Bills & Legislation

Commending Kerrie Wilson.

Commending Kerrie Wilson.

Karen Keys-GamarraDemocrat

Celebrating the life of the Reverend Dr. Norman Adkins Tate, Jr.

Celebrating the life of the Reverend Dr. Norman Adkins Tate, Jr.

Karen Keys-GamarraDemocrat

Commending Leila Gordon.

Commending Leila Gordon.

Karen Keys-GamarraDemocrat

Celebrating the life of Evelyn Willinette Morris-Harris.

Celebrating the life of Evelyn Willinette Morris-Harris.

Delores L. McQuinnDemocrat

Commending Carlos Seward.

Commending Carlos Seward.

Karen Keys-GamarraDemocrat

Commending Beverly Cosham.

Commending Beverly Cosham.

Karen Keys-GamarraDemocrat

Celebrating the life of Everette Alexander Hicks, Sr.

Celebrating the life of Everette Alexander Hicks, Sr.

Marcia S. "Cia" PriceDemocrat

Celebrating the life of August Bryant Bullock.

Celebrating the life of August Bryant Bullock.

Marcia S. "Cia" PriceDemocrat

Commending Wendy Henley.

Commending Wendy Henley.

Kathy K.L. TranDemocrat

Judges; nominations for election to circuit court.

Nominating persons to be elected to circuit court judgeships.

Michelle Lopes MaldonadoDemocrat

Judges; nominations for election to general district court.

Nominating persons to be elected to general district court judgeships.

Michelle Lopes MaldonadoDemocrat

Judges; nominations for election to juvenile and domestic relations district court.

Nominating persons to be elected to juvenile and domestic relations district court judgeships.

Michelle Lopes MaldonadoDemocrat

Commending James McConville.

Commending James McConville.

Vivian E. WattsDemocrat

Minimum wage; increases incrementally to $15.00 per hour by January 1, 2028.

Minimum wage. Increases the minimum wage incrementally to $15.00 per hour by January 1, 2028. The bill codifies the adjusted state hourly minimum wage of $12.77 per hour that is effective January 1, 2026, and increases the minimum wage to $13.75 per hour effective January 1, 2027, and to $15.00 per hour effective January 1, 2028. Effective January 1, 2029, and annually thereafter, the bill requires the minimum wage to be adjusted to reflect increases in the consumer price index. This bill is identical to HB 1.

L. Louise LucasDemocrat

Employment prohibition exceptions; apprenticeship program for children 16 years of age or older.

Employment prohibition exceptions; apprenticeships; children 16 years of age or older. Permits a child 16 years of age or older to serve in an apprenticeship program or other work-based learning experience related to culinary arts or information technology, provided that (i) the child is continuously enrolled in an accredited secondary school, (ii) the child is a registered apprentice, (iii) the child is employed in a work-training program administered under the Board of Education, and (iv) the work being performed is not in violation of federal or state laws. This bill is identical to HB 275.

David R. SuetterleinRepublican

Alcoholic beverage control; commercial lifestyle center licenses.

Alcoholic beverage control; retail licenses; commercial lifestyle center licenses. Allows the Board of Directors of the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority to grant a commercial lifestyle center license and a performing arts facility license for the same designated area in any municipality with a population in excess of 450,000 and an annual tourism fiscal impact in excess of $3.5 billion provided that (i) the performing arts facility license is limited to prescheduled events and (ii) such licenses shall not be used simultaneously.

Bill DeStephRepublican

Motorcycle Driver Improvement Clinic Fund; created.

Driver improvement clinics; motorcycle driver improvement clinics; Motorcycle Driver Improvement Clinic Fund; created. Creates motorcycle driver improvement clinics, defined in the bill, as a subset of existing driver improvement clinics and provides requirements and parameters for the instruction and administration of the motorcycle driver improvement clinics. The bill authorizes courts to direct defendants who have committed violations while operating a motorcycle to attend a motorcycle driver improvement clinic and satisfy the requirements thereof. The bill also creates the Motorcycle Driver Improvement Clinic Fund for the operation and administration of motorcycle driver improvement clinics. The bill specifies that priority be given to the creation of motorcycle driver improvement clinics that operate as computer-based clinics.

David R. SuetterleinRepublican

Enforcement of vehicle liens; increases property value.

Enforcement of vehicle liens; property value. Increases from $12,500 to $17,000 the maximum value of property that may be sold at public auction to satisfy a lien on a motor vehicle without petitioning for a court order for the sale of such property. This bill is identical to HB 1288.

David R. SuetterleinRepublican

Paid family & med. leave insurance program; definitions, notice requirements, civil action, report.

