Labor & Employment

signed · Virginia · Senate Apr 13, 2026

SB 771: Workers' compensation; burial expenses, annual adjustment.

Workers' compensation; burial expenses; annual adjustment. Increases from $10,000 to $15,000 the amount required to be paid by an employer under workers' compensation provisions for burial expenses. The bill directs the Commissioner of the Virginia Workers' Compensation Commission to adjust the amount of burial expenses and reasonable transportation expenses required to be paid by an employer by a percentage equivalent to the percentage increase of the United States Average Consumer Price Index published by the U.S. Department of Labor beginning January 1, 2028, and annually thereafter.

Topics ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentIncreases workers' compensation burial benefits from $10k to $15k, strengthening financial protection for workers' families under labor benefits.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Labor & Employment

signed · Virginia · House of Delegates Apr 13, 2026

HB 1400: Health insurance; coverage for maternal mental health screenings.

Health insurance; coverage for maternal mental health screenings. Requires health insurance carriers to provide coverage for maternal mental health screenings. The bill requires such coverage to include at least one maternal mental health screening to be conducted during pregnancy, at least one additional screening to be conducted during the first six weeks of the postpartum period, and additional medically necessary postpartum screenings. Additionally, the bill provides that coverage for a prescription drug for the treatment of a maternal mental health condition shall not be subject to prior authorization requirements unless there are clinically significant safety or efficacy concerns.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareMandates insurance coverage for maternal mental health screenings during pregnancy and postpartum, expanding access to critical mental health services.95% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentBill mandates health insurance coverage for maternal mental health screenings, expanding worker benefits and protecting employee well-being.85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Labor & Employment

vetoed · Virginia · House of Delegates Apr 13, 2026

HB 1100: Wage garnishments; treasurers' liens for unpaid taxes and charges.

Wage garnishments; treasurers' liens for unpaid taxes and charges. Limits a treasurer's lien issued with respect to wages or salary to 25 percent of the delinquent taxpayer's disposable earnings in a single pay period. The 25 percent limitation shall not apply (i) if the lien issuer determines that the adjusted gross income of the delinquent taxpayer exceeds 250 percent of the poverty guideline amount adjusted for household size; (ii) if the treasurer determines, by clear and convincing evidence, that the delinquent taxpayer or the property assessed with such taxes is no longer in the jurisdiction, or the taxpayer is attempting to flee the jurisdiction or is improperly disposing of assets with the intent to hinder or delay the collection of the delinquent taxes; or (iii) to any portion of the delinquent obligation collected by the delinquent taxpayer and held in trust to remit to the local governing authority. This bill is identical to SB 597.

Topics ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentLimits wage garnishment to 25% of disposable earnings, protecting workers' take-home pay from excessive deductions per bill's core provision.90% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Labor & Employment

Track

signed · Virginia · House of Delegates Apr 13, 2026

HB 426: Workers' compensation; employer's offset in event of recovery.

Workers' compensation; employer's offset in event of recovery. Amends provisions related to an employer's offset for recovery in certain actions brought under the Virginia Workers' Compensation Act. The bill requires that lifetime medical award benefits and ongoing indemnity award benefits shall remain in full force and effect if the claimant is under such an award at the time that recovery is effected, subject to the employer offset provisions. Under the bill, an employer's credit shall be applied as a continuing, pro rata reduction to benefits otherwise payable under an existing award until the employer's required credit is exhausted. The bill also removes language limiting an employee's entitlement to compensation and expenses for medical, surgical, and hospital attention and funeral expenses.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill ensures ongoing medical benefits for workers' comp claimants remain intact during third-party recovery, protecting healthcare access and preventing benefit reduction.90% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentEnsures workers' compensation benefits remain fully effective despite employer recovery offsets, protecting claimant entitlements under Virginia Workers' Compensation Act.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Labor & Employment

signed · Virginia · House of Delegates Apr 13, 2026

HB 647: Teaching Experience; regulations Governing Allowable Credit.

Board of Education; Regulations Governing Allowable Credit for Teaching Experience; certain credit substitution allowance permitted. Requires the Board of Education to amend its regulations to provide that teachers in the field of career and technical education, where the licensure requirement calls for occupational work experience beyond the apprenticeship level, may be allowed salary placement credit for one year of teaching experience for each one or two years of work experience. The bill satisfies the reenactment requirement of Chapter 677 of the Acts of Assembly of 2025.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationAllows CTE teachers credit for occupational experience in salary placement, supporting educator compensation and retention within teacher regulations.90% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentBill allows credit for occupational work experience in career/technical education for salary placement, directly increasing compensation for teachers. This supports wage standards under Labor & Employment.85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Labor & Employment

signed · Virginia · House of Delegates Apr 13, 2026

HB 1130: Workforce housing for employees; county bd. of supervisor or school bd., lease of surplus property.

