Advocacy
Virginia General Assembly
A Strong Voice for the Rappahannock River
Virginia General Assembly
The 2026 Virginia General Assembly is in Session!
While we will be supporting and opposing many issues, we are prioritizing the following issues and will regularly update this page. We will include info on bill progress and how YOU can make a difference for the river. Your voices are vital!
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FOR’s 2025 General Assembly Session Priorities
Friends of the Rappahannock advocates for the preservation and restoration of our natural resources. We focus on the increasing loss of urban and suburban tree canopy in the Rappahannock watershed and aim to provide tools for localities to replace trees lost during construction. As data center projects surge, we seek to balance economic benefits with necessary protections for Virginia’s environment. Our commitment to environmental literacy ensures future generations are equipped to tackle conservation challenges, while investments in fisheries research will address the impacts of land use changes and climate change. Additionally, we emphasize the need for improved water quality by advocating for fully funded agricultural best management practices to combat stormwater runoff pollution.
Data Center Water Use Transparency and Data Collection
The Rappahannock River watershed is experiencing a boom in data center project applications and approvals. The data center companies use non-disclosure agreements and water service agreements to hide estimated water usage data. At the same time, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) does not receive data on how much water data centers use annually. This information is needed to help the DEQ Office of Water Supply plan accurately for future water use.
Budget and Policy Recommendations
- SUPPORT HB496/SB prohibits applicants from using nondisclosure agreements or provisions, confidentiality agreements or provisions, or redactions in water and wastewater service agreements to abrogate water use disclosure requirements. Prior to any approval of a rezoning application, special exception application, or special use permit for the siting of a new data center, a locality shall require that an applicant perform and submit a site assessment to examine and disclose the expected water use for the new data center. The bill also requires an applicant that is proposing the by-right development of a new data center to disclose the expected water use for the new data center at the time of site plan or plan of development submission. Water use disclosures required in the bill must include specified metrics, including average daily use, maximum daily use, and total maximum annual use.
- SUPPORT HB589/SB requires any water user that provides water to a data center, as defined in the bill, and is required to register certain water withdrawal and use data with the State Water Control Board to report to the Board, on a monthly basis or as frequent a basis as practicable, the total volume of water, including the portion that is reclaimed water, provided to such data center during the reporting period.
- SUPPORT HB370 authorizes a locality to include in its zoning ordinance provisions for (i) requiring proposed industrial and commercial facilities to submit water consumption estimates and (ii) considering water consumption from public resources when making rezoning and special use permit decisions related to such facilities.
PFAS
Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS), aka “forever chemicals” due to their extreme persistence in the environment, have been used for decades in products like non-stick cookware, waterproof clothing, food packaging, and firefighting foams for their water, grease, and stain resistance. Studies have linked these chemicals to increased risks of cancer and other illnesses. PFAS is found in biosolids (sewage sludge), which is spread on farm and timberlands as a source of inexpensive fertilizer. Virginia does not mandate testing of biosolids for PFAS before application, leaving the public (especially the landowners who receive the biosolids) in the dark on what is being spread on their lands.
Budget and Policy Recommendations
- SUPPORT HB880 Directs the Department of Environmental Quality to amend its regulations to require an owner of a sewage treatment works to sample and test sewage sludge for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), defined in the bill, once a month. The bill requires the results from such sampling to be subject to all existing reporting, compliance, and enforcement provisions.
Unpermitted Legacy Water Intakes/Withdrawals
New surface water withdrawals in Virginia require a Virginia Water Protection (VWP) permit, but not all existing intakes are permitted. Any surface water intake in existence before the creation of VWP regulations in 1989 is considered exempt and is not required to have a VWP permit unless certain conditions change.
Budget and Policy Recommendations
- Support HB1126 Directs the Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources to convene a work group of relevant stakeholders to address the decline in Virginia’s native migratory fish in the James River and Chesapeake Bay. The bill requires the work group to (i) evaluate the cumulative ecological impacts of surface water withdrawals excluded from the Virginia Water Protection Permit requirements on aquatic organisms and freshwater systems; (ii) review and identify how state agencies address particular needs of fish that are listed as threatened or endangered under the federal endangered species list or the Virginia Species of Greatest Conservation Need; and (iii) develop recommendations for (a) updating the regulations regarding surface water intakes excluded from permitting requirements to meet protective standards, (b) reviewing a statewide inventory of unpermitted intake structures, and (c) assessing the feasibility of installing measures to reduce aquatic organism mortality.
Data Centers
As data centers proliferate in Virginia they are causing more stress on our air, land, and water. A lack of a planning framework at the state level has resulted in a piecemeal approach at the local level.
