Bills & Legislation

Virginia Health Workforce Development Authority; administration of nursing scholarships.

Virginia Health Workforce Development Authority; administration of nursing scholarships. Grants the Virginia Health Workforce Development Authority the authority to administer scholarships related to nursing and to promulgate regulations exempt from the requirements of the Administrative Process Act as may be necessary to carry out the administration of nursing scholarship and loan programs. Under current law, the Board of Health is the administrative authority for such scholarships and the Commissioner of Health serves as the fiscal agent for the Board in the administration of some scholarship funds. The bill directs the Authority to establish an annual reporting schedule requiring submission of health workforce data, requires the Authority to establish and provide oversight and strategic guidance to the Virginia Nursing Workforce Center, and grants the Authority the authority to evaluate health workforce programs administered or supported by the Commonwealth. The bill directs the Virginia Nursing Workforce Center to establish an advisory board to provide it with strategic oversight and guidance. This bill is identical to SB 405.

Mark C. DowneyDemocrat

State/Local Hospitalization Program; repealing provisions relating to Program.

State/Local Hospitalization Program; repeal. Eliminates the State/Local Hospitalization Program. Under current law, with such funds as may be appropriated by the General Assembly, the State/Local Hospitalization Program is established to assist indigent persons with certain inpatient and outpatient hospital expenses. This bill is identical to SB 736.

Mark C. DowneyDemocrat

Pedestrians; walking on roadways that are part of divided highways.

Pedestrians; walking on roadways that are part of divided highways. Permits pedestrians, when walking on a roadway that is part of a highway divided by a physical barrier or barriers or an unpaved area, and when there are no shoulders of the highway present, to keep to the extreme right side or edge of the roadway, regardless of the direction of traffic they face. Under current law, pedestrians, when permitted to walk on a roadway, are required to keep to the extreme left side or edge thereof. The bill also clarifies current law, which requires pedestrians walking on a roadway to face oncoming traffic.

Betsy B. CarrDemocrat

Mixed-income housing; creating a two-year pilot program that provides loan origination, etc.

Department of Housing and Community Development; loans for the construction of mixed income housing; report. Directs the Department of Housing and Community Development, in collaboration with the Virginia Housing Development Authority, to create a two-year pilot program that would provide loan origination and servicing activities for mixed income housing and submit a report on its findings to the General Assembly by November 1 of each year of the pilot program. The bill provides that any funding for the pilot program, subject to the appropriation act, shall be utilized from up to 15 percent of the annual deposit made to the Virginia Housing Trust Fund. This bill is identical to HB 196 and SB 490.

Dan I. HelmerDemocrat

Health Insurance Reform Commission; powers and duties.

Health Insurance Reform Commission; powers and duties. Provides that it is a power and duty of the Health Insurance Reform Commission, upon request of the Chairman of the House Committee on Labor and Commerce or Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor, to assess proposed legislation affecting the cost of health insurance through changes to plan design or cost sharing impacting consumers, employers, unions, and employee welfare benefit plans.

Richard C. "Rip" Sullivan, Jr.Democrat

Electric utilities; disconnection reports, State Corporation Commission database, annual summary.

Electric utilities; disconnection reports; State Corporation Commission database; annual summary. Requires each investor-owned utility and electric cooperative operating in the Commonwealth to provide a monthly report on residential account disconnections to the State Corporation Commission. The monthly report is required to include specific information outlined in the bill, including the number of residential accounts involuntarily disconnected due to nonpayment, the amount of time in which such accounts were reconnected to service, the amounts of arrearages attributable to such disconnected accounts and other residential accounts, and information related to how many of the disconnected accounts participate in a payment assistance program or have a serious medical condition certification form on file with the electric utility. The bill requires the Commission to publish the information from such monthly reports in a comprehensive and easily accessible online database. The bill also requires the Commission to submit an annual executive summary to the Governor and the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation on trends in electric utility disconnections based on the reports submitted by electric utilities, the first of which is due by September 1, 2027. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation. This bill is identical to SB 516.

Charniele L. HerringDemocrat

Pharmacy benefits managers; requirements, application of law, report, delayed effective date.

