SB 294 VA

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Became Law

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. 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.

• Lashrecse D. Aird Democratic · primary

1. Jan 13, 2026 Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26100979D · upper
2. Jan 13, 2026 Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology · upper
3. Jan 21, 2026 Assigned GL&T sub: Housing · upper
4. Jan 23, 2026 Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB294) · upper
5. Jan 28, 2026 Senate subcommittee offered · upper
6. Feb 4, 2026 Reported from General Laws and Technology with substitute (11-Y 3-N) · upper
7. Feb 5, 2026 Committee substitute printed 26106528D-S1 · upper
8. Feb 6, 2026 Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB294) · upper
9. Feb 6, 2026 Rules suspended · upper
10. Feb 6, 2026 Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading) (39-Y 0-N 0-A) · upper
11. Feb 6, 2026 Passed by for the day (Voice Vote) · upper
12. Feb 6, 2026 Passed by for the day · upper
13. Feb 9, 2026 Read second time · upper
14. Feb 9, 2026 General Laws and Technology Substitute agreed to · upper
15. Feb 9, 2026 Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute (Voice Vote) · upper
16. Feb 10, 2026 Read third time and passed Senate (21-Y 19-N 0-A) · upper
17. Feb 13, 2026 Placed on Calendar · lower
18. Feb 13, 2026 Read first time · lower
19. Feb 13, 2026 Referred to Committee on General Laws · lower
20. Feb 23, 2026 Assigned HGL sub: Housing/Consumer Protection · lower
21. Feb 26, 2026 House subcommittee offered · lower
22. Feb 26, 2026 Subcommittee recommends reporting with substitute (10-Y 0-N) · lower
23. Mar 3, 2026 Reported from General Laws with substitute (20-Y 1-N) · lower
24. Mar 3, 2026 Committee substitute printed 26108714D-H1 · lower
25. Mar 5, 2026 Read second time · lower
26. Mar 6, 2026 Read third time · lower
27. Mar 6, 2026 committee substitute agreed to · lower
28. Mar 6, 2026 Engrossed by House - committee substitute · lower
29. Mar 6, 2026 Passed House with substitute (75-Y 23-N 0-A) · lower
30. Mar 6, 2026 Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB294) · upper
31. Mar 10, 2026 House substitute agreed to by Senate (21-Y 19-N 0-A) · upper
32. Mar 30, 2026 Enrolled · upper
33. Mar 30, 2026 Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB294ER) · upper
34. Mar 30, 2026 Signed by President · upper
35. Mar 31, 2026 Signed by Speaker · lower
36. Mar 31, 2026 Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 31, 2026 · upper
37. Mar 31, 2026 Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026 · executive
38. Apr 1, 2026 Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB294) · upper
39. Apr 13, 2026 Approved by Governor-Chapter 784 (effective 7/1/2026) · executive

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.

• Enrolled · PDF
• Enrolled · HTML
• General Laws Substitute · PDF
• General Laws Substitute · HTML
• General Laws Substitute · PDF
• General Laws Substitute · HTML
• Housing/Consumer Protection Subcommittee Substitute · PDF
• Housing/Consumer Protection Subcommittee Substitute · HTML
• General Laws and Technology Substitute · PDF
• General Laws and Technology Substitute · HTML
• General Laws and Technology Substitute · PDF
• General Laws and Technology Substitute · HTML
• Introduced · PDF
• Introduced · HTML