Virginia AI Laws: What's Enacted and What's Next (2027)

As of November 2026, Virginia has not enacted a comprehensive AI law: Governor Youngkin vetoed the High-Risk Artificial Intelligence Developer and Deployer Act (HB 2094) on March 24, 2025. Virginia's AI-specific statutes are narrower: Va. Code 19.2-11.14 (HB 1642) requires a human decision-maker in criminal justice decisions, and Va. Code 22.1-20.2:1 (HB 1186 and SB 394) governs AI in public school instruction. Governor Spanberger's Executive Order 22, signed September 18, 2026, created an AI Task Force and rescinded Executive Order 30.

This page covers Virginia state law on artificial intelligence. Deepfakes and AI meeting recorders get short summaries here and have their own pages. For other states and the national picture, see our guide to state and federal AI laws.

Virginia AI Laws at a Glance

HB 2094: The Vetoed Virginia AI Bill

The Division of Legislative Services summarized HB 2094 as creating requirements for the development, deployment and use of high-risk AI systems, with civil penalties enforced by the Attorney General. The enrolled bill had a delayed effective date of July 1, 2026.

The Governor's veto explanation said the bill "would establish a burdensome artificial intelligence regulatory framework." It said the bill's "rigid framework fails to account for the rapidly evolving and fast-moving nature of the AI industry and puts an especially onerous burden on smaller firms and startups that lack large legal compliance departments."

Va. Code 19.2-11.14: AI in Criminal Justice Decisions

Section 19.2-11.14 covers decisions on "pre-trial detention or release, prosecution, adjudication, sentencing, probation, parole, correctional supervision, or rehabilitation of criminal offenders." Those decisions "shall be made by the judicial officer or other person charged with making such decision."

The section adds: "No such decision shall be made without the involvement of a human decision-maker." It does not ban the tools. Any recommendation or prediction from one "shall be subject to any challenge or objection permitted by law."

The section defines an artificial intelligence-based tool as "any machine-based system or algorithm, including machine learning models, predictive analytics, and decision support systems, that analyze data and generate recommendations or predictions."

Va. Code 22.1-20.2:1: AI in Virginia Schools

Section 22.1-20.2:1 directs the Department of Education, working with school divisions and other stakeholders, to compile information on current classroom AI use and post guidance for "the safe, ethical, and equitable use of an AIS in instructional settings in public elementary and secondary schools."

The guidance must address student data privacy, including FERPA and COPPA compliance, and resources and training for teachers. It must also address data privacy agreements that prohibit using division-level or student data to train or improve external AI models. Best practices include "prohibitions on relying solely on an AIS to make certain high-stakes decisions, as defined by the Department."

Each school board "shall establish, implement, and enforce policies consistent with the guidance." Any approved instructional use must give teachers access to transcripts of student interactions with the AI system.

Subsection D creates the AIS Innovation in Education Pilot Program, "with such funds as are appropriated." It expires July 1, 2030, and calls for a report by December 1 of each year.

Other sections name AI in narrower ways, including these three. Section 22.1-70.2 requires school internet policies to include instruction on topics including "content generated by artificial intelligence." Section 16.1-247.1 bars officers from knowingly and intentionally making false statements about a known material fact, prior to or during a child's custodial interrogation, to secure the child's cooperation, confession or conviction. That includes "inauthentic replica documents" created "by any means, including artificial intelligence." Section 53.1-1.3, on language services for offenders, says "internet, machine-learning, and artificial-intelligence based translation services may be used where the service is certified or otherwise specifically built for the purpose of providing accurate translations."

Executive Order 22 and the End of Executive Order 30

Executive Order 22, signed by Governor Spanberger on September 18, 2026, covers data centers and AI. Its AI section directs "the formation of a rapid-response AI Task Force," co-led by the Chief Transformation Officer, Counsel to the Governor and Secretary of Administration, with support from a new AI Policy Planning Unit.