Pharmacy benefits managers; requirements; scope; report. Requires all health insurance carriers to use the pass-through pricing model and may limit a pharmacy benefits manager from deriving income from pharmacy benefits management services provided to a carrier except for income derived from a pharmacy benefits management fee. The bill prohibits a pharmacy benefits manager from (i) reversing and or resubmitting the claim of a pharmacist or pharmacy without meeting certain requirements, (ii) reducing any payment to a pharmacist or pharmacy to an effective rate of reimbursement, or (iii) retroactively denying or reducing a claim or aggregate of claims except under certain circumstances. The bill requires the State Corporation Commission (the Commission) to examine the practice of carriers or pharmacy benefits managers requiring or inducing covered individuals to utilize pharmacy services at an affiliated pharmacy. The Commission is required to report its findings and recommendations to the General Assembly by December 1, 2027. Certain provisions of the bill have a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027. This bill is identical to SB 669.

Katrina CallsenDemocrat

Academic year Governor's School; maximizing school meal offerings.

Academic year Governor's Schools; school meals. Requires the Virginia Department of Education Office of School and Community Nutrition Programs to provide technical assistance to the regional governing board of each academic year Governor's School to assist such schools in identifying costs, funding sources, and infrastructure requirements to maximize school meal offerings to all students enrolled in such schools.

Kimberly Pope AdamsDemocrat

Land subdivision and development; optional provisions of a subdivision ordinance, etc.

Land subdivision and development; optional provisions of a subdivision ordinance; electric vehicle charging stations; Department of Energy; report. Allows, effective July 1, 2027, a locality to include in its subdivision ordinance a requirement for electric vehicle (EV) supply equipment, EV-ready charging spaces, or EV-capable parking spaces that provide infrastructure to facilitate future EV charging, including electrical capacity, prewiring, and conduit for a development containing commercial, industrial, or multifamily residential uses. Effective in due course, the bill directs the Department of Energy to evaluate the design and deployment of the electrical distribution infrastructure necessary to support the installation of electric vehicle charging facilities in new developments consisting of single-family and multifamily residential units, to provide recommendations on the appropriate number and type of EV charging spaces for new commercial and industrial developments, and to report its findings and recommendations to the State Corporation Commission no later than November 15, 2026.

Adele Y. McClureDemocrat

Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage, termination by landlord.

Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage; termination by landlord. Requires a landlord, prior to giving a tenant 21 days' notice of his intention to terminate the rental agreement for a dwelling unit that has been damaged or destroyed by fire or casualty, to (i) make a reasonable effort to meet with the tenant to discuss reasonable alternatives and offer the tenant a substantially similar dwelling unit, if one is available, or (ii) determine that the damage was caused by the tenant's failure to maintain the dwelling unit in accordance with relevant law. Current law allows the landlord to terminate such agreement by giving the tenant 14 days' notice of his intention to terminate on the basis of the landlord's determination that such damage requires the removal of the tenant and that the use of the premises is substantially impaired. The bill requires the landlord, upon receiving a request from the tenant after the tenant has received such notice, to reevaluate the extent of damage and habitability of such dwelling unit unless the landlord has determined that the damage was caused by the tenant's failure to maintain the dwelling unit. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2027.

Adele Y. McClureDemocrat

Elections; candidates and elected officials, confidentiality of personally identifiable information.

Elections; candidates and elected officials; address confidentiality. Prohibits the custodian of any filing made by a candidate from releasing the address, phone number, or email address of such candidate in response to a request made under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act. The bill permits a candidate to provide the unique identifier assigned to him in the voter registration system pursuant to relevant law in place of his residence address on any candidate filing. The State Board of Elections is prohibited from requiring candidates to disclose their address or unique identifier on petitions prior to their being filed. The bill also adds elected officials to the list of people who may furnish, in addition to their residence street address, a post office box address located within the Commonwealth to be included in lieu of their street address on the lists of registered voters. The certificate of election delivered to the winner of an election is required to be accompanied by a notice that the person meets the qualifications for being granted protected voter status along with instructions for updating their voter registration in order to attain such status. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2027. This bill is identical to SB 632.

Adele Y. McClureDemocrat

Public schools; right to free public elementary and secondary education, discrimination, etc.

