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

signed · Virginia · House of Delegates Apr 8, 2026

HB 20: Minimum wage; farm laborers or farm employees, temporary foreign workers.

Minimum wage; farm laborers or farm employees. Eliminates the exemption from Virginia's minimum wage requirements for persons employed as farm laborers or farm employees. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2027, and is identical to SB 121.

Topics ✓ ImmigrationSupports ImmigrationEliminates minimum wage exemption for temporary foreign workers, ensuring they receive same wage protections as other workers, directly protecting immigrant labor rights.95% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentEliminates minimum wage exemptions for farm laborers and temporary foreign workers, extending wage protections to previously excluded groups.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✗ Voted No ✗ Opposes Labor & Employment

signed · Virginia · House of Delegates Apr 8, 2026

HB 67: Offshore Wind Industry Workforce Program and Fund; established, report, sunset.

Department of Energy; workforce development in offshore wind industry. Directs the Director of the Department of Energy to identify and develop training resources to advance workforce development in the offshore wind industry in the Commonwealth. This bill is identical to SB 25.

Topics ✓ EnergySupports EnergyDirects workforce development for offshore wind, a renewable energy sector, advancing clean energy infrastructure through training resources.95% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentDirects DOE to develop training resources for offshore wind workforce, advancing employment opportunities and skills development in a growing sector.90% confidence | Rep's Stance ✗ Voted No ✗ Opposes Labor & Employment

signed · Virginia · House of Delegates Apr 8, 2026

HB 1: Minimum wage; increases incrementally to $15.00 per hour by January 1, 2028.

Minimum wage. Increases the minimum wage incrementally to $15.00 per hour by January 1, 2028. The bill codifies the adjusted state hourly minimum wage of $12.77 per hour that is effective January 1, 2026, and increases the minimum wage to $13.75 per hour effective January 1, 2027, and to $15.00 per hour effective January 1, 2028. Effective January 1, 2029, and annually thereafter, the bill requires the minimum wage to be adjusted to reflect increases in the consumer price index. This bill is identical to SB 1.

Topics ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentBill explicitly increases minimum wage incrementally to $15/hr by 2028 with annual inflation adjustments, directly strengthening worker compensation and aligning with 'increases minimum wage' support indicator.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✗ Voted No ✗ Opposes Labor & Employment

signed · Virginia · Senate Apr 8, 2026

SB 1: Minimum wage; increases incrementally to $15.00 per hour by January 1, 2028.

Minimum wage. Increases the minimum wage incrementally to $15.00 per hour by January 1, 2028. The bill codifies the adjusted state hourly minimum wage of $12.77 per hour that is effective January 1, 2026, and increases the minimum wage to $13.75 per hour effective January 1, 2027, and to $15.00 per hour effective January 1, 2028. Effective January 1, 2029, and annually thereafter, the bill requires the minimum wage to be adjusted to reflect increases in the consumer price index. This bill is identical to HB 1.

Topics ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentIncreases minimum wage to $15/hr by 2028 with CPI adjustments, directly advancing worker compensation standards.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✗ Voted No ✗ Opposes Labor & Employment

signed · Virginia · Senate Apr 8, 2026

SB 25: Offshore wind industry; workforce development.

Department of Energy; workforce development in offshore wind industry. Directs the Director of the Department of Energy to identify and develop training resources to advance workforce development in the offshore wind industry in the Commonwealth. This bill is identical to HB 67.

Topics ✓ EnergySupports EnergyDirectly establishes workforce development for offshore wind (renewable energy), aligning with clean energy investment indicators and workforce advancement in renewable infrastructure.95% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentEstablishes workforce development program funding training resources for offshore wind industry, advancing employment opportunities in a growing sector.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✗ Voted No ✗ Opposes Labor & Employment

signed · Virginia · Senate Apr 6, 2026

SB 328: Housing for local employees; grants for homeownership.

Housing for local employees; grants for homeownership and workforce housing alternatives. Eliminates the maximum amount a locality may provide (i) to employees of the locality, employees of the school board, and employees of constitutional officers for homeownership grants to purchase primary residences in the locality and (ii) to school division personnel for residential housing assistance grants to provide affordable workforce housing alternatives. The bill also eliminates the requirement that such grants adhere to the Virginia Housing and Development Authority regional sales price and household income limitation guidelines. Current law imposes a maximum grant amount of $25,000 for individual grants per employee, as well as a maximum lifetime cumulative amount of $25,000 per employee. This bill is identical to HB 164.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesEliminates spending caps on local housing grants, increasing budget allocation for workforce housing programs without tax changes.95% confidence ✓ EducationSupports EducationBill provides housing grants for school division personnel (teachers), directly supporting educators' housing affordability per topic's 'teachers' inclusion.80% confidence ✓ HousingSupports HousingEliminates funding caps for local employee homeownership grants and workforce housing alternatives, directly advancing affordable housing access for workers.95% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentEliminates caps on housing grants for local employees/school personnel, directly advancing workforce housing affordability as a labor support measure.85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✗ Voted No ✗ Opposes Labor & Employment

signed · Virginia · House of Delegates Apr 6, 2026

HB 209: Peer recovery specialists; VDH & DOC to develop guidelines for hiring.

Department of Health; Department of Corrections; peer recovery specialists. Directs the Virginia Department of Health and the Virginia Department of Corrections to develop agency guidelines for hiring peer recovery specialists with previous criminal convictions for compensated employment. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the Joint Commission on Health Care. This bill is identical to SB 608.

Topics ✓ Criminal JusticeSupports Criminal JusticeDirects VDH/DOC to develop hiring guidelines for peer recovery specialists with criminal convictions, promoting rehabilitation and reintegration in corrections, aligning with criminal justice reform indicators.90% confidence ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareDirects VDH/DOC to develop hiring guidelines for peer recovery specialists, expanding access to mental health support services through workforce inclusion.95% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentDirects guidelines for hiring individuals with criminal convictions as peer recovery specialists, expanding employment opportunities for a marginalized group within state agencies.85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Labor & Employment

signed · Virginia · House of Delegates Apr 6, 2026

HB 849: Public school employees; suspension, notice and opportunity for a hearing.

Public school employees; suspension; notice and opportunity for a hearing. Provides that no school board employee shall be suspended without notice and, if applicable, an opportunity to be heard and amends current law to require any individual who has been so suspended, regardless of the length of the suspension, to continue to receive his then applicable salary unless and until the school board, after a hearing, determines otherwise. Under current law, such requirement only applies to any individual who has been suspended for a period in excess of five days.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationBill mandates due process for school employee suspensions, ensuring continued salary and hearing rights, directly protecting educator job security and fair treatment in K-12 education.95% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentRequires school boards to provide notice, hearing, and continued pay during suspension, protecting due process rights for public school employees.90% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Labor & Employment

signed · Virginia · House of Delegates Apr 6, 2026

HB 1333: Paid firefighters; hours of work.

Hours of work for paid firefighters. Provides that the Department of Fire Programs shall encourage employers to implement work schedules that do not require any paid firefighter's normally scheduled shifts to exceed 42 hours per workweek.

Topics ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentBill caps firefighter workweeks at 42 hours to prevent excessive hours, directly advancing workplace safety protections under Labor & Employment policies.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Labor & Employment