Bills & Legislation

Weapons; possession prohibited in hospital that provides mental health or developmental services.

Weapons; possession prohibited in a hospital that provides mental health services or developmental services; penalty. Makes it a Class 1 misdemeanor for any person to knowingly and intentionally possess in the building of any hospital that provides mental health services or developmental services in the Commonwealth, including an emergency department or other facility rendering emergency medical care, a (i) firearm, (ii) knife with a blade over three and one-half inches, or (iii) other dangerous weapon, including explosives and stun weapons. The bill also provides that notice of such prohibitions shall be posted conspicuously at each public entrance of any hospital and that no person shall be convicted of the offense if such notice is not posted, unless such person had actual notice of the prohibitions. The bill provides that such firearm, knife, explosive, or weapon shall be subject to seizure by a law-enforcement officer and forfeited to the Commonwealth and specifies certain exceptions to the prohibition. This bill is identical to SB 173.

Phil M. HernandezDemocrat

Motor vehicles; use of safety belt systems, certain emergency medical services personnel exempted.

Motor vehicles; use of safety belt systems; certain persons exempt. Exempts from the requirements for the use of safety belt systems emergency medical services personnel while in the patient compartment of an emergency medical services vehicle providing necessary care, as defined in the bill, to a patient. The bill provides that, for seats that are subject to such requirements for the use of safety belt systems, such personnel shall use safety belt systems while the vehicle is in motion and such personnel is not providing necessary care to a patient. The bill also changes the existing exemption for law-enforcement agency personnel driving motor vehicles to enforce laws governing motor vehicle parking to an exemption for law-enforcement officers driving motor vehicles to enforce laws governing motor vehicle parking. This bill incorporates HB 233.

Delores L. McQuinnDemocrat

Collaborative agreements; removes registered nurses from list of practitioners, etc.

Collaborative agreements; practitioners; diagnosis. Removes registered nurses from the list of practitioners whose diagnoses may form the basis of drug therapy conducted pursuant to a collaborative agreement between a practitioner and a pharmacist.

H. Otto Wachsmann, Jr.Republican

Elections; general provisions, electoral board members to wear identification, civil penalty.

Elections; general provisions; electoral board members to wear identification; civil penalty. Requires the Department of Elections to issue a standardized identification badge to the acting electoral board members of each locality. Electoral board members are required to wear such identification badge while conducting their official duties on the day of an election subject to a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed $1,000.

Kimberly Pope AdamsDemocrat

Elections; districts, precincts, and polling places, pilot program for super precincts.

Elections; districts, precincts, and polling places; super precincts; pilot program. Authorizes the State Board of Elections to conduct a pilot program under which one or more counties or cities with a population of more than 350,000 and less than 400,000 in the most recent United States census whose proposal for participation in such pilot program is unanimously approved by the State Board would be permitted to use super precincts in elections. The bill requires the governing body of a county or city applying to participate in the pilot program to submit a plan for participation that includes (i) the number of super precincts to be established in the county or city and the boundaries of each such super precinct, (ii) the number of vote centers to be established in each super precinct and the location of each such vote center, (iii) the elections during which such super precincts and vote centers are to be used, and (iv) a description of the process for operating such vote centers on election day, including how voters will be checked in, how ballots will be provided, how votes will be counted, and any additional voting systems that will be used to ensure the integrity of the election. The bill defines "super precinct" as the territory established by a county or city and approved by the State Board pursuant to the pilot program, to be served by one or more vote centers, and "vote center" as the structure that contains a place provided for a super precinct at which the qualified voters who are residents of the super precinct may vote in an election. The bill contains minimum criteria for any proposal for participation in the pilot program. The bill requires the State Board report on the implementation and effectiveness of the pilot program by December 1 of any year in which one or more localities participate in the pilot program. The bill has an expiration date of July 1, 2030.

Debra D. GardnerDemocrat

Va. Coastal Resilience Master Plan; identifying areas where marshes may migrate in face of sea rise.

Department of Conservation and Recreation; Virginia Coastal Resilience Master Plan. Directs the Department of Conservation and Recreation, when updating the Virginia Coastal Resilience Master Plan, to identify areas where marshes may migrate in the face of sea level rise.

Alfonso H. LopezDemocrat

Minimum wage and overtime wages; payment of wages, misclassification of workers, civil actions.

