---
type: "Bill"
title: "Behavior analysts or assistant behavior analysts; licensure criteria, certifying entities."
description: "Behavior analysts or assistant behavior analysts; licensure criteria, certifying entities."
jurisdiction: "us/states/va"
legislature: "Virginia General Assembly"
session: "2023"
identifier: "HB 1946"
citation: "Virginia HB 1946 (2023)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: []
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Wachsmann"]
version_count: 3
action_count: 25
vote_count: 6
first_action: "2023-01-10"
last_action: "2023-03-27"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/df540ec5-5102-4aae-930d-12e652656bc3"
source_url: "https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?231+sum+HB1946"
source_hash: "7a30fab35ed44547246337562520bcc2cef6ff35e2c121901d3c15acd1bd3cf2"
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 1946 (2023) — Behavior analysts or assistant behavior analysts; licensure criteria, certifying entities.

## Version chain

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

1. **CHAP0693** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?231+ful+CHAP0693)
2. **HB1946ER** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?231+ful+HB1946ER)
3. **Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/11/23 23102108D** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?231+ful+HB1946)

## Votes

- Subcommittee recommends reporting (9-Y 0-N) — **0–0** (fail) · lower
- Reported from Health, Welfare and Institutions (21-Y 0-N) — **0–0** (fail) · lower
- Constitutional reading dispensed (37-Y 0-N) — **0–0** (fail) · upper
- Reported from Education and Health (15-Y 0-N) — **0–0** (fail) · upper
- VOTE: Block Vote Passage (100-Y 0-N) — **0–0** (fail) · lower
- Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N) — **0–0** (fail) · upper

## Sponsors

- Wachsmann — primary (person)

## Timeline

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

- **2023-01-10** Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/11/23 23102108D `filing, introduction`
- **2023-01-10** Referred to Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions `referral-committee`
- **2023-01-13** Impact statement from DPB (HB1946)
- **2023-01-19** Assigned HWI sub: Subcommittee #1 `referral-committee`
- **2023-01-24** Subcommittee recommends reporting (9-Y 0-N)
- **2023-01-31** Reported from Health, Welfare and Institutions (21-Y 0-N) `committee-passage`
- **2023-02-02** Read first time `reading-1`
- **2023-02-03** Read second time and engrossed `reading-2`
- **2023-02-06** Read third time and passed House BLOCK VOTE (100-Y 0-N) `passage, reading-3`
- **2023-02-06** VOTE: Block Vote Passage (100-Y 0-N) `passage`
- **2023-02-07** Constitutional reading dispensed
- **2023-02-07** Referred to Committee on Education and Health `referral-committee`
- **2023-02-16** Reported from Education and Health (15-Y 0-N) `committee-passage`
- **2023-02-17** Constitutional reading dispensed (37-Y 0-N)
- **2023-02-20** Read third time `reading-3`
- **2023-02-20** Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N) `passage`
- **2023-02-23** Enrolled `enrolled`
- **2023-02-23** Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB1946ER) `passage`
- **2023-02-23** Impact statement from DPB (HB1946ER)
- **2023-02-23** Signed by Speaker `passage`
- **2023-02-25** Signed by President `passage`
- **2023-03-02** Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 2, 2023 `enrolled, executive-receipt`
- **2023-03-02** Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., March 27, 2023 `executive-receipt`
- **2023-03-27** Approved by Governor-Chapter 693 (effective 7/1/23) `executive-signature`
- **2023-03-27** Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0693)

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/df540ec5-5102-4aae-930d-12e652656bc3`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Virginia legislature records).