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HB1158 • 2026

Career and technical education courses, pathways, and credentials; biennial review, report.

<p class=ldtitle>A BILL to amend the Code of Virginia by adding in Article 4 of Chapter 13 of Title 22.1 a section numbered 22.1-227.2, relating to Board of Education; career and technical education courses, pathways, and credentials; biennial review; report.</p>

Education Labor
Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor
Walker
Last action
2026-02-18
Official status
Failed
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Checked against official source text during the last sync.

Career and Technical Education Review

This bill requires a biennial review of career and technical education courses, pathways, and credentials to ensure they align with current and future industry needs.

What This Bill Does

  • Requires the Board of Education and Virginia Board of Workforce Development to conduct a biennial review starting in fiscal year 2026.
  • Includes data collection on CTE offerings across different regions and schools.
  • Involves input from employers, industry representatives, and other stakeholders.
  • Evaluates the effectiveness of current offerings in preparing students for employment or further education.
  • Identifies gaps and recommends new or updated course offerings based on labor market needs.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Public school students across Virginia
  • Education agencies and institutions involved in career and technical education

Terms To Know

Biennial review
A process that happens every two years to check on the status of something.
Career and Technical Education (CTE)
Programs designed to prepare students for careers through hands-on learning in specific fields.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify how often or when the review process will be updated.
  • It is unclear what actions will be taken based on the findings of the biennial reviews.

Bill History

  1. 2026-02-18 House

    Left in Education

  2. 2026-02-05 K-12 Subcommittee

    Assigned HED sub: K-12 Subcommittee

  3. 2026-02-04 House

    Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB1158)

  4. 2026-02-02 House

    Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB1158)

  5. 2026-01-14 House

    Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26101751D

  6. 2026-01-14 Education

    Referred to Committee on Education

Official Summary Text

Board of Education; career and technical education courses, pathways, and credentials; biennial review; report.
Requires the Board of Education and the Virginia Board of Workforce Development, with the assistance of the Department of Workforce Development and Advancement, the Virginia Office of Education Economics, the Department of Education, the Virginia Community College System, and the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia, to conduct, beginning with the fiscal year starting July 1, 2026, and each odd-numbered year thereafter, a biennial review of all career and technical education course, pathway, and credential offerings available to public school students across the Commonwealth for the purpose of ensuring that all such career and technical education course, pathway, and credential offerings are (i) aligned with current and emerging industry and workforce needs, demands, and standards and (ii) designed to effectively prepare students for postsecondary success through gainful employment in a high-demand industry or field, enrollment in postsecondary education, or enlistment in the United States Armed Forces. The bill requires the Board of Education and the Virginia Board of Workforce Development to develop and submit to the Secretary of Education, the Secretary of Labor, and the chairs of the House Committee on Education and the Senate Committee on Education and Health by October 1 of each odd-numbered year, beginning with October 1, 2026, a report on each such biennial review.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
A BILL to amend the Code of Virginia by adding in Article 4 of Chapter 13 of Title 22.1 a section numbered
22.1-227.2
, relating to Board of Education; career and technical education courses, pathways, and credentials; biennial review; report.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That the Code of Virginia is amended by adding in Article 4 of Chapter 13 of Title 22.1 a section numbered
22.1-227.2
as follows:

§
22.1-2
2
7.2.
Biennial review of c
areer and technical education
courses,
pathways, and
credentials;
report
.

A.
The Board of Education and the Virginia Board of Workforce Development, with
the assistance of

the Department of Workforce Development and Advancement, the Virginia Office of Education Economics
, the Department of Education, the Virginia Community College System, and the State Council of Higher
Education for Virginia
, shall
conduct a biennial review of all career and technical education courses, pathways, and credentials that are offered

to public school students across the
Commonwealth
.
In conducting
such review
, the Board of Education and the Virginia Board of Workforce Development
shall:

1.
Account for, review
, and collect data on
all career and technical education cours
e
, pathway, and credential offerings
available to public school students
(i) in the Commonwealth as a whole,
(i
i
)
in
each
individual public school,
(iii) through any
regional school
or
career and technical education center, (
i
v
)
in
each
local
school division
, and (v) in each Superintendent's region;

2.
Consult with and incorporate input from employers, industry representatives,
career and technical
education
student organizations, and other relevant stakeholders;

3.
Assess the extent to which current career and technical education course, pathway, and credential
offerings are aligned with industry needs
and workforce demand
s
, industry standards,
and
emerging
trends in

labor market

needs;

4. Evaluate the effectiveness of current career and technical education course, pathway, and credential offerings in preparing students
for
gainful employment in a high-demand industry or field, enrollment in postsecondary education,
or enlistment in the United States
A
rmed
F
orces;

5. Identify gaps in current career and technical education course, pathway, and credential offerings and make recommendations on new
or updates to existing
course, pathway, or credential offerings
based on current and emerging industry, workforce, and labor market needs, demands, and standards
;
and

6.

Identify and approve any new career and technical education course, pathway, or credential offerings that were not identified during the review conducted in the immediately preceding biennium.

B.
The Board of Education and the Virginia Board of Workforce Development shall develop and submit to the Secretary of Education, the Secretary of Labor, the chair of the House Committee on Education, and the chair of the Senate Committee on Education
and
Health by
October 1 of each odd-numbered year a report on the biennial review conducted pursuant to subsection A. Such report shall include:

1. A summary of the findings of the review
, including a list of all current career and technical education course, pathway, and credential offerings
available to public school students (i) in the Commonwealth as a whole, (ii) in each individual public school, (iii) through any regional school or career and technical education center, (
i
v) in each local school division, and (v) in each Superintendent's region
;

2. Recommendations for improvements, additions, or modifications to existing career and technical education course, pathway, and credential offerings in the Commonwealth;

3. Recommendations for facilitating and enhancing partnerships between local school divisions, education agencies and institutions, workforce development agencies and entities, and employers; and

4. A list of any new career and technical education course, pathway, or credential offerings identified and approved in accordance with subdivision
A 6
.

2. That the Board of Education and the Virginia Board of Workforce Development shall (i) conduct
a
biennial review of career and technical education course, pathway, and credential offerings, in accordance with subsection A of §
22.1-227.2
of the Code of Virginia, as created by this act, beginning with the fiscal year starting on July 1, 2026, and (ii) submit by October 1, 2026, a progress report on such initial biennial review in accordance with subsection B of §
22.1-227.2
of the Code of Virginia, as created by this act. The Board of Education and the Virginia Board of Workforce Development shall develop and include in such progress report on
the
initial biennial review, in addition to the requirements set forth in subsection B of §
22.1-227.2
of the Code of Virginia, as created by this act, (a) recommendations relating to improvements or changes that could be made to the biennial review process, including a process for conducting the biennial review; (b) recommendations on best practices for ensuring that the administration and governance of career and technical education course, pathway, and credential offerings across the Commonwealth reflect innovative and successful models that support student achievement and postsecondary success and are aligned with, and are capable of evolving to reflect, current and emerging industry and workforce needs and demands in the Commonwealth, developed based on an analysis of the administrative and governance structures of career and technical education course, pathway, and credential offerings across states; and (c) a process for identifying and approving, pursuant to subdivision A 6 of §
22.1-227.2
of the Code of Virginia, as created by this act, any new career and technical education course, pathway, or credential offerings that were not identified during the review conducted in the immediately preceding biennium for the purpose of ensuring all such course, pathway, or credential offerings available to public school students in the Commonwealth are aligned with current and emerging industry, workforce, and labor market needs, demands, and standards.