Virginia Human Rights Act; nondiscrimination in employment, definition of employer.
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SB 494 — Virginia Human Rights Act; nondiscrimination in employment, definition of employer.
Last action — Failed to report (defeated) in Commerce and Energy (10-Y 12-N)
No card. One bill, free forever — alerts when it moves.
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✓Introduced
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✓In Committee
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3Passed Senate
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4Passed House of Delegates
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5To Executive
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6Enacted
This bill died with 2022 Regular Session. It reached “Passed Senate” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.
This bill is no longer active — its legislative session has ended, so there is no live prognosis. It would have to be reintroduced in the current session to move again.
Summary
Virginia Human Rights Act; nondiscrimination in employment; definition of employer, statute of limitations, and provision of attorney fees. Amends the definition of "employer" to mean a person employing five or more employees, instead of 15 or more employees under current law, for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year, and any agent of such person. The bill provides that a person claiming to be aggrieved by an unlawful discriminatory practice may file a written complaint with the Division of Human Rights within two years of the occurrence of the alleged unlawful discriminatory practice and that an aggrieved person who has been provided a notice of his right to file a civil action for such grievance may do so within one year of receiving such notice or within two years after the alleged discriminatory practice occurred, whichever is later. The bill also changes a court's award of reasonable attorney fees and costs to a successful plaintiff from discretionary to mandatory.
Bill Text
- Prefiled Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/12/22 22102695D Current pdf January 11, 2022
Action History
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Failed to report (defeated) in Commerce and Energy (10-Y 12-N)
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Referred to Committee on Commerce and Energy
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Reported from General Laws (12-Y 10-N)
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Subcommittee recommends referring to Committee on Commerce and Energy
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Subcommittee recommends reporting (7-Y 1-N)
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Assigned GL sub: Subcommittee #1
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Referred to Committee on General Laws
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Read first time
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Placed on Calendar
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Read third time and passed Senate (21-Y 19-N)
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Passed by for the day
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Passed by for the day
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Read second time and engrossed
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Constitutional reading dispensed (37-Y 0-N)
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Reported from General Laws and Technology (8-Y 7-N)
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Impact statement from DPB (SB494)
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Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology
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Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/12/22 22102695D
Sponsors
- Jennifer L. McClellan · Primary
- R. Creigh Deeds · Cosponsor
- Vivian E. Watts · Cosponsor
- Adam P. Ebbin · Cosponsor
Sponsorship breakdown
Export CSV (upgrade) →1 sponsors · 3 co-sponsors · 144 not signed on · 41 voted No
Sponsors (1)
- Jennifer L. McClellan
Co-sponsors (3)
Not signed on (144)
144 members have not signed on to this bill.
Show all 144 →"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.
Votes
| Party | Yea | Nay | Present | Not Voting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unaffiliated | 10 | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 10 | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| % of votes cast | 45% | 55% | 0% | 0% |
How each member voted (22)
| Member | Party | Vote |
|---|---|---|
| Adams, Les R. | — | Nay |
| Alfonso H. Lopez | — | Yea |
| Batten, Amanda E. | — | Nay |
| Byron, Kathy J. | — | Nay |
| Christopher T. Head | — | Nay |
| Don Scott | — | Yea |
| Gooditis, Wendy W. | — | Yea |
| Guzman, Elizabeth R. | — | Yea |
| Israel D. O'Quinn | — | Nay |
