SB 619 Virginia Senate · 2026 Regular Session

Electric utilities; certificate of operation for high-load facilities.

Summary

Electric utilities; certificate of operation for high-load facilities. Prohibits any person from operating a high-load facility, defined in the bill as a facility whose electricity demand exceeds 90 megawatts that was not operating before January 1, 2027, without first having obtained a certificate of operation from the State Corporation Commission. The bill includes factors for the Commission to consider in reviewing a petition to operate a high-load facility. The bill establishes a presumption that a high-load facility shall be considered to have met certain requirements if the high-load facility has secured sufficient contracts for energy storage resources or zero-carbon electric generating resources or that the high-load facility has a plan to implement sufficient demand reduction measures. The bill also requires the Commission to consider certain factors in a review of a petition for a certificate to operate a high-load facility, including whether there is sufficient energy, capacity, and grid infrastructure to support the operation of the high-load facility and whether the operation of the high-load facility would create an unreasonable cross-subsidy across customers served by the incumbent electric utility.

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Feb 2026

House of Delegates Passage

Governor

Introduced Jan 14, 2026 Last action Mar 10, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Labor and Commerce Substitute → Engrossed · 6 edits · Feb 16, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was amended to lower the threshold for requiring a special operating certificate for new high-load facilities from 90 megawatts to 25 megawatts and moved the effective date from January 1, 2027, to July 1, 2026. The changes also broaden the scope of entities affected to include any regulated public utility, add specific requirements to align with the Commonwealth Clean Energy Policy, and introduce a new clause stating that this section overrides conflicting laws.

Scope change

The bill now applies to a wider range of facilities (those exceeding 25 megawatts instead of 90) and extends the requirement to cover any regulated public utility, not just incumbent utilities.

ELIGIBILITY

The minimum electricity demand or contracted capacity required to trigger the certificate requirement was reduced from 90 megawatts to 25 megawatts.

TIMELINE

The date by which facilities must have been in operation to be exempt from the new rules was changed from January 1, 2027, to July 1, 2026.

REQUIREMENT

A new requirement was added to ensure the facility's operation is consistent with the Commonwealth Clean Energy Policy.

A new provision was added stating that this section controls over any conflicting provisions of law, including utility service obligations.

The criteria for avoiding a presumption of adverse effect were updated to explicitly include demonstrating consistency with the Commonwealth Clean Energy Policy.

SCOPE

The analysis of adverse effects was expanded to include rates paid by customers of any regulated public utility, rather than just other electric service customers.

Introduced → Labor and Commerce Substitute · 6 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended by the House Committee on Labor and Commerce to significantly raise the threshold for new high-load facilities from 25 megawatts to 90 megawatts and delay the effective date from July 2026 to January 2027. The amendment also added a requirement for local government approval before the state commission can issue a certificate of operation. These changes aim to reduce regulatory burdens on smaller industrial projects while maintaining oversight for larger facilities that could impact the electric grid.

Scope change

The bill now applies only to facilities with a contracted or measured electric demand of 90 megawatts or greater, excluding smaller facilities that previously required a certificate. It also adds a new eligibility requirement where the facility must receive approval from the local jurisdiction before state certification.

DEFINITION

The definition of 'high-load facility' was changed to require a contracted or measured electric demand of 90 megawatts or greater, up from 25 megawatts.

TIMELINE

The effective date for the new high-load facility definition was moved from July 1, 2026, to January 1, 2027.

REQUIREMENT

A new requirement was added stating that a high-load facility must receive approval from the locality where it seeks to operate before the Commission can issue a certificate.

The criteria for issuing a certificate were updated to include a finding that the facility will not have a material adverse effect on rates paid by 'other electric service customers' and to consider cumulative effects of previously approved certificates.

The presumption of no adverse effect now includes 'cooperatives' alongside incumbent electric utilities and requires offset actions to be taken within the Commonwealth rather than just the regional transmission entity.

The review criteria now explicitly require consideration of contributions to tax revenue and community benefits, in addition to economic development.

Floor votes · Senate Feb 12, 2026

How they voted

39–0

Passed

Total votes 39

Feb 12, 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

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

Mar 3, 2026

Lower · Passed

Subcommittee recommends laying on the table (9-Y 0-N)

lower

Mar 3, 2026

Lower · Passed

House subcommittee offered

lower

Feb 24, 2026

Committee

Assigned HCL sub: Subcommittee #3

lower

Feb 20, 2026

Committee

Referred to Committee on Labor and Commerce

lower

Feb 16, 2026

Upper · Passed

Read third time and passed Senate (23-Y 16-N 0-A)

upper

Feb 13, 2026

Introduced

Engrossed by Senate as amended (Voice Vote)

upper

Feb 13, 2026

Upper · Passed

Commerce and Labor Amendments agreed to

upper

Feb 12, 2026

Upper · Passed

Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote)

upper

Feb 11, 2026

Upper · Passed

Reported from Finance and Appropriations (11-Y 4-N)

upper

Feb 9, 2026

Upper · Passed

Reported from Commerce and Labor with amendments and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations (9-Y 6-N)

upper

Feb 9, 2026

Upper · Passed

Senate committee offered

upper

Jan 14, 2026

Committee

Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor

upper

1 primary · 3 co-sponsors