Bill Commons

VA HB 1126

in committee

Native migratory fish; protection.

Virginia · 2026 Regular Session · lower

Description

Protection of native migratory fish; work group report. Directs the Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources to convene a work group of relevant stakeholders to address the decline in Virginia's native migratory fish in the James River and Chesapeake Bay. The bill requires the work group to (i) evaluate the cumulative ecological impacts of surface water withdrawals excluded from the Virginia Water Protection Permit requirements on aquatic organisms and freshwater systems; (ii) review and identify how state agencies address particular needs of fish that are listed as threatened or endangered under the federal endangered species list or the Virginia Species of Greatest Conservation Need; and (iii) develop recommendations for (a) updating the regulations regarding surface water intakes excluded from permitting requirements to meet protective standards, (b) reviewing a statewide inventory of unpermitted intake structures, and (c) assessing the feasibility of installing measures to reduce aquatic organism mortality. The bill requires the Secretary to submit a report of the findings and recommendations of the work group to the Chairs of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources and House Committee on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources by October 1, 2027.

Introduced
2026-01-14
Status date
—
Latest action
2026-02-18 — Left in Committee Rules
Bill type
bill
Last updated
—

Sponsors

  • Nadarius E. Clarkprimary

Committees

Not provided by source.

Action timeline

  1. 2026-01-14

    Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26104088D

    filing,introduction

  2. 2026-01-14

    Referred to Committee on Rules

    referral-committee

  3. 2026-01-27

    Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB1126)

  4. 2026-01-30

    Assigned HRUL sub: Studies Subcommittee

    referral-committee

  5. 2026-02-02

    Subcommittee recommends laying on the table (5-Y 0-N)

  6. 2026-02-18

    Left in Committee Rules

Versions

Documents

Votes

  • Subcommittee recommends laying on the table

    2026-02-02 · pass · 5-0

    Member-level votes (5)
    • Dan I. Helmer: yes
    • Richard C. "Rip" Sullivan, Jr.: yes
    • C.E. Cliff Hayes, Jr.: yes
    • Kathy K.L. Tran: yes
    • Terry G. Kilgore: yes

Related bills

No related bills recorded for this bill.

Official source

https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB1126

Attribution

Data from openstates_bulk_csv, retrieved 2026-07-24T05:35:59.552682Z

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