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HB237 • 2026

Va. Coastal Resilience Master Plan; identifying areas where marshes may migrate in face of sea rise.

An Act to amend and reenact § 10.1-658 of the Code of Virginia, relating to Virginia Coastal Resilience Master Plan.

Agriculture
Enacted

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

Sponsor
Lopez
Last action
2026-04-13
Official status
Acts of Assembly Chapter
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

Va. Coastal Resilience Master Plan; identifying areas where marshes may migrate in face of sea rise.

Department of Conservation and Recreation; Virginia Coastal Resilience Master Plan.

What This Bill Does

  • Department of Conservation and Recreation; Virginia Coastal Resilience Master Plan.
  • Directs the Department of Conservation and Recreation, when updating the Virginia Coastal Resilience Master Plan, to identify areas where marshes may migrate in the face of sea level rise.

Limits and Unknowns

  • This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

HB237ASC1

2026-03-03 • Committee

Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources Amendment

Plain English: OFFERED FOR CONSIDERATION 3/03/2026 HB 237 AGRICULTURE, CONSERVATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES 1.

  • OFFERED FOR CONSIDERATION 3/03/2026 HB 237 AGRICULTURE, CONSERVATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES 1.
  • Line 35, engrossed, after possible , strike including the identification of insert and identify
HB237AS1

2026-03-04 • Committee

Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources Amendment

Plain English: 3/04/2026 (HB237) AMENDMENT(S) PROPOSED BY THE SENATE AGRICULTURE, CONSERVATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES 1.

  • 3/04/2026 (HB237) AMENDMENT(S) PROPOSED BY THE SENATE AGRICULTURE, CONSERVATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES 1.
  • Line 35, engrossed, after possible , strike including the identification of insert and identify
HB237EDOC

2026-03-09 • Senate

Senate Amendment

Plain English: 3/09/2026 (HB237) AMENDMENT(S) PROPOSED BY THE SENATE AGRICULTURE, CONSERVATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES 1.

  • 3/09/2026 (HB237) AMENDMENT(S) PROPOSED BY THE SENATE AGRICULTURE, CONSERVATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES 1.
  • Line 35, engrossed, after possible , strike including the identification of insert and identify

Bill History

  1. 2026-04-13 Governor

    Approved by Governor-Chapter 915 (effective 7/1/2026)

  2. 2026-04-13 Governor

    Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0915)

  3. 2026-03-31 House

    Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 31, 2026

  4. 2026-03-31 Governor

    Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026

  5. 2026-03-31 House

    Signed by Speaker

  6. 2026-03-31 House

    Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 31, 2026

  7. 2026-03-31 Governor

    Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026

  8. 2026-03-31 House

    Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB237)

  9. 2026-03-30 Senate

    Signed by President

  10. 2026-03-30 House

    Enrolled

  11. 2026-03-30 House

    Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB237ER)

  12. 2026-03-10 House

    Senate amendment agreed to by House (99-Y 0-N 0-A)

  13. 2026-03-09 Senate

    Read third time

  14. 2026-03-09 Senate

    Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute

  15. 2026-03-09 Senate

    Engrossed by Senate as amended

  16. 2026-03-09 Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources

    Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources Amendment agreed to

  17. 2026-03-09 Senate

    Passed Senate with amendment Block Vote

  18. 2026-03-06 Senate

    Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote)

  19. 2026-03-06 Senate

    Passed by for the day

  20. 2026-03-05 Senate

    Rules suspended

  21. 2026-03-05 Senate

    Rules suspended

  22. 2026-03-05 Senate

    Passed by for the day

  23. 2026-03-05 Senate

    Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) (39-Y 0-N 0-A)

  24. 2026-03-05 Senate

    Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote)

  25. 2026-03-03 Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources

    Reported from Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources with amendment (15-Y 0-N)

