---
type: "Bill"
title: "Protected voter status; certain evidence not required."
description: "Protected voter status; certain evidence notrequired. Removes the requirement that a person who is in fearfor his personal safety from another person who has threatened orstalked him must provide evidence that he has filed a complaint witha magistrate or law-enforcement official against such other person in order to be granted protected voter status. The bill does not eliminate the requirement that he submit a signed written statementthat he is in fear for his personal safety for him to be grantedprotected voter status."
jurisdiction: "us/states/va"
legislature: "Virginia General Assembly"
session: "2020"
identifier: "HB 241"
citation: "Virginia HB 241 (2020)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: []
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Mark D. Sickles"]
version_count: 3
action_count: 23
vote_count: 6
first_action: "2019-12-30"
last_action: "2020-04-06"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/66b5535d-8367-4332-86af-4dcf91f52824"
source_url: "https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?201+sum+HB241"
source_hash: "0ef53660bee779dad53d4a37594ba088eeb388e447799f4206579aaf33d29210"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-va"]
---

# Virginia HB 241 (2020) — Protected voter status; certain evidence not required.

Protected voter status; certain evidence notrequired. Removes the requirement that a person who is in fearfor his personal safety from another person who has threatened orstalked him must provide evidence that he has filed a complaint witha magistrate or law-enforcement official against such other person in order to be granted protected voter status. The bill does not eliminate the requirement that he submit a signed written statementthat he is in fear for his personal safety for him to be grantedprotected voter status.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0710)** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?201+ful+CHAP0710)
2. **Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB241ER)** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?201+ful+HB241ER)
3. **Impact statement from DPB (HB241)** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?201+ful+HB241)

## Votes

- Reported from Privileges and Elections (19-Y 3-N) — **19–3** (pass) · lower
- Subcommittee recommends reporting (5-Y 1-N) — **5–1** (pass) · lower
- Constitutional reading dispensed (40-Y 0-N) — **40–0** (pass) · upper
- Reported from Privileges and Elections (12-Y 3-N) — **12–3** (pass) · upper
- Passed Senate (19-Y 17-N) — **19–17** (pass) · upper
- VOTE: Passage (73-Y 26-N) — **72–26** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- Mark D. Sickles — primary (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2019-12-30** Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/08/20 20101468D `introduction`
- **2019-12-30** Referred to Committee on Privileges and Elections `referral-committee`
- **2020-01-13** Assigned P & E sub: Elections `referral-committee`
- **2020-01-27** Impact statement from DPB (HB241)
- **2020-01-28** Subcommittee recommends reporting (5-Y 1-N)
- **2020-01-31** Reported from Privileges and Elections (19-Y 3-N) `committee-passage`
- **2020-02-04** Read first time `reading-1`
- **2020-02-05** Read second time and engrossed `reading-2`
- **2020-02-06** Read third time and passed House (73-Y 26-N) `passage, reading-3`
- **2020-02-06** VOTE: Passage (73-Y 26-N)
- **2020-02-07** Constitutional reading dispensed
- **2020-02-07** Referred to Committee on Privileges and Elections `referral-committee`
- **2020-02-25** Reported from Privileges and Elections (12-Y 3-N) `committee-passage`
- **2020-02-27** Constitutional reading dispensed (40-Y 0-N)
- **2020-02-28** Read third time `reading-3`
- **2020-02-28** Passed Senate (19-Y 17-N) `passage`
- **2020-03-05** Enrolled
- **2020-03-06** Impact statement from DPB (HB241ER)
- **2020-03-06** Signed by Speaker
- **2020-03-06** Signed by President
- **2020-03-12** Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 12, 2020
- **2020-03-12** Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 11, 2020
- **2020-04-06** Approved by Governor-Chapter 710 (effective 7/1/20) `executive-signature`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/66b5535d-8367-4332-86af-4dcf91f52824`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Virginia legislature records).