HB 24Virginia House of Delegates·2026 Regular Session
Concealed handgun permits; reciprocity with other states.
Summary
Concealed handgun permits; reciprocity with other states. Provides that the Superintendent of State Police, in consultation with the Office of the Attorney General, shall determine whether other states meet the statutory qualifications for Virginia to recognize the concealed handgun permit of a person from such other state. Under current law, any out-of-state permit is recognized in the Commonwealth, provided that (i) the issuing authority provides the means for instantaneous verification of the validity of all such permits or licenses issued within that state, accessible 24 hours a day; (ii) the permit or license holder carries a photo identification issued by a government agency of any state or by the U.S. Department of Defense or U.S. Department of State and displays the permit or license and such identification upon demand by a law-enforcement officer; and (iii) the permit or license holder has not previously had a Virginia concealed handgun permit revoked. The bill prevents a Virginia resident, except for an active duty service member or such service member's spouse, who has not been issued a valid resident concealed handgun permit from using a concealed handgun or concealed weapon permit or license issued by another state to carry a concealed handgun in the Commonwealth. The foregoing provisions of the bill have a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027. The bill requires the Superintendent of State Police, in consultation with the Office of the Attorney General, to review any agreements for reciprocal recognition that are in place with any other states as of July 1, 2026, to determine whether the requirements and qualifications of those states' laws are adequate to prevent possession of a permit or license by persons who would be denied a permit in the Commonwealth and revoke any reciprocity agreement or recognition of any states that do not meet such requirements or qualifications by December 1, 2026. The bill requires the Attorney General to provide a written explanation for any determination that a state's laws are adequate to prevent possession of such permit or license by persons who would be denied such permit in the Commonwealth.
Bill statusin committee1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Dec 2025
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced Dec 22, 2025Last action Feb 18, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison
What changed between versions
Introduced→Public Safety Substitute·3 edits
MINOR
The bill text was reformatted from a committee introduction version to a public safety substitute version, with one substantive change shifting responsibility for reviewing reciprocity agreements from the Superintendent of State Police to the Office of the Attorney General. This change centralizes oversight of interstate concealed handgun permit reciprocity within the Attorney General's office, potentially affecting how Virginia evaluates and manages agreements with other states.
Scope change
The bill's overall scope remains the same - it governs concealed handgun permit reciprocity between Virginia and other states - but the administrative authority responsible for reviewing and maintaining reciprocity agreements was transferred from the Superintendent of State Police to the Office of the Attorney General.
ENFORCEMENT
Responsibility for reviewing reciprocity agreements and determining whether other states meet Virginia's requirements was transferred from the Superintendent of State Police to the Office of the Attorney General, with the Attorney General now tasked with providing written explanations for determinations about state laws.
REQUIREMENT
The Office of the Attorney General is now required to determine whether states meet the requirements and qualifications of the reciprocity subsection, whereas previously the Superintendent of State Police performed this function.
TECHNICAL
The document was reformatted from an introduced bill version to a substitute amendment version, including changes to header information, page numbering, and formatting conventions used in legislative markup.
Floor votes
How they voted
No floor votes recorded yet.
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
6
Key actions
2
Committee
4
Feb 18, 2026
Lower · Passed
Left in Committee Public Safety
lower
Feb 16, 2026
Other
Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB24)
lower
Feb 10, 2026
Lower · Passed
House subcommittee offered
lower
Feb 10, 2026
Committee
Assigned HMPPS sub: Firearms
lower
Dec 22, 2025
Committee
Referred to Committee on Public Safety
lower
Dec 22, 2025
Filing
Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26100344D