2022 VA General Assembly

Start date of Special Session has been changed to Mon, April 4.
[Originally scheduled for April 27, 2022. See GA calendar]

Status of 2022 Priority Legislation

of the Virginia Grassroots Coalition

Enrolled = Bill has passed both houses, sent to the Governor, but not yet signed.
Conf. Comm. = Bill passed each house in different forms, will be resolved in Special Session.

■ = Bill is dead or 'continued.'

Cat	Number	Title	Patron	House	Senate	GA	Governor	updated
2022 Priority Bills Legislation we oppose
education	HB 4 Oppose	Requires school principals report to law enforcement certain enumerated acts that may constitute a misdemeanor offense. more... Requires that school principals report to law enforcement certain enumerated acts that may constitute a misdemeanor offense and report to the parents of any minor student who is the specific object of such act that the incident has been reported to law enforcement. Under current law, principals are required to make such reports only for such acts that may constitute a felony offense.	Scott Wyatt (R-HD97)	Passed	Passed		Signed 05/27/22 Governor: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0793)	1/6/23
climate	HB 5 Oppose	Flood Relief Fund; established. more... Establishes the Flood Relief Fund (the Fund), funded by reducing the allocation of Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) funds to the Community Flood Preparedness Fund from 45 to 40 percent and allocating the five percent to the Fund. ...	James Morefield (R-HD3)	Tabled				2/12/22
education	HB 9 Oppose	Public school teachers; probationary term of service, grounds for dismissal, and dismissal hearings. more... Permits each school board to extend for up to two additional years the three-year probationary term of service that is required for each teacher in the school division before the issuance of a continuing contract and prohibits each school board from reemploying a teacher whose performance evaluation during such probationary period is not satisfactory. ...	Lee Ware (R-HD65)	Passed	PBI			2/17/22
education	HB 12 Oppose	Public school buildings; limits entry points, screening individuals. more... Requires each local school board to (i) limit to the lowest feasible number the entry points in each public school building in the local school division, (ii) ensure that each individual who seeks to enter any school building in the local school division is screened with a handheld metal detector wand by a school security officer or another appropriate school board employee who is appropriately trained in such method of screening, (iii) require each such school security officer or other appropri	Timothy Anderson (R-HD83)	Left				2/15/22
guns	HB 14 Oppose	Handguns; limitation on purchases. more... Removes the prohibition on any person who is not a licensed firearms dealer from purchasing more than one handgun in a 30-day period. Current law makes it a Class 1 misdemeanor for a violation of this provision, subject to certain exemptions.	Timothy Anderson (R-HD83)	Left				2/15/22
Health	HB 22 Oppose	Medical mandates; each adult has a fundamental right to be free from mandates. more... Declares that, except as otherwise provided by law, each adult has a fundamental right to be free from medical mandates of the Commonwealth or any locality, private employer, health care entity or provider, or provider of public accommodations. ...	Wendell S. Walker (R-HD23)	Left				2/15/22
guns	HB 26 Oppose	Firearms; control by localities of possession or carrying. more... Removes the authority for a locality by ordinance to prohibit the possession or carrying of firearms, etc.	Timothy Anderson (R-HD83)	Left				2/15/22
Health	HB 27 Oppose	COVID-19 vaccination status; mandatory COVID-19 vaccination prohibited, discrimination prohibited. more... Prohibits the State Health Commissioner and the Board of Health, the Board of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, [+more] from requiring any person to undergo vaccination for COVID-19 and prohibits discrimination based on a person's COVID-19 vaccination status with regard to education or public employment and in numerous other contexts. ...	Timothy Anderson (R-HD83)	Left				2/15/22
voting rights	HB 34 Oppose	Repeals establishment of drop-off locations for the return of absentee ballots. more... Absentee voting; return of absentee ballots; drop-off locations. Repeals the provisions of law providing for the establishment of drop-off locations for the return of absentee ballots.	Ronnie Campbell (R-HD24)	Passed	PBI			2/28/22
voting rights	HB 35 Oppose	Excuse required to vote absentee in person prior to the second Saturday preceding an election. more... Requires a registered voter to provide a reason for being absent or unable to vote at his polling place on election day in order to receive an absentee ballot to vote by mail. Registered voters offering to vote absentee in person are similarly required by the bill to provide a reason until the second Saturday immediately preceding an election, at which time an excuse is not required to vote absentee in person. The bill provides that an application for an absentee ballot is required to receive an	Ronnie Campbell (R-HD24)	Left				2/15/22
