SB 531 Virginia Senate · 2026 Regular Session

Zoning; development and use of accessory dwelling units, delayed effective date.

Summary
Zoning; development and use of accessory dwelling units. Requires a locality to include in its zoning ordinances for single-family residential zoning districts accessory dwelling units, or ADUs, as defined in the bill, as a permitted accessory use. The bill requires a person to seek a permit for an ADU from the locality, requires the locality to issue such permit if the person meets certain requirements enumerated in the bill, and restricts the fee for such permit to $500 or less. The bill prohibits the locality from requiring (i) setbacks for the ADU that are greater than the setback required for the primary dwelling or the setback required for accessory structures on the residential lot, whichever is less; (ii) conditions for ADUs that are more restrictive than those for single-family dwellings within the same zoning area with regard to height, rear, or side setbacks, lot size or coverage, or building frontage; or (iii) consanguinity or affinity between the occupants of the ADU and the primary dwelling. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027.
Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Feb 2026
Senate Passage
Mar 2026
House of Delegates Passage
Mar 2026
Signed into Law
Apr 2026
Introduced Jan 13, 2026 Signed Apr 13, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Local Government Substitute Enrolled · 2 edits · Mar 10, 2026
MINOR
The bill was finalized as an enrolled act, moving from a substitute version to its final legislative form. The substantive policy content, including definitions for accessory dwelling units and zoning requirements, remains unchanged, though minor formatting adjustments were made to section headers and legal citations.
Scope change
The bill's scope and applicability remain unchanged; the text represents the final version of the same legislation.
TECHNICAL

Updated the document header to reflect the 2026 session and enrolled status, removing draft labels.

Adjusted spacing in section titles and legal citations to match standard enrolled formatting.

Floor votes · Senate Feb 10, 2026 · House of Delegates Mar 4, 2026

How they voted

390
Passed
Total votes 39
Feb 10, 2026
D Democratic20
20 Yea
100% Yea
R Republican19
19 Yea
100% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
28
Key actions
10
Committee
7
Apr 13, 2026
Signed into law
Approved by Governor-Chapter 895 (effective 7/1/2026)
executive
Mar 10, 2026
Upper · Passed
Signed by President
upper
Mar 10, 2026
Lower · Passed
Signed by Speaker
lower
Mar 10, 2026
Upper · Passed
Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB531ER)
upper
Mar 4, 2026
Lower · Passed
Passed House (62-Y 37-N 0-A)
lower
Feb 27, 2026
Lower · Passed
Reported from Counties, Cities and Towns (13-Y 8-N)
lower
Feb 17, 2026
Committee
Assigned HCCT sub: Subcommittee #3
lower
Feb 17, 2026
Committee
Referred to Committee on Counties, Cities and Towns
lower
Feb 12, 2026
Upper · Passed
Read third time and passed Senate (21-Y 19-N 0-A)
upper
Feb 10, 2026
Upper · Passed
Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote)
upper
Feb 9, 2026
Upper · Passed
Reported from Local Government with substitute (8-Y 7-N)
upper
Feb 9, 2026
Upper · Passed
Senate committee offered
upper
Jan 21, 2026
Committee
Rereferred from General Laws and Technology to Local Government (15-Y 0-N)
upper
Jan 13, 2026
Committee
Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology
upper
1 primary · 1 co-sponsor

Sponsors