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HB313 • 2026

Virginia FOIA; public records to be open to inspection, non-citizen property owners.

<p class=ldtitle>A BILL to amend and reenact § 2.2-3704 of the Code of Virginia, relating to Virginia Freedom of Information Act; public records to be open to inspection; non-citizen property owners.</p>

Enacted

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

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

Plain English Breakdown

The bill summary does not provide details on the specific types of records non-citizen property owners will be able to access.

Virginia FOIA; Public Records Access for Non-Citizen Property Owners

This bill amends Virginia's Freedom of Information Act to include non-citizens who own property in the state as persons allowed to access public records.

What This Bill Does

  • Amends a part of Virginia law that allows people to look at public records.
  • Includes non-citizen property owners among those permitted to see these records.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Non-citizen property owners in Virginia.
  • Government agencies that keep public records.

Terms To Know

Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)
A law that lets people see and get copies of government documents.
Public Records
Documents, files, or information kept by the government that are available to the public.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify what kind of records non-citizen property owners can access.
  • It is unclear how this change will be implemented and enforced by local agencies.

Amendments

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

HB313AHC1

2026-01-27

General Laws Amendment

Plain English: The amendment changes the Virginia Freedom of Information Act to allow non-resident real property owners access to public records instead of limiting it to U.S. citizens.

  • Changes 'non-citizen' to 'non-resident real' in the title, allowing non-residents who own real estate to have access to public records.
  • Replaces 'non-citizens' with 'any person' in the text, broadening the scope of individuals eligible for accessing public records.
  • Adds 'real' after 'owning' to specify that only owners of real property are included.
  • The amendment's full impact on access rights and definitions of 'non-resident real property owner' is not fully explained in the provided text.

Bill History

  1. 2026-02-18 House

    Left in Committee Education

  2. 2026-02-18 House

    Left in Committee General Laws

  3. 2026-01-27 Procurement/Open Government

    Subcommittee recommends laying on the table (7-Y 3-N)

  4. 2026-01-27 Procurement/Open Government

    House subcommittee offered

  5. 2026-01-21 Procurement/Open Government

    Assigned HGL sub: Procurement/Open Government

  6. 2026-01-13 House

    Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB313)

  7. 2026-01-09 House

    Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26102496D

  8. 2026-01-09 General Laws

    Referred to Committee on General Laws

Official Summary Text

Virginia Freedom of Information Act; public records to be open to inspection; non-citizen property owners.
Includes non-citizens owning property within the Commonwealth among the list of persons to whom all public records shall be open under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
HB 313

SUBCOMMITTEE

1. Line 5, introduced, Title, after
inspection;

strike

non-citizen

insert

non-resident real

SUBCOMMITTEE

2. Line 15, introduced, after Commonwealth, [first instance]

strike

non-citizens

insert

any person

SUBCOMMITTEE

3. Line 15, introduced, after
owning

insert

real