Virginia Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in Virginia, with full citations and the original source on every page.
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If a Virginia taxpayer's own mistake caused a local tax overassessment (wrong filing, payment to the wrong locality, failure to file leading to a statutory assessment), and the locality later refunds the overpayment, must the locality also pay interest?
Yes. An 'erroneous assessment' under Va. Code § 58.1-3916 covers any local tax assessment containing an error, whether the underlying error was the taxpayer's or the locality's. So a Virginia locality…
After a Virginia police officer shoots someone, when does the Virginia Freedom of Information Act require the local police department to release body-worn or dashboard camera footage of the shooting?
Generally yes. The Virginia Freedom of Information Act requires local police to release body-worn and dashboard camera footage of officer-involved shootings unless a statutory exception applies (activ…
When a Virginia town charter is silent on whether the mayor can vote, can the mayor vote on council matters?
Yes. When a Virginia town charter is silent on whether the mayor is a council member or can vote, the default in Va. Code § 15.2-1423 applies: the mayor is a member of the council and has a vote (but …
Does a Virginia pharmacist have to offer counseling when the same medication is reissued with a new date?
Yes. A subsequent prescription for the same medication, same dose, same directions, and same formulation but with a new date counts as a 'new prescription' under § 54.1-3319, and the pharmacist must o…
Does Virginia's prevailing wage law apply to public works construction projects at Virginia's public colleges and universities?
Yes, with one carve-out. The Virginia Public Procurement Act's prevailing wage requirements for public works contracts (Va. Code § 2.2-4321.3, effective May 1, 2021) apply to Virginia's public college…
Are juvenile records in Virginia automatically expunged when the case was dismissed or nolle prossed?
Yes. Sections 16.1-306 and 16.1-307 require clerks (both juvenile and domestic relations district courts and circuit courts) to automatically expunge dismissed or nolle prossed juvenile proceedings on…
Can Prince William County levy a special school tax to build new schools, and what are the procedural rules around it?
Yes. Prince William County may levy a special county school tax under § 22.1-102 for capital expenditures, indebtedness, or rent. The county can choose lump-sum or major-classification appropriation, …
Could Virginia's public colleges and universities require students to be vaccinated against COVID-19 to attend in-person classes during the pandemic?
Yes. As of April 2021, the Attorney General concluded that the governing boards of Virginia's public colleges and universities had authority under Title 23.1 to require a COVID-19 vaccine as a conditi…
When figuring out who owns a property for Virginia real estate taxes, can a commissioner of the revenue rely on a court decree instead of the deed?
Yes. A commissioner of the revenue may consider recorded court decrees and other documents (not just the deed) in deciding who owns a parcel for real estate tax purposes. The effect of any specific de…
When a Virginia garnishee and debtor live in different counties, who has to make sure the garnishee is served first?
Court clerks (circuit and general district) and sheriffs do not have a duty under Va. Code § 8.01-511 to ensure the garnishee is served before the judgment debtor when they are in different jurisdicti…
Can a Virginia city negotiate a binding arbitration clause in a collective bargaining agreement with its employees' union?
Yes. Under § 40.1-57.2 (effective May 1, 2021), a Virginia locality that authorizes collective bargaining can include in the agreement a grievance procedure culminating in final, binding arbitration. …
Can the Virginia Department of Health publicly disclose COVID-19 outbreak data tied to specific long-term care facilities, businesses, restaurants, churches, schools, and gyms?
Yes. As of February 2021, the Virginia Department of Health was permitted, and in some cases required, to publish aggregate COVID-19 outbreak data tied to specific entities (long-term care facilities,…
If a Virginia defendant defaults on court fines and their case went to collections, can they get back on a payment plan without facing a show cause?
Yes. A Virginia general district court may enter into a new payment plan with a defendant on a defaulted, in-collections case at the defendant's request, without first issuing a show cause or capias. …
Can the Virginia General Assembly expel a member who participated in the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol?
Yes. Although Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment may require congressional enabling legislation to be operative, the Virginia Constitution (art. IV, § 7) gives each chamber of the General Assembly …
Can the Virginia Senate hold a hybrid session, some senators in the chamber, others on Zoom, during the COVID-19 emergency?
Yes. Item 4-0.01 of HB 5005 (the current Appropriation Act) authorizes the Virginia Senate to meet during an emergency with some senators physically present and others participating electronically, pr…
Can Virginia cities and counties require government contractors to pay a living wage above the state minimum?
