Proposed Virginia Firearm Legislation HB229
Legislation Overview
Title: Weapons; possession prohibited in hospital that provides mental health or developmental services.
Description: Weapons; possession prohibited in a hospital that provides mental health services or developmental services; penalty. Makes it a Class 1 misdemeanor for any person to knowingly and intentionally possess in the building of any hospital that provides mental health services or developmental services in the Commonwealth, including an emergency department or other facility rendering emergency medical care, a (i) firearm, (ii) knife with a blade over three and one-half inches, or (iii) other dangerous weapon, including explosives and stun weapons. The bill also provides that notice of such prohibitions shall be posted conspicuously at each public entrance of any hospital and that no person shall be convicted of the offense if such notice is not posted, unless such person had actual notice of the prohibitions. The bill provides that such firearm, knife, explosive, or weapon shall be subject to seizure by a law-enforcement officer and forfeited to the Commonwealth and specifies exceptions to the prohibition.
Session: 2026 Regular Regular Session
Last Action: Fiscal Impact statement From VCSC (2/2/2026 10:31 am)
Last Action Date: February 2, 2026
Sponsors
Note: the first sponsor listed is normally the primary sponsor. If a sponsor's name is a hyperlink you can click on it to 'follow the money'.
18 sponsors: Phil Hernandez (D); Jessica Anderson (D);Bonita Anthony (D); Elizabeth Bennett-Parker (D); Karen Carnegie (D);Nadarius Clark (D); Kelly Convirs-Fowler (D); Michael Feggans (D); Debra Gardner (D); Elizabeth Guzman (D); Dan Helmer (D); Rozia Henson (D); Patrick Hope (D); Karen Keys-Gamarra (D); Michelle Maldonado (D); Marty Martinez (D); Irene Shin (D); Vivian Watts (D);
Percentage of House of Delegates sponsoring bill: 18% (18 of 100)
History
| Chamber | Date | Action |
| House | Feb 2, 2026 | Fiscal Impact statement From VCSC (2/2/2026 10:31 am) |
| House | Feb 2, 2026 | Committee substitute printed 26106607D-H1 |
| House | Jan 30, 2026 | Reported from Public Safety with substitute (15-Y 6-N) |
| House | Jan 29, 2026 | House subcommittee offered |
| House | Jan 29, 2026 | Subcommittee recommends reporting with substitute (7-Y 3-N) |
| House | Jan 28, 2026 | Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB229) |
| House | Jan 16, 2026 | Assigned HPS sub: Firearms |
| House | Jan 8, 2026 | Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26104503D |
| House | Jan 8, 2026 | Referred to Committee on Public Safety |
| House | Jan 8, 2026 | Fiscal Impact statement From VCSC (1/8/2026 5:05 pm) |
Texts
| Type | Date | State Link | Text |
| Comm Sub | Feb 2, 2026 | state link | bill text |
| Comm Sub | Jan 30, 2026 | state link | bill text |
| Comm Sub | Jan 29, 2026 | state link | bill text |
| Introduced | Jan 8, 2026 | state link | bill text |
Amendments
| Title | Description | Date | State Link | Text | Adopted |
| There are no amendments to this bill at this time | |||||
Votes - Click on description to view vote roll call
| Description | Vote Date | Yea Votes | Nay Votes | No Votes | Absent | Passed |
| Subcommittee recommends reporting with amendment(s) (7-Y 3-N) | 01/29/2026 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | Yes |
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| resort votes by: party yeas nays name | ||||||
| Reported from Public Safety with amendment(s) (15-Y 6-N) | 01/30/2026 | 15 | 6 | 0 | 1 | Yes |
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| resort votes by: party yeas nays name | ||||||
Link: link to state bill page
