City of Alexandria, Virginia
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MEMORANDUM
DATE: MAY 7, 2026
TO: THE HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL
THROUGH: JAMES F. PARAJON, CITY MANAGER
FROM: DR. WENDY GINSBERG, LEGISLATIVE DIRECTOR
DOCKET TITLE:
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Final Review of the 2026 Virginia General Assembly Session. Update on Mandatory and Permissive Local Authority Granted by 2026 General Assembly Legislative Action.
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ISSUE: Final Review of the 2026 Virginia General Assembly Session. Update on Mandatory and Permissive Local Authority Granted by 2026 General Assembly Legislative Action.
RECOMMENDATION: That City Council:
1. Receive a final update on the status of bills the City tracked from the General Assembly; and
2. Receive information regarding new laws that mandate City action, including action that may be required of Council; and
3. Receive information on what new, permissive authorities are available to the City.
BACKGROUND: Virginia is a “Dillon Rule” state, which means that localities only have authority that is expressly granted to them by the General Assembly or written in their municipal charters, as well as such powers necessarily implied by those authorities.
Therefore, each session of the General Assembly, bills may be passed and signed into law which grant localities certain governing authority; this authority may be mandatory or permissive. Once these laws go into effect and this authority is granted, it falls to the locality to appropriately implement whatever mandatory authority is required of them and determine whether they want to adopt any permissive authority granted to them by the General Assembly.
During the 2026 session of the General Assembly, legislation was passed, and signed into law by the Governor, that in some cases mandates localities to act, and in other cases grants permissive authority to localities in several subject areas.
DISCUSSION: The 2026 General Assembly Session convened on January 14, 2026, for a full 60-day session and adjourned on March 14, 2026, without adopting a budget for the 2026-2028 biennium. The absence of an approved budget leaves several fiscal and programmatic issues unresolved until the General Assembly completes its work. Following the Governor’s April 13 deadline to act on legislation outside of the budget, the General Assembly reconvened on April 22, 2026, to consider the Governor’s amendments and vetoes and on April 23, 2026, to continue negotiations on the biennial budget.
The City’s 2026 Legislative Package outlined Alexandria’s policy goals and funding requests for the Session. These priorities reflect the City’s commitment to ensuring that local governments have the tools, resources, and flexibilities needed to meet community needs and strengthen resilience across Virginia.
The package was organized around seven core policy areas:
• Address Impacts of Federal Workforce and Funding Reductions;
• Advance Housing Affordability and Economic Opportunity;
• Rebuild Critical School Infrastructure;
• Address Mental Health, Public Health and Safety, and Community Well-Being;
• Advance Opportunity for All Alexandrians;
• Strengthen Transit, Infrastructure, Resilience, and Clean Energy Transition; and
• Promote Civic Engagement and Election Integrity.
Throughout the 2026 session, City staff, guided by the direction of the Legislative Subcommittee, monitored legislation, advocated for City priorities, and provided regular updates on bills and budget issues of interest. Several pieces of legislation aligned with the City’s core policy areas advanced during the Session, including bills related to voter access, energy efficiency, increasing worker protections, and preserving affordable housing.
The City tracked 608 bills during the Session. Of these, the City supported 406, opposed 47, and monitored 155. Ultimately, 303 bills were signed into law and 3 were vetoed. Following the reconvened session, 29 bills were returned to the Governor without accepting her amendments. The Governor now has until May 22 to sign these remaining bills into law, veto them, or not act and allow them to become law.
As noted, more than 303 bills that the City tracked passed the General Assembly this session. Many of these new laws impose requirements on local governments. Staff have reviewed these mandates and provided preliminary analysis of the actions necessary for the City to comply with these new statutory obligations.
Approximately 40 of the bills enacted create new permissive authority for the City of Alexandria. Some of these bills may require Council to adopt an ordinance if it chooses to employ the new authority. Other bills can be implemented administratively (provided funding and other resources are available, when applicable).
Each bill offering permissive authority is briefly summarized below. The City Manager’s Office, departments, and the City Attorney’s Office will continue reviewing these bills over the summer and will return to Council with recommendations related to adoption and implementation at a later date.
OPTIONAL NEW AUTHORITY:
Housing & Land Use
1. SB290 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/SB290>/HB14 - Allows a locality to bring an action for injunction and damages on behalf of tenants when a landlord’s material noncompliance creates a fire hazard or serious health/safety threat and is not remedied after notice.
o City Supported
2. HB4 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB41> - Allows localities to require a right of first refusal on publicly supported housing to preserve affordability for at least 15 years. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
3. HB833 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB833> - Allows localities, starting July 1, 2027, to require EV-ready or EV-capable parking in commercial, industrial, and multifamily developments. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
4. SB181 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/SB181> - Allows localities to grant partial real estate tax exemptions for conversions that include affordable housing. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
5. HB164 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/SB164>/SB328 - Removes caps on local homeownership and housing assistance grants for public City and School employees. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
6. HB1144 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB1144> - Allows localities to reimburse first-time homebuyers for water/sewer fees and to waive such fees for affordable dwelling unit developments. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
7. HB1234 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB1234>/SB26 - Provides that any locality may include in its land development ordinances a provision that requires that an applicant must install a solar canopy over designated surface parking areas. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
8. SB74 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/SB74>/HB867 - Authorizes an affordable housing dwelling unit program to include additional implementation measures including lot size reductions and accessory housing unit allowances. Delayed effective date of July 1, 2027.
