collision report the mobile telephone number, mobile telephone provider, and International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) number for any driver involved in a motor vehicle collision. The bill allows an attorney who has certified that he represents a person injured in a motor vehicle collision to request in writing that the mobile telephone provider of the alleged tortfeasor preserve for a period of four years from the date of such collision certain information related to the mobile telephone of such alleged tortfeasor. The bill also allows such attorney to request in writing that the alleged tortfeasor preserve certain mobile telephone information for a period of three years from the date of such collision for the purpose of anticipated litigation. The bill also creates a rebuttable presumption of spoliation of evidence where an alleged tortfeasor fails to preserve mobile telephone records or provide the required information for a collision report. Finally, the bill requires, upon request from such attorney, the alleged tortfeasor's auto insurance company utilizing a telematics application to advise such attorney of the existence of such telematics application data and to preserve and provide such data upon such attorney's request.

Scott A. SurovellDemocrat

Underground transmission lines; qualifying projects.

Pilot program for underground transmission lines; qualifying projects. Requires the State Corporation Commission to approve applications for a newly proposed 500-kilovolt transmission line filed between January 1, 2025, and December 31, 2026, as a qualifying project to be constructed in whole or in part underground, as a part of a pilot program. The bill requires such a qualifying project to traverse along highways in developed areas and where the route of the proposed transmission lines and towers traverse areas are protected by a scenic easement, a view shed easement, areas of registered historic designation, or areas with conservation easements, where such easements run to the benefit of the public and are held by the governing body of the federal, state, or local jurisdiction in which the transmission line is to be placed and where the project is required to meet reliability requirements and at least a portion of the project is needed to support and promote economic development of the Commonwealth and its localities. The bill also requires that the governing body of each locality in which a portion of the proposed line will be placed has entered into an agreement with the public utility to pay its proportional share of 20 percent of any portion of the cost of the project not recoverable under applicable rates, terms, and conditions approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Under the bill, the remainder of the cost will be assigned to the utility's data center customers.

Kannan SrinivasanDemocrat

State Corporation Commission; time frame for completion of certain transmission lines proceedings.

State Corporation Commission; time frame for completion of certain transmission lines proceedings. Requires the State Corporation Commission to complete proceedings regarding the approval of certain transmission lines of 138 kilovolts or more within nine months.

T. Travis HackworthRepublican

Fentanyl, heroin, etc.; manufacturing, selling, giving, distributing, etc., penalties.

Manufacturing, selling, giving, distributing, etc., of fentanyl, heroin, or related controlled substances; penalties. Provides that a person is guilty of felony homicide, which constitutes second degree murder and is punishable by confinement of not less than five nor more than 40 years, if the underlying felonious act that resulted in the killing of another involved the manufacture, sale, gift, or distribution of a Schedule I or II controlled substance to another and (i) such other person's death results from his use of the controlled substance and (ii) the controlled substance is the proximate cause of his death. The bill provides that venue for a prosecution of this crime shall lie in the locality where the underlying felony occurred, where the use of the controlled substance occurred, or where death occurred. The bill also provides that if a person gave or distributed a Schedule I or II controlled substance only as an accommodation to another individual who is not an inmate in a community correctional facility, local correctional facility, or state correctional facility, or in the custody of an employee thereof, and not with intent to profit thereby from any consideration received or expected nor to induce the recipient of the controlled substance to use or become addicted to or dependent upon such controlled substance, he is guilty of a Class 5 felony. The bill also requires the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner to investigate the cause and manner of a death in any case where the attorney for the Commonwealth or the investigating law-enforcement agency has probable cause to believe that the death resulted from such felony homicide. The bill also adds mandatory minimum fines for manufacturing, selling, giving, distributing, or possessing with the intent to manufacture, sell, give, or distribute a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of heroin, fentanyl, or carfentanil based on the weight of such mixtures or substances.

Bill DeStephRepublican

Human smuggling; penalties.