Public schools; right to free public elementary and secondary education; discrimination based on immigration status prohibited; civil cause of action. Prohibits any child in the Commonwealth from being denied a free public education through secondary school on the basis of the actual or perceived immigration or citizenship status of the child or the child's parents, in accordance with the Constitution of Virginia and consistent with the requirements of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The bill also, among other things, prohibits any school board, public elementary or secondary school, school resource officer employed by a local law-enforcement agency in any public elementary or secondary school, or any individual who is an employee, contractor, or agent of a school board from engaging in certain enumerated actions and practices that involve or result in the denial of a free public education, or denial of the benefits or exclusion from participation in any program or activity thereof, of a child on the basis of the actual or perceived immigration or citizenship status of the child or the child's parents. The bill establishes a civil cause of action for violations of the foregoing prohibitions. The bill requires the Department of Education, in collaboration with the Office of the Attorney General, to develop and make available to each school board by August 1, 2026, guidance and resources on developing policies and procedures to implement the requirements set forth in the bill and requires each school board to develop and implement by December 31, 2026, such policies and procedures and to require each public elementary and secondary school principal and administrator in the school division to complete training on compliance with the provisions of the bill as soon as is practicable but not later than the beginning of the 2027–2028 school year, consistent with the guidance and resources developed and made available by the Department of Education. This bill incorporates HB 912 and is identical to SB 491.

Sam RasoulDemocrat

Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; Eviction Diversion Program, eligibility.

Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; Eviction Diversion Program; eligibility. Requires any general district court that implements the Eviction Diversion Program to attach information about the Program, including eligibility criteria, to any summons for unlawful detainer. The bill also alters eligibility requirements for a tenant to participate in the Program. This bill is identical to SB 273.

Adele Y. McClureDemocrat

State plan for medical assistance services; adds provision related to doula care.

Department of Medical Assistance Services; state plan for medical assistance services; doula care. Adds provisions related to the provision of doula care under the state plan for medical assistance services specifying that such care includes support during labor and delivery and up to two linkage-to-care incentive payments for doulas.

Adele Y. McClureDemocrat

Child custody proceedings; study, provisions to improve procedure for victims of family abuse, etc.

Judicial Council of Virginia; work group to study the implementation of provisions to improve procedures for and responses to victims of family abuse and their children in child custody proceedings; report. Directs the Judicial Council of Virginia to convene a work group of relevant stakeholders to study the implementation of provisions to improve procedures for and responses to victims of family abuse and their children in child custody proceedings. The bill requires the work group to submit its findings and recommendations by November 1, 2026, to the Chairs of the House and Senate Committees for Courts of Justice.

Adele Y. McClureDemocrat

Restaurants; exempts certain facilities or programs.

Restaurants; certain facilities or programs; exemptions. Exempts certain facilities that provide custodial care to 12 or fewer adults or children in a home from regulations applicable to restaurants. This bill is identical to SB 677.

Shelly A. SimondsDemocrat

Practice of athletic training; adds dry needling to definition.

Professions and occupations; definition of "practice of athletic training"; dry needling. Adds dry needling to the definition of "practice of athletic training," as such term relates to the practice of medicine and other healing arts, and directs the Board of Medicine to adopt regulations requiring training and certification for the practice of dry needling by athletic trainers.

Mark C. DowneyDemocrat

Virginia Public Procurement Act; definition of "small business," direct procurement, set-asides.

Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity; Virginia Public Procurement Act; definition of "small business"; direct procurement; set-asides. Amends the definition of "small business," for purposes of provisions related to the Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity and the Virginia Public Procurement Act, to mean a business that is at least 51 percent independently owned and controlled by one or more individuals, or in the case of a cooperative association, is at least 51 percent independently controlled by one or more members, who are U.S. citizens or legal resident aliens and, together with affiliates, has 50 or fewer employees or average annual gross receipts of $5 million or less averaged over the previous three years and for which the individual owners do not have a combined net worth exceeding $1.5 million. Current law defines a small business as such, but with 250 or fewer employees and average annual gross receipts of $10 million or less averaged over the previous three years, with no limit on the combined net worth of individual owners. The bill allows any public body to directly solicit or award a contract of less than $200,000 to a small, women-owned, or minority-owned business, or to a business identified by a public body as a service disabled veteran-owned or military family-owned business, without engaging in the competitive sealed bidding or competitive negotiation process. The bill also provides that purchases made by a public body for goods, services, and construction up to $100,000 that are not directly awarded shall be set aside for award to small businesses.

Mark C. DowneyDemocrat

Unlawful detainer; bifurcation of case, contested rent and damages.

Unlawful detainer; bifurcation of case; contested rent and damages. Provides that, at an initial hearing on an unlawful detainer, if the defendant contests the amount of rent and damages alleged to be due and owing to the plaintiff, the court shall not bifurcate the unlawful detainer case. Under current law, at the initial hearing, upon request of the plaintiff, the court is required to bifurcate the unlawful detainer case and set a continuance date no later than 120 days from the date of the initial hearing to determine final rent and damages.

