republic-os/legislation/us/states/va/2017/sb-964.md

type, title, description, jurisdiction, legislature, session, identifier, citation, classification, subjects, status, primary_sponsors, version_count, action_count, vote_count, first_action, last_action, source, source_identifier, source_url, source_hash, vintage, source_snapshot, retrieved_at, confidence, tags

type	title	description	jurisdiction	legislature	session	identifier	citation	classification	subjects	status	primary_sponsors	version_count	action_count	vote_count	first_action	last_action	source	source_identifier	source_url	source_hash	vintage	source_snapshot	retrieved_at	confidence	tags
Bill	Running bamboo; cutting by localities; ordinance prohibiting spread; designation of certain plants.	Authorizes any locality to adopt an ordinance requiring proper upkeep of running bamboo and prohibiting the spread of running bamboo from a landowner's property, with violations punishable by a civil penalty not to exceed $50 for a first violation and not to exceed $200 for a subsequent violation within 12 months. The bill includes running bamboo in the "other foreign growth" category that current law allows localities to regulate and in some cases to cut. The bill also directs the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) and the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) to develop a model running bamboo ordinance and, with the Department of Forestry, to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding that clarifies the roles of the VDACS noxious weeds regulations and the work of the Virginia Invasive Species Working Group. Finally, the bill directs VDACS and DCR to examine the eligibility of certain plants for designation as noxious weeds. This bill is identical to	us/states/va	Virginia General Assembly	2017	SB 964	Virginia SB 964 (2017)	bill	Counties Cities and Towns	enacted	Emmett W. Hanger, Jr.	4	20	6	2017-01-03	2017-02-23	openstates	ocd-bill/05db0b2d-003e-4e1b-ab55-a60d705ee8bd	http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?171+sum+SB964	ff300e59aedec53e42bfd04188f67ebaefa4beb0d6c0c96bdc3fb4239fb509c5	2026-07-01	https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump	2026-07-06	reported	legislation bill us-va

Virginia SB 964 (2017) — Running bamboo; cutting by localities; ordinance prohibiting spread; designation of certain plants.

Authorizes any locality to adopt an ordinance requiring proper upkeep of running bamboo and prohibiting the spread of running bamboo from a landowner's property, with violations punishable by a civil penalty not to exceed $50 for a first violation and not to exceed $200 for a subsequent violation within 12 months. The bill includes running bamboo in the "other foreign growth" category that current law allows localities to regulate and in some cases to cut. The bill also directs the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) and the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) to develop a model running bamboo ordinance and, with the Department of Forestry, to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding that clarifies the roles of the VDACS noxious weeds regulations and the work of the Virginia Invasive Species Working Group. Finally, the bill directs VDACS and DCR to examine the eligibility of certain plants for designation as noxious weeds. This bill is identical to

Version chain

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

1. Governor: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0213) (committee substitute) — source
2. Senate: Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB964ER) (committee substitute) — source
3. Senate: Committee substitute printed 17104255D-S1 (committee substitute) — source
4. Senate: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/11/17 17100296D (committee substitute) — source

Votes

• Subcommittee recommends reporting — 10–0 (pass) · legislature
• Reported from Local Government with substitute — 12–0 (pass) · legislature
• Reported from Counties, Cities and Towns — 21–0 (pass) · legislature
• Read third time and passed Senate — 39–0 (pass) · legislature
• Passed House BLOCK VOTE — 98–0 (pass) · legislature
• Constitutional reading dispensed — 40–0 (pass) · legislature

Sponsors

• Emmett W. Hanger, Jr. — primary (person)

Timeline

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

• 2017-01-03 Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/11/17 17100296D introduction
• 2017-01-03 Referred to Committee on Local Government referral-committee
• 2017-01-20 Passed by for the day
• 2017-01-23 Read second time reading-2
• 2017-01-23 Reading of substitute waived
• 2017-01-23 Committee substitute agreed to 17104255D-S1
• 2017-01-23 Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute SB964S1
• 2017-01-31 Placed on Calendar
• 2017-01-31 Read first time reading-1
• 2017-01-31 Referred to Committee on Counties, Cities and Towns referral-committee
• 2017-02-03 Assigned CC & T sub: Subcommittee #2 referral-committee
• 2017-02-13 Read second time reading-2
• 2017-02-14 Read third time reading-3
• 2017-02-14 Passed House BLOCK VOTE (98-Y 0-N) passage
• 2017-02-16 Enrolled
• 2017-02-16 Signed by Speaker
• 2017-02-17 Signed by President
• 2017-02-17 Enrolled Bill Communicated to Governor on 2/17/17
• 2017-02-17 Governor's Action Deadline Midnight, February 24, 2017
• 2017-02-23 Approved by Governor-Chapter 213 (effective 7/1/17) executive-signature

Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot 2026-07-01; origin ocd-bill/05db0b2d-003e-4e1b-ab55-a60d705ee8bd. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Virginia legislature records).