House Finance Subcommittee #2

The House Finance Subcommittee #2 met in the Virginia General Assembly on Tuesday, January 20, 2026. This week's docket includes 9 pieces of proposed legislation. 

To view this week's House Finance Subcommittee #2 click here.

Below you will find the bill heard in this week's subcommittee hearing. 

HB10 (Delegate McNamara) - Real property tax; classification of land and improvements.

Reclassifies improvements to real property as a separate class of real property and authorizes any locality to impose a real property tax on improvements to real property at a tax rate that is different than the rate applied to the land on which such improvements are located. 

Tabled by a vote of 10-0. 

HB68 (Delegate McNamara) - Real property; effect on rate when assessment results in tax increase, consideration of inflation.

Provides that, in determining a locality's total real property tax levies for purposes of determining the rate of levy that the locality shall impose upon such properties in order to produce no more than 101 percent of the previous year's real property tax levies. 

Passed by for the day per patron. 

HB72 (Delegate Cole, J.G.) - Real property tax; classification of land and improvements in City of Fredericksburg.

Authorizes the City of Fredericksburg to levy a tax on the improvements to real property at a different rate than the tax imposed upon the land on which it is located. 

Passed and reported by a vote of 9-1.

HB175 (Delegate Feggans) - Real property; tax exemption, surviving spouses of members of Armed Forces who died in 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.  

Passed and reported by a vote of 10-0. 

HB261 (Delegate Simonds) - Real property; tax classification of land and improvements in City of Newport News.

Authorizes the City of Newport News to levy a tax on the improvements to real property at a different rate than the tax imposed upon the land on which it is located.   

Passed and reported by a vote of 8-1. 

HB282 (Delegate Callsen) - Real property tax; classification of land and improvements, Charlottesville Falls Church

Authorizes the Cities of Charlottesville and Falls Church to levy a tax on the improvements to real property at a different rate than the tax imposed upon the land on which it is located.

Passed and reported by a vote of 9-1. 

HB334 (Delegate Rasoul) - Additional local sales and use tax to support schools; referendum.

Authorizes all counties and cities to impose an additional local sales and use tax at a rate not to exceed one percent with the revenue used only for capital projects for the construction or renovation of schools if such levy is approved in a voter referendum. 

Passed and reported by a vote of 8-2.  

HB341 (Delegate Martinez) - Plastic bag tax; distribution to towns.

Requires that any town located within a county that has imposed a disposable plastic bag tax receive a distribution of revenues collected by the county based on the local sales tax distribution formula for appropriations to towns.  

Passed and reported by a vote of 10-0.   

HB345 (Delegate McLaughlin) - Real property tax; partial exemption for certain commercial and industrial structures.

Prohibits the application of a partial real property tax exemption to the demolition or replacement of an existing structure when such structure is a registered Virginia landmark or is determined by the Department of Historic Resources to contribute to the significance of a registered historic district.  

Passed by for the day per patron.  

The House Finance Subcommittee #2 meets weekly during the session on Tuesday, 4:30 p.m., House North Subcommittee Room -200, General Assembly Building. A link to the Live Stream video and recordings of all previously held committee meetings and floor sessions of the House can be viewed by clicking here. 

Sofhia Pineda

VSBA Government Relations Specialist

House Labor and Commerce Full Committee

The House Labor and Commerce full committee met in the Virginia General Assembly on Tuesday, January 20, 2026. This week's docket includes 1 pieces of proposed legislation. 

To view this week's House Labor and Commerce full committee click here.

Below you will find the bill heard in this week's subcommittee hearing. 

HB1 (Delegate Ward) - Minimum wage; increases incrementally to $15.00 per hour by January 1, 2028.

The bill codifies the adjusted state hourly minimum wage of $12.77 per hour that is effective January 1, 2026, and increases the minimum wage to $13.75 per hour effective January 1, 2027, and to $15.00 per hour effective January 1, 2028. Effective January 1, 2029, and annually thereafter, the bill requires the minimum wage to be adjusted to reflect increases in the consumer price index. 

Passed subcommittee on a vote of 15-7.

 

The House Education Subcommittee on K-12 meets weekly during the session on Tuesdays, at 7:30 a.m., on House Room A, and Tuesdays, at 4:00 p.m., House Room C, General Assembly Building. A link to the Live Stream video and recordings of all previously held committee meetings and floor sessions of the House can be viewed by clicking here. 