Budget and Policy Recommendations
- HB153 Provides that prior to any approval of a rezoning application, special exception application, or special use permit for the siting of a new high energy use facility (HEUF), as defined in the bill, a locality shall require that an applicant perform and submit a site assessment to examine the sound profile of the HEUF on residential units and schools located within 500 feet of the HEUF property boundary. The bill also allows a locality to require that a site assessment examine the effect of the proposed facility on (i) ground and surface water resources, (ii) agricultural resources, (iii) parks, (iv) registered historic sites, and (v) forestland on the HEUF site or immediately contiguous land. The provisions of the bill shall not apply to a site with an existing legislative or administrative approval where an applicant is seeking an expansion or modification of an already existing or approved facility and such expansion does not exceed an additional 100 megawatts or more of electrical power.
Land Use Conversion
The Rappahannock watershed continues to experience rapid rates of land use conversion. This land use conversion has resulted in loss of tree canopy and water quality challenges from failures to temporarily and permanently stabilize land during the clearing and grading phases.
Budget and Policy Recommendations
- SUPPORT HB549 Expands certain existing local government authority to conserve or replace trees during the development process by expanding such authority statewide. The bill changes from 20 years to 10 years the time in which certain tree canopy or cover percentages should be met at the development site. The bill allows localities to establish higher tree canopy replacement percentages based on density per acre, lot size, or any other measurement relevant to the practices of the locality to achieve MS4 stormwater nutrient reductions, mitigate urban heat islands, increase resilience to climate change, including reducing coastal and inland flooding, and mitigate air pollution.
Fisheries/Oysters
Many of Virginia’s most iconic migratory fish species are in a state of alarming decline. Populations of American shad, river herring, and Atlantic sturgeon have all dropped to historically low levels, and striped bass remain overfished and will struggle to rebound due to years of historically low spawning success. Once-abundant in Virginia’s rivers and estuaries, today these species face habitat degradation, water quality issues, bycatch, overfishing, and climate change.
Budget and Policy Recommendations
- SUPPORT HB389 Directs the Marine Resources Commission, in collaboration with the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, to develop and maintain a fisheries climate adaptation plan that utilizes the best available science to consider climate-driven impacts to Virginia fisheries and aquaculture and identify adaptive management strategies and research needs necessary to safeguard the economic and environmental health of Virginia fisheries.
- SUPPORT HB599 Directs the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) to conduct, in collaboration with the Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC), a stock assessment of the oyster population in the waters of the Commonwealth beginning in calendar year 2026 and occurring no less frequently than every three years thereafter. The bill also directs VMRC to utilize the findings and recommendations of such assessment in its fisheries and restoration management decisions no later than July 1 of the calendar year following the calendar year in which such assessment has been conducted.
- SUPPORT HB1110 Directs the Marine Resources Commission to establish and maintain a voluntary Chesapeake Wild Harvest certification and labeling program for any blue catfish that is taken or caught in the Chesapeake Bay or its tributaries and is processed in the Commonwealth. The bill prohibits any person from labeling any product as Chesapeake Wild Harvest unless such product conforms to the provisions of the bill.
Environmental Literacy
Virginia’s environmental challenges require future generations to be knowledgeable about conservation strategies and environmental issues. Increased and sustained funding is crucial to supporting environmental literacy programs.
Budget and Policy Recommendations
- SUPPORT HB1038 Establishes the Virginia Student Environmental Literacy Plan Grant Fund and Program, to be administered by The Office of Environmental Education, in consultation with the Department of Education and any other stakeholder that it deems appropriate, for the purpose of awarding grants on a competitive basis to any school division that seeks assistance to develop a local student environmental literacy plan.
Regional Water Supply Planning
Localities in the Rappahannock watershed are required to work together to create regional water supply plans by 2029. These plans are critical to helping us understand what future water needs will be. More funding is needed to help localities create these plans.
Budget and Policy Recommendations
- TBD
Water Quality and Resilience
Stormwater runoff from urban and suburban areas is the fastest growing source of pollution to our water and the main reason many of our urban streams are impaired. As sea levels rise tidal shorelines and wetlands are eroding at increased rates. The Virginia Conservation Assistance Program (VCAP) provides critical funding resources to help address these issues. Increased funding for VCAP is needed to help meet nutrient and sediment cleanup goals.
Budget and Policy Recommendations
- TBD
Urban and Community Forestry Funding
The Virginia Department of Forestry (VDOF) provides technical assistance and funding opportunities to help maintain and increase urban tree canopy infrastructure. Funding cuts at the federal level have imperiled two full-time positions at VDOF dedicated to urban and community forestry efforts. These positions are critical to assisting FOR in meeting its urban forestry goals.
Budget and Policy Recommendations
- TBD
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