Virginia SB 5: Income-Qualified Energy Efficiency and Weatherization Task Force; established, report.

Bill Text

2026 SESSION

INTRODUCED

26100550D

SENATE BILL NO. 5

Offered January 14, 2026

Prefiled November 17, 2025

A BILL to direct the Department of Housing and Community Development to establish an Income-Qualified Energy Efficiency and Weatherization Task Force; report.

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Patrons—Locke and Deeds

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Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology

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Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. § 1. That the Department of Housing and Community Development (the Department) shall establish, in collaboration with the Department of Energy and with assistance from the Department of Social Services, the Income-Qualified Energy Efficiency and Weatherization Task Force (the Task Force). The purpose of the Task Force shall be to determine barriers to access and enrollment in the current energy efficiency programs for income-qualified energy customers and to evaluate and develop a plan to address any necessary improvements regarding coordination among programs for utility services that are available through utilities and state and federal government agencies and resources to more effectively deliver energy-efficient housing, weatherization resources, and energy efficiency upgrades for income-qualified individuals and households in the Commonwealth, including small and large multifamily buildings, single-family dwellings, and manufactured homes.

§ 2. The Task Force shall consist of one representative each from the Department, the Department of Energy, the Department of Social Services, the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation, and the Division of Consumer Counsel of the Office of the Attorney General and no fewer than 13 nonlegislative citizen members of the Commonwealth to be appointed by the Director of the Department. Such nonlegislative citizen members shall include at least one clean energy advocate; one representative of the residential construction industry; one representative from a firm based in the Commonwealth that specializes in residential and commercial building energy performance, building diagnostics, or energy code compliance; one energy burden advocate; one income-qualified ratepayer advocate; one representative of an institution of higher education in the Commonwealth; and no more than three utility providers that offer energy efficiency programs. The Director shall also appoint at least one income-qualified ratepayer located in the Commonwealth who has either received weatherization assistance or attempted to obtain weatherization assistance; at least one member from each geographic region of the Commonwealth who represents an organization that provides home energy assessments and weatherization services; at least one member who represents an organization that provides affordable housing advocacy; and any other representative as deemed appropriate by the Director.

A majority of the members of the Task Force shall constitute a quorum. The members of the Task Force shall, by majority vote, elect from its membership a chair and may select other officers or establish subcommittees as the members deem necessary. The Task Force shall meet at least six times before September 30, 2027. The meetings of the Task Force shall be open to the public. A majority vote of the members shall be required to approve the report required pursuant to this act or any supplements or revisions to such report.

§ 3. On or before September 30, 2027, the Task Force shall submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the Governor, the Chairs of the House Committee on Labor and Commerce and the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor, the Secretaries of Health and Human Resources and Natural and Historic Resources, the Commissioner of the State Corporation Commission, and the Executive Director of the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation. The report shall (i) describe the federal, state, and utility funding resources available to support the energy efficiency and weatherization needs of income-qualified individuals and households in the Commonwealth and determine whether those funding sources are sufficient to meet the needs of residents of the Commonwealth; (ii) describe the barriers that should be addressed and the additional resources needed in order to meet the existing energy efficiency and weatherization needs of all income-qualified individuals and households; (iii) describe any barriers unique to the weatherization and energy efficiency needs of individuals and households residing in multifamily buildings and manufactured homes, with due consideration given to the needs of residents of both small and large multifamily buildings; (iv) analyze whether additional programs are needed, including those that involve coordination with local governments or other partners; (v) provide policy recommendations to coordinate federal, state, and utility resources; and (vi) include a plan, with an estimated budget, prospective timeline, and potential funding sources, to ensure that weatheriz