republic-os/legislation/us/states/va/2024/hb-159.md

---
type: "Bill"
title: "State correctional and juvenile correctional facilities; use of canines, prohibited acts."
description: "Use of canines in correctional and juvenile correctional facilities; prohibited acts. Makes it unlawful for any correctional officer or other employee of a state correctional facility who is permitted to handle canines to use a patrol or security canine in any state correctional facility unless such correctional officer or other employee (i) reasonably believes that the use of a patrol or security canine is immediately necessary to protect any prisoner or any officer or employee from the threat of serious bodily injury or death or (ii) has the prior approval of the warden or a supervisor to use a patrol or security canine to intervene in an altercation, fight, or other incident between three or more prisoners. The bill also makes it unlawful for any juvenile correctional officer or other employee of a juvenile correctional facility to use a patrol or security canine in any juvenile correctional facility. The bill specifies that such provisions shall not apply to the training or use of detector canines or detector canine handlers."
jurisdiction: "us/states/va"
legislature: "Virginia General Assembly"
session: "2024"
identifier: "HB 159"
citation: "Virginia HB 159 (2024)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: []
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Holly M. Seibold"]
version_count: 4
action_count: 34
vote_count: 8
first_action: "2024-01-02"
last_action: "2024-03-20"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/3b61ceda-7585-42cd-9768-33edb8257d2d"
source_url: "https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?241+sum+HB159"
source_hash: "da3ca5b988662d242f701b920275c7fc75a045ee2afebb186c0571ff14a1dc18"
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 159 (2024) — State correctional and juvenile correctional facilities; use of canines, prohibited acts.

Use of canines in correctional and juvenile correctional facilities; prohibited acts. Makes it unlawful for any correctional officer or other employee of a state correctional facility who is permitted to handle canines to use a patrol or security canine in any state correctional facility unless such correctional officer or other employee (i) reasonably believes that the use of a patrol or security canine is immediately necessary to protect any prisoner or any officer or employee from the threat of serious bodily injury or death or (ii) has the prior approval of the warden or a supervisor to use a patrol or security canine to intervene in an altercation, fight, or other incident between three or more prisoners. The bill also makes it unlawful for any juvenile correctional officer or other employee of a juvenile correctional facility to use a patrol or security canine in any juvenile correctional facility. The bill specifies that such provisions shall not apply to the training or use of detector canines or detector canine handlers.

## Version chain

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

1. **CHAP0099** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?241+ful+CHAP0099)
2. **Committee substitute printed 24105546D-H1** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?241+ful+HB159H1)
3. **HB159ER** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?241+ful+HB159ER)
4. **Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/10/24 24100849D** (committee substitute) — [source](https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?241+ful+HB159)

## Votes

- Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N) — **40–0** (pass) · upper
- Reported from Public Safety with substitute (22-Y 0-N) — **22–0** (pass) · lower
- Subcommittee recommends reporting (8-Y 0-N) — **8–0** (pass) · lower
- Reported from Appropriations (22-Y 0-N) — **22–0** (pass) · lower
- Constitutional reading dispensed (38-Y 0-N) — **38–0** (pass) · upper
- Reported from Rehabilitation and Social Services (14-Y 0-N) — **14–0** (pass) · upper
- VOTE: Passage (82-Y 15-N) — **81–15** (pass) · lower
- Subcommittee recommends reporting with substitute (6-Y 0-N) — **6–0** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- Holly M. Seibold — primary (person)
- Adele Y. McClure — cosponsor (person)
- Barbara A. Favola — cosponsor (person)
- Elizabeth B. Bennett-Parker — cosponsor (person)
- Irene Shin — cosponsor (person)
- Jennifer B. Boysko — cosponsor (person)
- Joshua G. Cole — cosponsor (person)
- Karen Keys-Gamarra — cosponsor (person)
- Laura Jane Cohen — cosponsor (person)
- Marty Martinez — cosponsor (person)
- Michael J. Webert — cosponsor (person)
- Michelle Lopes Maldonado — cosponsor (person)
- Nadarius E. Clark — cosponsor (person)
- Patrick A. Hope — cosponsor (person)
- Rae Cousins — cosponsor (person)
- Rozia A. Henson, Jr. — cosponsor (person)
- Saddam Azlan Salim — cosponsor (person)
- Sam Rasoul — cosponsor (person)
- Shelly A. Simonds — cosponsor (person)
- Stella G. Pekarsky — cosponsor (person)

## Timeline

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

- **2024-01-02** Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/10/24 24100849D `filing, introduction`
- **2024-01-02** Referred to Committee on Public Safety `referral-committee`
- **2024-01-13** Assigned PS sub: Public Safety `referral-committee`
- **2024-01-18** Subcommittee recommends reporting with substitute (6-Y 0-N) `substitution`
- **2024-01-24** Impact statement from DPB (HB159)
- **2024-01-26** House committee, floor amendments and substitutes offered
- **2024-01-26** Committee substitute printed 24105546D-H1 `substitution`
- **2024-01-26** Assigned App. sub: Transportation & Public Safety `referral-committee`
- **2024-01-26** Reported from Public Safety with substitute (22-Y 0-N) `committee-passage`
- **2024-01-26** Referred to Committee on Appropriations `referral-committee`
- **2024-01-31** Impact statement from DPB (HB159H1)
- **2024-01-31** Subcommittee recommends reporting (8-Y 0-N)
- **2024-02-02** Reported from Appropriations (22-Y 0-N) `committee-passage`
- **2024-02-06** Read first time `reading-1`
- **2024-02-07** Read second time `reading-2`
- **2024-02-07** Committee substitute agreed to 24105546D-H1 `substitution`
- **2024-02-07** Engrossed by House - committee substitute HB159H1 `substitution`
- **2024-02-08** Read third time and passed House (82-Y 15-N) `passage, reading-3`
- **2024-02-08** VOTE: Passage (82-Y 15-N) `passage`
- **2024-02-09** Constitutional reading dispensed
- **2024-02-09** Referred to Committee on Rehabilitation and Social Services `referral-committee`
- **2024-02-16** Reported from Rehabilitation and Social Services (14-Y 0-N) `committee-passage`
- **2024-02-19** Constitutional reading dispensed (38-Y 0-N)
- **2024-02-20** Read third time `reading-3`
- **2024-02-20** Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N) `passage`
- **2024-02-26** Enrolled `enrolled`
- **2024-02-26** Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB159ER) `passage`
- **2024-02-26** Impact statement from DPB (HB159ER)
- **2024-02-26** Signed by Speaker `passage`
- **2024-02-28** Signed by President `passage`
- **2024-03-11** Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 11, 2024 `enrolled, executive-receipt`
- **2024-03-11** Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 8, 2024 `executive-receipt`
- **2024-03-20** Approved by Governor-Chapter 99 (effective 7/1/24) `executive-signature`
- **2024-03-20** Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0099)

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/3b61ceda-7585-42cd-9768-33edb8257d2d`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Virginia legislature records).