Sofhia Pineda

VSBA Government Relations Specialist 

House Education Subcommittee on K-12

The House Education Subcommittee on K-12 met for its first meeting of the 2026 session of the Virginia General Assembly on Tuesday, January 20, 2026. This week's docket includes 10 pieces of proposed legislation impacting K-12 education, with 2 bills being passed by for the day.

To view this week's House Education Subcommittee on K-12 click here.

Below you will find a few of the bills heard in this week's subcommittee hearing. 

HB36 (Delegate Cole) - Standards of Quality; class size limits, exception for certain ensemble music classes.

This bills exempts any ensemble music class offered in grade six from the provision limiting the size of any class offered in grades four through six to no larger than 35 students and, instead, permits any such ensemble music class to have up to 45 students

Passed by for the day per patrons request.

 

HB38 (Delegate Henson) - Public schools; mental health awareness training and instruction, requirements.

Requires each teacher and other relevant personnel, to  to complete mental health awareness training that addresses the needs of youth populations that are at a high risk of experiencing mental health challenges, including those bereaved by suicide, those with disabilities or chronic health conditions, youth experiencing homelessness, those in foster care, and LGBTQ+ youth. 

Current law requires such teachers and personnel to complete mental health awareness training but does not contain any requirements relating to the specific topics such training must address.  The bill language states that divisions who are already implementing similar trainings to address similar concerns, there is no additional trainings required. 

Passed subcommittee on a vote of 7-1. 

HB96 (Delegate Bennett-Parker) - School breakfast; availability at no cost to students.

Requires each school board to require each public elementary and secondary school in the local school division to make breakfast available to any student who requests such a meal at no cost to the student. 

The bill requires the Department of Education to reimburse each public elementary and secondary school for each eligible school breakfast served to a student. 

Passed subcommittee on a vote of 10-0. 

HB116 (Delegate Ward) - School board employee grievance procedure; timing of dispute resolution.

Requires the school board employee grievance procedure to afford a timely and fair method of the resolution of disputes arising between the school board and such employees before dismissal or other disciplinary actions, excluding suspensions. This provides an employee with an opportunity to hold a hearing before disciplinary action occurs. 

Passed subcommittee on a vote of 10-0. 

HB171 (Delegate Askew) - Student instruction; internet safety, policy to include key modern digital safety 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. 

Passed subcommittee on a vote of 9-1.

 

HB178 (Delegate Anthony) - Public schools; student support services, student personal information and data security, report.

The bill requires any nonprofit organization, in order to register and maintain status as a certified student support agency, to meet several requirements relating to the protection of student personal information, including requirements relating to policies, procedures, and protocols for the collection, use, maintenance, disclosure, disposal, and handling any data breach or unauthorized disclosure of any student personal information collected. 

Passed by for the day per patrons request.

HB199 (Delegate Rasoul) - Through-year growth assessment system; alternatives during 2024-2028 school years permitted.

Extends from the 2025-2026 school year to the 2027-2028 school year the period during which, pursuant to applicable law, the Board of Education is required to permit school boards to administer assessments as alternatives to the through-year growth assessment system established by the Board of Education.  

Passed subcommittee on a vote of 10-0.

HB206 (Delegate Keys-Gamarra) - College partnership laboratory schools; transparency.

Requires, for college partnership laboratory schools that form a collaborative partnership with one or more local school divisions, the parents of any enrolled student to be notified of such collaborative partnership and provided with contact information for an administrator in such partnering division that the parent can contact with questions or concerns about program administration or the student's experience at the college partnership laboratory school. 

Passed subcommittee on a vote of 8-2.

HB210 (Delegate Price) School meal debt; each school board to annually report.

Requires each school board to annually report to the Department of Education the amount of school meal debt in the local school division. 

Passed subcommittee on a vote of 10-0.

HB288 (Delegate Anderson) - Education, Department of; website posting of certain instructional resources.

Requires the Department of Education to post in a conspicuous and publicly accessible manner on the instructional resources section of its website links to instructional resources on the Indigenous people of the Commonwealth. 

Passed subcommittee on a vote of 10-0.

The House Education Subcommittee on K-12 meets weekly during the session on Tuesdays, at 7:30 a.m., on House Room A, and Tuesdays, at 4:00 p.m., House Room C, General Assembly Building. A link to the Live Stream video and recordings of all previously held committee meetings and floor sessions of the House can be viewed by clicking here. 

Sofhia Pineda

VSBA Government Relations Specialist