Paid family and medical leave insurance program; notice requirements; civil action. Requires the Virginia Employment Commission to establish and administer a paid family and medical leave insurance program with benefits beginning April 1, 2028. Under the program, benefits are paid to covered individuals, as defined in the bill, for family and medical leave. Funding for the program is provided through premiums assessed to employers and employees beginning April 1, 2028. The bill provides that the amount of a benefit is 80 percent of the employee's average weekly net earnings, not to exceed 100 percent of the statewide average weekly net earnings, which amount is required to be adjusted annually to reflect changes in the statewide average weekly wage. The bill caps the duration of paid leave at 12 weeks in any application year and provides self-employed individuals the option of participating in the program. This bill is identical to HB 1207.

Jennifer B. BoyskoDemocrat

Employee Child Care Assistance Program; established, reports.

Employee Child Care Assistance Program established. Establishes the Employee Child Care Assistance Program to provide matching funds in order to incentivize employers to contribute to the child care costs of their employees. The Program shall be administered by the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation. To participate in the Program, an employer shall agree to make child care contributions to the eligible mixed delivery provider on behalf of the employee or to a third-party administrator, as defined by the bill, and shall provide any other information deemed necessary by the Foundation. The bill specifies that, to the extent funds are available, the Foundation shall issue a state match to a third-party administrator. Program funds shall be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis; however, the bill clarifies that the Foundation is encouraged to prioritize awards to proposals involving contributions from small businesses. The bill requires the Foundation to provide an interim report to the General Assembly by September 1, 2028, and a summative report to the General Assembly by September 1, 2030, on the effectiveness and impact of the Program. This bill is identical to HB 18.

Lashrecse D. AirdDemocrat

School breakfasts; availability at no cost to students.

School breakfast; availability at no cost to students. Requires each school board to require each public elementary and secondary school in the local school division to participate in the federal National School Lunch Program and the federal School Breakfast Program administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and to make breakfast available to any student who requests such a meal at no cost to the student, unless the student's parent has provided written permission to the school board to withhold such a meal from the student. The bill requires the Department of Education to reimburse each public elementary and secondary school for each school breakfast served to a student, with a maximum of one breakfast per student per school day, and provides the formula for determining the state reimbursement rate for such meals. Finally, the bill repeals a provision of law relating to the federal School Breakfast Program that is rendered obsolete by the provisions of the bill.

Danica A. RoemDemocrat

Income-Qualified Energy Efficiency and Weatherization Task Force; established, report.

Department of Housing and Community Development; Income-Qualified Energy Efficiency and Weatherization Task Force established; report. Directs the Department of Housing and Community Development to establish, in collaboration with the Department of Energy, and with assistance from the Department of Social Services, the Income-Qualified Energy Efficiency and Weatherization Task Force to determine barriers to access and enrollment in the current energy efficiency programs for income-qualified energy customers and to evaluate and develop a plan to address any necessary improvements regarding coordination among state and federal government agencies for utility services and resources to more effectively deliver energy-efficient housing, weatherization resources, and energy efficiency upgrades for income-qualified individuals and households in the Commonwealth. The bill requires the Task Force to meet at least six times between July 1, 2026, and September 30, 2027, and to submit a report of its findings and recommendations no later than September 30, 2027. The bill specifies that such report shall include policy recommendations and a plan to ensure that weatherization-ready repairs and whole-home energy efficiency retrofits are provided to all eligible income-qualified individuals and households in the Commonwealth residing in multifamily buildings, single-family dwellings, and manufactured homes by December 31, 2034. This bill is identical to HB 3.

Mamie E. LockeDemocrat

Constitutional amendment; qualifications of voters, right to vote, persons not entitled to vote.

Constitutional amendment (voter referendum); qualifications of voters; right to vote; persons not entitled to vote. Provides for a referendum at the November 3, 2026, general election to approve or reject an amendment that would provide for the fundamental right to vote in the Commonwealth, revise the qualifications of voters so that a person convicted of a felony is not entitled to vote during his period of incarceration but is automatically invested with the right to vote upon release from incarceration, and update the existing prohibition on voting by persons found to be mentally incompetent to instead apply to persons who have been found to lack the capacity to understand the act of voting. This bill is identical to HB 963.

Mamie E. LockeDemocrat

Income tax, state; standard deduction and earned income tax credit.

