Vote Smart provides easy access to congressional and state voting records and maintains a collection of key votes grouped by issue. Vote Smart uses the following criteria to select key votes:
Vote Smart provides a summary of the version of the bill text associated with each selected key vote. Our summaries are written by Vote Smart's staff and interns, who adhere to our strict policies and procedures in order to guarantee absolute impartiality and accuracy. They do not necessarily reflect the content of the final version of the bill, but rather the version voted on in that stage. While many procedural votes take place before a full chamber vote, our voting stages reflect the final reading of each chamber vote. Each key vote selection is reviewed by the project's community of advisors, who are political scientists and journalists from all fifty states.
For more information about the legislative process, see here.
| Date | State | Bill No. | Title | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb. 21, 2022 | VA | HB 4 | Requires School Principals to Report Student Misdemeanors to Law Enforcement | Bill Passed - Senate (27 - 13) |
| Feb. 21, 2022 | VA | HB 283 | Establishes Human Trafficking Training For Law Enforcement Personnel | Bill Passed - Senate (40 - 0) |
| Feb. 15, 2022 | VA | SJ 1 | Expands Voting Rights of Released Inmates | (24 - 16) |
| Jan. 27, 2022 | VA | SB 246 | Requires Law Enforcement Officers Inform Drivers on Why They are Being Stopped | Bill Passed - Senate (21 - 19) |
| April 7, 2021 | VA | HB 2113 | Authorizes Criminal Records Expungement | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (23 - 17) |
| Feb. 27, 2021 | VA | HJ 555 | Extends Voting Rights to Citizens on Parole | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (21 - 18) |
| Feb. 27, 2021 | VA | SJ 272 | Amends the Qualifications to Vote | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (21 - 17) |
| Feb. 27, 2021 | VA | HB 2004 | Requires Releasing Records From Closed Criminal Investigations | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (23 - 15) |
| Feb. 27, 2021 | VA | HB 1909 | Establishes Gun-Free Zones on School Board Property | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (21 - 17) |
| Feb. 18, 2021 | VA | HB 2081 | Prohibits the Possession of Firearms Within 40 Feet of a Polling Place | Bill Passed - Senate (21 - 18) |
| Feb. 15, 2021 | VA | HB 2128 | Increases the Amount of Time for the State Department to Complete Firearm Background Checks | Bill Passed - Senate (22 - 17) |
| Feb. 5, 2021 | VA | SB 1339 | Requires an Individual Petition a Court for Permission to have Their Criminal Records Sealed | Bill Passed - Senate (21 - 18) |
| Feb. 3, 2021 | VA | SB 1165 | Repeals the Death Penalty | Bill Passed - Senate (21 - 17) |
| Feb. 3, 2021 | VA | SB 1165 | Repeals the Death Penalty | Bill Passed - Senate (21 - 17) |
| Nov. 9, 2020 | VA | HB 5109 | Amends Existing Law Enforcement Officer Training and Qualifications | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (21 - 18) |
| Oct. 16, 2020 | VA | HB 5043 | Authorizes Mental Health Experts to Accompany Police Officers | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (26 - 12) |
| Oct. 14, 2020 | VA | HB 5104 | Increases Employment Assessment and Review Requirements for Law Enforcement Hiring | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (31 - 5) |
| Oct. 14, 2020 | VA | HB 5148 | Establishes a 4-Level Earned Sentence Credit Classification System | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (21 - 18) |
| Oct. 14, 2020 | VA | HB 5099 | Prohibits No-Knock Search Warrants | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (22 - 16) |
| Oct. 14, 2020 | VA | HB 5099 | Prohibits No-Knock Search Warrants | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (22 - 16) |
| Oct. 14, 2020 | VA | HB 5049 | Prohibits the Acquisition and Use of Military Property by Law Enforcement Agencies | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (21 - 17) |
| Oct. 14, 2020 | VA | SB 5030 | Establishes and Amends Various Provisions Relating to Law Enforcement | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (21 - 17) |
| Oct. 14, 2020 | VA | SB 5030 | Establishes and Amends Various Provisions Relating to Law Enforcement | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (21 - 17) |
| Oct. 7, 2020 | VA | SB 5038 | Requires the Development of a Comprehensive Crisis Service Continuum Including a MARCUS Alert System | Bill Passed - Senate (22 - 14) |
| Oct. 2, 2020 | VA | SB 5033 | Amends Court Authority in Criminal Cases | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (31 - 7) |