Rae CousinsDemocrat

Virginia Land Conservation Foundation; purposes of Foundation, easements.

Virginia Land Conservation Foundation. Allows the Virginia Land Conservation Board of Trustees to waive the requirement for a holder of a conservation easement to have such easement jointly held with a public body whenever such holder acquires any interest in land other than a fee simple interest from a grant or transfer from the Virginia Land Conservation Foundation, provided that such holder is accredited by the national Land Trust Accreditation Commission or meets a similar set of standards and practices adopted by the Board of Trustees and the easement contains a third party right of enforcement, as defined in relevant law, in favor of the Department of Conservation and Recreation or another public body.

Hillary Pugh KentRepublican

Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; material noncompliance by landlord, rent escrow, relief.

Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; material noncompliance by landlord; rent escrow; relief. Removes the requirement that, prior to the granting of any relief, a tenant shall pay into escrow any amount of rent called for under the rental agreement. The bill requires the tenant, during the pendency of the action, to pay into escrow the amount of rent that becomes due within five days of the date due under the rental agreement, unless or until such amount is modified by a subsequent order of the court. The bill also provides that a failure of the tenant to make timely payments into escrow shall not be grounds for dismissal of the underlying action but may be considered by the court when issuing an order. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2027.

Rae CousinsDemocrat

Public school employees; suspension, notice and opportunity for a hearing.

Public school employees; suspension; notice and opportunity for a hearing. Provides that no school board employee shall be suspended without notice and, if applicable, an opportunity to be heard and amends current law to require any individual who has been so suspended, regardless of the length of the suspension, to continue to receive his then applicable salary unless and until the school board, after a hearing, determines otherwise. Under current law, such requirement only applies to any individual who has been suspended for a period in excess of five days.

Rae CousinsDemocrat

Mechanics' liens; liens attaching to property, memorandum of lien.

Mechanics' liens; liens attaching to property; memorandum of lien. Removes the exclusion of the attachment of a mechanic's lien to property improved or repaired when the lien is based on a claim for repairs or existing structures. The bill further removes (i) the ability of a lien claimant to file any number of memoranda of lien including the details relating to the lien and (ii) the provisions of the Code specifying that no memorandum filed shall include sums due for (a) labor or materials furnished more than 150 days prior to the last day labor was performed or (b) material furnished to the job preceding the filing of such memorandum.

Chris S. RunionRepublican

Death certificates; petitions to the court to amend, service upon State Registrar of Vital Records.

Amending death certificates; petitions to the court to amend; Electronic Death Registration System; service upon State Registrar of Vital Records. Requires funeral service licensees requesting an order to amend a death certificate through the Electronic Death Registration System to upload the required petition to the Electronic Death Registration System instead of serving such petition upon the State Registrar of Vital Records.

Chris S. RunionRepublican

App Store Accountability Act; civil penalties, civil action.

App Store Accountability Act; civil penalties; civil action. Requires an app store provider, defined in the bill, to verify the age category of an account holder, obtain verifiable parental consent for a minor account holder, and share such age category and consent information with the developer of an app, defined in the bill. The bill requires a developer to verify the age category of an account holder with a developer's app and notify app store providers of any significant change to a developer's app. The bill also requires a developer to provide a parental consent disclosure for each of its apps to each app store provider that makes the developer's app available on its app store, and such provider shall provide such disclosure on its app store. The bill allows the Attorney General and any minor or parent of a minor who suffers harm by reason of a violation of this bill to initiate an action. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027.

Chris S. RunionRepublican

Highland Wildlife Management Area; Dept. of Wildlife Resources to convey a non-exclusive easement.

Conveyance of easement. Authorizes the Department of Wildlife Resources to grant and convey an appurtenant and non-exclusive easement and right-of-way at the Highland Wildlife Management Area (the WMA) to A1 Land LLC to allow vehicular ingress and egress along Davis Run Road to access the grantee's property. The bill also authorizes the Department to accept a similar easement from A1 Land LLC to allow vehicular ingress and egress over the LLC's property to access the WMA.

Chris S. RunionRepublican

Health insurance; reimbursement rates.