Human smuggling; penalties. Makes it a Class 6 felony for any person who, with the intent to obtain a pecuniary benefit, knowingly and with the intent to evade the immigration laws of the United States uses a motor vehicle, aircraft, watercraft, or other means of conveyance to transport another person in or through the Commonwealth and knows or should have known that such person being transported is likely to be exploited for the financial gain of another. The bill provides that any person who commits human smuggling (i) in a manner that creates a substantial likelihood that the individual being smuggled will suffer serious bodily injury or death, (ii) by smuggling a child younger than 18 years of age at the time of the offense, or (iii) while knowingly possessing a firearm during the commission of the offense is guilty of a Class 3 felony. The bill also provides that any person who commits human smuggling and as a direct result of the commission of the offense the individual being smuggled (a) became a victim of human trafficking, commercial sex trafficking, sexual assault, or aggravated sexual assault or (b) suffered serious bodily injury or death is guilty of a Class 2 felony.

Luther Cifers, IIIRepublican

Siting of data centers; property classified for industrial use.

Siting of data centers; property classified for industrial use. Requires that any local government land use application for the siting of a data center shall only be approved if such application is for a data center located on property classified by local ordinance for industrial use. The bill applies only to such applications submitted on or after July 1, 2025.

Danica A. RoemDemocrat

Elections; prohibited area within 100 feet.

Elections; general provisions; prohibited area; 100 feet. Increases from 40 feet to 100 feet the areas around polling places, certain electoral board meetings, and recount locations within which certain activities or conduct are prohibited.

Angelia Williams GravesDemocrat

Income tax, state; removes certain sunsets for standard deduction, etc.

Income tax; certain sunset repeals. Removes the sunset for the standard deduction in the amount of $8,500 for individuals and $17,000 for married individuals that is currently set to expire beginning in taxable year 2026, and revert back to $3,000 for individuals and $6,000 for married individuals. The bill also removes the taxable year 2026 sunset for the partially refundable earned income tax credit that an individual or married individuals may claim in an amount equal to 15 percent of the federal earned income tax credit claimed for federal earned income tax purposes and removes the taxable year 2026 sunset for the elective income tax on pass-through entities. This bill was incorporated into SB 782.

Ryan T. McDougleRepublican

Va. Retirement System; enhanced retirement benefits for 911 dispatchers, delayed effective date.

Virginia Retirement System; enhanced retirement benefits for 911 dispatchers. Allows local governments to provide enhanced retirement benefits for hazardous duty service to full-time salaried 911 dispatchers. The bill provides that such enhanced retirement benefits apply only to service earned as a full-time salaried 911 dispatcher on or after July 1, 2026, but allows an employer, as that term is defined in relevant law, to provide such enhanced retirement benefits for service earned as a full-time salaried 911 dispatcher before July 1, 2026, in addition to service earned on or after that date. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2026.

Emily M. JordanRepublican

Pari-mutuel wagering; historical horse racing; percentage retained for distribution.

Pari-mutuel wagering; historical horse racing; percentage retained for distribution. Provides that with respect to all authorized historical horse racing terminals, of the amount that a horse racing licensee retains from wagering on historical horse racing pools and in addition to the current distribution required under law, 0.025 percent shall be provided to the Shenandoah County Fair Association.

Timmy FrenchRepublican

Horse racing and pari-mutuel wagering; amends definition of breakage.

Horse racing and pari-mutuel wagering; breakage. Amends the definition of "breakage" for the purposes of horse racing other than historical horse racing to mean the odd cents by which the amount payable on each dollar wagered exceeds one cent ($0.01). The bill also provides that 100 percent of the legitimate breakage from each pari-mutuel pool for historical horse racing shall be distributed to the Problem Gambling Treatment and Support Fund.

Bryce E. ReevesRepublican

Housing and Community Development, Board of; increases membership.

Board of Housing and Community Development; members. Expands from 14 to 15 the number of members serving on the Board of Housing and Community Development by adding another Director of Regulatory Compliance of the Virginia Building and Code Officials Association. The two Directors of Regulatory Compliance of the Association shall serve as ex officio voting members and shall be members of the Board's Codes and Standards Committee. The bill also removes the prohibition on such Directors from serving as either the chairman of such committee or of the Board.

Adele Y. McClureDemocrat

Virginia taxable income; standard deduction; sunset.