Labor and employment; payment of wages; minimum wage and overtime wages; misclassification of workers; prevailing wage rate; civil actions. Provides that an employer that violates provisions relating to minimum wage, overtime wages provisions, the misclassification of workers, or the prevailing wage rate is subject to civil actions for the applicable remedies, damages, or other relief available in an action brought pursuant to the civil action provisions currently available for the nonpayment of wages. Such provisions currently available provide that an employee may bring an action in a court of competent jurisdiction to recover payment of the wages, and the court is required to award the wages owed, an additional equal amount as liquidated damages, plus prejudgment interest thereon, and reasonable attorney fees and costs. Under current law, if the court finds that the employer knowingly failed to pay wages to an employee, the court is required to award the employee an amount equal to triple the amount of wages due and reasonable attorney fees and costs. The bill also prohibits an employer from taking certain retaliatory actions against an employee because the employee reports any information or allegation in good faith that, if true, amounts to a violation of any federal or state law or regulation to a supervisor, manager, or officer, or to any governmental body or law-enforcement official, including a report made in the ordinary course of the employee's employment, regardless of whether such report refers to a particular law or regulation.

Alfonso H. LopezDemocrat

Admission to bail; fixing terms of bail, mental health considerations.

Admission to bail; fixing terms of bail; mental health considerations. Requires the judicial officer, prior to conducting any hearing on the issue of bail, release, or detention, to obtain the person's criminal history and any emergency custody or temporary detention order or involuntary admission issued for such person. The bill also requires the judicial officer to consider any emergency custody or temporary detention order or involuntary admission issued for the person when determining admission to bail. Lastly, the bill requires the judicial officer to take into account the following factors in fixing the terms of bail if such person is admitted to bail: (i) whether the person is likely to obstruct or attempt to obstruct justice, or threaten, injure, or intimidate, or attempt to threaten, injure, or intimidate a family or household member as defined in relevant law; (ii) the history of the accused or juvenile, including medical, mental health, including any emergency custody or temporary detention order or involuntary admission issued pursuant to relevant law, or substance abuse treatment; (iii) any evidence the person provided indicating that such person (a) is currently pregnant, (b) has recently given birth, or (c) is currently nursing a child; and (iv) whether such person will be an unreasonable danger to himself, family or household members as defined in relevant law, or the public.

Debra D. GardnerDemocrat

Public utilities; budget plan payment increases.

Public utilities; budget plan payment increases. Prohibits a public utility from, for any residential customer who is enrolled in a budget plan, increasing the amount of such customer's monthly payment more than once within any 12-month period or without notifying the customer in writing at least 60 days before such increase takes effect. The bill defines "budget plan" as a fixed billing option offered by a public utility to a customer whereby the total service for the succeeding 12-month period is estimated in advance and bills are rendered monthly on the basis of one-twelfth of the 12-month estimate. The provisions of the bill do not apply to any public utility engaged in the business of furnishing water or sewerage facilities.

Joshua G. ColeDemocrat

Corporate welfare tax; imposes on large employers a tax equal to 100% of qualified employee benefit.

Corporate welfare tax. Imposes on large employers, as defined in the bill, a corporate welfare tax equal to 100 percent of the qualified employee benefits received by any employees of such large employer residing in the Commonwealth. The bill directs the Department of Taxation to obtain identifying data for individuals receiving qualified federal benefits, as defined by the bill, from the Department of Social Services pursuant to an interagency agreement and to compare such data to employment rosters received quarterly from large employers to determine the amount of qualified federal benefits received by employees of such large employers. The bill also prohibits an employer, in connection with the selection or referral of applicants or candidates for employment, to make inquiries or otherwise seek information relating to whether such applicant receives qualified federal benefits.

Joshua G. ColeDemocrat

Robbery; conforms certain provisions of Code to degrees of robbery offenses.

Robbery. Conforms certain provisions of the Code referencing robbery to the degrees of robbery offenses established by Chapter 534 of the Acts of Assembly of 2021, Special Session I. These changes include: (i) limiting to the three higher degrees of robbery certain non-robbery crimes for which committing such crime with the intent to commit a robbery is an element of the offenses, (ii) limiting the types of robbery that are included in the definition of "acts of violence" to the two higher degrees of robbery, (iii) clarifying how robbery offenses will be scored on the sentencing guidelines, (iv) allowing persons convicted of the two lesser degrees of robbery to be eligible for conditional release if they are terminally ill and for enhanced earned sentence credits, (v) allowing persons who are ineligible for parole as a result of being convicted of three of certain enumerated offenses to be eligible for parole if convicted of an offense that would constitute robbery by presenting of firearms, and (vi) limiting the application of the three-strikes law to the two higher degrees of robbery and making persons convicted under the three-strikes law eligible for parole if one of the three convictions resulting in the mandatory life sentence would constitute one of the two lesser degrees of robbery. The bill leaves unchanged the current law making all degrees of robbery predicate criminal acts by adding the two lesser degrees of robbery to the definition of "predicate criminal act" and specifying that the two higher degrees of robbery are included in the definition of "act of violence." The bill requires the changes made to the eligibility for conditional release of terminally ill prisoners and enhanced earned sentence credits to apply retroactively if certain criteria are met.

