republic-os/legislation/us/states/va/2020speciali/sb-5029.md

---
type: "Bill"
title: "Marijuana and certain traffic offenses; issuing citations, etc,"
description: "Issuing citations; possession of marijuana and certain traffic offenses. Provides that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop a motor vehicle for operating (i) without a light illuminating a license plate, (ii) with defective and unsafe equipment, (iii) without brake lights or a high mount stop light, (iv) without an exhaust system that prevents excessive or unusual levels of noise, (v) with certain sun-shading materials and tinting films, and (vi) with certain objects suspended in the vehicle. No evidence discovered or obtained as a result of such unlawful stop shall be admissible in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding. The bill also provides that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop, search, or seize any person, place, or thing solely on the basis of the odor of marijuana, and no evidence discovered or obtained as a result of such unlawful search or seizure shall be admissible in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding. The bill prohibits the enactment of a local ordinance establishing a primary offense when the corresponding provision in the Code of Virginia is a secondary offense. The bill prohibits any local ordinance relating to the ownership or maintenance of a motor vehicle from being cause to stop or arrest a driver of a motor vehicle unless such violation is a jailable offense. The bill prohibits a law-enforcement officer from stopping a pedestrian for jaywalking or entering a highway where the pedestrian cannot be seen. The bill provides that law-enforcement officers are not permitted to stop a motor vehicle for an expired safety inspection or registration sticker until the first day of the fourth month after the original expiration date. The bill also provides that no evidence discovered or obtained due to an impermissible stop, including evidence obtained with the person's consent, is admissible in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding. This bill is identical to HB 5058."
jurisdiction: "us/states/va"
legislature: "Virginia General Assembly"
session: "2020specialI"
identifier: "SB 5029"
citation: "Virginia SB 5029 (2020specialI)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: []
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: []
version_count: 6
action_count: 48
vote_count: 12
first_action: "2020-08-13"
last_action: "2020-11-09"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/884b439c-1d77-4947-aed2-c6eb4dc95963"
source_url: "https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?202+sum+SB5029"
source_hash: "9543485a51ea6f6d47d886dc469ea02e3dc2729ca34507df8d967094ce2a5a0e"
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 5029 (2020specialI) — Marijuana and certain traffic offenses; issuing citations, etc,

Issuing citations; possession of marijuana and certain traffic offenses. Provides that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop a motor vehicle for operating (i) without a light illuminating a license plate, (ii) with defective and unsafe equipment, (iii) without brake lights or a high mount stop light, (iv) without an exhaust system that prevents excessive or unusual levels of noise, (v) with certain sun-shading materials and tinting films, and (vi) with certain objects suspended in the vehicle. No evidence discovered or obtained as a result of such unlawful stop shall be admissible in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding. The bill also provides that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop, search, or seize any person, place, or thing solely on the basis of the odor of marijuana, and no evidence discovered or obtained as a result of such unlawful search or seizure shall be admissible in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding. The bill prohibits the enactment of a local ordinance establishing a primary offense when the corresponding provision in the Code of Virginia is a secondary offense. The bill prohibits any local ordinance relating to the ownership or maintenance of a motor vehicle from being cause to stop or arrest a driver of a motor vehicle unless such violation is a jailable offense. The bill prohibits a law-enforcement officer from stopping a pedestrian for jaywalking or entering a highway where the pedestrian cannot be seen. The bill provides that law-enforcement officers are not permitted to stop a motor vehicle for an expired safety inspection or registration sticker until the first day of the fourth month after the original expiration date. The bill also provides that no evidence discovered or obtained due to an impermissible stop, including evidence obtained with the person's consent, is admissible in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding. This bill is identical to HB 5058.

