LEGISLATIVE
ADVOCACY

legislative advocacy header image

Virginia’s 2024 60-day General Assembly session started Wednesday, January 10. CLICK HERE to find your current legislators and scroll to learn more about VPLC’s legislative advocacy agenda and ways to get involved.

LEARN ABOUT THE ISSUES

VPLC’s 2024 Legislative Agenda

  • VPLC Supports:
    - extending the time a tenant may pay rent late (from 5 to 14 days) before eviction proceedings begin
    - changing how in-home care is financed so people aren't forced into nursing homes
    - fair and reasonable standards on home utility service disconnection

    Read more about what we want for housing legislation here.
  • VPLC Supports:
    - expansion of free school and summer meals for hungry children
    - extending health care coverage to all children
    - a state child tax credit to raise children out of poverty
    - improved legal representation in child dependency cases
    - nonpunitive court processes for families to help troubled youth
  • VPLC Opposes:
    - eliminating longstanding "best interests of the child" factors that judges must consider in making custody and visitation rulings in favor of factors that result in favoring abusive parents over protective parents
  • VPLC Supports:
    - requiring that the total price for goods or services including all mandatory fees or charges be disclosed prominently before the sale
    - the Truth in Renting Act requiring landlords to disclose all potential fees and rent to potential tenants
    - prohibiting residential landlords from charging for maintenance they're required to provide
    - prohibiting landlords from charging "convenience" fees for online rent payments
    - prohibiting abusive utility reconnection fees
  • VPLC Supports:
    - allowing appeals in public benefit cases where the government doesn't follow the law
    - further study of eligibility rules for Medicaid and other life-sustaining benefits
    - a fair court process before children are separated from their parents
    - making it easier for people under guardianship to ask that their guardianship be changed
    - allowing class action lawsuits that provide access to courts
    - legislation to improve unemployment entitlement decisions and to limit unemployment overpayments

To download the above information as a PDF, CLICK HERE.

ACTION CENTER

VPLC Newsletters and Events:

Current Action Alerts:

  • School Lunches for All Children! HB 686 has been assigned to the House Appropriations Sub-Committee on Elementary & Secondary Education. Contact the sub-committee members and tell them you support HB 686 and access to school meals for all children.
  • Cover All Kids! Use TCI’s form to take action and let lawmakers know you support a program to expand health care access to all low-income Virginia children.
  • Allow class action lawsuits in Virginia! Class actions are a way of leveling the playing field for poor or economically less powerful individuals who are seeking access to justice. Say YES to HB418.

VPLC Issues in the News:

Legislation Alerts:

HOW TO FOLLOW THE LEGISLATIVE SESSION

Finding Legislation:

You can find legislation at Virginia’s Legislative Information System’s (LIS) database. You can search this legislation by entering the bill number (e.g., 5051) or by searching a keyword (e.g., eviction). Once you find the legislation, you will find the bill’s sponsor(s) and a summary of the bill’s language. You will also find which committee the bill has been referred to (e.g., referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology). You can track the progress of each bill as it moves through the legislative process.

CLICK HERE to access the 2024 LIS database now.

Finding a Committee:

Once you find where legislation has been referred, you can find when that committee is meeting on the Session Meeting List. Once you know when your committee is convening, be prepared to stream the meeting at the “Virginia Senate Live Stream Video” page or the “Virginia House of Delegates Video Streaming” page. Once the time of your committee is scheduled to start, it will be viewable under the heading entitled “upcoming events.” To stream the event, click “view event.”

CLICK HERE to access the Senate streaming page.

CLICK HERE to access the House streaming page.

STAY UPDATED ON LEGISLATIVE ADVOCACY DURING SESSION

CLICK HERE to join VPLC’s email list and receive weekly updates throughout session, invitations to legislative advocacy trainings, and more.

VPLC’S ADVOCATES

To download the VPLC 2024 Legislative Advocates list as a PDF, CLICK HERE.