Vivian E. WattsDemocrat

Jurisdiction of district courts in felony cases; specialty dockets, Behavioral Health Docket Act.

Jurisdiction of district courts in felony cases; specialty dockets; Behavioral Health Docket Act. Authorizes a general district court and a juvenile and domestic relations district court to retain jurisdiction over a felony offense for the purpose of allowing the accused to complete a specialty docket or behavioral health docket established pursuant to relevant law. Current law only explicitly provides such courts with the ability to certify felony charges to the circuit court or dismiss such charges after a preliminary hearing to determine if probable cause exists for such charges.

Vivian E. WattsDemocrat

Mental illness, neurocognitive disorder, etc.; affirmative defense or reduced penalty.

Affirmative defense or reduced penalty for mental illness, neurocognitive disorder, or intellectual or developmental disability. Provides an affirmative defense to prosecution of a person for assault or assault and battery against certain specified persons for which the enhanced Class 6 felony and six-month mandatory minimum apply if such person proves, by a preponderance of the evidence, that at the time of the assault or assault and battery (i) the person's behaviors were a result of (a) mental illness or (b) a neurocognitive disorder, including dementia, or an intellectual disability or a developmental disability such as autism spectrum disorder, as defined in the most recent edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders of the American Psychiatric Association, or (ii) the person met the criteria for issuance of an emergency custody order.The bill requires such person or his counsel to give notice in writing to the attorney for the Commonwealth at least 60 days prior to his trial in circuit court, or at least 14 days if the trial date is set within 21 days of his last court appearance, of his intention to present such evidence. Additionally, if such notice is not given, and the person proffers such evidence at his trial as a defense, then the court may in its discretion either allow the Commonwealth a continuance or, under appropriate circumstances, bar such person from presenting such evidence; any such continuance shall not be counted for speedy trial purposes pursuant to relevant law.Lastly, the bill provides that if such person does not prove that his behaviors were a result of his mental illness, intellectual disability, developmental disability, or neurocognitive disorder but the evidence establishes that his mental illness, intellectual disability, developmental disability, or neurocognitive disorder otherwise contributed to his behaviors, the finder of fact may find such person guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. The bill also provides that such affirmative defense shall not be construed to allow an affirmative defense for voluntary intoxication. This bill is identical to SB 335.

Vivian E. WattsDemocrat

Deferred dispos. in criminal case; persons with autism, intellectual, or developmental disabilities.

Deferred disposition in a criminal case; persons with autism, intellectual disabilities, or developmental disabilities; expungement. Adds developmental disabilities to the autism and intellectual disability deferred disposition statute. The bill also provides that when a court defers and dismisses a charge pursuant to the autism, intellectual disability, or developmental disability deferred disposition statute, such charge may be considered as otherwise dismissed for purposes of expungement of police and court records. The bill also (i) clarifies that the defendant may request a hearing to determine the appropriateness of a deferred disposition at any time before or after any plea and (ii) provides that no statement made by the defendant at such a hearing is admissible in any criminal proceeding, except that any such statement made under oath may be admissible in a criminal proceeding for perjury or for purposes of impeachment in a criminal matter. This bill is identical to SB 416.

Vivian E. WattsDemocrat

Interjurisdictional law-enforcement agreements; development of behavioral health co-response teams.

Interjurisdictional law-enforcement agreements; behavioral health co-response teams. Provides that interjurisdictional law-enforcement agreements may allow for the development of co-response teams staffed by one or more law-enforcement agencies that respond to behavioral health-related calls in multiple jurisdictions. This bill is a recommendation of the Behavioral Health Commission. This bill is identical to SB 317.

Vivian E. WattsDemocrat

Marcus alert system; external database information removal.

