HB 836 Virginia House of Delegates · 2026 Regular Session

Public schools; right to free public elementary and secondary education, discrimination, etc.

Summary

Public schools; right to free public elementary and secondary education; discrimination based on immigration status prohibited; civil cause of action. Prohibits any child in the Commonwealth from being denied a free public education through secondary school on the basis of the actual or perceived immigration or citizenship status of the child or the child's parents, in accordance with the Constitution of Virginia and consistent with the requirements of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The bill also, among other things, prohibits any school board, public elementary or secondary school, school resource officer employed by a local law-enforcement agency in any public elementary or secondary school, or any individual who is an employee, contractor, or agent of a school board from engaging in certain enumerated actions and practices that involve or result in the denial of a free public education, or denial of the benefits or exclusion from participation in any program or activity thereof, of a child on the basis of the actual or perceived immigration or citizenship status of the child or the child's parents. The bill establishes a civil cause of action for violations of the foregoing prohibitions. The bill requires the Department of Education, in collaboration with the Office of the Attorney General, to develop and make available to each school board by August 1, 2026, guidance and resources on developing policies and procedures to implement the requirements set forth in the bill and requires each school board to develop and implement by December 31, 2026, such policies and procedures and to require each public elementary and secondary school principal and administrator in the school division to complete training on compliance with the provisions of the bill as soon as is practicable but not later than the beginning of the 2027–2028 school year, consistent with the guidance and resources developed and made available by the Department of Education. This bill incorporates HB 912 and is identical to SB 491.

Issues: ✓ Education ✓ Immigration

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Mar 2026

House of Delegates Passage

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Mar 2026

Signed into Law

Apr 2026

Introduced Jan 13, 2026 Signed Apr 13, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 5 comparisons

What changed between versions

K-12 Subcommittee Subcommittee Substitute → Education and Health Substitute · 8 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended to expand its scope by adding a civil cause of action for individuals harmed by violations, allowing them to sue for damages and attorney fees. The amendment also clarifies exceptions for disclosing student information in health or safety emergencies and establishes new procedures for school boards to review and authorize requests from law enforcement agents seeking to enter school property. Additionally, the deadlines for developing guidance and implementing policies were extended from 2026 to 2027.

Scope change

The bill's scope was expanded to include a new civil enforcement mechanism and clarified the rules regarding law enforcement access to schools and student record disclosures.

ENFORCEMENT

Added a new subsection allowing aggrieved parties to file civil lawsuits for injunctive relief, damages, and attorney fees if their rights under the bill are violated.

DEFINITION

Added a definition for 'Aggrieved party' to specify who can bring a civil action under the new enforcement provision.

Added a definition for 'Nonjudicial warrant' to distinguish warrants not signed by a judge from those that are.

REQUIREMENT

Modified the exceptions for disclosing student information to explicitly allow disclosure in exigent circumstances related to student or faculty health or safety.

Added new requirements for school boards to develop procedures for reviewing law enforcement requests to enter school property, including contacting legal counsel and monitoring interactions.

Added a prohibition on school employees assisting in the execution of nonjudicial warrants for immigration enforcement purposes.

TIMELINE

Extended the deadline for the Department of Education to provide guidance and training from August 2026 to August 2027.

Extended the deadline for school boards to implement policies and post them on their websites from December 31, 2026, to the beginning of the 2027-2028 school year.

Floor votes · Senate Feb 27, 2026 · House of Delegates Feb 17, 2026

How they voted

36–0

Passed · 3 other

Total votes 39

Feb 27, 2026

D Democratic20

18 Yea 2

90% Yea

R Republican19

18 Yea 1

94% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

Apr 13, 2026

Signed into law

Approved by Governor-Chapter 680 (effective 7/1/2026)

executive

Mar 31, 2026

Lower · Passed

Signed by Speaker

lower

Mar 30, 2026

Upper · Passed

Signed by President

upper

Mar 30, 2026

Lower · Passed

Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB836ER)

lower

Mar 13, 2026

Upper · Passed

Conference report agreed to by Senate (21-Y 18-N 0-A)

upper

Mar 13, 2026

Lower · Passed

Conference report agreed to by House (62-Y 34-N 0-A)

lower

Mar 12, 2026

Legislature · Passed

Conference Report released

legislature

Mar 6, 2026

Committee

Senate requested conference committee

upper

Mar 6, 2026

Introduced

Senate insisted on amendments (40-Y 0-N 0-A)

upper

Mar 2, 2026

Upper · Passed

Passed Senate with substitute (21-Y 19-N 0-A)

upper

Feb 27, 2026

Upper · Passed

Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote)

upper

Feb 26, 2026

Upper · Passed

Reported from Education and Health with substitute (9-Y 6-N)

upper

Feb 18, 2026

Committee

Referred to Committee on Education and Health

upper

Feb 17, 2026

Lower · Passed

Read third time and passed House (61-Y 34-N 0-A)

lower

Feb 11, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported from Education with substitute (14-Y 7-N)

lower

Feb 10, 2026

Lower · Passed

House subcommittee offered

lower

Feb 5, 2026

Committee

Assigned HED sub: K-12 Subcommittee

lower

Jan 13, 2026

Committee

Referred to Committee on Education

lower

1 primary · 9 co-sponsors