voting rights	HB 36 Oppose	Repeals permanent absentee voter list. more... Repeals the provisions of law by which any registered voter may apply to receive absentee ballots for all elections in which he is eligible to vote and remains on the list until the voter requests in writing to be removed from the list, the voter's registration is canceled or placed on inactive status pursuant to law, or the voter moves to a different address not in the same county or city of his registration.	Ronnie Campbell (R-HD24)	Left				2/15/22
education	HB 59 Oppose	School principals; incident reports. more... Requires that school principals report to law enforcement certain enumerated acts that may constitute a misdemeanor offense and report to the parents of any minor student who is the specific object of such act that the incident has been reported to law enforcement. Under current law, principals are required to make such reports only for such acts that may constitute a felony offense.	John McGuire (R-HD56)	Left				2/15/22
climate	HB 73 Oppose	Electric utilities; definitions, aggregate capacity requirements for renewable energy facilities. more... Amends certain provisions related to the Air Pollution Control Board's regulation of carbon dioxide emissions. The bill removes certain requirements for energy efficiency pilot programs to be considered in the public interest. The bill removes aggregate capacity requirements for renewable energy generating facilities, including facilities utilizing energy derived from sunlight, onshore wind, and offshore wind. ...	Lee Ware (R-HD65)	Passed	PBI			2/28/22
climate	HB 74 Oppose	Clean Economy Act; non-bypassable charges, energy-intensive trade-exposed (EITE) industries more... Defines EITE industries as companies that are constrained in their ability to pass through carbon costs due to international competition, companies that engage in importation of products that cause emission leakage, and critical infrastructure facilities identified by certain federal agencies. ...	Lee Ware (R-HD65)	Passed	PBI			2/28/22
justice	HB 79 Oppose	Marijuana and certain traffic offenses; issuing citations. more... ...The bill also repeals the provision that provides that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop, search, or seize any person, place, or thing solely on the basis of the odor of marijuana and that no evidence discovered or obtained as a result of such unlawful search or seizure shall be admissible ...	Ronnie Campbell (R-HD24)	Passed	PBI			2/28/22
climate	HB 118 Oppose	Electric utilities; regulation, development of renewable energy facilities. more... Repeals provisions (i) requiring the State Air Pollution Control Board to adopt regulations to reduce carbon dioxide emissions... (ii) prohibiting the State Corporation Commission from approving any new utility-owned generation facilities that emit carbon dioxide... (iii) declaring that statutory allowances for energy derived from sunlight, onshore wind, offshore wind, and storage facilities are in the public interest; ...	Nicholas Freitas (R-HD30)	Passed	PBI			2/28/22
public-private	HB 119 Oppose	Public-Private Competition Act; created, repeals Competitive Government Act, etc. more... ...Prohibits public bodies from engaging in any commercial activity, defined in the bill to mean any activity that can be performed by an existing private business. The bill creates an exemption for commercial activities that public bodies are required to perform pursuant to the Constitution of Virginia. ...	Marie March (R-HD7)	Stricken				2/15/22
education	HB 127 Oppose	Academic year Governor's Schools; certain practices prohibited and permitted. more... Prohibits any academic year Governor's School or governing board member, director, administrator, or employee thereof from (i) discriminating against or granting preferential treatment to any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin; (ii) engaging in proxy discrimination, as defined in the bill, in student admissions; or (iii) seeking information on students' race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin during the application process for admission to	Glenn Davis (R-HD84)	Passed	Passed		Signed 04/11/22 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 485 (effective 7/1/22)	4/12/22
climate	HB 202 Oppose	Solar facilities; permit by rule. more... Lowers from 150 to 20 megawatts the maximum generation capacity of an electrical generation facility that generates electricity only from sunlight to qualify for issuance of a permit by rule.	Michael Webert (R-HD18)	Left				2/15/22
climate	HB 206 Oppose	Small renewable energy projects; impact on natural resources. more... Requires, as a condition for a permit by rule for a small energy project, that the applicant conduct an analysis of the beneficial and adverse impacts of the proposed project on natural resources ...	Michael Webert (R-HD18)	Passed	Passed		Signed 04/11/22 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 688 (effective - see bill)	4/12/22
climate	HB 558 Oppose	Natural gas, biogas, and other gas sources of energy; definitions, energy conservation. more... Permits natural gas utilities to include in their fuel portfolios, ... supplemental or substitute forms of gas sources, defined in the bill, that meet certain standards and that reduce emissions intensity....	Israel O'Quinn (R-HD5)	Passed	Passed	Sub Adopted 02/28/22 House: VOTE: Adoption (68-Y 30-N)	Signed 04/27/22 Governor: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0759)	1/6/23
