---
type: "Bill"
title: "PSAP dispatchers; definitions, telecommunicator cardiopulmonary resuscitation, EMD program."
description: "PSAP dispatchers; telecommunicator cardiopulmonary resuscitation; Emergency Medical Dispatch education program. Requires each public safety answering point (PSAP) to provide training and equipment for each of its dispatchers in high-quality telecommunicator cardiopulmonary resuscitation (TCPR) instruction, which is defined in the measure as the delivery by trained 911 telecommunicators of high-quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation instruction for acute events requiring cardiopulmonary resuscitation, including out-of-hospital cardiac arrests. The measure (i) requires the Department of Criminal Justice Services to adopt regulations that establish training and equipment standards and (ii) authorizes a PSAP to enter into reciprocal agreements with another PSAP to transfer callers to the other PSAP at times that the initial PSAP does not have a trained dispatcher on duty able to provide TCPR. The measure establishes immunity from civil damages for dispatchers who instruct a caller on TCPR. The measure also requires each operator of a PSAP to implement a requirement that each of its dispatchers complete an Emergency Medical Dispatch education program by July 1, 2024, and to conduct ongoing quality assurance of its TCPR program."
jurisdiction: "us/states/va"
legislature: "Virginia General Assembly"
session: "2020"
identifier: "HB 727"
citation: "Virginia HB 727 (2020)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: []
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Patrick A. Hope"]
version_count: 6
action_count: 38
vote_count: 7
first_action: "2020-01-06"
last_action: "2020-04-10"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/e17808fc-d9e0-414f-9ae8-cb7dd91110ec"
source_url: "https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?201+sum+HB727"
source_hash: "845ae89e0152194f3988e2919ac803589800258ab17326fd423d0fc8ae4cab47"
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 727 (2020) — PSAP dispatchers; definitions, telecommunicator cardiopulmonary resuscitation, EMD program.

PSAP dispatchers; telecommunicator cardiopulmonary resuscitation; Emergency Medical Dispatch education program. Requires each public safety answering point (PSAP) to provide training and equipment for each of its dispatchers in high-quality telecommunicator cardiopulmonary resuscitation (TCPR) instruction, which is defined in the measure as the delivery by trained 911 telecommunicators of high-quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation instruction for acute events requiring cardiopulmonary resuscitation, including out-of-hospital cardiac arrests. The measure (i) requires the Department of Criminal Justice Services to adopt regulations that establish training and equipment standards and (ii) authorizes a PSAP to enter into reciprocal agreements with another PSAP to transfer callers to the other PSAP at times that the initial PSAP does not have a trained dispatcher on duty able to provide TCPR. The measure establishes immunity from civil damages for dispatchers who instruct a caller on TCPR. The measure also requires each operator of a PSAP to implement a requirement that each of its dispatchers complete an Emergency Medical Dispatch education program by July 1, 2024, and to conduct ongoing quality assurance of its TCPR program.

## Version chain

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

1. **Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP1068)** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?201+ful+CHAP1068)
2. **Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB727ER)** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?201+ful+HB727ER)
3. **Engrossed by House - committee substitute HB727H1** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?201+ful+HB727)
4. **Engrossed by House - committee substitute HB727H1** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?201+ful+HB727H1)
5. **Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute HB727S2** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?201+ful+HB727S2)
6. **HB727S1** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?201+ful+HB727S1)

## Votes

- Reported from Finance and Appropriations with substitute (14-Y 0-N) — **14–0** (pass) · upper
- Reported from Labor and Commerce with substitute (14-Y 6-N) — **14–6** (pass) · lower
- Constitutional reading dispensed (38-Y 0-N) — **38–0** (pass) · upper
- Passed Senate with substitute (40-Y 0-N) — **40–0** (pass) · upper
- VOTE: Adoption (84-Y 13-N) — **83–13** (pass) · lower
- VOTE: Passage (82-Y 17-N) — **81–17** (pass) · lower
- Reported from Commerce and Labor with substitute (15-Y 0-N) — **15–0** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Patrick A. Hope — primary (person)
- Betsy B. Carr — cosponsor (person)
- C.E. Cliff Hayes, Jr. — cosponsor (person)
- Kaye Kory — cosponsor (person)

## Timeline

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

- **2020-01-06** Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/08/20 20104895D `introduction`
- **2020-01-06** Referred to Committee on Labor and Commerce `referral-committee`
- **2020-01-21** House committee, floor amendments and substitutes offered
- **2020-01-21** Reported from Labor and Commerce with substitute (14-Y 6-N) `committee-passage`
- **2020-01-21** Committee substitute printed 20106254D-H1 `substitution`
- **2020-01-23** Read first time `reading-1`
- **2020-01-24** Read second time `reading-2`
- **2020-01-24** Committee substitute agreed to 20106254D-H1
- **2020-01-24** Engrossed by House - committee substitute HB727H1
- **2020-01-27** Read third time and passed House (82-Y 17-N) `passage, reading-3`
- **2020-01-27** Impact statement from DHCD/CLG (HB727)
- **2020-01-27** VOTE: Passage (82-Y 17-N)
- **2020-01-28** Constitutional reading dispensed
- **2020-01-28** Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor `referral-committee`
- **2020-02-10** Impact statement from DPB (HB727H1)
- **2020-02-17** Reported from Commerce and Labor with substitute (15-Y 0-N) `committee-passage`
- **2020-02-17** Committee substitute printed 20108483D-S1 `substitution`
- **2020-02-17** Rereferred to Finance and Appropriations `referral-committee`
- **2020-02-25** Reported from Finance and Appropriations with substitute (14-Y 0-N) `committee-passage`
- **2020-02-25** Committee substitute printed 20108988D-S2 `substitution`
- **2020-02-26** Constitutional reading dispensed (38-Y 0-N)
- **2020-02-27** Read third time `reading-3`
- **2020-02-27** Committee substitute rejected 20108483D-S1
- **2020-02-27** Reading of substitute waived
- **2020-02-27** Committee substitute agreed to 20108988D-S2
- **2020-02-27** Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute HB727S2
- **2020-02-27** Passed Senate with substitute (40-Y 0-N) `passage`
- **2020-03-02** Placed on Calendar
- **2020-03-02** Senate substitute agreed to by House 20108988D-S2 (84-Y 13-N)
- **2020-03-02** VOTE: Adoption (84-Y 13-N)
- **2020-03-03** Impact statement from DPB (HB727S2)
- **2020-03-05** Enrolled
- **2020-03-05** Impact statement from DPB (HB727ER)
- **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
- **2020-04-10** Approved by Governor-Chapter 1068 (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/e17808fc-d9e0-414f-9ae8-cb7dd91110ec`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Virginia legislature records).