The 2026 General Assembly brought some incredible wins for LAJC, our partners, and communities across the Commonwealth: 21 of LAJC’s priority bills were signed into law by Governor Spanberger. We also co-led campaigns on another 10 bills that were signed into law.
Other bills we supported were amended, some in small technical ways, and others in significant ways—meaning we have more hard work ahead of us to support communities across the Commonwealth. The amended bills were considered at the General Assembly’s Reconvened Session on Wednesday, April 22nd and sent back to the governor for final consideration.
Finally, budget negotiations are ongoing and require a Special Session where legislators agree to budget proposal to submit to the governor. LAJC will continue to advocate for our priorities and share updates throughout this process.
Keep reading for details on the legislative successes of LAJC and our partners:
The following bills were accepted and signed by the governor as passed by the General Assembly:
- SB 121 / HB 20 Includes farmworkers in the minimum wage protection. Despite this win, the General Assembly made an amendment exempting guest workers in the H-2A and H-2B visa programs from also receiving the minimum wage. These are the workers in Virginia’s agricultural, construction, and tourism industries—often doing back-breaking work that is vital to Virginia’s economy. It is very important to include these workers in the minimum wage, and we will continue fighting to expand these protections.
- SB 288 / HB 1092 requires the Health and Safety Codes Board to develop and implement heat stress protections for workers.
- SB 685 / HB 1278 ensures that translation of vital documents and equal access to academic processes are available to students and parents.
- SB 491 / HB 836 strengthens privacy protections, prevents immigration-based discrimination for students and families, and creates a required process for police arrests at public schools.
- SB 283 / HB 933 defines intentional evasion of court to allow consideration for missed childcare, transportation, and other similar challenges when someone misses court.
- SB 180 / HB 17 consolidates reforms to reduce long-term harms from unpaid court debt by delaying when delinquent debt is sent to collections from 90 days to 180 days, shortening the statute of limitations for collecting criminal court debt to 10 years, and incorporating a concept for a post-incarceration grace period before repayment.
- HB 16 allows community service or work hours of currently incarcerated individuals to count towards their court debt;
- SB 480 / HB 1084 will allow local and statewide pretrial data to be shared with the Virginia Longitudinal Data System (VLDS). This will result in researchers being able to understand the effect of pre-trial detention and look for connecting outcomes and variables with other data from the Department of Juvenile Justice, Department of Social Services, K-12 data, and higher education data.
- HB 667 aligns Virginia code with federal law so that young vulnerable immigrant youth ages 18-21, who have been neglected, abused or abandoned, can find a pathway to protection and stability through Special Immigration Juvenile Status (SIJS).
- HB 879 strengthens privacy protections in public assistance programs by requiring public notice when agencies receive large-scale requests for personal data of applicants and recipients of public benefits.
Additionally, several bills that LAJC co-lead with partners have been signed.
Co-lead with RISE for Youth:
- HB 91 limits room confinement.
- SB 64 increases judicial oversight for length of stay.
- SB 18 sets a minimum age of 11 for youth to be processed through juvenile system.
Co-lead with Fund Our Schools:
- HB 298 promotes evidence-based restorative discipline practices in public schools; 3 years in the making and passed despite significant barriers.
- HB 544 extends the existence of the Virginia Commission on School Construction.
- SB 73 creates Medicaid billing navigators for school divisions.
The following bills were passed by the General Assembly with amendments by the governor:
- SB 783 / HB 1441 severely limits local law enforcement collaboration with ICE by setting clear conditions for entering into any 287(g) and other intergovernmental agreements. The bills also present local diversion of resources by restricting informal collaboration between local law enforcement and ICE without a judicial warrant.
- SB 125 expands the Children’s Ombudsman’s authority for foster youth in DJJ custody.
- SB 60 / HB 318 strengthens the juvenile parole procedures to give people convicted as children a meaningful chance at release.
After rejecting the governor’s amendments, the General Assembly sent the following bills back to her as originally passed:
- SB 351 / HB 650 Prohibits certain federal civil immigration enforcements in courthouses, schools, state hospitals and within 40 feet of polling places without a judicial warrant.
Our commitment to bettering the Commonwealth through an ever-growing system of partnerships continues as we strategize how to inform, support, and empower communities as these new laws go into effect. Onward!