climate	HB 656 Oppose	Coal refuse energy and reclamation tax credit. more... Creates a nonrefundable individual and corporate income tax credit for taxable years 2023 through 2027 equal to $4 per ton of qualified coal refuse used to generate electricity at an eligible facility, defined in the bill, in the Commonwealth by an eligible taxpayer, defined in the bill, during the taxable year. ...	William Wampler (R-HD4)	Left				2/15/22
climate	HB 657 Oppose	Public utilities; waste coal and certain coal-fired electric generating units. more... Provides that renewable energy and renewable energy standard eligible sources include energy derived from waste coal, which the bill defines as usable material that is a byproduct of previous coal processing operations. Additionally, the bill provides an exception to the requirement that all electric generating units located in the Commonwealth that emit carbon as a by-product of combusting fuel to generate electricity are closed by December 31, 2045, ...	William Wampler (R-HD4)	Passed	Passed		Signed 04/27/22 Governor: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0759)	1/6/23
education	HB 781 Oppose	Public elementary and secondary schools; student citizenship skills. more... ...The bill prohibits the Board and Department of Education and each local school board from teaching, instructing, or training certain individuals and groups, including teachers and students, to support, believe, endorse, embrace, confess, act upon, or otherwise assent to a divisive concept, as defined in the bill, or penalizing or discriminating against any such individual or group for refusing to do so ...	Wren Williams(R-HD9)	Left				2/15/22
climate	HB 839 Oppose	Electric utilities; recovery of costs; rate adjustment clause proceedings; construction/facilities. more... Provides that in any proceeding regarding petitions for a rate adjustment clause, the State Corporation Commission may, as an alternative to a rate adjustment clause, authorize recovery of any proposed cost through the utility's rates for generation and distribution services ...	Tony Wilt (R-HD26)	Continued				1/26/22
climate	HB 892 Oppose	Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI); preexisting contracts. more... Establishes a reserve account for the purchase of Regional Green House Gas Initiative (RGGI) allowances by an entity that has a preexisting contractual arrangement related to a power purchase...	Terry Kilgore (R-HD1)	Passed	PBI			3/2/22
climate	HB 894 Oppose	Generation of electricity and energy development in the Commonwealth. more... Prohibits an electric generating unit located in the coalfield region of the Commonwealth capable of generating electricity from waste coal that began commercial operations after January 1, 2010, from being required to retire before such unit reaches the end of its useful life...	Terry Kilgore (R-HD1)	Passed	Passed		Signed 04/11/22 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 488 (effective 7/1/22)	4/12/22
guns	HB 1051 Oppose	Protective orders; possession of firearms. more... The bill removes the requirement that any person subject to a protective order must surrender his firearms within 24 hours of being served with a protective order.	Phillip Scott (R-HD88)	Left				2/15/22
climate	HB 1204 Oppose	Renewable energy certificates; certain requirements prohibited. more... Prohibits American Electric Power or Dominion Energy Virginia from being required (i) to procure and retire renewable energy certificates...	Terry Kilgore (R-HD1)	Passed	Passed		Signed 04/07/22 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 169 (effective 7/1/22) 04/07/22 Governor: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0169)	4/12/22
climate	HB 1257 Oppose	Natural gas utilities; retail supply choice. more... ...The bill bars public entities from adopting an ordinance, resolution, or other requirement that limits or prohibits customers from acquiring natural gas service and supply from both utility and non-utility gas companies...	Terry Kilgore (R-HD1)	Passed	Passed		Signed 08/04/22 Governor: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0017)	1/6/23
environment	HB 1261 Oppose	State environmental boards; appointment of members to various Boards. more... ...The bill provides that the authority of such boards does not include the authority to issue any environmental permit, or abridge or deny any environmental permit issued by the Department of Environmental Quality.	Robert Bloxom (R-HD100)	Passed	Passed		Signed 04/27/22 Governor: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0728)	1/6/23
climate	HB 1301 Oppose	Clean Energy and Community Flood Preparedness Act; repeals Act. more...	Terry Kilgore (R-HD1)	Passed	PBI			2/23/22
climate	HB 1326 Oppose	Electric utilities; removal of waste coal from previously mined sites. more...	Terry Kilgore (R-HD1)	Passed	Passed		Signed 04/07/22 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 177 (effective 7/1/22) 04/07/22 Governor: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0177)	4/12/22
education	SB 2 Oppose	Requires school principals report to law enforcement certain enumerated acts that may constitute a misdemeanor offense... more... School principals; incident reports. Requires that school principals report to law enforcement certain enumerated acts that may constitute a misdemeanor offense and report to the parents of any minor student who is the specific object of such act that the incident has been reported to law enforcement. Under current law, principals are required to make such reports only for such acts that may constitute a felony offense.	John A. Cosgrove (R-SD14)		Incorp			2/12/22
