Virginia Legislation
2020 Virginia General Assembly
LGBT+ Related Bills
DISCRIMINATION
Prohibited discrimination: public accommodations, employment, credit, and housing – SB 868 (Ebbin): A comprehensive nondiscrimination policy that prohibits discrimination in public accommodations and employment on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. – Approved by Governor 4/11/20 – Effective 7/1/20
Prohibited discrimination; public accommodations, employment, credit, and housing: causes of action; sexual orientation and gender identity – HB 1663 (Sickles): A comprehensive nondiscrimination policy that creates explicit causes of action for unlawful discrimination in public accommodations and employment in the Virginia Human Rights Act. – Failed to pass House 3/12/20
Prohibited discrimination; sexual orientation and gender identity – HB 1049 (Levine) and all other nondiscrimination bills: Prohibits discrimination in employment, public accommodation, public contracting, apprenticeship programs, housing, banking, and insurance on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. The bill contains technical amendments. – Approved by Governor 4/11/20 – Effective 7/1/20
LGBTQ+ YOUTH
Public elementary and secondary school; treatment of transgender students, policies – SB 161 (Boysko) and HB 145 (Simon): Requires the Department of Education to develop and make available to each school board model policies regarding the treatment of transgender students in primary and secondary schools no later than December 31, 2020. – Approved by Governor 3/4/20 – Effective 7/1/20
Conversion therapy; prohibited by certain health care providers – SB 245 (Surovell) and HB 386 (Hope): Prohibits any healthcare provider or person who performs counseling as any part of his profession licensed by the Department of Health Professions from engaging in conversion therapy with any person under 18 years of age. – Approved by Governor 4/6/20 & 3/2/20 – Effective 7/1/20
Health regulatory boards; conversion therapy – HB 966 (Walker):
The Board of Counseling, the Board of Medicine, the Board of Nursing, the Board of Psychology, and the Board of Social Work may each promulgate regulations prohibiting the use of electroshock therapy or other similar non-speech therapy in the practice of counseling any person under 18 years of age, provided, however, that each such health regulatory board, in promulgating such regulations, shall protect the fundamental rights of the practitioner or patient protected under the United States Constitution and shall not promulgate regulations that remove the fundamental right of an individual to select for himself, based on an informed and voluntary choice, a form of counseling that involves nothing more than "talk therapy," regardless of the age of the individual, including in situations where the patient is seeking such counseling to assist him in reducing or eliminating unwanted attractions or behaviors or concerns about gender identity – Not Recommended – Left in Health, Welfare and Institutions 2/11/20
MARRIAGE EQUALITY
Same-sex marriages; civil unions – SB 17 (Ebbin), SB 39 (Edwards), and HB 1490 (Guy): Repeals statutory prohibitions on same-sex marriages and civil unions or other arrangements between persons of the same sex claiming to bestow privileges and obligations of marriage, as affirmed by Obergefell v. Hodges, 576 U.S. ___ (June 26, 2015). – Approved by Governor 3/5/20 & 3/2/20 – Effective 7/1/20 (SB39 was incorporated into SB17)
Constitutional amendment marriage; (first reference) – SJ 3 (Ebbin), SJ 7 (Edwards), HJ 113 (Sickles): Proposes the repeal of the constitutional amendment dealing with marriage that was approved by referendum at the November 2006 election. – Continued in Senate to 2021 in Privileges and Elections & Continued in House to 2021 in Rules
MISCELLANEOUS LEGISLATION
Certificate of birth; new certificate issued to show change of sex – SB 657 (Boysko) and HB 1041 (Simon): The State Registrar, upon the request of a person in accordance with requirements of the Board of Health, shall issue a new certificate of birth to show a change of sex of a person, as well as a change of name if the person submits a court order that changed their name. – Approved by Governor 3/25/20 – Effective 7/1/20
Sex designation; DMV – SB 246 (Surovell): Requires the Department of Motor Vehicles to offer any applicant the option to mark “X” when identifying the applicant’s sex, except when otherwise required by federal law. – Approved by Governor 3/31/20 – Effective 7/1/20
Voter identification; repeal of photo identification requirements – HB 19 (Lindsey): Removes the requirement that voters show a form of identification containing a photograph in order to be allowed to vote. – Approved by Governor 4/10/20 – Effective 7/1/20
Child-placing agencies; conscience clause, discrimination – HB 1051 (Levine): Repeals provisions that allowed child-placing agencies to refuse service to perform, assist with, counsel, recommend, consent to, refer, or participate in any child placements when the proposed placement would violate the agency’s written religious or moral convictions or policies. Also prohibits the Department of Social Services from providing funds to any child agency that, in making decisions regarding the placement of a child, discriminates on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, or status as a veteran. – Left in Health, Welfare and Institutions
Adoption by stepparent; background check – HB 371 (Bell) and HB 1662 (Sickles): Repeals the July 1, 2020, sunset on provisions that require a circuit court, when determining whether an investigation by the director of the local department of social services should be required before a final order is entered to approve as an adoptive parent the spouse of a child’s birth or adoptive parent, to consider the results of a national criminal history background check conducted on the prospective adoptive parent. – HB371 Defeated in House 1/30/20 and HB1662 was stricken from the docket by Health, Welfare and Institutions
SAFE COMMUNITIES
Hate crimes; adds gender, disability, gender identity, or sexual orientation, penalty – SB 179 (Favola) and HB 488 (Kory): Adds gender, gender identity, disability, and sexual orientation to categories of hate crimes, as well as increasing the penalty of an offense against victims chosen based on gender, gender identity, disability, and sexual orientation. – SB179 Approved by Governor 4/11/20 – Effective 7/1/20, HB488 Incorporated into HB618 by Courts of Justice by voice vote – HB618 Approved by Governor 4/6/20 – Effective 7/1/20
Department of State Police; reporting hate crimes – HB1058 (Kory): Includes within the definition of a “hate crime” a criminal act committed against a person because of gender, sexual orientation, and disability, and requires the reporting of the commission of such crime to the State Police. – Incorporated by Courts of Justice into HB276 – HB276 Approved by Governor 3/4/20 – Effective 7/1/20
Infected sexual battery – HB 864 (Levine): Provides that, in order for a person to be convicted of infected sexual battery, (i) knew that he was infected at the time of the offense with HIV, syphilis, or hepatitis B and (ii) knew that his infection was currently detectable and transmittable, and committed the offense without using a prophylactic barrier, including a condom or dental dam. – Continued to 2021 in Courts of Justice by voice vote
For more information on bills introduced since 1994 go to Virginia’s Legislative Information System located at https://lis.virginia.gov/000/sab.htm.