Marcus alert system; external database information removal. Clarifies that an individual's information may continue to appear on a voluntary Marcus alert system external database that cannot be modified by a locality after such individual reaches 18 years of age. This bill is a recommendation of the Behavioral Health Commission.

Vivian E. WattsDemocrat

Sex offenses prohibiting proximity to children; Park Authorities Act, penalty.

Sex offenses prohibiting proximity to children; Park Authorities Act; penalty. Provides that every adult who is convicted of an offense prohibiting proximity to children, when the offense occurred on or after July 1, 2026, shall as part of his sentence be forever prohibited from going, for the purpose of having any contact whatsoever with children who are not in his custody, within 100 feet of the premises of any place owned or operated by an authority created pursuant to the Park Authorities Act that he knows or should know is a playground, athletic field or facility, or gymnasium.The bill also provides that any person convicted of an offense under the laws of any foreign country or any political subdivision thereof, or the United States or any political subdivision thereof, similar to any offense set forth in current law shall be forever prohibited from going, for the purpose of having any contact whatsoever with children who are not in his custody, within 100 feet of the premises of any place owned or operated by an authority created pursuant to the Park Authorities Act that he knows or has reason to know is a playground, athletic field or facility, or gymnasium.A violation of the bill's provisions is punishable as a Class 6 felony.

Vivian E. WattsDemocrat

Little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium); designating as the official state grass.

Official emblems and designations; state grass; little bluestem. Designates little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium) as the official state grass.

Holly M. SeiboldDemocrat

Data centers; site assessment, sound profile of the high energy use facility.

Siting of data centers; site assessment; high energy use facility. Provides that, prior to any approval of a rezoning application, special exception application, or special use permit for the siting of a new high energy use facility (HEUF), as defined in the bill, a locality shall require that an applicant perform and submit a site assessment to examine the sound profile of the HEUF on residential units and schools located within 500 feet of the HEUF property boundary. The bill also allows a locality to require that a site assessment examine the effect of the proposed facility on (i) ground and surface water resources, (ii) agricultural resources, (iii) parks, (iv) registered historic sites, and (v) forestland on the HEUF site or immediately contiguous land. The provisions of the bill shall not apply to a site with an existing legislative or administrative approval where an applicant is seeking an expansion or modification of an already existing or approved facility and such expansion does not exceed an additional 100 megawatts or more of electrical power. Finally, the bill provides that its provisions shall not be construed to prohibit, limit, or otherwise supersede existing local zoning authority. This bill incorporates HB 511 and is identical to SB 94.

Joshua E. ThomasDemocrat

Electronic Death Reg. System; requiring certain applicants for licensure to complete training.

Board of Medicine and Board of Nursing; licensure renewal; electronic death registration system; death certificates. Requires the Board of Medicine and Board of Nursing to amend their applications for licensure and licensure renewal to require doctors of medicine and osteopathic medicine, advanced practice registered nurses, and physician assistants to indicate if they expect their scope of practice to include signing death certificates and, if so, to indicate that they have completed the online tutorial for the Electronic Death Registration System on the Department of Health website. This bill is identical to SB 194.

Paul E. KrizekDemocrat

Va. Freedom of Information Act; proceedings for enforcement, petition for mandamus or injunction.

Virginia Freedom of Information Act; proceedings for enforcement; petition for mandamus or injunction. Specifies that service of process or a summons for a hearing shall not be required when a petition for mandamus or injunction to enforce rights granted under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act has been filed.

Marcus B. SimonDemocrat

FOIA; officers, employees, or members of a public body, alleged willful and knowing violations.

Virginia Freedom of Information Act; officers, employees, or members of a public body; alleged willful and knowing violations; mitigating factors to be considered. Specifies that civil penalties may only be imposed on officers, employees, or members of a public body in actions brought against them in their individual capacity for certain violations of the Virginia Freedom of Information Act. The bill further requires a court, when determining whether an officer, an employee, or a member of a public body has committed certain violations of the Virginia Freedom of Information Act willfully and knowingly, to consider certain mitigating factors, including good faith reliance on (i) opinions of the Attorney General; (ii) court cases substantially supporting such officer's, employee's, or member's actions; (iii) advisory opinions of the Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council; and (iv) advice of counsel for the public body, as evidence that such officer, employee, or member did not willfully and knowingly commit such violation. Current law provides any officer, employee, or member of a public body the right to introduce at any proceeding regarding such willful and knowing violation a copy of a relevant advisory opinion issued by the Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council. This bill is a recommendation of the Boyd-Graves Conference.

