Bill Commons

VA SB 356

Status unknown

American Indians, Virginia and federally recognized tribes; establishes definitions, sovereignty.

Virginia · 2026 Regular Session · upper

Quick answers

Did VA SB 356 pass?

The current status of VA SB 356 is not known from the official record. Latest recorded action (2026-02-12): Continued to next session in Finance and Appropriations (8-Y 7-N)

What is VA SB 356 about?

Definitions; American Indians; Virginia recognized tribes; federally recognized tribes; sovereignty. Provides that the Commonwealth acknowledges the inherent sovereignty of federally recognized tribes within the present-day external boundaries of the Commonwealth. The bill also establishes definitions for "American Indian," "federally recognized tribe," and "Virginia recognized tribe" and amends various sections throughout the Code for the purpose of uniformity in terminology. This bill is a recommendation of the Commission on Updating Virginia Law to Reflect Federal Recognition of Virginia Tribes.

Who sponsors VA SB 356?

Ryan T. McDougle is the primary sponsor of VA SB 356.

Description

Definitions; American Indians; Virginia recognized tribes; federally recognized tribes; sovereignty. Provides that the Commonwealth acknowledges the inherent sovereignty of federally recognized tribes within the present-day external boundaries of the Commonwealth. The bill also establishes definitions for "American Indian," "federally recognized tribe," and "Virginia recognized tribe" and amends various sections throughout the Code for the purpose of uniformity in terminology. This bill is a recommendation of the Commission on Updating Virginia Law to Reflect Federal Recognition of Virginia Tribes.

Introduced
2026-01-13
Latest action
2026-02-12 — Continued to next session in Finance and Appropriations (8-Y 7-N)
Bill type
bill
Last updated

Sponsors

  • Ryan T. McDougleprimary

Committees

Not provided by source.

Action timeline

  1. 2026-01-13

    Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26100476D

    filing,introduction

  2. 2026-01-13

    Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology

    referral-committee

  3. 2026-01-26

    Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB356)

  4. 2026-02-11

    Reported from General Laws and Technology and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations (15-Y 0-N)

    committee-passage

  5. 2026-02-12

    Continued to next session in Finance and Appropriations (8-Y 7-N)

Versions

Documents

Votes

  • Reported from General Laws and Technology

    2026-02-11 · pass · 15-0

    Member-level votes (15)
    • Adam P. Ebbin: yes
    • Mamie E. Locke: yes
    • Bryce E. Reeves: yes
    • Jeremy S. McPike: yes
    • Todd E. Pillion: yes
    • Aaron R. Rouse: yes
    • Christopher T. Head: yes
    • Emily M. Jordan: yes
    • Lashrecse D. Aird: yes
    • Schuyler T. VanValkenburg: yes
    • Danica A. Roem: yes
    • Jennifer D. Carroll Foy: yes
    • Timmy French: yes
    • Christie New Craig: yes
    • Angelia Williams Graves: yes
  • Continued to next session in Finance and Appropriations

    2026-02-12 · pass · 8-7

    Member-level votes (15)
    • L. Louise Lucas: yes
    • R. Creigh Deeds: yes
    • Mamie E. Locke: yes
    • David W. Marsden: no
    • Adam P. Ebbin: no
    • Ryan T. McDougle: no
    • Mark D. Obenshain: no
    • Richard H. Stuart: no
    • Bryce E. Reeves: no
    • Barbara A. Favola: yes
    • Scott A. Surovell: yes
    • Jeremy S. McPike: yes
    • Jennifer B. Boysko: yes
    • Todd E. Pillion: no
    • Aaron R. Rouse: yes

Related bills

No related bills recorded for this bill.

Official source

Attribution

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

Inspect retained evidence for changes recorded after evidence tracking began:

Use this data

Every field on this page is available from the free public API — no key or licence required. Fetch this bill as JSON: GET /api/v1/bills?jurisdiction=VA&identifier=SB 356. See the API docs or the MCP server for AI assistants.

Known limitations

  • Sponsor party and chamber affiliation are not yet captured by this API.
  • Committee referrals are not yet captured.

See the methodology page for data sources and limitations.