Income tax; standard deduction and earned income tax credit. Removes the sunset from and makes permanent the standard deduction amounts of $8,750 for single individuals and $17,500 for married individuals filing jointly. Under current law, the standard deduction is scheduled to revert to $3,000 for single individuals and $6,000 for married individuals filing jointly after taxable year 2026. The bill also removes the sunset from and makes permanent the increase in Virginia's refundable earned income tax credit from 15 percent to 20 percent of the allowable federal earned income tax credit. Under current law, the Virginia refundable earned income tax credit expires in taxable year 2027 and Virginia's nonrefundable earned income tax credit, which has no expiration date, is equal to 20 percent of the federal credit.

David R. SuetterleinRepublican

Real property tax; exemption surviving spouses of members of armed forces who died in line of duty.

Real property tax exemption; surviving spouses of members of the armed forces who died in the line of duty. Authorizes localities to provide, for tax years beginning on and after January 1, 2026, up to a total exemption from real property taxes for dwellings owned by surviving spouses of members of the armed forces that are situated on property zoned as single family residential. Under current law, a total exemption is only allowed for such dwellings with assessed values in the most recently ended tax year that are not in excess of the average assessed value for such year of a dwelling situated on property that is zoned as single family residential.

Bill DeStephRepublican

RS & UT; food for human consumption and essential personal hygiene products, delayed effective date.

Sales and use tax; food purchased for human consumption and essential personal hygiene products. Eliminates the remaining one percent local sales and use tax that is imposed on food purchased for human consumption and essential personal hygiene products. Under current law, no other sales and use tax is applied to such products. The bill requires an equivalent amount of revenue to be distributed to cities and counties on a monthly basis in compensation for the lost tax revenue. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2027.

David R. SuetterleinRepublican

Commending the Smithfield High School KidWind Challenge teams.

Commending the Smithfield High School KidWind Challenge teams.

Nadarius E. ClarkDemocrat

Commending the Bruton High School boys' indoor track and field team.

Commending the Bruton High School boys' indoor track and field team.

Mark C. DowneyDemocrat

Commending Ernest Eugene Copenhaver, Jr.

Commending Ernest Eugene Copenhaver, Jr.

Israel D. O'QuinnRepublican

Commending the Reverend Phillip E. Knight, Sr.

Commending the Reverend Phillip E. Knight, Sr.

Delores L. McQuinnDemocrat

Celebrating the life of Mabel Jones Smith.

Celebrating the life of Mabel Jones Smith.

Delores L. McQuinnDemocrat

Commending Helen H. Guthrie.

Commending Helen H. Guthrie.

Delores L. McQuinnDemocrat

Celebrating the life of Charita Marie Lee.

Celebrating the life of Charita Marie Lee.

Delores L. McQuinnDemocrat

Celebrating the life of Frederick Alexander Brown.

Celebrating the life of Frederick Alexander Brown.

Delores L. McQuinnDemocrat

Celebrating the life of the Reverend David Anthony Young, Sr.

Celebrating the life of the Reverend David Anthony Young, Sr.

Delores L. McQuinnDemocrat

Celebrating the life of Solomon Wilder Jefferson, Ed.D.

Commending Solomon Wilder Jefferson, Ed.D.

Delores L. McQuinnDemocrat

Commending Fertility for Colored Girls + Guys.

Commending Fertility for Colored Girls + Guys.

Delores L. McQuinnDemocrat

Celebrating the life of Eric Monte Bowman.

Celebrating the life of Eric Monte Bowman.

Delores L. McQuinnDemocrat

Commending Master Chief Petty Officer Christopher S. Cupito, USN.

Commending Master Chief Petty Officer Christopher S. Cupito, USN.

Sam RasoulDemocrat

Celebrating the life of Norman Lee Davis.

Celebrating the life of Norman Lee Davis.

Nicole ColeDemocrat

Commending Marcus Hickman.

Commending Marcus Hickman.

Nicole ColeDemocrat

Commending the Oakton High School girls' wrestling team.

Commending the Oakton High School girls' wrestling team.

Gretchen M. BulovaDemocrat

Commending Shiloh Baptist Church.

Commending Shiloh Baptist Church.

Rozia A. Henson, Jr.Democrat

Celebrating the life of the Reverend A. Lincoln James, Jr.

Celebrating the life of the Reverend A. Lincoln James, Jr.

Rae CousinsDemocrat

Commending John W. Haun, Ed.D.

Commending John W. Haun, Ed.D.

Rae CousinsDemocrat

Celebrating the life of Lieutenant General William Morgan Keys, USMC, Ret.

Celebrating the life of Lieutenant General William Morgan Keys, USMC, Ret.

Delores OatesRepublican

Commending the Virginia Young Democrats Disability Caucus.

Commending the Virginia Young Democrats Disability Caucus.

Michelle Lopes MaldonadoDemocrat