Yes. Virginia public bodies have discretion under the Public Procurement Act to require successful bidders to pay employees a minimum or living wage above federal and state floors. The 2015 amendments…
How far outside town limits can Virginia town police go when they're investigating a crime that happened in town?
Town police have authority to take many investigative actions outside their territorial jurisdiction, consensual interviews, applying for warrants, delivering evidence, but they cannot arrest, detain,…
In a Virginia city that has both a police department and a sheriff's office, who serves protective orders?
The police department, not the sheriff. Under §§ 16.1-253.1, 16.1-253.4, 16.1-279.1, 19.2-152.8, 19.2-152.9, and 19.2-152.10, in a city with both a police department and a sheriff's office, the police…
If teachers and staff pre-tax money into a school district's Section 125 flexible benefits plan, can the city demand the unused balance back at year-end?
No. Money that school employees pre-tax into a Section 125 flexible benefits plan is not 'local funds' under Va. Code § 22.1-100, so the school board does not have to return unspent balances to the ci…
Are Virginia's community policy management teams and family assessment teams required to include a parent representative?
Yes. The word 'shall' in Virginia Code §§ 2.2-5205 and 2.2-5207 makes a parent representative a mandatory member of every community policy and management team (CPMT) and family assessment and planning…
Can a Virginia police officer detain someone just to serve them with a protective order?
An officer cannot detain someone just to serve a civil protective order. The Fourth Amendment requires reasonable, articulable suspicion of criminal activity to support any detention, including one th…
Can a Virginia political party hold a raffle to raise money, and if there's a gun as a prize, does the winner need a background check?
No. Virginia's charitable gaming law only allows raffles run by nonprofits chartered for religious, charitable, community, or educational purposes. A political party or campaign committee does not qua…
Can a Virginia city extend or pause the 5-day Virginia FOIA records deadline during the COVID-19 emergency?
No. Va. Code § 15.2-1413 (the continuity-of-government statute) does not give a locality power to modify or indefinitely extend the deadlines for responding to records requests under Va. Code § 2.2-37…
Can the Virginia Department of Taxation use a pro-rata formula (instead of cost-recovery) to figure out how much of a retiree's pension distribution is tax-free in Virginia?
Yes. The Virginia AG concluded that because § 58.1-322.02(11) is silent on the methodology, the Department of Taxation has discretion to use a pro-rata approach (drawn from IRC § 72) instead of Pennsy…
What does Virginia law say about voter intimidation and people carrying guns at polling places?
Virginia and federal law criminalize intimidation, threats, and other coercion at polling places. Brandishing a firearm to instill fear is a crime, courthouses and schools (often polling locations) ar…
Can a Virginia school board adopt a policy that blocks board members from getting records the public could get under VFOIA?
In some cases, yes. A local school board policy that requires full-board endorsement before staff produces records to a board member conflicts with the Virginia Freedom of Information Act if the recor…
Can a Virginia school board member vote on a budget that affects their spouse's salary along with thousands of other school employees?
A budget decision that affects the salaries of thousands of school employees does not 'affect the public generally' just because it affects a large group. A board member married to one of those employ…
Can a Virginia city or county refuse to issue a business license to a non-citizen who does not produce a green card?
No. Virginia law does not require, or permit, a commissioner of the revenue to deny a business license to a non-citizen applicant who fails to produce a permanent resident card. A 2006 AG opinion that…
What legal protections did Virginia tenants have against eviction during the COVID-19 pandemic in summer 2020?
Federal CARES Act § 4024 barred filings to evict for nonpayment of rent on covered federally backed housing through 8/26/2020. Separately, Virginia's HB 340 gave any pandemic-affected tenant a mandato…
Can a Fairfax County retirement board member also serve on an advisory committee of the Virginia Retirement System Board?
No. The Virginia AG concluded that Va. Code § 51.1-124.26(C) bars any 'elected or appointed official,' regardless of branch or level of government, from serving on a VRS Board advisory committee. A Fa…
If a Virginia first responder catches COVID-19 at work, are they covered by workers' compensation and the Line of Duty Act?
Yes, with caveats. A first responder covered by workers' compensation who becomes ill from a work-related COVID-19 exposure can recover under the Act, and if COVID-19 is an upper-respiratory disease i…
During COVID, could the Virginia General Assembly hold its own sessions by Zoom?