Marcus B. SimonDemocrat

Public campaign financing; counties and cities may establish for certain offices.

Public campaign financing; counties and cities may establish for certain offices. Authorizes the governing body of a county or city to establish by ordinance a system of public campaign financing for elected local offices. The bill specifies certain requirements for a system of public campaign financing established by a governing body, including the provision of a public election fund to be administered by the treasurer of the county or city. A system of public campaign financing established by a county or city is permitted to more stringently regulate the campaign finance activity of participating candidates and shall be subject to regulation and oversight by the State Board of Elections to ensure its conformity with state law and policy to the extent practicable.

Marcus B. SimonDemocrat

Notarization, filing, & recordation of certain land records; duties of notary or settlement agent.

Notarization, filing, and recordation of certain land records; duties of notary or settlement agent; acknowledgement and satisfactory evidence of identity; requirements for commission or recommission of notary; clerk of circuit court to establish property alert notification system. Removes personal knowledge of identity from the methods by which a notary public, electronic notary public, or other person authorized by law to perform a notarial act may identify an individual for purposes of performing a notarial act such as acknowledgement or affirmation. Under current law, the identity of an individual for such purpose may be established if such individual is personally known to the person performing the notarial act or by a presentation of satisfactory evidence of identity, as defined by law. The bill also adds a requirement that, within the six months immediately preceding the submission of his application, a person applying for commission to be a notary public or electronic notary public, or an existing notary public or electronic notary public applying for recommission, complete a course of instruction developed and approved by the Secretary of the Commonwealth. The bill specifies that one hour of such course of instruction shall be on the topic of real estate fraud and financial exploitation of elderly persons and shall include training on current trends on such topics and on recognizing instances of such fraud or financial exploitation. The bill directs the Secretary of the Commonwealth to develop the curricula for such courses of instruction by January 1, 2027, and has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027, for those provisions related to the requirement that applicants for commission and recommission complete and present proof of completion of such courses of instruction. The bill also requires any clerk of a circuit court that has established a network or system of electronic filing of land records to also establish a property alert notification system for owners of real property within the circuit court's jurisdiction. The bill provides that an owner who enrolls his real property into such property alert notification system may do so at no cost and that such system shall send notifications to such owner when documents affecting or purporting to affect the enrolled property are filed with the clerk's office. The provisions related to the establishment of the property alert notification system have a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027. Finally, the bill requires notaries public to keep a record of all notarial acts occurring on or after July 1, 2026, and to include in such record the form of satisfactory evidence of identification used to verify the identity of the principal and credible witnesses. Similarly, the bill requires settlement agents responsible for recording deeds, deeds of trust, or other documents relating to land records to obtain satisfactory evidence of identity of a seller of real property prior to settlement. This bill is identical to SB 316.

Marcus B. SimonDemocrat

Housing for local employees; grants for homeownership.

Housing for local employees; grants for homeownership and workforce housing alternatives. Eliminates the maximum amount a locality may provide (i) to employees of the locality, employees of the school board, and employees of constitutional officers for homeownership grants to purchase primary residences in the locality and (ii) to school division personnel for residential housing assistance grants to provide affordable workforce housing alternatives. The bill also eliminates the requirement that such grants adhere to the Virginia Housing and Development Authority regional sales price and household income limitation guidelines. Current law imposes a maximum grant amount of $25,000 for individual grants per employee, as well as a maximum lifetime cumulative amount of $25,000 per employee. This bill is identical to SB 328.

Joshua E. ThomasDemocrat

Contractors, Board for; examinations available in alternative languages.

Board for Contractors; examinations; alternative languages. Provides that any exam offered by the Board for Contractors that averaged over 50 administrations per year over the preceding four-year period shall be made available in any language that meets the threshold for having election materials printed in that language pursuant to state election law.

Joshua E. ThomasDemocrat

Noise ordinances; removes exemption for industrial property, civil penalties.

Noise ordinances; industrial property; civil penalties. Removes the exemption for noise generated in connection with the business being performed on industrial property from being subject to civil penalties for violations of local noise ordinances.

Joshua E. ThomasDemocrat

Tax exemptions; Confederacy organizations.

