HB 786 Virginia House of Delegates · 2026 Regular Session

School bds.; authority to prohibit sale of caffeinated beverages to students in public high schools.

Summary
School boards; authority to prohibit sale of caffeinated beverages to students in public high schools. Permits any school board to prohibit the sale of caffeinated beverages to students in public high schools in the local school division, regardless of whether any such beverage meets the requirements to be considered a diet or low-calorie beverage under any relevant federal regulation.
Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Feb 2026
House of Delegates Passage
Feb 2026
Senate Passage
Governor
Introduced Jan 13, 2026 Last action Mar 5, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduced Delegate Austin Substitute · 3 edits
MINOR
The bill was converted from an original introduction to a House substitute amendment, changing the focus from prohibiting caffeinated beverages to specifically prohibiting energy drinks. This narrows the scope by targeting beverages with more than 55 milligrams of caffeine combined with stimulants like guarana, taurine, or ginseng, rather than all caffeinated drinks. The amendment also adds a formal definition for 'energy drink' to clarify what products are covered under the prohibition.
Scope change
The bill's scope narrowed from all caffeinated beverages to specifically energy drinks containing more than 55mg of caffeine plus stimulants.
SCOPE

Changed the prohibition language from 'caffeinated beverages' to 'energy drinks' to target a more specific category of beverages.

DEFINITION

Added a new definition for 'energy drink' specifying beverages with more than 55 milligrams of caffeine combined with stimulants or stimulant-adjacent substances including ginseng, guarana, L-carnitine, or taurine.

REQUIREMENT

Modified the section title and operative language to reflect the new focus on energy drinks rather than general caffeinated beverages.

Floor votes · House of Delegates Feb 17, 2026

How they voted

820
Passed · 5 other
Total votes 87
Feb 17, 2026
D Democratic52
50 Yea 2
96% Yea
R Republican35
32 Yea 3
91% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
33
Key actions
4
Committee
8
Amendments
1
Feb 26, 2026
Committee
Assigned Education sub: Public Education
upper
Feb 18, 2026
Committee
Referred to Committee on Education and Health
upper
Feb 17, 2026
Lower · Passed
Passed House (83-Y 13-N 1-A)
lower
Feb 11, 2026
Lower · Passed
Reported from Education (15-Y 5-N 1-A)
lower
Feb 3, 2026
Committee
Rereferred to Education
lower
Feb 2, 2026
Amended
committee amendment rejected
lower
Jan 28, 2026
Lower · Passed
Reported from Education with amendment(s) (20-Y 1-N)
lower
Jan 27, 2026
Lower · Passed
Subcommittee recommends reporting with amendment(s) (10-Y 0-N)
lower
Jan 23, 2026
Committee
Assigned HED sub: K-12 Subcommittee
lower
Jan 13, 2026
Committee
Referred to Committee on Education
lower
1 primary · 1 co-sponsor

Sponsors