Health insurance; reimbursement rates. Requires health insurance carriers to reimburse in-network providers for covered mental health services and outpatient treatment at rates negotiated between the health carrier and the in-network provider, provided that such rates are no less than 100 percent of the applicable reimbursement rate under Medicare for the same provider and service.

Holly M. SeiboldDemocrat

Public utilities; discounted water and sewer fees, Town of Hurt.

Public utilities; discounted water and sewer fees; Town of Hurt. Adds the Town of Hurt to those localities that may develop criteria for providing discounted water and sewer fees and charges for low-income, elderly, or disabled customers.

Eric R. ZehrRepublican

Custody and visitation arrangements for minor; custody evaluation, report.

Custody and visitation arrangements for minor; custody evaluation; report. Provides that a circuit or district court may order a custody evaluation to assist with determining the custody or visitation arrangements for a minor. Current law provides that such custody evaluations can be ordered in a proceeding for custody or visitation before a juvenile and domestic relations district court. The bill also directs the Board of Psychology, in consultation with the Board of Medicine, to convene a stakeholder advisory group to study the availability of qualified mental health professionals willing to serve as court-appointed experts in family law proceedings and to report its findings and any recommendations to the Chairs of the Senate Committee for Courts of Justice and House Committee on Health and Human Services no later than November 1, 2026.

Charniele L. HerringDemocrat

Public utilities; water and sewerage companies, discounted rates for low-income customers.

Public utilities; water and sewerage companies; discounted rates for low-income customers. Provides that a public utility engaged in the business of furnishing water or sewerage facilities may propose and the State Corporation Commission may approve rates and tariff provisions that provide discounted service to customers with an annual household income equal to or less than 200 percent of the federal poverty level. The bill permits the utility to recover the costs of providing such discounted service through its rates for commercial and industrial customers. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2027, and is identical to SB 650.

Charniele L. HerringDemocrat

Adult and Dislocated Worker funds; minimum allocation requirement waived.

Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act Adult and Dislocated Worker funds; minimum allocation requirement waived. Authorizes the Department of Workforce Development and Advancement to waive the 40 percent allocation requirement of certain funding under the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014 for a local workforce development board that submits a request for a waiver and demonstrates that the board is unable to meet the requirement due to (i) a lack of available training providers in the local workforce development area, (ii) a lack of demand for training services among eligible participants, or (iii) other extraordinary circumstances. The bill requires the Department to develop and publish a process for the application and approval of such waivers.

Virgil ThorntonDemocrat

Elections; absentee voting, cure process, delayed effective date.

Elections; absentee voting; cure process. Removes the requirement that absentee ballots be received by the Friday immediately preceding the day of the election for the general registrar to implement the process of curing errors or failures in such absentee ballots. The bill also moves the deadline for curing errors or omissions in absentee ballot applications from noon on the third day after the election to noon on the Monday after the election. This bill has a delayed effective date of September 1, 2026.

Virgil ThorntonDemocrat

Elections; absentee and provisional ballots, cure process, delayed effective date.

Elections; absentee and provisional ballots; cure process. Requires that, if the electoral board determines that any person having submitted a provisional vote was not entitled to vote as a result of a material error or omission on the provisional ballot form, the registrar is required to promptly notify the voter by telephone or email of the error or omission and to provide information to the voter on how to correct the issue so his ballot may be counted. The voter is entitled to make such necessary corrections before noon on the Monday after the election. The bill moves the deadline for curing errors or omissions in absentee ballot applications from noon on the third day after the election to noon on the Monday after the election. The bill also requries the Department of Elections to issue guidance to local election officials on the uniform processing and counting of provisional ballots, including any provisional ballot cast by a person submitting a registration application on the same day as the election. This bill has a delayed effective date of September 1, 2026.

Virgil ThorntonDemocrat

Va. Public Procurement Act; procurement of goods transported by privately owned commercial vessels.

Virginia Public Procurement Act; procurement of goods transported by privately owned commercial vessels; required contract provisions. Provides that any contract a state agency enters into for goods that exceeds $10,000 shall contain a provision that the contractor must comply with federal law relating to the transportation of goods on privately owned commercial vessels, defined in the bill.

C.E. Cliff Hayes, Jr.Democrat

Pop-up events; local enhanced enforcement actions.