Tax exemptions; Confederacy organizations. Eliminates the exemption from state recordation taxes for the Virginia Division of the United Daughters of the Confederacy and eliminates the tax-exempt designation for real and personal property owned by the Virginia Division of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, the General Organization of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, the Confederate Memorial Literary Society, the Stonewall Jackson Memorial, Incorporated, the Virginia Division, Sons of Confederate Veterans, and the J.E.B. Stuart Birthplace Preservation Trust, Inc. The bill contains technical amendments.

Alex Q. AskewDemocrat

Election of certain governing bodies; conversion to single-member districts.

Election of certain governing bodies; conversion to single-member districts. Requires every locality with a population of 400,000 or greater to elect the members of its governing body by individual single-member districts. The bill provides that a governing body's presiding officer may be elected at large. The bill further provides that any such governing body that does not already meet the requirements of the bill shall establish the required districts and shall reapportion the representation in the governing body in accordance with general law. Finally, the bill provides that for any such governing body that, prior to 2026, adopted an ordinance with a map to elect its members by individual single-member districts, such ordinance shall become effective upon the effective date of this act. This bill is identical to SB 51 and contains an emergency clause.

Alex Q. AskewDemocrat

Emergency management; work group to evaluate existing needs in the Commonwealth, report.

Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security; evaluation of emergency management needs in the Commonwealth; report. Directs the Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security to establish a work group to evaluate existing emergency management needs, analyze sustainability of current funding of such needs, and review alternative funding models for such needs in other states, and to report the work group's findings and recommendations to the Chairs of the House Committees on Appropriations and General Laws and the Senate Committees on Finance and Appropriations and General Laws and Technology on or before October 1, 2026. This bill is identical to SB 98.

Alex Q. AskewDemocrat

Real estate appraisers; ed. requirements for licensure, fair housing and appraisal bias course.

Real estate appraisers; educational requirements for licensure; fair housing and appraisal bias course. Requires, in addition to successfully completing an examination, applicants for licensure as a certified residential real estate appraiser or a certified general real estate appraiser to also successfully complete a fair housing and appraisal bias education course administered or approved by the Real Estate Appraiser Board prior to licensure, the specifics of which are provided in the bill.

Alex Q. AskewDemocrat

Student instruction; Internet safety, policy to include key modern digital safety topics.

Student instruction; internet safety; certain topics. Requires the internet safety component that is integrated into each school division's instructional program as required by its acceptable internet use policy to include instruction on key modern digital safety topics, including online scams, misinformation, and content generated by artificial intelligence.

Alex Q. AskewDemocrat

Criminal cases; request for a jury to ascertain range of punishment, etc.

Criminal cases; request for a jury to ascertain punishment. Provides that an accused may withdraw a request for a jury to ascertain punishment up until the commencement of the sentencing proceeding. The bill also provides that counsel for either party shall have the right to examine jurors regarding the potential punishment, or range or ranges of punishment, regardless of whether the jury will ascertain punishment and that the court or counsel for either party may inform any person or juror during voir dire as to the potential punishment, or range or ranges of punishment, to ascertain if the person or juror can sit impartially in the guilt or sentencing phase of the case. Current law provides that the court or counsel for either party may inform any person or juror during voir dire as to the potential range of punishment to ascertain if the person or juror can sit impartially in the sentencing phase of the case.

Leslie Chambers MehtaDemocrat

State correctional facilities; visitation policies, annual report.

State correctional facilities; visitation policies; work group. Sets additional visitation standards for visitors to state correctional facilities. The bill requires the Department of Corrections (the Department) to provide extended or additional visitation access for long-distance visitors. The bill provides that each in-person visit shall last a minimum of two hours unless shortened at the request of either the visitor or the incarcerated individual, or in response to an active security event. The bill also provides that visitation privileges may be suspended only for conduct occurring during visitation that presents a direct and substantial threat to the physical safety of participants or the security of the correctional facility. The bill provides a timeline and process for appealing any suspension of visitation rights. Finally, the bill directs the Department to convene a work group to consider and develop practical policy and legislative recommendations regarding visitation. The work group is required to report its findings and specific legislative and policy recommendations to the General Assembly by October 1, 2026. This bill is identical to SB 276.

Bonita G. AnthonyDemocrat

Va. Residential Landlord & Tenant Act; early termination of rental agreement by military personnel.

Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; tenant remedies; early termination of rental agreement by military personnel. Removes the requirement that military personnel terminating a rental agreement due to identified permissible circumstances shall provide the landlord with a termination date that is no more than 60 days prior to the date of departure necessary to comply with the official orders or any supplemental instructions for interim training or duty prior to the transfer.

