---
type: "Bill"
title: "Environmental Quality, Department of; groundwater and surface water withdrawal permits."
description: "Department of Environmental Quality; data; groundwaterand surface water withdrawal permits. Authorizes the Departmentof Environmental Quality to utilize and incorporate comprehensivegroundwater, surface water, and aquifer data in its decision-makingprocesses related to the issuance and renewal of groundwater withdrawalpermits and surface water withdrawal permits. Such data may includeinformation relating to water levels, flow rates, and water quality."
jurisdiction: "us/states/va"
legislature: "Virginia General Assembly"
session: "2024"
identifier: "SB 581"
citation: "Virginia SB 581 (2024)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: []
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Richard H. Stuart"]
version_count: 4
action_count: 34
vote_count: 8
first_action: "2024-01-10"
last_action: "2024-03-28"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/a09c4155-c976-4f41-a851-af68dec2850f"
source_url: "https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?241+sum+SB581"
source_hash: "841ef51faa7bd53cb938337158ee2785e5cc2d8b62f375315b0c6900eff7a976"
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 SB 581 (2024) — Environmental Quality, Department of; groundwater and surface water withdrawal permits.

Department of Environmental Quality; data; groundwaterand surface water withdrawal permits. Authorizes the Departmentof Environmental Quality to utilize and incorporate comprehensivegroundwater, surface water, and aquifer data in its decision-makingprocesses related to the issuance and renewal of groundwater withdrawalpermits and surface water withdrawal permits. Such data may includeinformation relating to water levels, flow rates, and water quality.

## Version chain

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

1. **CHAP0251** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?241+ful+CHAP0251)
2. **Committee substitute printed 24107628D-S1** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?241+ful+SB581S1)
3. **Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/10/24 24101596D** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?241+ful+SB581)
4. **SB581ER** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?241+ful+SB581ER)

## Votes

- Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N) — **40–0** (pass) · upper
- VOTE: Block Vote Passage (97-Y 0-N) — **96–0** (pass) · lower
- Constitutional reading dispensed (40-Y 0-N) — **40–0** (pass) · upper
- Reported from Finance and Appropriations with substitute (15-Y 0-N) — **15–0** (pass) · upper
- Reported from Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources (22-Y 0-N) — **22–0** (pass) · lower
- Reported from Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources (15-Y 0-N) — **15–0** (pass) · upper
- Subcommittee recommends reporting (10-Y 0-N) — **10–0** (pass) · lower
- Constitutional reading dispensed (39-Y 0-N) — **39–0** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Richard H. Stuart — primary (person)

## Timeline

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

- **2024-01-10** Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/10/24 24101596D `filing, introduction`
- **2024-01-10** Referred to Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources `referral-committee`
- **2024-01-23** Reported from Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources (15-Y 0-N) `committee-passage`
- **2024-01-23** Rereferred to Finance and Appropriations `referral-committee`
- **2024-02-02** Impact statement from DPB (SB581)
- **2024-02-12** Reported from Finance and Appropriations with substitute (15-Y 0-N) `committee-passage`
- **2024-02-12** Committee substitute printed 24107628D-S1 `substitution`
- **2024-02-12** Constitutional reading dispensed (40-Y 0-N)
- **2024-02-13** Read second time `reading-2`
- **2024-02-13** Reading of substitute waived
- **2024-02-13** Committee substitute agreed to 24107628D-S1 `substitution`
- **2024-02-13** Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute SB581S1 `substitution`
- **2024-02-13** Constitutional reading dispensed (39-Y 0-N)
- **2024-02-13** Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N) `passage`
- **2024-02-16** Placed on Calendar
- **2024-02-16** Read first time `reading-1`
- **2024-02-16** Referred to Committee on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources `referral-committee`
- **2024-02-16** Assigned ACNR sub: Chesapeake `referral-committee`
- **2024-02-23** Impact statement from DPB (SB581S1)
- **2024-02-26** Subcommittee recommends reporting (10-Y 0-N)
- **2024-02-28** Reported from Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources (22-Y 0-N) `committee-passage`
- **2024-03-01** Read second time `reading-2`
- **2024-03-04** Read third time `reading-3`
- **2024-03-04** Passed House BLOCK VOTE (97-Y 0-N) `passage`
- **2024-03-04** VOTE: Block Vote Passage (97-Y 0-N) `passage`
- **2024-03-07** Enrolled `enrolled`
- **2024-03-07** Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB581ER) `passage`
- **2024-03-07** Impact statement from DPB (SB581ER)
- **2024-03-07** Signed by Speaker `passage`
- **2024-03-08** Signed by President `passage`
- **2024-03-11** Enrolled Bill Communicated to Governor on March 11, 2024 `enrolled`
- **2024-03-11** Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 8, 2024 `executive-receipt`
- **2024-03-28** Approved by Governor-Chapter 251 (effective 7/1/24) `executive-signature`
- **2024-03-28** Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0251)

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/a09c4155-c976-4f41-a851-af68dec2850f`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Virginia legislature records).