HB 2098 Virginia House of Delegates · 2025 Regular Session

Labor & employment provisions; application of law, protection of employees, definition of employer.

Summary
Labor and employment provisions; application of law; payment of wages; definition of employer. Provides that the exemption for the Commonwealth or any of its agencies, institutions, or political subdivisions, or any public body, under Title 40.1 does not apply when expressly provided otherwise. The bill provides a definition of "public body" for Title 40.1. Additionally, the bill provides that for the purposes of various requirements related to the protection of employees, including the payment of wages, "employer" includes the Commonwealth and its agencies, institutions, and political subdivisions, or any public body. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2026.
Bill status vetoed 4 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2025
Committee Review
Feb 2025
House of Delegates Passage
Mar 2025
Senate Passage
Mar 2025
Vetoed
Mar 2025
Introduced Jan 7, 2025 Vetoed Mar 24, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Labor and Commerce Substitute Enrolled · 3 edits · Mar 10, 2025
MINOR
The bill transitioned from a House substitute version to its final Enrolled form, indicating it has been approved by the General Assembly. The substantive policy content remains focused on labor and employment protections, including specific exemptions for employers regarding cannabis use and federal compliance. A new effective date of July 1, 2026, was added to the final version.
Scope change
The bill's scope remains focused on labor and employment provisions, but the final version explicitly includes the Commonwealth, its agencies, institutions, and political subdivisions within the definition of 'employer'.
TIMELINE

Added a specific effective date of July 1, 2026, to the final enrolled act.

DEFINITION

Added a new section defining 'employer' to explicitly include the Commonwealth, its agencies, institutions, and political subdivisions.

TECHNICAL

Changed the document header from 'House Substitute' to 'Enrolled' and updated the bill status to reflect final approval.

Floor votes · Senate Feb 20, 2025 · House of Delegates Feb 3, 2025

How they voted

2019
Passed · 1 other
Total votes 40
Feb 20, 2025
D Democratic21
20 Yea 1
95% Yea
R Republican19
19 Nay
100% Nay
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
32
Key actions
10
Committee
6
Amendments
4
Apr 2, 2025
Vetoed
House sustained Governor's veto
lower
Mar 24, 2025
Vetoed
Vetoed by Governor
executive
Mar 10, 2025
Upper · Passed
Signed by President
upper
Mar 7, 2025
Lower · Passed
Signed by Speaker
lower
Mar 7, 2025
Lower · Passed
Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB2098ER)
lower
Feb 20, 2025
Lower · Passed
Senate Amendment agreed to by House (51-Y 44-N)
lower
Feb 20, 2025
Upper · Passed
Passed Senate with amendment (20-Y 19-N)
upper
Feb 20, 2025
Introduced
Engrossed by Senate as amended
upper
Feb 20, 2025
Upper · Passed
Finance and Appropriations Amendment agreed to
upper
Feb 20, 2025
Introduced
Reading of amendment waived
upper
Feb 17, 2025
Upper · Passed
Reported from Finance and Appropriations with amendment (10-Y 4-N)
upper
Feb 17, 2025
Upper · Passed
Reported from Commerce and Labor and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations (9-Y 6-N)
upper
Feb 4, 2025
Committee
Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor
upper
Feb 3, 2025
Lower · Passed
Read third time and passed House (50-Y 48-N)
lower
Jan 28, 2025
Lower · Passed
Reported from Labor and Commerce with substitute (12-Y 10-N)
lower
Jan 14, 2025
Committee
Assigned L & C sub: Subcommittee #2
lower
Jan 7, 2025
Committee
Referred to Committee on Labor and Commerce
lower
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Photo of Michelle Maldonado
Michelle Maldonado
DDemocratic
VA
20