Virginia taxable income; standard deduction; sunset. Removes the sunset on elevated standard deduction amounts for single individuals and married persons that is scheduled to expire for taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2026. This bill was incorporated into SB 782.

Richard H. StuartRepublican

Registration decals; discontinued.

Registration decals; discontinued. Discontinues the requirement for and issuance of decals displaying the expiration month and year of motor vehicle registration to be displayed on license plates. The bill also removes the requirement for the Department of Motor Vehicles to issue appropriately designated license plates for motor vehicles held for rental. The bill does not eliminate existing requirements that vehicles are to be registered.

J.D. "Danny" DiggsRepublican

Higher educational institutions, public; grants with foreign countries of concern prohibited, etc.

Public institutions of higher education; certain grants from and partnerships and agreements with foreign countries of concern prohibited; report; civil penalty. Prohibits, except with the approval of the governing board of the institution of higher education or the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia under certain circumstances, any public institution of higher education from accepting any grant from or participating in any partnership or agreement with any foreign country of concern, as that term is defined in the bill. The bill requires the Council to establish and enforce mechanisms for compliance and penalties for noncompliance with such prohibition, which shall include civil penalties not to exceed $25,000 per offense and may include periodic institutional reporting until any such noncompliance is remedied by the institution. The bill requires each public institution of higher education, by December 1 of each year, to report to the General Assembly, the Governor, and the Council any grant that it accepted from or agreement or partnership in which it participated with a foreign country of concern during the previous fiscal year and the date on which such grant, agreement, or partnership is expected to terminate.

Tara A. DurantRepublican

School boards; private higher educational institutions, industry and trade dual-enrollment.

School boards; private institutions of higher education; industry and trade dual-enrollment, education, and training opportunities; partnerships permitted. Permits any school board, upon approval of a plan submitted to the Board of Education (the Board) in accordance with the provisions of the bill, to enter into a partnership with a private institution of higher education, as that term is defined by the bill, for the purpose of expanding industry and trade training and education opportunities for high school students by (i) establishing or expanding dual enrollment programs through which high school students may earn credit toward completion of undergraduate course credit or a degree relating to industry or trade, an industry-recognized credential, a career certificate, or a state licensure examination; (ii) expanding available course offerings relating to industry or trade; (iii) providing internship, externship, or job-shadowing opportunities for high school students in industry and trade; and (iv) establishing any other plan for such a partnership as may be approved by the Board. The bill directs the Board to develop and make available to each school board guidelines and policies for the (a) submission and approval of such plans to enter into partnerships with a private institution of higher education pursuant to the bill and (b) implementation and administration of any such partnerships.

William M. Stanley, Jr.Republican

Medical malpractice; limitations on recovery, certain actions.

Medical malpractice; limitation on recovery; certain actions. Eliminates the cap on the recovery in actions against health care providers for medical malpractice where the act or acts of malpractice occurred on or after July 1, 2025, and occurred against a patient age 10 or younger.

William M. Stanley, Jr.Republican

International licensure and certification; regulations.

Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation; international licensure and certification; regulations. Directs the regulatory boards within the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation to promulgate regulations allowing the issuance of a license or certification to any applicant who holds a comparable international license or certification issued by another country. This bill was incorporated into HB 1940.

Michelle Lopes MaldonadoDemocrat

Extreme Weather Relief Act; established.

Extreme Weather Relief Act established. Establishes the Extreme Weather Relief Program, administered by the Department of Conservation and Recreation, for the purpose of holding parties responsible for covered greenhouse gas emissions between the covered period of January 1, 1995, and December 31, 2024, for the parties' share of the Commonwealth's costs due to climate change. The bill defines responsible parties as fossil fuel extractors or crude oil refiners causing emissions of one billion metric tons or more of covered greenhouse gases during the covered period. Under the bill, responsible parties are strictly liable for cost recovery payments to the Commonwealth. The bill requires the State Treasurer to conduct an assessment of the costs to the Commonwealth and its residents of the emissions of covered greenhouse gases during the covered period. The bill establishes the Extreme Weather Relief Fund into which the cost recovery payments from responsible entities are deposited and used to pay for extreme weather relief projects, as defined in the bill.

