HB 35 Virginia House of Delegates · 2026 Regular Session

Restorative housing and isolated confinement; restrictions on use.

Summary

Restorative housing and isolated confinement; restrictions on use. Prohibits the use of isolated confinement, defined in the bill, in state correctional facilities, subject to certain exceptions. The bill requires that before placing an incarcerated person in restorative housing or isolated confinement for his own protection, the facility administrator shall place an incarcerated person in a less-restrictive setting, including by transferring such person to another institution or to a special-purpose housing unit for incarcerated persons who face similar threats. The bill requires that if an incarcerated person is placed in restorative housing or isolated confinement, such placement shall be reviewed every two business days and the facility administrator shall ensure that the incarcerated person receives a medical and mental health evaluation from certified medical and mental health professionals within one working day of placement in restorative housing or any form of isolated confinement. The bill also requires the facility administrator to notify the regional administrator in writing that an incarcerated person was placed in restorative housing or isolated confinement within 24 hours of such placement. Finally, the bill requires that formal reviews of an incarcerated person's placement in any form of isolated confinement shall be held in such person's presence, inform him of any reasons administrative officials believe isolated confinement remains necessary, and give the incarcerated person an opportunity to respond to those reasons, and a formal ruling shall be provided to the incarcerated individual within 24 hours.

Issues: ✓ Criminal Justice

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Dec 2025

Committee Review

Mar 2026

House of Delegates Passage

Feb 2026

Senate Passage

Governor

Introduced Dec 23, 2025 Last action Mar 6, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Rehabilitation and Social Services Substitute → Engrossed · 6 edits · Feb 12, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was updated from a Senate substitute version to an engrossed version containing House amendments, which reorganized the structure of restrictions on isolated confinement and restorative housing. The changes clarify the timeline for reviews, add specific requirements for recreation time, and introduce a new section detailing formal review and appeal processes for individuals in isolated confinement.

Scope change

The scope of the bill's applicability remains focused on state correctional facilities, but the procedural requirements for placing and reviewing inmates in restrictive housing have been expanded and clarified.

REQUIREMENT

Reorganized the bill's structure to merge eligibility criteria and duration limits into a single subsection B, replacing the previous separate subsections.

Changed the required review frequency for placements from 'once a week' to 'every two business days' to ensure more frequent oversight.

Added a new requirement that inmates in restrictive housing must receive a minimum of one hour of recreation in a congregate setting, unless safety risks prevent it.

Updated the lockdown rules to specify that interruptions to programmatic activities must serve a specific security purpose and cannot last longer than seven days without regional administrator approval.

ENFORCEMENT

Introduced a new section requiring formal reviews and appeals for isolated confinement to be conducted by a multidisciplinary team including non-security advisors, mental health, and medical professionals.

DEFINITION

Added a new definition for 'out-of-cell programmatic interventions' to clarify that it includes both group settings and individual interactions with staff.

Introduced → Rehabilitation and Social Services Substitute · 6 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended from its original introduction to a substitute version, shifting the legislative status from 'Introduced' to 'Offered for Consideration' and changing the committee referral from Public Safety to Rehabilitation and Social Services. The core policy changes focus on clarifying time limits for isolation, strengthening protections for individuals requesting isolation for their own safety, and adding stricter requirements for lockdowns and formal reviews.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains focused on Virginia state correctional facilities, but the committee handling the bill changed, indicating a shift in the legislative focus toward rehabilitation and social services rather than just public safety.

TIMELINE

The bill status changed from 'Introduced' on January 14, 2026, to 'Offered for Consideration' on March 6, 2026, and was referred to the Senate Committee on Rehabilitation and Social Services instead of the Committee on Public Safety.

REQUIREMENT

Clarified that no incarcerated person can be held in restorative housing or isolated confinement for more than 15 consecutive days or 15 total days in a 60-day period, with specific exceptions for voluntary requests, self-protection needs, or medical isolation.

Added a new requirement that formal reviews of isolated confinement must be held in the person's presence, include a multidisciplinary team with non-security advisors and medical/mental health professionals, and provide written responses within 24 hours.

Strengthened protections for individuals requesting isolation for their own safety by requiring facilities to first attempt less-restrictive settings unless a security risk makes it impossible, and ensuring these individuals can opt out within 48 hours.

Added strict limits on lockdowns, prohibiting them from occurring more than once within 30 days without regional administrator approval and requiring specific documentation of security risks.

Changed the review frequency for placements in restorative housing or isolated confinement from 'once a week every 48 hours' to 'once a week every two business days'.

Floor votes · House of Delegates Feb 12, 2026

How they voted

55–30

Passed · 3 other

Total votes 88

Feb 12, 2026

D Democratic53

52 Yea 1

98% Yea

R Republican35

3 Yea 30 Nay 2

85% Nay

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

Mar 6, 2026

Upper · Passed

Senate committee offered

upper

Feb 13, 2026

Committee

Referred to Committee on Rehabilitation and Social Services

upper

Feb 12, 2026

Lower · Passed

Read third time and passed House (66-Y 31-N 0-A)

lower

Feb 11, 2026

Introduced

Engrossed by House as amended

lower

Feb 11, 2026

Lower · Passed

committee amendment agreed to

lower

Feb 6, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported from Appropriations with amendment(s) (15-Y 7-N)

lower

Feb 4, 2026

Lower · Passed

Subcommittee recommends reporting with amendment(s) (5-Y 2-N)

lower

Feb 4, 2026

Lower · Passed

House subcommittee offered

lower

Jan 26, 2026

Committee

Assigned HAPP sub: Transportation & Public Safety

lower

Jan 23, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported from Public Safety and referred to Appropriations (15-Y 7-N)

lower

Jan 22, 2026

Lower · Passed

Subcommittee recommends reporting and referring to Appropriations (5-Y 2-N)

lower

Jan 16, 2026

Committee

Assigned HPS sub: Subcommittee #2

lower

Dec 23, 2025

Committee

Referred to Committee on Public Safety

lower

1 primary · 10 co-sponsors