SB 179 Virginia Senate · 2020 Regular Session

Hate crimes; adds gender, disability, gender identity, or sexual orientation, penalty.

Summary
Hate crimes; gender, disability, gender identity, or sexual orientation; penalty. Adds gender, disability, gender identity, and sexual orientation to the categories of victims whose intentional selection for a hate crime involving assault, assault and battery, or trespass for the purpose of damaging another's property results in a higher criminal penalty for the offense. The bill also adds gender, disability, gender identity, and sexual orientation to the categories of hate crimes that are to be reported to the central repository of information regarding hate crimes maintained by the Virginia State Police. The bill provides that a person who is subjected to acts of intimidation or harassment, violence directed against his person, or vandalism to his real or personal property, where such acts are motivated by gender, disability, gender identity, or sexual orientation, may bring a civil action to recover his damages. The bill also provides that no provider or user of an interactive computer service on the Internet shall be liable for any action voluntarily taken by it in good faith to restrict access to material that the provider or user considers to be intended to incite hatred on the basis of gender, disability, gender identity, or sexual orientation. The bill also eliminates the mandatory minimum terms of confinement for such hate crimes. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriation act.
Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Dec 2019
Committee Review
Feb 2020
Senate Passage
Feb 2020
House of Delegates Passage
Feb 2020
Signed into Law
Apr 2020
Introduced Dec 21, 2019 Signed Apr 11, 2020
Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
41
Key actions
13
Committee
14
Amendments
3
Apr 11, 2020
Signed into law
Approved by Governor-Chapter 1171 (effective 7/1/20)
executive
Mar 2, 2020
Introduced
House amendment agreed to by Senate (22-Y 17-N)
upper
Feb 27, 2020
Lower · Passed
Passed House with amendment (55-Y 44-N)
lower
Feb 27, 2020
Introduced
Engrossed by House as amended
lower
Feb 27, 2020
Lower · Passed
Committee amendment agreed to
lower
Feb 24, 2020
Lower · Passed
Reported from Courts of Justice with amendment (13-Y 9-N)
lower
Feb 19, 2020
Lower · Passed
Subcommittee recommends referring to Committee on Appropriations
lower
Feb 19, 2020
Lower · Passed
Subcommittee recommends reporting with amendment (5-Y 3-N)
lower
Feb 18, 2020
Committee
Assigned Courts sub: Criminal
lower
Feb 18, 2020
Committee
Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice
lower
Feb 10, 2020
Upper · Passed
Read third time and passed Senate (26-Y 13-N)
upper
Feb 7, 2020
Upper · Passed
Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute with amendment SB179ES1
upper
Feb 7, 2020
Upper · Passed
Committee amendment agreed to
upper
Feb 7, 2020
Introduced
Reading of amendment waived
upper
Feb 7, 2020
Upper · Passed
Committee substitute agreed to 20105706D-S1
upper
Feb 5, 2020
Upper · Passed
Reported from Finance and Appropriations with amendment (15-Y 1-N)
upper
Jan 15, 2020
Committee
Rereferred to Finance and Appropriations
upper
Jan 15, 2020
Upper · Passed
Reported from Judiciary with substitute (8-Y 3-N)
upper
Jan 8, 2020
Upper · Passed
Moved from Courts of Justice to Judiciary due to a change of the committee name
upper
Dec 21, 2019
Committee
Referred to Committee on the Judiciary
upper
Dec 21, 2019
Introduced
Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/08/20 20102367D
upper
1 primary · 7 co-sponsors

Sponsors