The Task Force is told to address AI risks "through executive and legislative action," including workforce displacement and data privacy, and to evaluate Virginia law for existing enforcement and regulatory options. It reports to the Governor on a continuous basis until the Governor ends it. An executive order directs state government; it is not a statute.

The order states: "This Executive Order rescinds Executive Order No. 30 (Jan. 18, 2024) and Executive Directive No. 5 (Sept. 20, 2023) issued by Governor Glenn Youngkin." It also says the policies, standards and guidelines published under Executive Order 30 "shall remain in effect unless or until replaced through a future executive or agency action."

The Virginia Information Technologies Agency's AI page marks Executive Order 30 as rescinded. It also lists Executive Order 22, an AI standard, an AI utilization policy and Executive Order 46 on banning use of DeepSeek.

HB 797 and SB 384: The AI Verification Study

The 2026 General Assembly passed two matching acts, chapter 425 and chapter 426. They are a study directive, not a licensing law.

The acts tell the Joint Commission on Technology and Science (JCOTS) to evaluate a framework for anyone seeking to act as an independent verification organization. Such an organization would assess AI models' or applications' "adherence to standards reflecting best practices for the prevention of personal injury and property damage."

If JCOTS recommends a framework, it must also evaluate a licensing scheme and whether the Virginia Information Technologies Agency or another agency could run it. The report was due November 1, 2026. This page does not describe any report's contents.

AI Chatbots in Virginia: SB 796 and HB 635

We found no enacted Virginia statute on AI chatbots. JCOTS says in its August 2026 supplementary report that SB 796 (Artificial Intelligence Companion Chatbots and Minors Act) and HB 635 (Artificial Intelligence Chatbots Act) were sent to it for study by letter during the 2026 session.

The report says that although SB 796 mentions minors in its title and definitions, "there are no specific operative provisions pertaining to minors in the version of the bill that was continued." It recommends reintroducing chatbot legislation built on six policy principles. A recommendation is not a bill, and neither measure is law. The legislature's records show SB 796 passed the Senate 39-1 on February 17, 2026, and was continued to 2027 in a House committee on March 2, 2026. HB 635 was continued to 2027 in the same committee on February 9, 2026.

Enforcement and Insurance Guidance in Virginia

Attorney General Jay Jones announced on October 15, 2026 that Virginia joined other states in a notice filed in the bankruptcy case of Character Technologies, Inc., the company behind Character.AI. The release says the states' investigation identified potential consumer protection and privacy violations. It says the states reserved their rights to challenge a sale or plan.

Attorneys general in Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Iowa, Montana, Nebraska and West Virginia announced separate suits against OpenAI on October 14, 2026. Official releases from several of those states also name Kansas. Virginia is not among those states, and a web search limited to the Attorney General's site showed no Virginia suit against OpenAI as of November 4, 2026.

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners' adoption map, status as of November 3, 2026, lists Virginia Administrative Letter 2024-01, dated July 22, 2024, among state adoptions of its model bulletin on insurers' use of AI. The NAIC says the map does not determine whether a state's action contains every element of the model. Guidance of this kind states a regulator's expectations under existing law. It is not a new statute.

AI in Hiring, Health Care and Other Areas

We did not find an enacted Virginia statute written specifically for AI in hiring, AI in health care decisions, or frontier AI models. We ran keyword searches ("artificial intelligence", "machine learning", "algorithm", "automated decision", "chatbot", "generative") on a stored copy of the Code of Virginia retrieved July 29, 2026, and checked the bills named on this page.

That search covers codified sections only, so it can miss an uncodified act like the verification study above, and it is not a review of every 2026 bill record. Laws that do not mention AI can still apply to AI use.

Virginia Deepfake Laws (Va. Code 18.2-386.2)

Under Va. Code 18.2-386.2, a person commits a Class 1 misdemeanor by maliciously disseminating or selling a nude or similar image "created by any means whatsoever," with intent to coerce, harass or intimidate, where the person knows or has reason to know they are not licensed or authorized to do so. "Another person" includes someone whose image was used in creating, adapting or modifying an image and who is recognizable as an actual person.

