Develops Standard of Learning (SOL) assessments in the most commonly-spoken languages in Virginia to support students who are English language learners.

Increased language access is essential to empower Asian American students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills, reducing language barriers that may have otherwise hindered their performance. This bill supports students to build their confidence and dismantle barriers to achieve academic success without being penalized for their English proficiency.

Full text: SB 753 (Sen. Favola & Sen. Carroll Foy) / HB 1679 (Del. Cohen & Del. Lopez)

Tracks program spending and student progress to identify needs and improve resources for students learning English, such as English language teachers, community schools, mentorship programs, and positive behavioral interventions.

This bill is vital to ensure that immigrant and multilingual students, who rely on strong language support in schools, don’t fall through the cracks.

Full text: HB 2032 (Del. Reaser)

Delays the new public school accountability system for a year to ensure fairness, prioritize student growth, and include students learning English when assessing disadvantaged schools.

This is especially crucial for immigrant students who need in-language resources and culturally appropriate assessment measures.

Full text: SB 979 (Sen. Hashmi) / HB 2118 (Del. Keys-Gamarra)

Enshrines every Virginian’s right to reproductive freedom. Prohibits the state from penalizing an individual for exercising this right, or for helping someone else exercise their right.

Full text: HJ 1 (Del. Herring, Del. Feggans, Del. LeVere Bolling, Del. King, & Del. Watts) / SJ 247 (Sen. Boysko, Sen. Locke, Sen. Lucas, & Sen. Hashmi)

Ensures every Virginian’s right to contraception. Enforces action against anyone who infringes upon this right.

Reproductive health is healthcare. Every individual has the right to protect their reproductive health by having access to contraceptives for family planning, preventing sexually transmitted diseases, and managing serious medical conditions prevalent in South and East Asian individuals, (including endometriosis, PCOS, etc).

Full text: SB 1105 (Sen. Hashmi)

Cover All Kids – Provides state-funded, in-language comprehensive health coverage through Medicaid for youth (< 19 years old) in Virginia who would qualify if not for their immigration status. Provides free translation and interpretation services to make program information accessible to those with disabilities and those with limited English proficiency. Ensures personal information remains confidential. Establishes a group of individuals with lived experience of being undocumented and uninsured, and individuals with experience doing outreach to aforementioned populations, to do marketing and outreach for the program.

This bill ensures that all children, regardless of immigration status, can receive the healthcare they need without fear of legal consequences.

Full text: SB 800 Item 289 #1s (Sen. Hashmi) / HB 1600 Item 289 #2h (Del. Tran)

Extends the validity of Driver Privilege Cards (DPCs) from 2 years to 8 years, to match the same time periods as regular driver’s license and ID cards.

This bill reduces bureaucratic hurdles and relieves the burden of frequent renewals unfairly placed on immigrants. Many immigrants rely on DPCs for work, healthcare, and accessing resources; extending the validity provides greater stability for those who already experience challenges with documentation and transportation.

Full text: SB 1302 (Sen. McPike)

Raises the minimum wage to $12.41/hour in 2025, then to $13.50/hr in 2026, then to $15/hr in 2027.

Many Asian American workers, especially immigrants in service, retail, and caregiving jobs, struggle to make ends meet. While $15/hour is below a livable wage, these increases are nonetheless a starting point to uplift working families and provide greater financial stability for those who are often underpaid despite their vital contributions to society.

Full text: HB 1928 (Del. Ward)

Amends minimum wage laws to remove the exclusion of farm laborers and temporary foreign workers, ensuring they are entitled to the same wage increases (see HB 1928) as other workers.

Including farm workers in minimum wage laws reduces economic exploitation and increases financial stability for vulnerable immigrants and their families.

Full text: HB 1625 (Del. McClure & Del. Hernandez)

Removes the ban on collective bargaining for public employees.

This bill provides the opportunity for many public sector workers (including educators, healthcare providers, and government workers) to unionize and advocate to reduce workplace discrimination, get better wages and hours, and improve working conditions.

Full text: SB 917 (Sen. Surovell, Sen. Boysko, Sen. Locke, Sen. Caroll Foy, & Sen. Lucas) / HB 2764 (Del. Tran)

Adds Fairfax County to the list of localities eligible to host a casino.

