Virginia bills · 2026 Regular Session
Virginia SB 531
Zoning; development and use of accessory dwelling units, delayed effective date.
- Introduced
- In committee
- Passed Senate
- Passed House
- To Governor
- Became law
Sponsors
- Kannan Srinivasan (Democratic)
Cosponsors (1)
- Saddam Azlan Salim (Democratic)
Summary
Official abstract published by the Virginia legislature· SUMMARY AS PASSED
Zoning; development and use of accessory dwelling units. Requires a locality to include in its zoning ordinances for single-family residential zoning districts accessory dwelling units, or ADUs, as defined in the bill, as a permitted accessory use. The bill requires a person to seek a permit for an ADU from the locality, requires the locality to issue such permit if the person meets certain requirements enumerated in the bill, and restricts the fee for such permit to $500 or less. The bill prohibits the locality from requiring (i) setbacks for the ADU that are greater than the setback required for the primary dwelling or the setback required for accessory structures on the residential lot, whichever is less; (ii) conditions for ADUs that are more restrictive than those for single-family dwellings within the same zoning area with regard to height, rear, or side setbacks, lot size or coverage, or building frontage; or (iii) consanguinity or affinity between the occupants of the ADU and the primary dwelling. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027.
Text versions
Roll-call votes
State vote data last updated Oct 15, 2026, 8:04 PM.
| Date | Vote | Result | Your legislators |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 4, 2026 House | H VOTE: | pass | Set your home in Virginia to see |
| Feb 27, 2026 House | Reported from Counties, Cities and Towns | pass | Set your home in Virginia to see |
| Feb 12, 2026 Senate | Passage R | pass | Set your home in Virginia to see |
| Feb 10, 2026 Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed R | pass | Set your home in Virginia to see |
| Feb 9, 2026 Senate | Reported from Local Government with substitute | pass | Set your home in Virginia to see |
| Jan 21, 2026 Senate | Rereferred from General Laws and Technology | pass | Set your home in Virginia to see |
Actions
- Apr 13, 2026
Approved by Governor-Chapter 895 (effective 7/1/2026) - Mar 14, 2026
Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026 - Mar 14, 2026 · Senate
Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 14, 2026 - Mar 10, 2026 · Senate
Signed by President - Mar 10, 2026 · House
Signed by Speaker - Mar 10, 2026 · Senate
Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB531ER) - Mar 10, 2026 · Senate
Enrolled - Mar 4, 2026 · House
Passed House (62-Y 37-N 0-A) - Mar 4, 2026 · House
Read third time - Mar 3, 2026 · House
Read second time - Feb 27, 2026 · House
Reported from Counties, Cities and Towns (13-Y 8-N) - Feb 17, 2026 · House
Assigned HCCT sub: Subcommittee #3 - Feb 17, 2026 · House
Referred to Committee on Counties, Cities and Towns - Feb 17, 2026 · House
Read first time - Feb 17, 2026 · House
Placed on Calendar - Feb 12, 2026 · Senate
Read third time and passed Senate (21-Y 19-N 0-A) - Feb 11, 2026 · Senate
Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute (Voice Vote) - Feb 11, 2026 · Senate
Committee substitute agreed to (Voice Vote) - Feb 11, 2026 · Senate
Read second time - Feb 10, 2026 · Senate
Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) - Feb 10, 2026 · Senate
Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 1st reading) (40-Y 0-N 0-A) - Feb 10, 2026 · Senate
Rules suspended - Feb 9, 2026 · Senate
Committee substitute printed 26107523D-S1 - Feb 9, 2026 · Senate
Reported from Local Government with substitute (8-Y 7-N) - Feb 9, 2026 · Senate
Senate committee offered - Jan 21, 2026 · Senate
Rereferred from General Laws and Technology to Local Government (15-Y 0-N) - Jan 13, 2026 · Senate
Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology - Jan 13, 2026 · Senate
Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26105326D