See our Virginia deepfake laws page for the full treatment.

AI Note-Takers and Recording in Virginia

AI meeting assistants raise a recording-consent question. See our Virginia AI meeting recording laws page for how Virginia law applies to them.

How Federal AI Policy Affects Virginia

As of November 4, 2026, we found no federal statute in the public laws of the 119th Congress that sets general rules for private AI systems or generally preempts state AI laws. In December 2025, Executive Order 14365 directed federal agencies to challenge or discourage state AI laws the administration views as conflicting with national policy, and called for a federal framework from Congress. The order itself does not declare any state law invalid. See our state AI law preemption tracker.

What Changes in Virginia AI Law in 2027

As of November 4, 2026, we found no AI law scheduled to take effect in Virginia in 2027; we searched a stored copy of the Code of Virginia retrieved July 29, 2026, and the bills named on this page for the 2025 and 2026 sessions. That search can miss an uncodified act or a bill it did not surface.

• JCOTS verification study: The report was due November 1, 2026. If it recommends a framework, it must also address licensing.
• Chatbots: JCOTS's August 2026 report recommends reintroducing chatbot legislation. SB 796 and HB 635 were continued to 2027 in a House committee. We did not review any 2027 bill text.
• AI Task Force: Executive Order 22 sets no end date for it, and it is told to address AI risks through executive and legislative action.
• Executive Order 30 policies: They stay in effect until replaced.
• July 1, 2030: The school pilot program subsection expires.

More Virginia Laws

Explore other Virginia law topics on Recording Law:

• Virginia Recording Laws
• Virginia Data Privacy Laws
• Virginia Whistleblower Laws
• Virginia Sexting Laws
• Virginia Deepfake Laws
• Virginia AI Meeting Recording Laws

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Virginia have an AI law?

Virginia has no comprehensive AI law as of November 2026. It has narrower statutes on AI tools in criminal justice decisions (Va. Code 19.2-11.14) and AI in public school instruction (Va. Code 22.1-20.2:1), plus a 2026 study act and Governor Spanberger's Executive Order 22.

Did Virginia's HB 2094 AI bill become law?

No. The General Assembly passed HB 2094, the High-Risk Artificial Intelligence Developer and Deployer Act, and Governor Youngkin vetoed it on March 24, 2025. The House sustained the veto on April 2, 2025. His veto explanation said it would establish a burdensome artificial intelligence regulatory framework.

Is Virginia Executive Order 30 still in effect?

No. Executive Order 22, signed September 18, 2026, rescinded Executive Order 30. The policies, standards and guidelines published under Executive Order 30 remain in effect unless or until replaced through a future executive or agency action.

Can AI decide a criminal case in Virginia?

Va. Code 19.2-11.14 says decisions on pretrial detention or release, prosecution, adjudication, sentencing, probation, parole, correctional supervision or rehabilitation of criminal offenders must be made by the judicial officer or other person charged with the decision, and none may be made without a human decision-maker involved. An AI tool's recommendation is subject to any challenge or objection permitted by law.

Does Virginia regulate AI in schools?

Yes, for public elementary and secondary schools. Va. Code 22.1-20.2:1 directs state guidance on AI in instructional settings and requires each school board to establish, implement and enforce policies consistent with that guidance. The section also creates a pilot program, subject to appropriations, that expires July 1, 2030.

Does Virginia regulate AI chatbots?

We found no enacted Virginia chatbot statute as of November 4, 2026. SB 796 and HB 635 went to the Joint Commission on Technology and Science for study, and its August 2026 report recommends reintroducing chatbot legislation.

Is deepfake porn illegal in Virginia?

Va. Code 18.2-386.2 makes it a Class 1 misdemeanor to maliciously disseminate or sell a nude or similar image created by any means, with intent to coerce, harass or intimidate, when the person knows or has reason to know they are not licensed or authorized to do so. That includes an altered image of a person recognizable as an actual person.