Virginia’s 2024 legislative session ran from Jan. 10 to March 9. USGBC tracked a flurry of bills related to clean energy and energy efficiency during those two months, achieving some policy wins while noting additional work that needs to be done to ensure future progress on buildings and climate.

Here are a few bill highlights.

Legislative successes

Starting with a success story, Virginia SB 245/HB 151 adds clarity for local governments complying with Virginia’s High Performance Buildings Act, shoring up existing legislation. The bill clarifies resilience and electric vehicle charging requirements, adds the option of technical assistance from Virginia Energy for localities, and streamlines the options for green building by removing the state-level Virginia Energy Conservation and Environmental Standards (VEES) as an applicable compliance pathway. Liz Beardsley, senior policy counsel at USGBC, helped write the bill language alongside partners at the Virginia Energy Efficiency Council (VAEEC). Despite some narrow votes, the bill passed the general assembly in early March and was signed into law by Gov. Glenn Youngkin on April 8. The bill goes into effect on July 1.

Virginia SB 565/HB 746, also known as the SAVE Act, supports energy efficiency by strengthening future energy efficiency savings targets within Virginia’s Energy Efficiency Resource Standard. The bill also requires the State Corporation Commission to establish a standard test of cost-effectiveness aligned with national best practices to use when evaluating energy efficiency programs. Additionally, the SAVE Act requires major utilities such as Dominion Energy to benchmark and report their incremental annual savings achieved by energy efficiency programs. The SAVE Act passed the House and the Senate in March and was signed into law on April 17. Learn more about the bill, which goes into effect on July 1, in this VAEEC fact sheet.

Other legislation

Virginia HB 1088 would have required the Virginia Board of Education to provide instructional materials on climate change and environmental literacy to each local school board, including accurate portrayals of human-caused climate changes over time and the effects of climate change on people and the environment. While the bill passed the House and the Senate, it was vetoed by Gov. Youngkin on April 2.

Virginia SB 79/HB 1456 would have amended Virginia’s High Performance Buildings Act to add a requirement for renewable energy infrastructure applicable to both state and local public buildings. The bill language was weakened multiple times in committee; for example, the bill originally had a net zero energy requirement for public schools that was changed to a working group and ultimately removed from the bill. While the bill passed the Senate 22-17, it did not make it out of the appropriations committee in the House.

Virginia SB 729 would establish the Virginia Clean Energy Innovation Bank to finance clean energy and GHG emissions reduction projects across the state, prioritizing projects in marginalized communities. The green bank would coordinate federal funding from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), such as grants Virginia may receive from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund. The bill directs the bank to publish a strategic report by Dec. 15 outlining the types of projects that qualify for financing. The bill passed the House and the Senate in late March, but Gov. Youngkin added an amendment that would delay implementation until the general assembly votes on the bill again in the 2025 session. The Senate has rejected the governor’s recommendation, and we encourage interested advocates in Virginia to tell Gov. Youngkin to sign the original bill via this one-click campaign from the Virginia League of Conservation Voters.

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Interested in supporting USGBC’s advocacy efforts in Virginia? Join our Advocacy Working Group to get involved.

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Recap: 2024 Virginia legislative session