Inmates; Director of Dept. of Corrections shall continue to accept applications for confinement.

An Act to direct the Director of the Department of Corrections to pause placements at Red Onion State Prison.

Crime

Enacted

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

Sponsor: Jones
Last action: 2026-05-19
Official status: Governor's Veto
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The Governor's veto means that the bill did not become a law, so its provisions are not enforceable.

Stop Placing Inmates at Red Onion State Prison

This law directs the Director of the Department of Corrections to continue accepting applications for inmate transfers under the Interstate Corrections Compact but prohibits placing any such inmates at Red Onion State Prison until reauthorized by the Virginia General Assembly.

What This Bill Does

Directs the Director of the Department of Corrections to continue accepting and reviewing applications for the confinement of inmates from a state party to the Interstate Corrections Compact.
Prohibits placement of any such inmate at the Red Onion State Prison until reauthorization by the Virginia General Assembly.

Who It Names or Affects

The Director of the Department of Corrections
Inmates who are part of the Interstate Corrections Compact

Terms To Know

Interstate Corrections Compact: An agreement among states that allows inmates to serve their sentences in a different state.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not specify when the General Assembly will reauthorize placements at Red Onion State Prison.
It is unclear how this law affects current inmates already placed at Red Onion State Prison.
The Governor vetoed the bill, meaning it did not become a law.

Amendments

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

SB218G

2026-04-13 • Governor

Governor's Recommendation

Plain English: (SB218) GOVERNOR'S RECOMMENDATION 1.

(SB218) GOVERNOR'S RECOMMENDATION 1.
After line 10, enrolled insert 2.
That the provisions of this act shall not become effective unless reenacted by the 2027 Session of the General Assembly.

SB218ASC1

2026-01-30 • Committee

Rehabilitation and Social Services Amendment

Plain English: OFFERED FOR CONSIDERATION 1/30/2026 SB 218 REHABILITATION AND SOCIAL SERVICES 1.

OFFERED FOR CONSIDERATION 1/30/2026 SB 218 REHABILITATION AND SOCIAL SERVICES 1.
Line 4, introduced, Title, after to direct strike the remainder of line 4 and through and on line 5 REHABILITATION AND SOCIAL SERVICES 2.
Line 12, introduced, after That strike the remainder of line 12 and through Supervision and on line 13

SB218AS1

2026-02-02 • Committee

Rehabilitation and Social Services Amendment

Plain English: 2/02/2026 (SB218) AMENDMENT(S) PROPOSED BY THE SENATE REHABILITATION AND SOCIAL SERVICES 1.

2/02/2026 (SB218) AMENDMENT(S) PROPOSED BY THE SENATE REHABILITATION AND SOCIAL SERVICES 1.
Line 4, introduced, Title, after to direct strike the remainder of line 4 and through and on line 5 REHABILITATION AND SOCIAL SERVICES 2.
Line 12, introduced, after That strike the remainder of line 12 and through Supervision and on line 13 REHABILITATION AND SOCIAL SERVICES 3.
Line 16, introduced, after placement insert by act of assembly

Bill History

2026-05-19 Senate
Governor's Veto Received by Senate
2026-05-19 Governor
Vetoed by Governor
2026-04-22 Senate
Passed by for the day
2026-04-22 Senate
Communicated to Governor
2026-04-22 Governor
Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., May 23, 2026
2026-04-22 Senate
Passed by for the day Block Vote (21-Y 18-N 0-A)
2026-04-13 Governor
Governor's recommendation received by Senate
2026-03-14 Senate
Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 14, 2026
2026-03-14 Governor
Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026
2026-03-11 Senate
Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB218)
2026-03-10 House
Signed by Speaker
2026-03-10 Senate
Signed by President
2026-03-10 Senate
Enrolled
2026-03-10 Senate
Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB218ER)
2026-03-04 House
Read third time
2026-03-04 House
Passed House (63-Y 36-N 0-A)
2026-03-03 House
Read second time
2026-02-27 Public Safety
Reported from Public Safety (15-Y 7-N)
2026-02-26 Subcommittee #2
Subcommittee recommends reporting (5-Y 2-N)
2026-02-17 Subcommittee #2
Assigned HMPPS sub: Subcommittee #2
2026-02-09 House
Placed on Calendar
2026-02-09 House
Read first time
2026-02-09 Public Safety
Referred to Committee on Public Safety
2026-02-09 Senate
Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB218)
2026-02-04 Senate
Read third time and passed Senate (21-Y 19-N 0-A)
2026-02-03 Senate
Read second time
2026-02-03 Senate
Engrossed by Senate as amended (Voice Vote)
2026-02-03 Rehabilitation and Social Services
Rehabilitation and Social Services Amendments agreed to
2026-02-03 Senate
Engrossed by Senate (Voice Vote)
2026-02-02 Senate
Rules suspended
2026-02-02 Senate
Passed by for the day
2026-02-02 Senate
Passed by for the day
2026-02-02 Senate
Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 1st reading) (40-Y 0-N 0-A)
2026-02-02 Senate
Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote)
2026-01-30 Rehabilitation and Social Services
Reported from Rehabilitation and Social Services with amendments (8-Y 7-N)
2026-01-30 Rehabilitation and Social Services
Senate committee amendments offered
2026-01-22 Senate
Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB218)
2026-01-09 Senate
Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26101900D
2026-01-09 Rehabilitation and Social Services
Referred to Committee on Rehabilitation and Social Services

Official Summary Text

Director of the Department of Corrections; placement of inmates.
Directs the Director of the Department of Corrections to continue accepting and reviewing applications for the confinement of inmates from a state party to the Interstate Corrections Compact entered into pursuant to relevant law, but prohibits any placement of any such inmate at the Red Onion State Prison until such time as the General Assembly reauthorizes such placement by act of assembly.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

(SB218)
GOVERNOR'S VETO
Pursuant to Article V, Section 6, of the Constitution of Virginia, I veto Senate Bill 218, which would prohibit the placement of any inmates accepted pursuant to the Interstate Corrections Compact at Red Onion State Prison until reauthorized to do so by the Virginia General Assembly.
The Interstate Corrections Compact is an agreement among 38 states and the District of Columbia that allows certain prison inmates to serve their time in a state other than the state of conviction. There are several reasons inmates may serve their sentence in another state, including to be closer to friends and family and to avoid potential security concerns that could arise as a result of gang affiliation or a high-profile crime. The Virginia Department of Corrections exercises discretion and careful consideration of an inmate's background and security risk when determining placements of out-of-state inmates transferring to Virginia.
Since taking office, my administration has worked diligently on reforms within the Department of Corrections, and I look forward to working with the patrons of Senate Bill 218 and other members of the General Assembly to further address the serious challenges in Virginia's maximum-security prisons. But restricting the placement of high-security inmates transferring to Virginia from out-of-state prisons does not further reforms or improve conditions, and could in fact risk heightening unsafe conditions in Virginia's correctional system.
My amendments would have provided additional time to work with legislators and proactively address any potential unintended consequences of this proposed restriction. Unfortunately, these amendments were rejected by the General Assembly.
Accordingly, I veto this bill.