Michael B. FeggansDemocrat

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 by ordinance to provide a total exemption from real property taxes regardless of assessed value beginning in taxable year 2026 for surviving spouses of members of the Armed Forces who died in the line of duty. Under current law, a total exemption is only allowed for such surviving spouses for those dwellings in the locality 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.

Michael B. FeggansDemocrat

State-facilitated IRA savings program; various changes to the program.

State-facilitated IRA savings program. Makes various changes to the state-facilitated IRA savings program administered by the Commonwealth Savers Plan. For purposes of defining an eligible employer, the bill (i) reduces the minimum number of eligible employees an organization must have in its employ from 25 to five for the period ending December 31 of the preceding calendar year prior to the program's open enrollment period for that calendar year and (ii) clarifies that such term does not include employers offering and sponsoring a qualified retirement plan, including 401(k) plans. The bill also removes the requirement that an eligible employee, for purposes of the program, works at least 30 hours a week and adds the requirement that participating individuals enrolling in the program independent of an employment relationship with an eligible employer be at least 18 years of age. The bill also expands the powers and duties of the governing board of the Commonwealth Savers Plan to include (a) procedures for reenrollment of participating employees and participating individuals; (b) allowing program participants to invest in a lifetime income option; (c) establishing the resources, tools, and incentives to promote greater financial education and literacy; (d) procedures for receiving and crediting federal matching contributions to an IRA or qualified retirement savings account; and (e) exploring and establishing incentives that encourage participation by eligible employers and eligible employees, including initiatives that incentivize compliance or that defray any costs incurred by an eligible employer to facilitate participation.The bill also requires eligible employers that withhold a program contribution from a participating employee's wages to remit such contribution not later than 10 business days following the date upon which such withholding was made and notes that eligible employers who fail to submit contributions to the program may be in violation of law and incur penalties. This bill is identical to SB 149.

Luke E. TorianDemocrat

Fee for passing bad checks to localities; payment order not paid by recipient.

Fee for passing bad checks to localities. Makes clarifying amendments to existing provisions related to the imposition of a fee by a locality for the passing of a bad check and adds a reference to electronic payment orders to such provisions. The bill also provides that no fee shall be imposed as the result of an electronic payment order that is not honored as the result of the nonexistence of any account matching the account information provided by the taxpayer, provided that the taxpayer has not tendered any other electronic payment order that was not honored during the 12 months preceding the tender of the payment order in question.

Bonita G. AnthonyDemocrat

Certified student support agencies; DOE to assess impact of developing program for students.

Department of Education; assessment; certified student support agencies; report. Requires the Department of Education (the Department) to assess the impact of developing a program to provide student support programs to students enrolled in a public elementary or secondary school through certified student support agencies, as defined in the bill. The bill requires the Department, in conducting such assessment, to consider (i) a framework by which a certified student support agency would enter into a memorandum of understanding with a school board for the purpose of providing student support programs, as defined in the bill, and suggested components of such memorandums of understanding, such as (a) documentation establishing the organization's nonprofit status, (b) a description of each student support program that such organization provides, (c) policies and procedures relating to privacy, background checks, mandated reporting, and the transmission, collection, use, and disposal of student personal information, and (d) consent forms and procedures to be used by such student support programs to obtain the necessary consent from the parent of any student under 18 years of age; (ii) the feasibility of establishing and administering a certification process for certified student support agencies; (iii) potential compliance monitoring and enforcement mechanisms and subsequent penalties for noncompliance to ensure that each certified student support agency complies with such program; (iv) policies and procedures for the secure disposal of a student's personal information upon such student's withdrawal from a student support program, upon the cessation of any such program, or upon such student's graduation or transfer from the school division; and (v) cost estimates, including staffing needs, for the development and implementation of such program. The bill requires the Department to submit a report on its findings to the Chairs of the Senate Committees on Finance and Appropriations and Education and Health and the House Committees on Appropriations and Education no later than November 1, 2026. This bill is identical to SB 190.

Bonita G. AnthonyDemocrat

Affordable dwelling unit program; adds Roanoke City to list of localities with authority to provide.

Affordable dwelling unit program; City of Roanoke. Adds the City of Roanoke to the list of localities with authority to provide for an affordable dwelling unit program. The bill provides that such change shall not become effective unless reenacted by the 2027 Session of the General Assembly. The bill also requires the Virginia Housing Development Authority to analyze the potential efficacy of the provisions of the bill for the provision of affordable housing in the City of Roanoke and to report the results of such analysis no later than November 1, 2026.

