VirginiaVa. Residential Landlord & Tenant Act; submetering, energy allocation, & ratio utility billing sys.
What it does
Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; civil action for unlawful detainer; termination notice; energy submetering equipment. Provides that no landlord shall file or maintain an action for unlawful detainer against a residential tenant for any alleged lease violation until the landlord has provided the tenant with a proper and effective termination notice and that no notice of termination of tenancy for nonpayment of rent pursuant to the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act shall be effective unless such notice contains a written statement of charges and payments over the course of the tenancy or the past 12 months, whichever is shorter, and any late charges, attorney fees, costs, and other charges or damages as contracted for in the rental agreement that are due and owing. The bill requires such notice to also include debits and credits incurred by the tenant for energy and utility bills and any additional charges permitted as applicable.
More detail
The bill also requires the owner of any residential building to maintain adequate records indicating how monthly energy and utility billing fees are calculated and including a history of billing fee payments for each tenant over the duration of the tenancy or the past 12 months, whichever is shorter. Such records shall be made available to the tenant upon request. Finally, the bill removes a provision allowing for the collection of fees when a tenant requests such records. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027. This bill is identical to HB 1361.
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Where it stands
- Introduced
- Passed Senate
- Passed House
- To Governor
- Became Law
Looking ahead
No hearings or votes scheduled.
History
- 2026
- Apr 13Approved by Governor Abigail Spanberger-Chapter 784 (effective 7/1/2026)Became Law
- Apr 1Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB294)
- Mar 31Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026To Governor
- Mar 31Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 31, 2026Minor
- Mar 31Signed by SpeakerMajor
- Mar 30Signed by PresidentMajor
- Mar 30Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB294ER)Major
- Mar 30EnrolledMinor
- Mar 10House substitute agreed to by Senate (21-Y 19-N 0-A)Major
- Vote recorded Concur House Substitute R. Result: pass.Upper
- Mar 6Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB294)
- Vote recorded H VOTE:. Result: pass.Lower
- Mar 6Passed House with substitute (75-Y 23-N 0-A)Passed House
- Mar 6Engrossed by House - committee substituteMajor
- Mar 6committee substitute agreed toMajor
- Mar 6Read third timeMinor
- Mar 5Read second timeMinor
- Mar 3Committee substitute printed 26108714D-H1Major
- Vote recorded Reported from General Laws with substitute. Result: pass.Lower
- Mar 3Reported from General Laws with substitute (20-Y 1-N)Minor
- Feb 26Subcommittee recommends reporting with substitute (10-Y 0-N)Major
- Vote recorded Subcommittee recommends reporting with substitute. Result: pass.Lower
- Feb 26House subcommittee offered
- Feb 23Assigned HGL sub: Housing/Consumer ProtectionMinor
- Feb 13Referred to Committee on General LawsMinor
- Feb 13Read first timeMinor
- Feb 13Placed on Calendar
- Feb 10Read third time and passed Senate (21-Y 19-N 0-A)Passed Senate
- Vote recorded Passage R. Result: pass.Upper
- Feb 9Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute (Voice Vote)Major
- Feb 9General Laws and Technology Substitute agreed to
- Feb 9Read second timeMinor
- Feb 6Passed by for the day
- Vote recorded Constitutional reading dispensed R. Result: pass.Upper
- Feb 6Passed by for the day (Voice Vote)
- Feb 6Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading) (39-Y 0-N 0-A)
- Feb 6Rules suspended
- Feb 6Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB294)
- Feb 5Committee substitute printed 26106528D-S1Major
- Feb 4Reported from General Laws and Technology with substitute (11-Y 3-N)Minor
- Vote recorded Reported from General Laws and Technology with substitute. Result: pass.Upper
- Jan 28Senate subcommittee offered
- Jan 23Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB294)
- Jan 21Assigned GL&T sub: HousingMinor
- Jan 13Referred to Committee on General Laws and TechnologyMinor
- Jan 13Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26100979DIntroduced