HB 161 VA

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Passed Legislature

Virginia Lottery; casinos; internet gaming authorized; penalties. Authorizes internet gaming in the Commonwealth to be regulated by the Virginia Lottery Board. The bill requires a casino gaming operator that intends to conduct internet gaming to submit a separate notice of intent to the Director of the Virginia Lottery for each internet gaming platform that it intends to offer accompanied by a $2 million platform fee that is to be deposited into the Internet Gaming Platform Fee Holding Fund for the purpose of funding start-up costs and other costs associated with the implementation and creation of a gaming commission. The bill permits the Board to issue an internet gaming operator license to a casino gaming operator that submits an application on forms approved by the Board, meets certain qualifications, and pays an initial licensing fee of $500,000. The tax rate is set at 20 percent of an internet gaming operator's adjusted gross internet gaming revenue with five percent allocated to the Problem Gambling Treatment and Support Fund, six percent allocated to the Internet Lottery Hold Harmless Fund until January 1, 2037 and the remaining 89 percent before January 1, 2037, and 95 percent after January 1, 2037, allocated to the general fund.

• Marcus B. Simon Democratic · primary

1. Jan 6, 2026 Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26101135D · lower
2. Jan 6, 2026 Referred to Committee on General Laws · lower
3. Jan 7, 2026 Fiscal Impact statement From VCSC (1/7/2026 3:21 pm) · lower
4. Jan 21, 2026 Assigned HGL sub: ABC/Gaming · lower
5. Feb 3, 2026 Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB161) · lower
6. Feb 3, 2026 House subcommittee offered · lower
7. Feb 3, 2026 Subcommittee recommends reporting with substitute and referring to Appropriations (5-Y 4-N) · lower
8. Feb 5, 2026 Reported from General Laws with substitute and referred to Appropriations (13-Y 8-N) · lower
9. Feb 5, 2026 Committee substitute printed 26107031D-H1 · lower
10. Feb 6, 2026 Fiscal Impact statement From VCSC (2/6/2026 10:58 am) · lower
11. Feb 13, 2026 Assigned HAPP sub: Commerce Agriculture & Natural Resources · lower
12. Feb 13, 2026 Subcommittee recommends reporting with substitute (5-Y 2-N) · lower
13. Feb 13, 2026 House subcommittee offered · lower
14. Feb 13, 2026 Reported from Appropriations with substitute (14-Y 8-N) · lower
15. Feb 13, 2026 Committee substitute printed 26108000D-H2 · lower
16. Feb 15, 2026 Read first time · lower
17. Feb 16, 2026 Read second time · lower
18. Feb 16, 2026 committee substitute rejected · lower
19. Feb 16, 2026 committee substitute agreed to · lower
20. Feb 16, 2026 Engrossed by House - committee substitute · lower
21. Feb 16, 2026 Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB161) · lower
22. Feb 17, 2026 Read third time and defeated by House (46-Y 49-N 0-A) · lower
23. Feb 17, 2026 Reconsideration of defeated action agreed to by House · lower
24. Feb 17, 2026 Passed by temporarily · lower
25. Feb 17, 2026 Passed House (67-Y 30-N 0-A) · lower
26. Feb 18, 2026 Fiscal Impact statement From VCSC (2/18/2026 10:16 am) · lower
27. Feb 18, 2026 Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading) · upper
28. Feb 18, 2026 Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology · upper
29. Feb 25, 2026 Reported from General Laws and Technology and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations (9-Y 6-N) · upper
30. Mar 3, 2026 Reported from Finance and Appropriations with substitute (11-Y 3-N 1-A) · upper
31. Mar 3, 2026 Rules suspended · upper
32. Mar 3, 2026 Constitutional reading dispensed (on 2nd reading) (40-Y 0-N 0-A) · upper
33. Mar 3, 2026 Passed by for the day (Voice Vote) · upper
34. Mar 4, 2026 Committee substitute printed 26109035D-S1 · upper
35. Mar 4, 2026 Read third time · upper
36. Mar 4, 2026 Finance and Appropriations Substitute agreed to · upper
37. Mar 4, 2026 Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute · upper
38. Mar 4, 2026 Passed Senate with substitute (21-Y 17-N 0-A) · upper
39. Mar 4, 2026 Fiscal Impact statement From VCSC (3/4/2026 1:16 pm) · lower
40. Mar 4, 2026 Senate substitute rejected by House (0-Y 94-N 0-A) · lower
41. Mar 4, 2026 Senate insisted on substitute (39-Y 0-N 0-A) · upper
42. Mar 4, 2026 Senate requested conference committee · upper
43. Mar 4, 2026 House acceded to request · lower
44. Mar 4, 2026 Conferees appointed by House · lower
45. Mar 4, 2026 House Conferees: Simon, Krizek, Austin · lower
46. Mar 4, 2026 Conferees appointed by Senate · upper
47. Mar 4, 2026 Senate Conferees: Locke, McPike, Pillion · upper
48. Mar 6, 2026 Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB161) · lower
49. Mar 14, 2026 No further action taken · lower
50. Mar 14, 2026 Failed to Pass from conference · lower

The published texts of this bill as it moves through the legislature. Each links to the official document on the state legislature site. Data from OpenStates.

• Finance and Appropriations Substitute · PDF
• Finance and Appropriations Substitute · HTML
• Appropriations Substitute · PDF
• Appropriations Substitute · HTML
• Appropriations Substitute · PDF
• Appropriations Substitute · HTML
• Commerce Agriculture & Natural Resources Subcommittee Substitute · PDF
• Commerce Agriculture & Natural Resources Subcommittee Substitute · HTML
• General Laws Substitute · PDF
• General Laws Substitute · HTML
• General Laws Substitute · PDF
• General Laws Substitute · HTML
• ABC/Gaming Subcommittee Substitute · PDF
• ABC/Gaming Subcommittee Substitute · HTML
• Introduced · PDF
• Introduced · HTML