Casinos destabilize and harm nearby communities by increasing the likelihood of people developing gambling addictions and causing displacement and gentrification due to development. Casinos do not benefit the economy, they exploit vulnerable people.

Full text: SB 982 (Sen. Surovell, Sen. Bagby, Sen. Pekarsky, & Sen. Pillion)

Imposes stricter regulations on driver training schools, including increased licensing requirements, rules to require keeping records onsite, and penalties for violations

This bill reduces access to affordable driver’s education by making it more difficult and expensive for small business driving schools to operate. If enacted, many of Virginia’s driving schools could close, impacting many Asian American small business owners.

Full text: SB 1836 (Sen. Wiley)

Requires public schools to participate in the federal School Breakfast and School Lunch programs.

This bill guarantees that all students have access to meals, regardless of their ability to pay, which is essential for low-income families to ensure that children are well-nourished to focus and succeed in school.

Full text: HB 1958 (Del. Bennett-Parker & Del. Cohen) / SB 1003 (Sen. Roem)

Expands access to food assistance for college students by requiring public universities to provide accessible information about the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), including eligibility and how to apply. Schools must distribute this information annually at the start of each school year, include it in orientation materials, and advertise it on their websites.

This bill promotes greater access to food for low-income students who experience food insecurity.

Full text: SB 1018 (Sen. Roem)

Funds and promotes specialized support for students learning English, special education students, and other students who experience educational disadvantages.

This bill ensures more equitable learning environments for disadvantaged students with increased funding and staffing at public schools, which helps dismantle barriers to their academic success and expand their educational opportunities.

Full text: HB 1954 (Del. Rasoul, Del. Convirs-Fowler, Del. Sewell, & Del. Simonds)

Develops statewide guidelines to promote culturally-responsive and language-appropriate mental health support and services for students.

This will empower Asian American and other students to access mental health care that respects their cultural and language needs.

Full text: HB 2341 (Del. Shin, Del. Maldonado, Del. McClure, & Del. Tran)

Amends high school graduation requirements to allow students to substitute African American History or AP African American Studies for Virginia and U.S. History.

This bill sets a precedent for broadening curriculum to represent other underrepresented histories, including Asian American experiences. This also encourages cross-racial solidarity by learning communities’ shared histories of oppression and resistance.

Full text: HB 1824 (Del. Reid & Del. Martinez)

Requires social service agencies to ask about immigration status of anyone applying for public assistance benefits, such as food assistance, healthcare, and financial aid.

This bill leads to more racial profiling and scrutiny of immigrant applicants. Asking about citizenship discourages eligible people and families from seeking essential services, exacerbating economic hardship and health inequities in immigrant communities.

Full text: SB 772 (Sen. Sturtevant) / HB 1651 (Del. Ballard)

Bars a person or organization labeled as “terrorist” from receiving funds/resources from a public university.

This bill targets students who are likely to be racially profiled as “terrorists” (including Muslim, Sikh, and Black communities), as well as those who are accused of “terrorism” for taking actions deemed a threat to state or institutional interests and authority (including the genocide in Palestine).

🥳 The Senate version of this bill was killed!

Full text: HB 2207 (Del. Kilgore) / SB 1284 (Sen. Stanley)

Requires juvenile justice officials to check the immigration status of anyone found guilty of a violent crime. If they are found to be undocumented, officials must report them to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

This bill subjects vulnerable Asian Americans and immigrants (including youth) to incarceration and deportation, separating them from their families and communities without a chance for rehabilitation. It may also discourage immigrant families from seeking legal help for their children and increases racial profiling in the legal criminal system.

Full text: HB 1185 (Del. Williams) / SB 1268 (Sen. Durant & Sen. Craig)

Removes legal protections (sovereign immunity) from Virginia or local governments if they pass a policy that prevents law enforcement or jail officers from reporting undocumented immigrants to ICE.

This bill pressures local governments to cooperate with ICE, which leads to more racial profiling, fear in immigrant communities, and fewer protections for undocumented immigrants. Many immigrants may feel discouraged and unsafe to report crimes or seek help from law enforcement due to increased risks of detention and deportation. This bill punishes localities for protecting communities from family separation and deportation.

Full text: HB 2623 (Del. Fowler)