| Jeion A. Ward | — | Yea |
| Joseph P. McNamara | — | Nay |
| Keam, Mark L. | — | Yea |
| Kory, Kaye | — | Yea |
| Lamont Bagby | — | Yea |
| Marshall, Daniel W., III | — | Nay |
| Michael J. Webert | — | Nay |
| Mullin, Michael P. | — | Yea |
| R. Lee Ware | — | Nay |
| Ransone, Margaret B. | — | Nay |
| Richard C. "Rip" Sullivan, Jr. | — | Yea |
| Terry G. Kilgore | — | Nay |
| Tony O. Wilt | — | Nay |
| Party | Yea | Nay | Present | Not Voting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unaffiliated | 12 | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 12 | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| % of votes cast | 55% | 45% | 0% | 0% |
How each member voted (22)
| Member | Party | Vote |
|---|---|---|
| Adams, Dawn M. | — | Yea |
| Betsy B. Carr | — | Yea |
| Bulova, David L. | — | Yea |
| Campbell, Jeffrey L. | — | Nay |
| Chris S. Runion | — | Nay |
| Coyner, Carrie E. | — | Yea |
| Danica A. Roem | — | Yea |
| Emily M. Jordan | — | Nay |
| Fowler, Hyland F."Buddy," Jr. | — | Yea |
| James A. "Jay" Leftwich | — | Nay |
| James W. Morefield | — | Nay |
| Jenkins, Clinton L. | — | Yea |
| Knight, Barry D. | — | Nay |
| Luke E. Torian | — | Yea |
| Marcia S. "Cia" Price | — | Yea |
| Murphy, Kathleen | — | Yea |
| Paul E. Krizek | — | Yea |
| Robinson, Roxann L. | — | Nay |
| Schuyler T. VanValkenburg | — | Yea |
| Thomas C. Wright, Jr. | — | Nay |
| Wampler, William C., III | — | Nay |
| Wendell S. Walker | — | Nay |
| Party | Yea | Nay | Present | Not Voting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unaffiliated | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| % of votes cast | 78% | 11% | 0% | 11% |
How each member voted (9)
| Member | Party | Vote |
|---|---|---|
| Adams, Dawn M. | — | Yea |
| Betsy B. Carr | — | Yea |
| Chris S. Runion | — | Nay |
| Fowler, Hyland F."Buddy," Jr. | — | Yea |
| James A. "Jay" Leftwich | — | Not Voting |
| James W. Morefield | — | Yea |
| Jenkins, Clinton L. | — | Yea |
| Thomas C. Wright, Jr. | — | Yea |
| Wendell S. Walker | — | Yea |
| Party | Yea | Nay | Present | Not Voting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unaffiliated | 21 | 19 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 21 | 19 | 0 | 0 |
| % of votes cast | 53% | 48% | 0% | 0% |
How each member voted (40)
| Party | Yea | Nay | Present | Not Voting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unaffiliated | 37 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Total | 37 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| % of votes cast | 93% | 0% | 0% | 8% |
How each member voted (40)
| Party | Yea | Nay | Present | Not Voting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unaffiliated | 8 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 8 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| % of votes cast | 53% | 47% | 0% | 0% |
How each member voted (15)
| Member | Party | Vote |
|---|---|---|
| Barker, George L. | — | Yea |
| Bell, John J. | — | Yea |
| Bryce E. Reeves | — | Nay |
| Dunnavant, Siobhan S. | — | Nay |
| Ebbin, Adam P. | — | Yea |
| Hashmi, Ghazala F. | — | Yea |
| Jennifer B. Boysko | — | Yea |
| Jeremy S. McPike | — | Yea |
| Kiggans, Jennifer A. | — | Nay |
| Mamie E. Locke | — | Yea |
| Mason, T. Montgomery "Monty" | — | Yea |
| Richard H. Stuart | — | Nay |
| Ruff, Frank M., Jr. | — | Nay |
| Todd E. Pillion | — | Nay |
| Vogel, Jill Holtzman | — | Nay |
Subjects
Frequently asked questions
- What does SB 494 do?
- Virginia Human Rights Act; nondiscrimination in employment; definition of employer, statute of limitations, and provision of attorney fees. Amends the definition of "employer" to mean a person employing five or more employees, instead of 15 or more employees under current law, for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year, and any agent of such person. The bill provides that a person claiming to be aggrieved by an unlawful discriminatory practice may file a written complaint with the Division of Human Rights within two years of the occurrence of the alleged unlawful discriminatory practice and that an aggrieved person who has been provided a notice of his right to file a civil action for such grievance may do so within one year of receiving such notice or within two years after the alleged discriminatory practice occurred, whichever is later. The bill also changes a court's award of reasonable attorney fees and costs to a successful plaintiff from discretionary to mandatory.
- Who sponsors SB 494?
- SB 494 is sponsored by Jennifer L. McClellan, R. Creigh Deeds, Vivian E. Watts, and Adam P. Ebbin.
- What is the current status of SB 494?
- This bill died with 2022 Regular Session. It reached “Passed Senate” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.
- Where can I track SB 494?
- Track SB 494 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.
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