education	SB 20 Oppose	Treatment of transgender students; model policies. more... Eliminates the requirement that each school board adopt policies that are consistent with the model policies developed by the Department of Education concerning the treatment of transgender students in public elementary and secondary schools.	Travis Hackworth (R-SD38)		PBI			2/4/22
education	SB 36 Oppose	School principals; incident reports. more... Requires that school principals report to law enforcement certain enumerated acts that may constitute a misdemeanor offense and report to the parents of any minor student who is the specific object of such act that the incident has been reported to law enforcement. Under current law, principals are required to make such reports only for such acts that may constitute a felony offense.	Thomas Norment (R-HD3)	Passed	Passed		Signed	6/17/22
environment	SB 81 Oppose	Air Pollution Control Board; consideration of certain facts and circumstances. more... Limits when the Air Pollution Control Board must consider certain facts and circumstances relevant to the reasonableness of the activity involved.	William Stanley (R-SD20)		Incorp			2/15/22
climate	SB 120 Oppose	Public utilities; waste coal and certain coal-fired electric generating units. more... Provides that renewable energy and renewable energy standard eligible sources include energy derived from waste coal, which the bill defines as usable material that is a byproduct of previous coal processing operations. Additionally, the bill provides an exception to the requirement that all electric generating units located in the Commonwealth that emit carbon as a by-product of combusting fuel to generate electricity are closed by December 31, 2045,...	Travis Hackworth (R-SD38)	Passed	Passed		Signed 04/27/22 Governor: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0711)	1/6/23
guns	SB 330 Oppose	Carrying a concealed handgun; permit not required. more... Carrying a concealed handgun; permit not required. Allows any person who is otherwise eligible to obtain a concealed handgun permit to carry a concealed handgun without a permit anywhere he may lawfully carry a handgun openly within the Commonwealth.	Bryce Reeves (R-SD17)		PBI			1/26/22
health	SB 458 Oppose	Face coverings; prohibits enforcement of policy, etc., to wear. more... Prohibits any locality, institution of higher education, employer, school board, division superintendent, school principal, or private school from adopting, implementing, or enforcing any policy, rule, or order related to COVID-19 that requires individuals to wear a face covering.	Amanda Chase (R-SD11)		PBI			2/4/22
climate	SB 532 Oppose	Clean Energy and Community Flood Preparedness Act. more... Repeals the Clean Energy and Community Flood Preparedness Act and directs the Director of the Department of Environmental Quality to take all steps necessary to suspend the Commonwealth's participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative market-based trading program.	Richard Stuart (R-SD28)		PBI			2/8/22
climate	SB 565 Oppose	Natural gas, biogas, and other gas sources of energy; definitions, energy conservation. more... Permits natural gas utilities to include in their fuel portfolios, ... supplemental or substitute forms of gas sources, defined in the bill, that meet certain standards and that reduce emissions intensity. ...	Scott Surovell (D-HD36)	Passed	Passed		Signed 04/27/22 Governor: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0728)	1/6/23
health	SB 601 Oppose	COVID-19 immunization; prohibition on requirement; discrimination prohibited. more... Prohibits the State Health Commissioner and the Board of Health, the Board of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, the Department of Health Professions and any regulatory board therein, and the Department of Social Services from requiring any person, including any child, to undergo vaccination for COVID-19 ...	Amanda Chase (R-SD11)		PBI			2/11/22
environment	SB 657 Oppose	Air Pollution Control Board and State Water Control Board; transfer of authority to Department of Environmental Quality. more...	Richard Stuart (R-SD28)	Passed	Passed		Signed 04/11/22 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 356 (effective 7/1/22)	4/12/22
climate	SB 695 Oppose	Low-emissions and zero-emissions vehicle standards; repeals certain authority. more... Repeals the State Air Pollution Control Board's authority to implement low-emissions and zero-emissions vehicle standards for vehicles with a model year of 2025 and later.	Richard Stuart (R-SD28)		Stricken			2/8/22
health	SB 739 Oppose	Public elementary and secondary schools, etc.; student instruction. more... Requires, except in the case of the 10 unscheduled remote learning days otherwise permitted by law or in certain cases of student discipline, each school board to offer in-person instruction...	Siobhan Dunnavant (R-SD12)	Passed	Passed		Approved 02/16/22 Governor: Governor's recommendation adopted 02/16/22 Governor: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0002)	2/23/22