## Version chain

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

1. **Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0051)** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?202+ful+CHAP0051)
2. **Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB5029ER)** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?202+ful+SB5029ER)
3. **Impact statement from DPB (SB5029)** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?202+ful+SB5029)
4. **Impact statement from DPB (SB5029H1)** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?202+ful+SB5029H1)
5. **Impact statement from DPB (SB5029S1)** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?202+ful+SB5029S1)
6. **Reenrolled bill text (SB5029ER2)** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?202+ful+SB5029ER2)

## Votes

- Reported from Judiciary with substitute (9-Y 6-N) — **9–6** (pass) · upper
- VOTE: Adoption (51-Y 45-N) — **50–45** (pass) · lower
- Constitutional reading dispensed (34-Y 0-N) — **34–0** (pass) · upper
- VOTE: (54-Y 44-N) — **53–44** (pass) · lower
- Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute (13-Y 7-N) — **13–7** (pass) · lower
- Read third time and passed Senate (22-Y 14-N) — **22–14** (pass) · upper
- Senate concurred in Governor's recommendation #3 (21-Y 18-N) — **21–18** (pass) · upper
- Reconsideration of passage agreed to by Senate (33-Y 3-N) — **33–3** (pass) · upper
- Senate concurred in Governor's recommendation #1 and #2 (39-Y 0-N) — **39–0** (pass) · upper
- Passed Senate (21-Y 15-N) — **21–15** (pass) · upper
- Rereferred from Transportation (13-Y 0-N) — **13–0** (pass) · upper
- House substitute agreed to by Senate (21-Y 17-N) — **21–17** (pass) · upper

## Timeline

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

- **2020-08-13** Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 08/18/20 20200057D `introduction`
- **2020-08-13** Referred to Committee on Transportation `referral-committee`
- **2020-08-18** Rereferred from Transportation (13-Y 0-N)
- **2020-08-18** Rereferred to Judiciary `referral-committee`
- **2020-08-19** Impact statement from DPB (SB5029)
- **2020-08-20** Reported from Judiciary with substitute (9-Y 6-N) `committee-passage`
- **2020-08-20** Committee substitute printed 20200915D-S1 `substitution`
- **2020-08-24** Impact statement from DPB (SB5029S1)
- **2020-08-26** Constitutional reading dispensed (34-Y 0-N)
- **2020-08-27** Read second time `reading-2`
- **2020-08-27** Reading of substitute waived
- **2020-08-27** Committee substitute agreed to 20200915D-S1
- **2020-08-27** Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute SB5029S1
- **2020-08-28** Read third time and passed Senate (22-Y 14-N) `passage, reading-3`
- **2020-08-28** Reconsideration of passage agreed to by Senate (33-Y 3-N)
- **2020-08-28** Passed Senate (21-Y 15-N) `passage`
- **2020-09-17** Placed on Calendar
- **2020-09-17** Read first time `reading-1`
- **2020-09-17** Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice `referral-committee`
- **2020-09-22** House committee, floor amendments and substitutes offered
- **2020-09-22** Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute (13-Y 7-N) `committee-passage`
- **2020-09-22** Committee substitute printed 20201242D-H1 `substitution`
- **2020-09-24** Impact statement from DPB (SB5029H1)
- **2020-09-24** Read second time `reading-2`
- **2020-09-25** Read third time `reading-3`
- **2020-09-25** Committee substitute agreed to 20201242D-H1
- **2020-09-25** Engrossed by House - committee substitute SB5029H1
- **2020-09-25** Passed House with substitute (51-Y 45-N) `passage`
- **2020-09-25** VOTE: Adoption (51-Y 45-N)
- **2020-10-02** House substitute agreed to by Senate (21-Y 17-N)
- **2020-10-02** Title replaced 20201242D-H1
- **2020-10-07** Enrolled
- **2020-10-07** Signed by President
- **2020-10-07** Signed by Speaker
- **2020-10-08** Impact statement from DPB (SB5029ER)
- **2020-10-14** Enrolled Bill Communicated to Governor on October 14, 2020
- **2020-10-14** Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., October 21, 2020
- **2020-10-21** Governor's recommendation received by Senate
- **2020-11-09** Senate concurred in Governor's recommendation #1 and #2 (39-Y 0-N)
- **2020-11-09** Senate concurred in Governor's recommendation #3 (21-Y 18-N)
- **2020-11-09** House concurred in Governor's recommendation (54-Y 44-N)
- **2020-11-09** VOTE: (54-Y 44-N)
- **2020-11-09** Governor's recommendation adopted
- **2020-11-09** Reenrolled
- **2020-11-09** Reenrolled bill text (SB5029ER2)
- **2020-11-09** Signed by Speaker as reenrolled
- **2020-11-09** Signed by President as reenrolled
- **2020-11-09** Enacted, Chapter 51 (effective 3/1/21) `became-law`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/884b439c-1d77-4947-aed2-c6eb4dc95963`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Virginia legislature records).