Sam RasoulDemocrat

High school graduation requirements; history and social studies credits.

High school graduation requirements; history and social studies credits; certain substitutions permitted. Requires the Board of Education, in establishing high school graduation requirements, to permit any student to substitute the African American History course or the Advanced Placement African American Studies course for the World History I course or the World Geography course for the purpose of satisfying the history and social studies credit requirements, provided that (i) such a course is available to the student and (ii) the student is required to complete and receive a passing score on an applicable local alternative assessment or an equivalent Board-approved assessment, in order to satisfy history and social studies credit requirements for graduation. The bill directs the Board of Education to amend its regulations in accordance with the provisions of the bill and to ensure that no student who makes such a substitution is required to earn a verified credit for the World History I or World Geography course in order to graduate. This bill is identical to SB 427.

David A. ReidDemocrat

First-time home buyer savings plan; townhouses, principal limits.

First-time home buyer savings plan; townhouses; principal limits. Includes townhouses in the definition of single-family residence for purposes of the First-Time Home Buyer Savings Plan Act. The bill also increases (i) the aggregate amount of principal that can be contributed to a first-time home buyer savings account from $50,000 to $100,000 and (ii) the limit on the amount of principal and interest or other income on the principal that may be retained in such an account from $150,000 to $200,000. The bill defines first-time home buyer, and includes that term in the definition of qualified beneficiary.

David A. ReidDemocrat

All-Payer Claims Database; Virginia Department of Health shall conduct an evaluation, report.

Bureau of Insurance; evaluation of All-Payer Claims Database; report. Directs the State Corporation Commission's Bureau of Insurance (the Bureau) to conduct an evaluation of the All-Payer Claims Database and the data submitted thereto in facilitating data-driven, evidence-based improvements in access, quality, and cost of health care in the Commonwealth. The bill requires the Bureau to submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the Governor and General Assembly no later than December 1, 2026.

Dan I. HelmerDemocrat

Orders closing a proceeding; petitions for review.

Orders closing a proceeding; petitions for review. Provides that when a circuit court acts on or issues an order pertaining to the closure of a proceeding, such order is eligible for immediate appellate review with the Supreme Court of Virginia. The bill further provides that any person aggrieved by such an order may, within 15 days of the entry of such an order, file a petition for review with the Supreme Court of Virginia. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the Boyd-Graves Conference.

Leslie Chambers MehtaDemocrat

Virginia Beach, City of; amending charter, transition to a city council, voting districts.

Charter; City of Virginia Beach. Amends the charter for the City of Virginia Beach to reflect the City's transition to a city council consisting solely of single-member districts and the mayor. This bill is identical to SB 681 and contains an emergency clause.

Kelly K. Convirs-FowlerDemocrat

Certain student assessment requirements; calculation of final course grade, effective clause.

Certain student assessment requirements; calculation of final course grade; repeal. Repeals a provision of law that requires the score of any student in grades seven through 12 on any Standards of Learning assessment or permissive local alternative assessment to account for at least 10 percent of the student's final grade in the relevant course. The bill contains a reenactment clause.

Kelly K. Convirs-FowlerDemocrat

Electronic fund transfers; Office of AG shall convene work group to review fraudulent activity, etc.

Office of the Attorney General; work group; fraudulent activity in electronic fund transfers; report. Directs the Office of the Attorney General to convene a work group to review the Electronic Funds Transfers Act, develop recommendations to aid individuals in the Commonwealth in preventing and mitigating fraudulent activity in electronic fund transfers, and submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the General Assembly no later than December 1, 2026.

Kelly K. Convirs-FowlerDemocrat

Victims of sex trafficking; immunity for minors to arrest or prosecution for prostitution.

Victims of sex trafficking; minors; immunity to prosecution for prostitution. Provides that no minor shall be subject to arrest or prosecution for a qualifying offense, defined in relevant law, if at the time of the offense leading to such charge, such minor was a victim of sex trafficking, defined in relevant law. The bill also provides that such minor shall be referred to the local department of social services for a human trafficking or other assessment pursuant to relevant law and a law-enforcement officer or the local department of social services may take custody of such minor. Lastly, the bill provides that no law-enforcement officer acting in good faith shall be found liable for false arrest if it is later determined that the minor arrested was immune from prosecution.

Kelly K. Convirs-FowlerDemocrat