Jennifer B. BoyskoDemocrat

Elections; prohibited area, within 40 feet of the curbside voting area.

Elections; general provisions; prohibited area; within 40 feet of the curbside voting area. Adds the 40 feet beyond any area designated for voting outside the polling place to the prohibited area where campaigning and certain other activities are unlawful during elections.

Angelia Williams GravesDemocrat

Behavioral health services; correctional facilities, exchange of medical/mental health information.

Behavioral health services; exchange of medical and mental health information and records; correctional facilities.

Wren M. WilliamsRepublican

Children's Services Act; changes to state pool of funds.

Children's Services Act; state pool of funds. Makes a number of changes to the Children's Services Act state pool of funds for the provision of public or private nonresidential or residential services for troubled youth and families, including (i) removing the requirement that the Office of Children's Services consult with private special education services providers in developing the standard reporting template for tuition rates; (ii) removing from the purpose of the state pool of funds the consolidation of categorical agency funding and the institution of community responsibility for the provision of services; (iii) removing language specifying that references to funding sources and current placement authority for the target population served by the state pool of funds are for the purpose of accounting for the funds and should not be intended to categorize children and youth into funding streams in order to access services; (iv) modifying the target population served by the state pool of funds by (a) removing references to the Department of Education's private tuition assistance and the Interagency Assistance Fund for Noneducational Placement for Handicapped Children and (b) adding children and youth who are determined to be a child in need of services, as such term is defined in relevant law; (v) removing the requirement that the financial and legal responsibility for certain special education services remains with the placing jurisdiction, unless the placing jurisdiction has transitioned all appropriate services; (vi) requiring that the uniform assessment instrument used to determine eligibility for funding through the state pool of funds be approved by the State Executive Council for Children's Services; and (vii) modifying the eligibility criteria for funding through the state pool of funds by adding language that (a) specifies that the child or youth's emotional or behavioral problems have resulted in the child or youth, or place the child or youth at imminent risk of, entering purchased residential care and (b) includes the determination by a court that the child or youth is a child in need of services, as such term is defined in relevant law. The bill also includes technical changes. This bill is a recommendation of the Virginia Commission on Youth.

Carrie E. CoynerRepublican

Campaign advertisements; independent expenditures, electioneering communications.

Campaign advertisements; independent expenditures; electioneering communications; disclaimer requirements. Broadens the scope of disclaimer requirements for campaign advertisements to include electioneering communications, as defined in the bill, and messages advocating for the passage or defeat of a referendum. The bill also requires an advertisement that is an independent expenditure to contain a disclaimer providing the names of the advertisement sponsor's three largest contributors. The bill also requires independent expenditure reports to be filed electronically. Current law allows such reports to be filed either electronically or in writing. The bill increases the reporting and disclosure thresholds for independent expenditures from $1,000 or more for a statewide election or $200 or more for any other election to $5,000 or more for a statewide election or $1,000 or more for any other election and exempts the sponsor of an independent expenditure from disclosing its top three contributors if its independent expenditures aggregate to less than $20,000 in an election cycle. Finally, the bill includes in the definition of "political action committee" any organization holding tax-exempt status that expressly advocates for or against candidates, solicits donations for such purpose, and makes contributions or independent expenditures in excess of $20,000 for such purpose.

William M. Stanley, Jr.Republican

Behavioral health services; correctional facilities, exchange of medical/mental health information.

Behavioral health services; exchange of medical and mental health information and records; correctional facilities. Permits the Department of Medical Assistance Services, the Department of Social Services, and any local department of social services to access medical and mental health information and records for persons committed to any correctional facility for the purposes of providing pre-release services, reentry planning, and post-incarceration placement and services. The bill also authorizes the Department of Medical Assistance Services to access a juvenile's social, medical, psychiatric, and psychological reports and records during pre-release and up to 30 days following such juvenile's release from commitment for the purposes of providing pre-release services, reentry planning, and post-incarceration placement and services.

Carrie E. CoynerRepublican

Behavioral health services; correctional facilities, exchange of medical/mental health information.

Behavioral health services; exchange of medical and mental health information and records; correctional facilities.