Yes. Items 4-0.01 of HB 29 and HB 30, the 2020 budget bills, override VFOIA's normal ban on legislative electronic meetings and permit the General Assembly to meet electronically during a declared eme…
Can Virginia public bodies meet entirely by video or phone during a COVID-19 emergency without breaking the state's open-meetings law?
Virginia public bodies may meet electronically during the COVID-19 state of emergency, but only for meetings whose purpose is to address the emergency, including urgent decisions that would cause irre…
Does a Virginia general registrar have to follow the county's personnel policies, and does the county owe the registrar the same annual raises and leave benefits as other county employees?
Mostly yes. The Virginia AG concluded the registrar is subject to the locality's policies and practices, but only insofar as they don't interfere with registrar duties. The locality is *not* required …
Who sets the background-check fee for a Virginia concealed handgun permit application: the county board of supervisors or the sheriff?
The sheriff (or the State Police), not the county board. The Virginia AG concluded that under Va. Code § 18.2-308.03, only the sheriff (up to $35) and the State Police (up to $5) have discretion over …
Do Virginia 'Second Amendment sanctuary' resolutions adopted by counties have any legal effect?
No. The Virginia AG concluded that local resolutions declaring exemption from anticipated gun violence prevention laws have no legal effect. Under the Virginia Constitution, the Code of Virginia, and …
When a second protective order issues against the same person, can Virginia law enforcement delete the first one from VCIN?
No. The Virginia AG concluded that a protective order stays in the Virginia Criminal Information Network until a court orders it dissolved or it expires by its own terms or by operation of law. Both o…
Can Virginia cap private day special education tuition increases at 2% without violating federal law that guarantees a free, appropriate public education?
Yes, the cap itself is legal, but it does not relieve school divisions of their IDEA obligation. If the child's IEP requires a private day program and all qualifying providers have raised rates more t…
Does changing the bottler or importer name on a Virginia wine label create a new 'brand' that has to be re-registered with ABC?
Not automatically. The Virginia AG concluded that a change in the name or address of the manufacturer, bottler, or importer is not, by itself, a change in the wine's 'brand' as defined by Va. Code § 4…
Does the Virginia State Bar's 60-day suspension for unpaid dues conflict with the statutory two-year forfeiture rule, and is the Supreme Court's rule unconstitutional?
No. The Virginia AG concluded the 60-day administrative suspension in the Rules of the Supreme Court is a permissible exercise of the Court's rulemaking authority under § 54.1-3912 and does not confli…
When a Virginia magistrate orders a state hospital as the place of mental-health detention, can the sheriff sit on the transport for up to four hours while everyone keeps looking for a better bed?
No. The Virginia AG concluded that Va. Code § 37.2-808(O) gives the community services board and the state facility extra time to look for an alternative bed, but it does not authorize the sheriff to …
After the Fourth Circuit struck down Virginia's 'habitual drunkard' law, what can Commonwealth's Attorneys still do under the interdiction statute?
Almost nothing under the habitual-drunkard prong. The Virginia AG concluded that after Manning v. Caldwell, Commonwealth's Attorneys may no longer seek new interdictions, criminal penalties, or enhanc…
Can a Virginia locality get an easement on state-owned river bottomlands to build a flood-control levee, and who in state government grants it?
Yes. The Virginia AG concluded that a local flood-control project is a 'governmental activity' under §§ 28.2-1300 and 28.2-1400, that § 28.2-1200.1 lets the Commonwealth grant an easement for it, and …
Can a Virginia sheriff assign deputies to act as full-time security at a private school?
Not while on duty. The Virginia AG concluded a sheriff cannot dedicate on-duty deputies to permanent security for a private school, but the locality may adopt a § 15.2-1712 ordinance letting off-duty …
Can a Virginia city or county use zoning to keep a gun shop from opening next to a school?
Yes. The Virginia AG concluded that Va. Code § 15.2-915, which generally bars localities from regulating firearms, does not stop a locality from using its zoning power to control where firearms-sales …
Are heavily-armed private militia members who patrol around a Virginia government building breaking the law?
Yes, potentially. The Virginia AG concluded the described conduct (showing up armed, in fatigues, patrolling a line of citizens at a state government building) can violate Va. Code § 18.2-174, which m…
Does the Williamsburg-area tourism council that spends Historic Triangle sales tax have to follow Virginia open-records, procurement, and conflict-of-interest laws?