No. of bills: 46

Glossary

Dillon Rule. Restricts local government authority to enact ordinances.

Conference Committee. A temporary committee w. members from both the House and Senate, tasked with reconciling differences in legislation that passed both chambers.

Continued/Carried over. Action taken in an even-numbered year to postpone the consideration of a measure until the next regular session of the General Assembly.

Crossover. The last day for a bill to pass out of the chamber in which it was introduced and move forward for consideration in the opposite chamber. If a bill does not move forward, it is "Left" (dead).

Engrossed. A legislative stage when a bill passes the second reading in the House of origin. Every bill has to be "read" on the floor three times before voting on it. The action or any debate or discussion usually comes on the day of the second reading or the third reading.

Enrolled. Legislation which has passed both the House of Delegates and the Senate, signed by the Speaker of the House and President of the Senate, sent to the Governor, but not yet signed.

Failed to report. Defeated. The rejection of a motion to 'report' a bill to the full chamber.

Incorporated. Rolled into someone another bill. Either because they're identical, or they have incorporated *some* of the language in, and the patron agreed to have her name on the other bill.

Patron. Bill sponsor. There can be many patrons.

PBI. Passed by Indefinitely. Action to allow a committee to reconsider legislation at a later meeting. If the committee takes no further action, the bill is dead. [Usually the bill is dead.]

Referred. The assignment of legislation to another standing committee with no stance on the policy of the measure (neither endorses nor rejects the legislation).

Reported. The approval of a measure by the majority of the committee. The legislation may be reported by the committee with or without amendments. A bill may also be reported and referred to another committee.

Stricken. Legislation removed from a committee's docket, frequently at the request of the patron.

More definitions from League of Women Voters Virginia
More definitions from University of Virginia