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HB152 • 2026

Little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium); designating as the official state grass.

<p class=ldtitle>A BILL to amend and reenact § 1-510 of the Code of Virginia, relating to official emblems and designations; state grass; little bluestem.</p>

Enacted

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

Sponsor
Seibold
Last action
2026-02-06
Official status
Continued
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill summary does not provide details about how the designation will be used or promoted.

Designating Little Bluestem as State Grass

This bill designates little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium) as the official state grass of Virginia.

What This Bill Does

  • Adds little bluestem to the list of official emblems and designations in Virginia's Code of Virginia.
  • Updates § 1-510 of the Code of Virginia to include this new designation.

Who It Names or Affects

  • The people of Virginia, as it adds a new official emblem for the state.
  • State agencies responsible for maintaining lists and information about Virginia's emblems.

Terms To Know

Official emblems
Symbols or items officially recognized by a government to represent its values, history, or natural resources.
Designation
The act of declaring something official or giving it an official status.

Limits and Unknowns

  • It does not specify how the designation will be used or promoted.
  • There is no information on who proposed this change and why little bluestem was chosen over other grasses.

Bill History

  1. 2026-02-06 Rules

    Continued to 2027 in Rules (Voice Vote)

  2. 2026-02-02 Studies Subcommittee

    Subcommittee recommends continuing to 2027 (Voice Vote)

  3. 2026-01-30 Studies Subcommittee

    Assigned HRUL sub: Studies Subcommittee

  4. 2026-01-05 House

    Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26101773D

  5. 2026-01-05 Rules

    Referred to Committee on Rules

Official Summary Text

Official emblems and designations; state grass; little bluestem.
Designates little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium) as the official state grass.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
A BILL to amend and reenact §
1-510
of the Code of Virginia, relating to official emblems and designations; state grass; little bluestem.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That §
1-510
of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:

§
1-510
. Official emblems and designations.

The following are hereby designated official emblems and designations of the Commonwealth:

Artisan Center — "Virginia Artisans Center," located in the City of Waynesboro.

Bat — Virginia Big-eared bat (Corynorhinos townsendii virginianus).

Beverage — Milk.

Bird — Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis).

Blue Ridge Folklore State Center — Blue Ridge Institute located in the village of Ferrum.

Boat — "Chesapeake Bay Deadrise."

Cabin Capital of Virginia — Page County.

Coal Miners' Memorial — The Richlands Coal Miners' Memorial located in Tazewell County.

Covered Bridge Capital of the Commonwealth — Patrick County.

Covered Bridge Festival — Virginia Covered Bridge Festival held in Patrick County.

Dog — American Foxhound.

Fish (Freshwater) — Brook Trout.

Fish (Saltwater) — Striped Bass.

Flag of Remembrance of September 11, 2001 — Freedom Flag, designed by a Virginian, as the flag of remembrance of September 11, 2001.

Fleet — Replicas of the three ships, Susan Constant, Godspeed, and Discovery, which comprised the Commonwealth's founding fleet that brought the first permanent English settlers to Jamestown in 1607, and which are exhibited at the Jamestown Settlement in Williamsburg.

Flower — American Dogwood (Cornus florida).

Folk dance — Square dancing, the American folk dance that traces its ancestry to the English Country Dance and the French Ballroom Dance, and is called, cued, or prompted to the dancers, and includes squares, rounds, clogging, contra, line, the Virginia Reel, and heritage dances.

Fossil — Chesapecten jeffersonius.

Gold mining interpretive center — Monroe Park, located in the County of Fauquier.

Grass — Little Bluestem
(Schizachyrium scoparium)
.

Insect — Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly (Papilio glaucus).

Maple Festival — The Highland County Maple Festival.

Motor sports museum — "Wood Brothers Racing Museum and Virginia Motor Sports Hall of Fame," located in Patrick County.

Opry — The Virginia Opry.

Outdoor drama — "The Trail of the Lonesome Pine Outdoor Drama," adapted for the stage by Clara Lou Kelly and performed in the Town of Big Stone Gap.

Outdoor drama, historical — "The Long Way Home" based on the life of Mary Draper Ingles, adapted for the stage by Earl Hobson Smith, and performed in the City of Radford.

Pollinator — Honey Bee (Apis mellifera).

Pony — Chincoteague Pony.

Rock — Nelsonite.

Salamander — Red Salamander (Pseudotriton ruber).

Shakespeare festival — The Virginia Shakespeare Festival held in the City of Williamsburg.

Shell — Oyster shell (Crassostrea virginica).

Snake — Eastern Garter Snake (Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis).

Song emeritus — "Carry Me Back to Old Virginny," by James A. Bland, as set out in the House Joint Resolution 10, adopted by the General Assembly of Virginia at the Session of 1940.

Song (Popular) — "Sweet Virginia Breeze," by Robbin Thompson and Steve Bassett.

Song (Traditional) — "Our Great Virginia," lyrics by Mike Greenly and arranged by Jim Papoulis with music from the original American folk song "Oh Shenandoah."

Spirit — George Washington's rye whiskey produced at Mount Vernon, Virginia.

Sports hall of fame — "Virginia Sports Hall of Fame," located in the City of Portsmouth.

Television series — "Song of the Mountains."

Tree — American Dogwood (Cornus florida).

War memorial museum — "Virginia War Museum," (formerly known as the War Memorial Museum of Virginia), located in the City of Newport News.