Pop-up events; local enhanced enforcement actions. Allows a locality by ordinance to establish pop-up event zones, as defined in the bill, for the purpose of taking enhanced enforcement actions within such zone if the pop-up event may significantly disrupt normal community operations. A local governing body's presiding officer, a locality's chief law-enforcement officer, and a locality's chief administrative officer must be in concurrence to activate such zone. The bill requires a locality to give notification of a pop-up event zone through an online webpage, providing as much advance notice as is practicable. The bill further grants the authority to take enhanced enforcement actions such as (i) declaring the pop-up event zone a gun free zone, (ii) establishing temporary speed limit reductions and enhanced traffic fines within the pop-up event zone, (iii) establishing and enforcing occupancy limits on both public and private property within the pop-up event zone, and (iv) declaring a curfew for unaccompanied minors. The bill allows a locality to recover all relevant costs and fees incurred from the designation and enforcement of the zone directly from event organizers.

Virgil ThorntonDemocrat

Constitutional amendment; fundamental right to reproductive freedom(submitting to qualified voters).

Constitutional amendment (voter referendum); fundamental right to reproductive freedom. Provides for a referendum at the November 3, 2026, election to approve or reject an amendment to the Constitution of Virginia relating to the right to make one's own decisions related to reproductive health care, including access to abortion. The amendment protects patients and their doctors and nurses from being punished for making such decisions. The amendment allows the state to place restrictions on access to abortion during the third trimester of pregnancy except when the patient's life or physical or mental health is at risk or the pregnancy cannot survive. This bill is identical to SB 449.

Charniele L. HerringDemocrat

Parking enforcement; high tourism localities.

Parking enforcement; issuance of a summons or parking ticket. Removes the population requirement for a locality to be authorized to, by ordinance, authorize law-enforcement officers, other uniformed employees of the locality, and uniformed personnel serving under contract with the locality to issue a summons or parking ticket for a violation of an ordinance regulating the parking, stopping, and standing of vehicles. Existing law grants such authority to localities having a population of at least 40,000. This bill is identical to SB 67.

Jessica L. AndersonDemocrat

Zoning; development agreements in certain localities within Planning District 23 (Hampton Roads).

Zoning; development agreements in certain localities. Allows any locality within Planning District 23 with a population between 245,000 and 350,000 that has adopted a transfer of development rights ordinance to include provisions in its zoning ordinance that allow the governing body to enter into binding development agreements with owners of real property in the locality, so long as the property to be developed contains at least 1,000 acres or is located within (i) a receiving area of a transfer of development rights program and (ii) a tax increment financing district. Current law allows only New Kent County to include such provisions allowing for development agreements in its zoning ordinance.

C.E. Cliff Hayes, Jr.Democrat

Vehicle crash reports; open to inspection by towing and recovery operators.

Vehicle crash reports; open to inspection by certain persons; towing and recovery operators. Makes certain vehicle crash reports open for inspection and available to towing and recovery operators that responded to a public safety towing request for the removal of a vehicle involved in such crash for purposes of obtaining registered owner information and insurance information for any such vehicle. The bill prohibits the dissemination of any such crash report received by such a towing and recovery operator to any other party.

Terry L. AustinRepublican

Hotel policies; denial of guests residing within certain distance prohibited in certain instances.

Hotel policies; denial of guests residing within certain distance prohibited in certain instances. Prohibits a hotel from enforcing a policy denying the ability of a guest to stay at such hotel solely on the grounds that such guest's primary residence is located within a certain distance of such hotel if such guest is seeking to stay for his health or safety.

Terry L. AustinRepublican

Lexington, City of; amending charter, relating to city council, city attorney, etc.

Charter; City of Lexington. Amends the charter for the City of Lexington by deleting outdated provisions related to a formerly appointed school board and by updating or clarifying several other provisions of the charter.

Terry L. AustinRepublican

Drug overdose and drug overdose deaths; VDH to develop plan for opioid overdose response.

Department of Health; reduction of opioid overdose and opioid overdose deaths; report. Directs the Department of Health to develop a strategic plan for opioid overdose response to reduce rates of drug overdose and drug overdose deaths in the Commonwealth and to provide a report on the status of such strategic plan and its implementation to the Governor, the Chairs of the House Committees on Appropriations and Health and Human Services and the Senate Committees on Education and Health and Finance and Appropriations, and the Joint Commission on Health Care by November 1, 2026, and annually thereafter. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the Joint Commission on Health Care. This bill is identical to SB 308.

Atoosa R. ReaserDemocrat

Health insurance; requirements for certain opioid antagonists.