Debra D. GardnerDemocrat

Horse racing and pari-mutuel wagering; percentage retained by racetrack and locality.

Horse racing and pari-mutuel wagering; satellite facilities; percentage retained by racetrack and locality. Reapportions the distribution of the retainage for pari-mutuel pools by increasing the percentage paid to the localities in which the satellite facilities are located and decreasing the percentage paid to the locality in which the racetrack is located.

Jeremy S. McPikeDemocrat

Income tax, state; establishes car tax credit.

Income tax; car tax credit. Establishes a refundable income tax credit for taxable years 2025 through 2027 for a taxpayer whose federal adjusted gross income does not exceed $50,000 if filing as an individual or $100,000 if married and filing jointly in an amount equal to the lesser of (i) the amount actually paid for tangible personal property tax to Virginia localities on qualifying vehicles, defined in the bill, or (ii) $150 for an individual or $300 for married individuals filing jointly. The bill provides that such credit shall not be allowed for such taxes paid to any locality that has, during the tax year for which such credit is claimed, imposed a tangible personal property tax rate upon qualifying vehicles at a rate that exceeds the rate imposed upon such vehicles by such locality during the 2024 tax year. Finally, the bill provides that if any provision of the bill is held to be invalid or unconstitutional by the decision of a court of competent jurisdiction, such provision shall not be deemed severable.

Tara A. DurantRepublican

Workforce Development and Advancement, Department of; powers and duties.

Department of Workforce Development and Advancement; powers and duties. Requires the Department of Workforce Development and Advancement to ensure that all workforce development programs and workforce education and training programs (i) address an industry need identified on a high-demand occupation or field list created by the Department and the Virginia Board of Workforce Development and Advancement and (ii) include a job placement component in their implementation and operating plans. Publicly funded workforce development and workforce education and training programs may apply for an exemption from such requirements, and the Commissioner shall approve or disapprove such application within 45 days of receipt.

T. Travis HackworthRepublican

Child tax credit; Virginia adjusted gross income.

Child tax credit; Virginia adjusted gross income. Creates a one-time individual income tax credit in taxable years 2025 through 2029 for taxpayers whose households include dependents younger than 13 years of age and whose family Virginia adjusted gross income, defined in the bill, does not exceed $100,000. Such credit shall be in an amount equal to $300 for each such dependent and only one credit may be claimed for each such dependent. The bill provides that if the taxpayer is a resident of the Commonwealth for the full taxable year, the credit is refundable. Otherwise, the credit is nonrefundable.

Lashrecse D. AirdDemocrat

Taxation; rate of interest.

Taxation; rate of interest. Provides that (i) the rate of interest on omitted taxes and assessments is equal to the Underpayment Rate established by the Internal Revenue Code and (ii) the rate of interest on refunds is equal to the Overpayment Rate for noncorporate taxpayers established by the Internal Revenue Code beginning in the third quarter of calendar year 2025 and thereafter. Current law provides that (a) the rate of interest on omitted taxes and assessments is equal to the Underpayment Rate plus two percent and (b) the rate of interest on refunds is equal to the Overpayment Rate for noncorporate taxpayers plus two percent.

T. Travis HackworthRepublican

Va. Retirement System; enhanced retirement benefits for 911 dispatchers, delayed effective date.

Virginia Retirement System; enhanced retirement benefits for 911 dispatchers. Allows local governments to provide enhanced retirement benefits for hazardous duty service to full-time salaried 911 dispatchers. The bill provides that such enhanced retirement benefits apply only to service earned as a full-time salaried 911 dispatcher on or after July 1, 2026, but allows an employer, as that term is defined in relevant law, to provide such enhanced retirement benefits for service earned as a full-time salaried 911 dispatcher before July 1, 2026, in addition to service earned on or after that date. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2026.

Mark D. ObenshainRepublican

War veterans; protection for memorials.

