By Isabel McLain, Director of Policy and Advocacy at the Virginia Housing Alliance, a state-wide advocacy and education organization committed to increasing access to affordable housing and ending homelessness in the Commonwealth.
As the dust settles on the 2024 legislative session, we at the Virginia Housing Alliance have begun to assess its impact on housing across Virginia. In this blog post, I share a summary of that impact, specifically highlighting the housing-related legislation that passed and will become law on July 1st of this year. However, this summary is limited by a few unresolved matters. At this point in time, legislators have not yet reached consensus with the Governor on a final budget, but both parties have pledged to do so before the special session scheduled on May 15. As such, I share only an update on current developments regarding funding for housing while negotiations continue. For more information about our current status in the state legislative process, see the timeline below.
Overall, the 2024 legislative session was not as successful for housing policy as we had hoped, but there were still some significant victories and most importantly, momentum built in our efforts to expand the availability of safe, stable, and affordable housing across the Commonwealth. In the following list, I have highlighted a handful of those victories, specifically those that may be most relevant to the Central Virginia Regional Housing Partnership.
Passed Bills:
- Improved Manufactured Home Lot Rental Act (MHLRA) (Del. Delaney, Sen. Hashmi)
- HB 572 / SB 232 increases protections for manufactured home park residents and removes confusion from the MHLRA by limiting the amount of late fees park owners can charge for unpaid rent, granting a right of redemption for tenants facing eviction for unpaid rent, prohibiting the automatic renewal of a lease if the tenant gives proper notice of termination, and clarifying the allowable reasons for eviction.
- Increased Relocation Funds for Manufactured Home Park Residents (Del. Krizek)
- HB 1397 requires a manufactured home park owner to provide each resident with $5,000 to cover relocation expenses if their rental agreement is terminated due to the sale of the park to a buyer planning to redevelop or change its use.
- Automatic Eviction Record Expungement (Del. Hope)
- HB 73 requires courts to automatically expunge eviction records for dismissed cases after 30 days and for nonsuited cases after 6 months.
- Early Lease Termination for Survivors of Domestic Violence (Del. Delaney)
- HB 764 gives victims of domestic violence or sexual abuse the right to terminate a rental agreement early if they have a permanent protective order and give proper written notice of termination.
- Increased Maximum Building Code Violation Fines (Del. McQuinn, Sen. Bagby)
- HB 578 / SB 538 increases the maximum fine localities can impose for repeated violations of the Uniform Statewide Building Code, defined as three or more offenses of the same nature within a ten-year period.
- Single Exits for Residential Buildings Workgroup (Del. McClure, Sen. VanValkenburg)
- HB 368 / SB 195 creates an advisory group to evaluate and suggest changes to the Uniform Statewide Building Code that would permit the use of single exit stairways in multifamily residential buildings under six stories and thus allow more dense and diverse housing in Virginia.
- Increased Community of Opportunity Program (COP) Tax Credits (Del. Willett)
- HB 1203 increases the amount of tax credits available for landlords renting to Housing Choice Voucher holders in high opportunity areas and earmarks a portion specifically for use in rural regions.
- Community Revitalization Funds (Del. Coyner, Sen. Locke)
- HB 478 / SB 49 enable all localities to establish Community Revitalization Funds, which can be used to prevent neighborhood deterioration through residential and infrastructure development
While we don’t have a final budget yet, we can speculate which housing-related budget items are being considered in the current negotiations based on what was included in the budget passed by the General Assembly on March 9th and the Governor’s subsequent recommendations. The chart below displays the proposed increases to housing funding in both documents. Unfortunately, we can only speculate about ongoing negotiations because these conversations generally happen behind closed doors.
Budget Items Under Consideration:
| Budget Item | FY25 General Assembly | FY26 General Assembly | FY25 Governor Recs | FY26 Governor Recs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Virginia Housing Trust Fund |
+ $12.5M |
+ $12.5M |
+ $12.5M |
+ $12.5M |
|
CoC Lead Capacity Funding |
+ $675,000 |
+ $675,000 |
+ $675,000 |
+ $675,000 |
|
Homeownership for Low-Wage Families |
+ $5M |
|||
|
Permanent Supportive Housing |
+ $3M |
+ $3M |
|
|
|
State Rental Assistance Program |
+ $1M |
+ $1M |
+ $500,000 |
+ $500,000 |
|
Manufactured Home Revolving Loan Fund |
+ $5M |
|
|
|
|
Virginia Eviction Reduction Program |
+ $150,000 |
+ $150,000 |
Because the Governor did not recommend its reduction, VHA is hopeful that the additional $12.5M a year to the Housing Trust Fund will ultimately be included in the final budget. For those who may be unfamiliar, the Housing Trust Fund is a state initiative created to stimulate equitable, accessible, and affordable housing solutions for the Commonwealth. We are also optimistic about the $675,000 to support the capacity building of our lead Continuum of Care agencies, which are regional or local organizations that play a vital role in coordinating services for families and individuals experiencing or at risk of homelessness. We at VHA were disappointed to see that the Governor recommended removing or reducing the increased funding for the remaining housing programs, but we are currently advocating to protect and expand these increases.
For more information, check out the 2024 Legislative Wrap-Up Fact Sheet on our website as well as the recording of the webinar we hosted on April 24th on this topic. Additionally, VHA invites you to sign up for our newsletter and policy alerts to receive updates on these efforts and future calls to action.
And, of course, feel free to reach out to me with any questions at imclain@vahousingalliance.org.