o City Supported
9. HB594 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB594> - Allows a locality to authorize a zoning administrator to use an administrative process to approve rezoning applications for certain affordable housing developments. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
10. HB549 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB549>/SB589 - Expands certain existing local government authority to plant or replace trees during the development process by expanding such authority statewide.
o City Supported
11. HB257 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB257> - Encourages localities to use health data to assess public health impacts in their comprehensive plans.
o City Supported
12. HB352 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB352> - Allows any locality that has created an industrial development authority to establish an affordable housing performance grant program. Ordinance required.
o City Watched
Public Safety & Code Enforcement
1. SB583 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/SB583>/HB564 - Allows localities to authorize transit agencies to use bus obstruction cameras to enforce parking and bus-lane violations. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
2. HB994 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB994> - Authorizes localities to use photo speed monitoring devices in designated “safety red zones” and updates program requirements, enforcement rules, and penalties, with noncompliance rendering summonses invalid.
o City Supported
3. HB681 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB681>/SB75 - Allows retired law enforcement officers to be used for emergency custody and involuntary temporary detention.
o City Supported
4. HB802 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB802> - Allows localities to require annual registration of buildings vacant for at least three years; permits City to register certain problem properties vacant 12+ months; and requires owner or agent contact information. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
5. SB81 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/SB81>/HB77 - Allows state and local police in Northern Virginia to enforce federal traffic infractions, including on federal property, and to use photo speed monitoring devices.
o City Supported
6. HB702 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB702> - Allows local law-enforcement agencies to establish annual firearm give-back or buy-back programs starting January 1, 2028. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
7. HB55 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB550> - Authorizes certain counties and cities (Planning Districts 8, 9, and 15) to use noise monitoring systems to record and enforce exhaust system violations on highways.
o City Supported
8. HB343 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB343> - Permits localities to require children 14 years of age or younger to wear helmets whenever riding or being carried on a motorized skateboard or scooter or a nonmotorized scooter. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
9. SB221 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/SB221/text/SB221> - Allows localities to extend school crossing zone times from 30 to up to 60 minutes before and after school. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
10. HB684 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB684>/SB59 - Authorizes certain DCJS-trained individuals-including retired police officers, special conservators of the peace, and local technicians-to certify violations captured by traffic and school bus monitoring systems.
o City Supported
11. HB223 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB223> - Allows the governing body of any county or city to fund positions in the office of the public defender.
o City Supported
12. HB1067 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB1067> - Authorizes localities to create a regional authority to operate and manage emergency communication services including public safety answering points.
o City Supported
Taxation, Finance, and Procurement
1. HB474 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB474> - Raises from $75,000 to $125,000 the maximum parcel value eligible for conveyance (instead of public auction) to a locality, land bank, or designated nonprofit for properties with delinquent taxes or liens.
o City Supported
2. HB915 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB915> - Allows localities to extend personal property tax deadlines for furloughed or unpaid federal employees during a government shutdown. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
3. SB226 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/SB226/text/SB226>/HB1011 - Allows localities to give tie-bid preference to locally produced compost or soil-amendment products. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
4. HB177 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB177> - Expands authorization to impose bad check fees to electronic payment orders. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
5. HB557 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB557> - Allows localities to create a separate tax class for electric landscaping equipment, taxed at no more than the general tangible personal property rate. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
6. HB954 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB954> - Authorizes localities to implement temporary rounding procedures for cash transactions and to adjust tax bills and account balances to account for the U.S. Mint’s cessation of penny production through July 1, 2027. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
Health, Human Services and Education
1. HB513 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB513> - Authority to create local or regional suicide fatality review teams.
o City Supported
2. SB317 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/SB317>/HB248 - Authority to create regional behavioral health co-response teams.
o City Supported
3. HB632 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB632> - Allows a local department of social services to seek a barrier crime waiver for certain individuals with non-violent, non-federal, and non-registrable offenses so their home may be approved as a kinship foster home.
o City Supported
4. HB18 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB18>/SB3 - Establishes the Employee Child Care Assistance Program to provide matching funds to incentivize employers to contribute to the childcare costs of their employees.
o City Supported
Environmental and Utilities
5. HB388 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB388>/SB89 - Allows a service district created within a locality to control the spread of any plant that is identified on the list of invasive plant species established by the Department of Conservation and Recreation.
o City Supported
6. HB1350 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB1350> - Authority to increase erosion & sediment control civil penalties. Ordinance required.
o City Supported
7. HB1072 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB1072> - Authorizes localities to test and monitor land application of sewage sludge, including for PFAS using EPA methods, and bars reimbursement of such costs from the Sludge Management Fund.
o City Watched
Misc. Administration of Government
1. HB416 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB416> - Allows a locality using school buses for non-school purposes under agreement with a school board to reimburse the board for a proportional share of insurance costs.
o City Supported
2. HB630 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB630>/SB176 - Expands ranked choice voting eligibility to all local governing bodies, including towns.
o City Watched
3. HB338 <https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB338>/SB430 - Permits a locality to provide for certain requirements concerning successor service employers, defined in the bill, by local ordinance or resolution.
o City Supported
STAFF:
Dr. Wendy Ginsberg, Legislative Director, City Manager’s Office
Alethea Predeoux, Deputy City Manager, City Manager’s Office
Bonnie Brown, Deputy City Attorney, City Attorney’s Office