HB 1374 Virginia House of Delegates · 2026 Regular Session

Virginia Military Institute; board of visitors, membership.

Summary

Virginia Military Institute; board of visitors; membership. Makes several changes relating to the membership of the Virginia Military Institute Board of Visitors, including providing that, of the 16 members appointed by the Governor, (i) no more than eight shall be alumni of the Institute, (ii) at least six shall be nonalumni residents of the Commonwealth, and (iii) at least five shall have United States military experience, as defined in the bill. Current law provides that of the 16 members appointed by the Governor, (i) 12 shall be alumni of the Institute, of whom eight shall be residents of the Commonwealth and four shall be nonresidents, and (ii) four shall be nonalumni residents of the Commonwealth.

Bill status passed both 4 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Mar 2026

House of Delegates Passage

Feb 2026

Senate Passage

Mar 2026

Governor

Introduced Jan 20, 2026 Last action Mar 14, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduced → Education Substitute · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended from its original introduction to become an Education Substitute, which significantly altered its scope and focus. The original bill proposed merging Virginia Military Institute (VMI) governance under Virginia State University while repealing VMI's separate chapter. The substitute version instead focuses primarily on updating VMI's Board of Visitors membership requirements to ensure greater diversity and military representation, while removing the proposal to merge VMI under Virginia State University.

Scope change

The bill's scope shifted from a major structural change (merging VMI governance under Virginia State University and repealing VMI's separate chapter) to a targeted amendment focusing only on VMI Board of Visitors membership composition requirements.

SCOPE

Removed the proposal to merge Virginia Military Institute governance under Virginia State University and the repeal of Chapter 25 (§ 23.1-2500 et seq.) of Title 23.1, which would have ended VMI's separate legal status.

REQUIREMENT

Added new membership composition requirements for VMI's Board of Visitors, including specific quotas for alumni vs. nonalumni, resident vs. nonresident members, and at least five members with United States military experience at senior rank.

Removed provisions related to non-academic student codes of conduct, transcript notations for sexual violence investigations, articulation agreements, and other higher education governance provisions that were part of the original bill.

DEFINITION

Added new definitions for 'Senior rank' (E-7 or above for enlisted, O-5 or above for officers) and 'United States military experience' (active duty, reserve, or National Guard service at senior rank).

TIMELINE

Changed effective date requirements to apply to members appointed on or after July 1, 2026, with grandfathering provisions for current board members.

Floor votes · Senate Mar 6, 2026 · House of Delegates Feb 17, 2026

How they voted

38–0

Passed · 1 other

Total votes 39

Mar 6, 2026

D Democratic20

20 Yea

100% Yea

R Republican19

18 Yea 1

94% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Mar 10, 2026

Upper · Passed

Motion to recommit to committee agreed to (Voice Vote)

upper

Mar 9, 2026

Upper · Passed

Passed by for the day

upper

Mar 6, 2026

Upper · Passed

Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote)

upper

Mar 5, 2026

Upper · Passed

Reported from Education and Health with amendment (9-Y 6-N)

upper

Mar 2, 2026

Upper · Passed

Senate subcommittee offered

upper

Mar 2, 2026

Committee

Assigned Education sub: Higher Education

upper

Feb 18, 2026

Committee

Referred to Committee on Education and Health

upper

Feb 17, 2026

Lower · Passed

Read third time and passed House (69-Y 28-N 0-A)

lower

Feb 11, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported from Education with substitute (14-Y 7-N)

lower

Feb 11, 2026

Lower · Passed

House committee offered

lower

Jan 30, 2026

Committee

Assigned HED sub: Higher Education

lower

Jan 20, 2026

Committee

Referred to Committee on Education

lower

Jan 20, 2026

Introduced

Presented and ordered printed 26105020D

lower

1 primary · 3 co-sponsors