Protection of memorials for war veterans. Provides that it is unlawful for localities or individuals to disturb or interfere with certain monuments, markers, and memorials for war veterans or to prevent citizens from taking proper measures and exercising proper means for the protection, preservation, and care of the monuments, markers, or memorials. The bill describes \"disturb or interfere with\" to include removing, damaging, or defacing monuments, markers, or memorials or, in the case of the Civil War, placing Union markings or monuments on previously designated Confederate memorials or placing Confederate markings or monuments on previously designated Union memorials. The bill also deletes current provisions that allow localities to remove, relocate, contextualize, or cover such monuments or memorials. The bill changes an existing advisory referendum provision by limiting its applicability to those monuments, markers, and memorials that were erected at least 40 years ago and by requiring a two-thirds majority vote, both by voters and by the governing body, before any monument can be removed, relocated, or covered. The bill also establishes a process whereby any person with an interest can initiate an action against a person or locality that damages or defaces a publicly owned monument if a locality or its officers have failed to take such action within 60 days of the damage or defacement.

Glen H. Sturtevant, Jr.Republican

Public school funding; composite index of local ability-to-pay.

Public school funding; composite index of local ability-to-pay; use value of real estate devoted to certain uses. Requires, for the purpose of determining the state and local shares of basic aid funding, that the composite index of local ability-to-pay utilize the use value of all applicable real estate (i) devoted to agricultural use, horticultural use, forest use, and open-space use in each locality that has adopted an ordinance by which it provides for the use valuation and taxation of such real estate and (ii) used in agricultural and forestal production within an agricultural district, forestal district, agricultural and forestal district, or agricultural and forestal district of local significance in each locality that provides for the use valuation and taxation of such real estate, regardless of whether it has adopted a local land-use plan or local ordinance for such valuation and taxation.

Timmy FrenchRepublican

Mobile machinery and equipment; tax credit for purchase.

Tax credit for purchase of mobile machinery and equipment used by road contractors for processing recyclable asphalt materials on pavements and roadways. Creates a nonrefundable tax credit for taxable years 2025 through 2029 in an amount equal to 20 percent of the purchase price paid, as defined in the bill, during the taxable year for machinery and equipment used to reclaim, recycle, or reprocess existing asphalt materials from pavements and roadways. The bill requires a taxpayer to submit invoices with an income tax return verifying the amount of purchase price paid for such machinery and equipment. The bill provides a $3 million aggregate annual cap on the number of credits to be distributed, as administered by the Department of Taxation. Any credit not used for the taxable year in which the purchasing price for recycling machinery was paid may be carried over for the next 10 years until the total credit amount is used.

David W. MarsdenDemocrat

State pharmacy benefits manager; DMAS to select & contract with a third-party administrator to serve

Department of Medical Assistance Services; state pharmacy benefits manager. Requires the Department of Medical Assistance Services by December 31, 2025, to select and contract with a third-party administrator to serve as the state pharmacy benefits manager to administer all pharmacy benefits for Medicaid recipients, including recipients enrolled in a managed care organization. The bill enumerates requirements for the Department's contract with the state pharmacy benefits manager and prevents the state pharmacy benefits manager from having a business conflict of interest with any Medicaid provider or vendor. This bill was incorporated into HB 2610.

Terry G. KilgoreRepublican

Veterans; provision of copies of vital records.

Department of Veterans Services; provision of copies of veteran vital records. Requires the Board of Health to provide a copy of a veteran's vital records to the Department of Veterans Services upon the Department's request when a veteran or his surviving spouse requires a certified copy of a vital record to obtain service-connected benefits. This bill was incorporated into HB 2748.

Chris ObenshainRepublican

Income tax, state; creates family caregiver tax credit.

Income tax; family caregiver tax credit. Creates a nonrefundable family caregiver tax credit for taxable years 2025 through 2029 for expenses incurred by an individual in caring for an eligible family member, defined in the bill, who requires assistance with one or more activities of daily living, also defined in the bill. The credit equals 50 percent of eligible expenditures incurred by the caregiver up to $1,000. To qualify for the credit, the family caregiver must (i) not receive any compensation or reimbursement for the eligible expenditures and (ii) have federal adjusted gross income that is no greater than $100,000 or, if such family caregiver is married and filing jointly, shall have federal adjusted gross income of no greater than $200,000. The bill requires the Tax Commissioner to establish guidelines for claiming the credit and provides that any unused credit may be carried forward by the taxpayer for five taxable years following the taxable year for which the credit was issued.

