Civil actions filed on behalf of multiple persons; class actions.
In plain English Establishes procedures for class action lawsuits, including certification requirements, settlement rules, and damages awards for Virginia Consumer Protection Act violations.
Official synopsis: Civil actions filed on behalf of multiple persons; class actions; violations of Virginia Consumer Protection Act; award of damages. Provides that one or more members of a class may, as representative parties on behalf of all members, bring a civil action or may be proceeded…
VetoedVetoed by Governor · 2026-05-19
Public employees; repeals existing prohibition on collective bargaining, etc.
In plain English Allows public employees to engage in collective bargaining and establishes a board to oversee bargaining units and elections.
Official synopsis: Collective bargaining by public employees; individual home care providers; Virginia Home Care Council established; Public Employee Relations Board established; exclusive bargaining representatives. Repeals the existing prohibition on collective bargaining by public employees. The bill creates the Public Employee Relations Board, which shall determine appropriate bargaining…
VetoedVetoed by Governor · 2026-05-14
Compost and other products containing organic soil amendments; waste disposal infrastructure, etc.
In plain English Allows localities to prefer locally-made compost in tied bids, requires large organic waste generators to separate waste, and encourages waste disposal infrastructure in public schools.
Official synopsis: Local competitive bidding for compost and other products containing organic soil amendments; waste disposal infrastructure; civil penalty. Allows the governing body of a locality to give preference to compost or other products containing organic soil amendments produced within such locality in the case of a…
Became lawActs of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP1122) · 2026-05-14
Police and court records; expungement of records, delayed effective date.
In plain English Allows people not ultimately convicted of charges to request expungement of police and court records, with certain conditions, effective December 1, 2026.
Official synopsis: Expungement of police and court records. Permits the expungement of police and court records relating to an initial charge when a person is arrested, charged, summonsed, or indicted for the commission of an infraction, a crime, or a civil offense and such person is not…
Became lawActs of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP1127) · 2026-05-14
Virginia Clean Energy Innovation Bank; created, report, membership.
In plain English Creates the Virginia Clean Energy Innovation Bank to finance clean energy and emissions reduction projects through grants, loans, and other financing mechanisms.
Official synopsis: Virginia Clean Energy Innovation Bank; established; report. Creates the Virginia Clean Energy Innovation Bank to finance clean energy projects, greenhouse gas emissions reduction projects, and other qualified projects through the strategic deployment of public funds in the form of grants, loans, credit enhancements, and other…
Became lawActs of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP1126) · 2026-05-14
Casino gaming; eligible host localities.
In plain English Adds Fairfax County as eligible to host a casino if the site is near a Metro Silver Line station, part of a large mixed-use development, near a major mall, and outside the Beltway.
Official synopsis: Casino gaming; eligible host localities. Adds Fairfax County to the list of localities eligible to host a casino in the Commonwealth and provides that any proposed site for a casino gaming establishment considered by Fairfax County shall be (i) located within one-quarter of a mile…
VetoedPassed by for the day (Voice Vote) · 2026-04-22
Electric utilities; small portable solar generation devices, local regulation.
In plain English Prevents localities from banning small portable solar devices on homes and prohibits utilities from charging fees or requiring approval for their installation.
Official synopsis: Electric utilities; small portable solar generation devices; local regulation; installation by tenants; consumer protection. Prevents a locality from prohibiting the use of a small portable solar generation device, as defined in the bill, on a residential structure, provided that certain requirements are met. The bill…
Became lawActs of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0998) · 2026-04-22
Law-enforcement officers, state and local; enforcement of federal traffic infractions.
In plain English Allows state and local law-enforcement officers to enforce federal traffic infractions in Planning District 8 and permits photo speed monitoring devices on National Park highways.
Official synopsis: Enforcement of federal traffic infractions by state and local law-enforcement officers; Planning District 8. Provides that state and local law-enforcement officers may enforce federal traffic infractions on any highway within Planning District 8. The bill also provides that a state or local law-enforcement agency may…
Became lawActs of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0986) · 2026-04-22
Air Pollution Control Board; regulations, small renewable energy projects, anaerobic tech., report.
Air Pollution Control Board regulations; small renewable energy projects; anaerobic digestion technology; report. Provides that for the purposes of a permit by rule for a small renewable energy project under existing law, a small renewable energy project includes an electrical generation facility in a locality…
Became lawActs of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0901) · 2026-04-13
Smart Solar Permitting Platform; established, residential solar energy systems.
Smart Solar Permitting Platform established; residential solar energy systems; work group; report. Creates the Smart Solar Permitting Platform (the Platform) to serve as a tool for (i) contractors to obtain permits for the construction of streamline-eligible residential solar energy systems and (ii) localities to process…
Became lawActs of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0634) · 2026-04-13
Residential property owners; insurance policies, roofing services by contractors.
Residential property owners; insurance policies; roofing services by contractors; prohibited practices and consumer protection. Prohibits insurers from refusing coverage or canceling, refusing to renew, or increasing the premiums of a policy written to insure an owner-occupied dwelling solely based on the age or condition of…
Became lawActs of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0658) · 2026-04-13
Electric utilities; definitions, integrated resource plans, report.
Electric utilities; integrated resource plans. Makes various changes related to the content and process for an integrated resource plan (IRP) developed by an electric utility that provides a forecast of its load obligations and a plan to meet those obligations. The bill (i) extends the…
Became lawActs of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0608) · 2026-04-13
Renewable energy portfolio standard program; energy from geothermal heating/cooling systems, report.
Renewable energy portfolio standard program; geothermal heating and cooling systems; report. Requires, for purposes of the renewable energy portfolio standard program, Dominion Energy Virginia and American Electric Power to annually procure and retire certain percentages of renewable energy certificates from geothermal heating and cooling systems,…
Became lawActs of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0734) · 2026-04-13
Electric utilities; shared solar programs, Phase II Utility.
Electric utilities; shared solar programs; Phase II Utility. Amends certain provisions related to the shared solar program established by the State Corporation Commission for Dominion Energy Virginia. Under the bill, Dominion Energy Virginia is authorized to release an additional 525 megawatts of capacity as part…
Became lawActs of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0671) · 2026-04-13
Electric utilities; shared solar programs, Phase I Utility.
Electric utilities; shared solar programs; Phase I Utility. Amends certain provisions related to the shared solar program established by the State Corporation Commission for Appalachian Power Company. The bill permits excess bill credits to be distributed to shared solar subscribers more than once annually. The…
Became lawActs of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0674) · 2026-04-13
“In plain English” lines are written by ThePolitibase with AI (Claude), from the official synopsis only; the synopsis is the authoritative text. Descriptions are the legislature’s own synopsis. Bill data from LegiScan, CC BY 4.0.