Yes to all of them. The Virginia AG concluded the Tourism Council of the Greater Williamsburg Chamber and its Historic Triangle Office of Marketing and Promotion are 'public bodies' under the Virginia…
Can the Virginia Center for Innovative Technology use state funds to buy stock in private startups without violating the Virginia Constitution?
Yes. The Virginia AG concluded that equity investments by the Center for Innovative Technology using Growth Accelerator Program funds, made for the public economic-development purposes set out in the …
If a Virginia nonprofit school sets up a single-member LLC to hold property, does that property still qualify for the property-tax exemption for institutions of learning?
No. A single-member LLC (SMLLC) is a separate legal entity from its owner. Property owned by an SMLLC does not qualify for the Virginia property-tax exemption for nonprofit institutions of learning un…
Does a Virginia Commonwealth's Attorney have to collect unpaid toll judgments owed to a private toll facility operator?
No. Code § 19.2-349 does not require a Commonwealth's Attorney to collect a judgment of civil penalties, unpaid tolls, administrative fees, and court costs awarded under Code § 46.2-819.3:1 for toll v…
Is a Virginia Commonwealth's Attorney required to collect unpaid toll judgments owed to private toll facility operators, and may a court compel her to do so?
Va. Code § 19.2-349 does not require a Commonwealth's Attorney to collect a judgment of civil penalties, unpaid tolls, administrative fees, and court costs awarded to a private toll facility operator …
When the state sends a Virginia city local sales tax that should have gone to a different locality, does the city owe interest when it pays the money back?
No. The Virginia AG concluded that the Tax Commissioner has no authority to charge interest on local sales tax revenues that the Commonwealth erroneously sent to the wrong locality; the money is repai…
Is a Virginia petition to move city elections from May to November invalid if it does not say whether the new elections fall in odd or even years?
The Virginia AG declined to decide. Va. Code § 24.2-684.1(9) gives the validity question to the circuit court reviewing the petition, not to the AG, so the opinion explained the legal framework but le…
Does an ICE detainer with a Form I-200 warrant require a Virginia sheriff or jail to keep someone in custody after they would otherwise be released?
No. The Virginia AG concluded that an I-247A ICE detainer, even when accompanied by a Form I-200 administrative warrant, does not obligate or authorize Virginia law enforcement to hold someone for a c…
Can Virginia local police arrest someone solely for a civil immigration violation, and what risks come with signing a § 287(g) agreement with ICE?
The AG concluded prior opinions (2007 and 2010) holding that state and local officers may not arrest individuals for civil immigration violations without express federal authorization remained valid, …
Does a Virginia Commonwealth's Attorney have to let local child protective services join the multidisciplinary team that reviews child sex abuse cases?
Yes. The Virginia AG concluded that Va. Code § 15.2-1627.5 uses 'shall participate' for child protective services, making CPS representation mandatory at the jurisdiction's multidisciplinary child sex…
Can Virginia rename Jefferson Davis Highway in Arlington County without an act of the General Assembly?
Yes. The Virginia AG concluded that the Commonwealth Transportation Board may rename the Arlington County portions of Jefferson Davis Highway under Va. Code § 33.2-213, provided the Arlington County B…
Does a freestanding emergency room owned by a Virginia hospital need its own license or a certificate of public need?
Not automatically. The Virginia AG concluded that a freestanding ER owned by a licensed hospital only needs a separate hospital license if it fits a 'general,' 'special,' or 'outpatient' hospital clas…
Can legal aid workers enter a migrant labor camp on the employer's property to talk to farmworkers about their legal rights?
Yes. The Virginia AG concluded that legal aid representatives may enter a migrant labor camp to share information about legal resources, even if they are not formally appointed counsel for any specifi…
Can a Virginia coalfield county use coal and gas severance tax revenue to fund repair of a town's water system?
Yes. Dickenson County, as a member of the Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority, may appropriate a portion of its local coal and gas road improvement severance tax revenues to fund repair …
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Attorney general opinions in Virginia are written by the Virginia Attorney General's office in response to questions from state agencies, legislators, and prosecutors. They are not binding like court decisions, but courts and agencies treat them as persuasive guidance on how state law applies. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original text.