Luther Cifers, IIIRepublican

Commonwealth Aviation Fund; changes allocation amounts.

Commonwealth Aviation Fund; allocations. Changes (i) the allocation amounts from the Commonwealth Aviation Fund, (ii) the entity to which certain funds from such Fund are allocated from air carrier airports to commercial service airport sponsors, and (iii) the classification of airports from air carrier airport and reliever airport to commercial service airport and regional business airport, respectively.

Bill DeStephRepublican

Voter registration; systematic citizenship verification program.

Voter registration; systematic citizenship verification program. Provides that the Department of Elections is required to implement policies and procedures necessary to ensure that processes are in place to validate voter registrations and prevent noncitizens from registering to vote. Such processes must include (i) cooperation with state agencies to ensure that noncitizen registrations are not included in the registrations forwarded to the Department; (ii) effective utilization of all data available for identifying noncitizens, including data provided by state and federal agencies; (iii) a monthly systematic review of the voter registration system to identify noncitizens; and (iv) display of messages communicating the citizenship requirements for registration and penalties for violation. The bill also requires jury commissioners to collect information obtained from those persons not qualified to serve on a jury as a result of a condition that would also make them unqualified to register to vote. The sheriff, clerk of court, or other official responsible for maintaining such information provided by the commissioners is required to regularly transmit such information to the general registrar for the locality or localities served by such official. The bill requires general registrars to utilize such information to identify voters who are no longer qualified to vote and to initiate list maintenance procedures.

Glen H. Sturtevant, Jr.Republican

Income tax, corporate; sourcing of sales other than sales of tangible personal property.

Corporate income tax; sourcing of sales other than sales of tangible personal property. Implements market-based corporate income tax sourcing for attributing sales, other than sales of tangible personal property, to Virginia beginning in taxable year 2026.

Mark D. ObenshainRepublican

Stormwater management regulations; localities outside Chesapeake Bay watershed.

Stormwater management regulations; localities outside Chesapeake Bay watershed. Requires the State Water Control Board and the Department of Environmental Quality to apply in a locality that is located outside of the Chesapeake Bay watershed the regulations establishing minimum design criteria for measures that were in effect prior to July 1, 2014, to control (i) nonpoint source pollution and (ii) localized flooding and stream channel erosion.

Todd E. PillionRepublican

Asphalt recycling equipment; tax credit for purchase of reprocessing existing asphalt materials.

Tax credit; purchase of asphalt recycling equipment for reprocessing existing asphalt materials from pavements and roadways; report. Creates a nonrefundable tax credit for taxable years 2025 and 2026 in an amount equal to 20 percent of the purchase price, as defined in the bill, paid during the taxable year for asphalt recycling equipment. The bill defines asphalt recycling equipment as machinery and equipment that is used to reclaim, recycle, or reprocess existing asphalt materials from pavements and roadways in the Commonwealth and that has been certified by the Department of Environmental Quality as being integral to the recycling process. The bill provides a $3 million aggregate annual cap on the number of credits to be distributed, as administered by the Department of Taxation, and an annual cap of 40 percent of the taxpayer's liability for taxes for any taxable year. Any credit not used for the taxable year in which the purchase price for recycling machinery was paid may be carried over for the next 10 years until the total credit amount is used.Finally, the bill requires the Department of Taxation, in consultation with the Department of Environmental Quality and the Department of Transportation, to submit a report to the Chairmen of the House Committee on Finance and Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations no later than December 1, 2025, on the number of claims for such credit and any impact to environmental quality and pavement performance resulting from the use of asphalt recycling equipment.

David W. MarsdenDemocrat

Protective orders; military protective orders.

Protective orders; military protective orders. Permits a court to find good cause to issue a preliminary protective order when a petitioner has a Military Protective Order. The bill directs a law-enforcement officer to notify the agency that entered the Military Protective Order into the National Crime Information Center Systems that the law-enforcement officer has probable cause to believe the person violated the Military Protective Order if such person violated provisions of a state-issued protective order.

J.D. "Danny" DiggsRepublican