Workforce housing for employees of a county or county school board; lease of surplus property. Allows any county board of supervisors or county school board to lease as lessor surplus or underutilized property. The bill provides that such leases shall be conditioned on the development of workforce housing serving employees of the county or school division with up to 80 percent of area median household income. The bill also prohibits establishment of a minimum lot size exceeding 5,000 square feet for such workforce housing and provides that the placement of manufactured houses that are on a permanent foundation and on individual lots shall be permitted subject to development standards that are equivalent to those applicable to site-built single-family dwellings.

Topics ✓ HousingSupports HousingBill mandates workforce housing development on surplus property for employees up to 120% AMI, prohibits large lot sizes to boost supply, and directly advances affordable housing access.95% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentBill creates workforce housing for employees (up to 120% AMI), directly supporting affordable housing as an employment standard, reducing housing costs for workers.85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Labor & Employment

vetoed · Virginia · Senate Apr 13, 2026

SB 597: Wage garnishments; treasurers' liens for unpaid taxes and charges.

Wage garnishments; treasurers' liens for unpaid taxes and charges. Limits a treasurer's lien issued with respect to wages or salary to 25 percent of the delinquent taxpayer's disposable earnings in a single pay period. The 25 percent limitation shall not apply (i) if the lien issuer determines that the adjusted gross income of the delinquent taxpayer exceeds 250 percent of the poverty guideline amount adjusted for household size; (ii) if the treasurer determines, by clear and convincing evidence, that the delinquent taxpayer or the property assessed with such taxes is no longer in the jurisdiction, or the taxpayer is attempting to flee the jurisdiction or is improperly disposing of assets with the intent to hinder or delay the collection of the delinquent taxes; or (iii) to any portion of the delinquent obligation collected by the delinquent taxpayer and held in trust to remit to the local governing authority. This bill is identical to HB 1100.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesLimits wage garnishment for tax debts to 25% of disposable earnings, protecting lower-income taxpayers from excessive collection, aligning with fiscal responsibility.92% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentLimits wage garnishment to 25% of disposable earnings, protecting workers' take-home pay from excessive deductions per bill's core provision.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Labor & Employment

Track

signed · Virginia · Senate Apr 13, 2026

SB 3: Employee Child Care Assistance Pilot Program; established, reports.

Employee Child Care Assistance Program established. Establishes the Employee Child Care Assistance Program to provide matching funds in order to incentivize employers to contribute to the child care costs of their employees. The Program shall be administered by the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation. To participate in the Program, an employer shall agree to make child care contributions to the eligible mixed delivery provider on behalf of the employee or to a third-party administrator, as defined by the bill, and shall provide any other information deemed necessary by the Foundation. The bill specifies that, to the extent funds are available, the Foundation shall issue a state match to a third-party administrator. Program funds shall be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis; however, the bill clarifies that the Foundation is encouraged to prioritize awards to proposals involving contributions from small businesses. The bill requires the Foundation to provide an interim report to the General Assembly by September 1, 2028, and a summative report to the General Assembly by September 1, 2030, on the effectiveness and impact of the Program. This bill is identical to HB 18.

Topics ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentBill establishes matching funds to incentivize employers to cover employee child care costs, directly supporting workers' employment stability and reducing financial burden.90% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Labor & Employment

signed · Virginia · House of Delegates Apr 8, 2026

HB 1313: Workers' compensation; law-enforcement officers and firefighters, post-traumatic stress disorder.

Workers' compensation. Provides that, for the purposes of workers' compensation for post-traumatic stress disorder incurred by a law-enforcement officer or firefighter, an incident or exposure without any accompanying physical injury occurring in the line of duty on or after January 1, 2027, is a qualifying event, as defined in the bill. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2027.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareExpands workers' compensation coverage for mental health conditions (PTSD, anxiety, depression) in first responders, strengthening access to healthcare for job-related mental health exacerbations.95% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentExpands workers' compensation benefits for law-enforcement/firefighters with work-exacerbated mental health conditions, strengthening protections under Labor & Employment.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Labor & Employment

signed · Virginia · House of Delegates Apr 8, 2026

HB 488: Wage garnishment; state tax debt.

Wage garnishment; state tax debt. Provides that the maximum part of the aggregate disposable earnings of an individual for any workweek that is subject to garnishment to collect delinquent taxes and charges owed to the state government shall not exceed the lesser of (i) 25 percent of such individual's disposable earnings for that week or (ii) the amount by which such individual's disposable earnings exceed 40 times the federal or Virginia minimum wage, whichever is greater. The bill also directs the Department of Taxation to recognize Currently Not Collectible status granted by the Internal Revenue Service and to offer taxpayers with such status a similar Virginia status with comparable protections from collection activities. The bill contains technical amendments and has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027.

Topics ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentBill caps wage garnishment at 25% or 40x min wage, protecting workers' disposable earnings from excessive deductions per labor rights focus.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Labor & Employment