  26. 2026-03-03 Senate

    Senate committee offered

  27. 2026-03-03 Senate

    Senate committee offered

  28. 2026-02-12 Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources

    Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB237)

  29. 2026-02-11 Senate

    Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading)

  30. 2026-02-11 Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources

    Referred to Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources

  31. 2026-02-10 House

    Read third time and passed House Block Vote (98-Y 0-N 0-A)

  32. 2026-02-09 House

    Read second time

  33. 2026-02-09 House

    committee substitute agreed to

  34. 2026-02-09 House

    Engrossed by House - committee substitute

  35. 2026-02-06 House

    Read first time

  36. 2026-02-05 Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources

    Committee substitute printed 26106447D-H1

  37. 2026-02-04 Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources

    Reported from Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources with substitute (22-Y 0-N)

  38. 2026-01-28 Natural Resources

    Subcommittee recommends reporting with substitute (10-Y 0-N)

  39. 2026-01-28 Natural Resources

    Subcommittee recommends striking from the docket (Voice Vote)

  40. 2026-01-28 Natural Resources

    House subcommittee offered

  41. 2026-01-19 Natural Resources

    Assigned HACNR sub: Natural Resources

  42. 2026-01-08 House

    Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26102974D

  43. 2026-01-08 Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources

    Referred to Committee on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources

Official Summary Text

Department of Conservation and Recreation; Virginia Coastal Resilience Master Plan.
Directs the Department of Conservation and Recreation, when updating the Virginia Coastal Resilience Master Plan, to identify areas where marshes may migrate in the face of sea level rise.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
An Act to amend and reenact §
10.1-658
of the Code of Virginia, relating to Virginia Coastal Resilience Master Plan.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §
10.1-658
of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:
§
10.1-658
. State interest in resilience and flood control.
A. The General Assembly declares that storm events and rising tidal waters cause recurrent flooding of Virginia's land resources and result in the loss of life, damage to property, unsafe and unsanitary conditions and the disruption of commerce and government services, placing at risk the health, safety and welfare of those citizens living in flood-prone areas of the Commonwealth. Flood waters disregard jurisdictional boundaries, and the public interest requires the management of flood-prone areas in a manner which prevents injuries to persons, damage to property and pollution of state waters.
B. The General Assembly supports and encourages those measures which prevent, mitigate, and alleviate the effects of sea level rise, stormwater surges, and all causes of recurrent flooding and declares that the expenditure of public funds and any obligations incurred in the development of flood control and other civil works projects, the benefits of which may accrue to any county, municipality, or region in the Commonwealth, are necessary expenses of local and state government. The General Assembly shall prioritize measures that use community-scale and regional-scale planning, protect and enhance natural and nature-based approaches, address socioeconomic inequities, and enhance equity through flood resilience and preparedness.
C. The General Assembly supports and encourages flood resilience through implementation of the Virginia Coastal Resilience Master Plan and implementation of the Virginia Flood Protection Master Plan developed pursuant to §
10.1-602
.
D. The Department shall be responsible for the implementation of the Virginia Coastal Resilience Master Plan and Virginia Flood Protection Master Plan and shall serve as the lead administrator.
E. The Virginia Coastal Resilience Master Plan shall be updated at least every five years; shall, at a minimum, be a place-specific plan for mitigating severe and repetitive flooding; and shall, at a minimum, (i) base decision making on the best-available science; (ii) identify and address socioeconomic inequities and strive to enhance equity through
the
adaptation and protection measures by considering all areas of recurrent flooding; (iii) recognize the importance of protecting and enhancing natural infrastructure and nature-based approaches to flood mitigation, when possible
,
and identify
areas where marshes may migrate in the face of sea level rise
; (iv) utilize community and regional scale planning to the maximum extent possible, seeking region-specific approaches tailored to the needs of individual communities; and (v) include an understanding of fiscal realities and focus on cost-effective solutions for the protection and adaptation of communities, businesses, and critical infrastructure.