Health insurance; requirements for certain opioid antagonists. Requires each health insurer, corporation providing health care subscription plans, and health maintenance organization whose policy, contract, or plan includes coverage for prescription drugs to include coverage for at least one other opioid antagonist used for overdose reversal dispensed pursuant to an oral, written, or standing order of a prescriber and ensure that cost-sharing for at least one opioid antagonist used for overdose reversal is included on the lowest cost tier of the insurer's, corporation's, or health maintenance organization's prescription drug formulary. The bill provides that such coverage shall be exempt from any prior authorization or step therapy requirement on coverage of benefits. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the Joint Commission on Health Care. This bill is identical to SB 257.

Atoosa R. ReaserDemocrat

Regulatory boards; adjustment of fees, recovery of disciplinary and monitoring costs, report.

Professions and occupations; adjustment of fees by regulatory boards; recovery of disciplinary and monitoring costs. Repeals the provision of law that requires, following the close of any biennium, when the account for any regulatory board within the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation (DPOR) shows revenue to be a certain percentage greater than expenses, such regulatory board to distribute excess revenue to current regulants and reduce its licensure or certification fees so that fees are sufficient but not excessive to cover expenses. The bill also repeals the provision with respect to the Department of Health Professions (DHP) that requires, following the close of any biennium, when the account for any regulatory board shows expenses allocated to it for the past biennium to be a certain percentage greater than moneys collected by the board, the board to revise its fees so that such fees are sufficient but not excessive to cover expenses. The bill makes it permissive for the regulatory boards within DPOR and DHP to annually revise the fees levied by it for certification, licensure, registration, or permit and renewal so that the fees are sufficient but not excessive to cover expenses. Regulatory boards are also permitted to recover reasonable administrative costs associated with investigation, disciplinary proceedings, monitoring, and confirming compliance with any terms and conditions imposed from any person who is (i) licensed, registered, certified, or issued a multistate licensure privilege by any regulatory or health regulatory board and (ii) issued a finding of a violation of law or regulation from such regulatory or health regulatory board. Such administrative costs shall not exceed $500 for regulatory boards within DPOR and $1,500 for health regulatory boards within DHP.

C.E. Cliff Hayes, Jr.Democrat

Artificial intelligence; framework for person/entity acting as an independent verification org.

Joint Commission on Technology and Science; artificial intelligence; independent verification organizations. Directs the Joint Commission on Technology and Science (JCOTS) to evaluate the feasibility and impact of developing a framework for any person or entity seeking to act as an independent verification organization that assesses artificial intelligence models' or applications' adherence to standards reflecting best practices for the prevention of personal injury and property damage. The bill directs JCOTS to submit a report with its recommendations and any findings to the Chairs of the Senate Committees on Finance and Appropriations and General Laws and Technology and the House Committees on Appropriations and Communications, Technology and Innovation by November 1, 2026. This bill is identical to SB 384.

C.E. Cliff Hayes, Jr.Democrat

Virginia Disposition of Unclaimed Property Act; definitions, digital assets.

Virginia Disposition of Unclaimed Property Act; digital financial assets. Creates a statutory framework for the treatment and disposition of unclaimed intangible property in the form of digital assets, as defined in the bill.

C.E. Cliff Hayes, Jr.Democrat

Power Transformer Manufacturing Grant Fund; created.

Power Transformer Manufacturing Grant Fund. Establishes the Power Transformer Manufacturing Grant Fund to provide grant installment awards between July 1, 2026, and July 1, 2035, in an amount not to exceed $4.6 million per fiscal year and in an aggregate amount not to exceed $29.4 million, to a qualified company that (i) engages in the manufacture of power transformers, (ii) executes a memorandum of understanding with the Commonwealth, and (iii) is expected to make a capital investment of at least $457,157,000 and create and maintain at least 825 new full-time jobs. This bill is identical to SB 403.

Luke E. TorianDemocrat

Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient Manufacturing Grant Fund; established.

Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient Manufacturing Grant Fund. Establishes the Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient Manufacturing Grant Fund to provide grant installment awards between July 1, 2026, and July 1, 2045, in an amount not to exceed $15 million per fiscal year and in an aggregate amount not to exceed $130 million, to a qualified company that (i) engages in the manufacture of pharmaceutical substances, (ii) executes a memorandum of understanding with the Commonwealth, and (iii) is expected to make a capital investment of at least $2,148,793,019 and create and maintain at least 468 new full-time jobs. This bill is identical to SB 404.

Luke E. TorianDemocrat