SB 290 Virginia Senate · 2026 Regular Session

Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; enforcement by localities.

Summary
Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; enforcement by localities. Provides that if a condition exists in a dwelling unit that constitutes a material noncompliance by the landlord with the rental agreement or with any provision of law that, if not remedied within a reasonable time frame, constitutes a fire hazard or serious threat to the life, health, or safety of a tenant or occupant of the premises, a locality may institute an action on behalf of any tenant or occupant of the premises who is injured by such material noncompliance for injunction and damages to enforce the landlord's duty to maintain the dwelling unit in a fit and habitable condition, provided that (i) the premises where the violation occurred is within the jurisdictional boundaries of the locality and (ii) the locality has notified the landlord who owns the premises, either directly or through the managing agent, of the nature of the violation and the landlord has failed to remedy the violation to the satisfaction of the locality within a reasonable time after receiving such notice. This bill is identical to HB 14.
Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Feb 2026
Senate Passage
Feb 2026
House of Delegates Passage
Feb 2026
Signed into Law
Apr 2026
Introduced Jan 13, 2026 Signed Apr 13, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Enrolled Chaptered · 2 edits
MINOR
The bill has been formally enacted into law as Chapter 543 of the 2026 Virginia Acts of Assembly. The substantive legal text regarding landlord-tenant enforcement remains unchanged; the only modifications are the addition of official formatting, chapter numbers, and the approval date (April 13, 2026).
Scope change
No change in the scope or applicability of the law; the text of the statute itself is identical to the previous version.
TECHNICAL

Added official chapter designation (Chapter 543) and the specific approval date of April 13, 2026, which were missing in the enrolled draft.

Inserted decorative spacing and formatting lines typical of the final printed version of Virginia Acts.

Floor votes · Senate Jan 30, 2026 · House of Delegates Feb 24, 2026

How they voted

370
Passed · 2 other
Total votes 39
Jan 30, 2026
D Democratic20
20 Yea
100% Yea
R Republican19
17 Yea 2
89% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
27
Key actions
9
Committee
5
Apr 13, 2026
Signed into law
Approved by Governor-Chapter 543 (effective 7/1/2026)
executive
Feb 26, 2026
Upper · Passed
Signed by President
upper
Feb 26, 2026
Lower · Passed
Signed by Speaker
lower
Feb 26, 2026
Upper · Passed
Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB290ER)
upper
Feb 24, 2026
Lower · Passed
Passed House (65-Y 32-N 0-A)
lower
Feb 19, 2026
Lower · Passed
Reported from General Laws (16-Y 5-N)
lower
Feb 6, 2026
Committee
Referred to Committee on General Laws
lower
Feb 3, 2026
Upper · Passed
Read third time and passed Senate (21-Y 18-N 0-A)
upper
Jan 30, 2026
Upper · Passed
Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote)
upper
Jan 28, 2026
Upper · Passed
Reported from General Laws and Technology (9-Y 6-N)
upper
Jan 21, 2026
Committee
Assigned GL&T sub: Housing
upper
Jan 13, 2026
Committee
Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology
upper
1 primary · 3 co-sponsors

Sponsors