General Assembly

History & Purpose

The Virginia General Assembly dates from the establishment of the House of Burgesses at Jamestown in 1619.  It is heralded by Virginians as the "oldest continuous law-making body in the New World."

The 1776 Virginia Constitution confirmed our bicameral legislature, which consists of the House of Delegates and Senate of Virginia.  The present state Constitution, adopted in 1970, provides that the House of Delegates shall consist of 90 to 100 members and the Senate shall consist of 33 to 40 members.  All members of the General Assembly are elected by qualified voters within their respective House and Senate districts.  The terms of office are two years for members of the House and four years for members of the Senate.  Members may not hold any other public office during their term of office.

The General Assembly's chief responsibilities are to represent citizens in the formulation of public policy, enact laws of the Commonwealth, approve the budget, levy taxes, elect judges and confirm appointments by the Governor.

2012 General Assembly Regular Session

The 2012 Regular Session convened on Wednesday, January 11, at 12 noon.

Contacting Your Legislator

As a citizen of the Commonwealth of Virginia, one of your greatest responsibilities is to elect the legislators to represent you in the Virginia General Assembly.  There are a number of online resources available on the Virginia General Assembly website to assist you in taking an active role in the legislative process:

Know who your legislators are and how to contact them.  If you don't know who represents you, find out by using Who's My Legislator.  Due to this widely used online service, calling the 800 number for Constituent Viewpoint has been eliminated.  Who's My Legislator gives you the ability to email your Delegate, Senator as well as contact information for your representatives in the US House of Representatives and US Senate.

In addition, a biographical page on each delegate and senator is available from the General Assembly's homepage.

Contact your representative about a particular issue before the Legislature takes action on it.  Using the Legislative Information System, you can track legislation and review committee agendas prior to a meeting.  You can even testify before committees on issues important to you.

2012 Legislative Bills Affecting Deaf & Hard of Hearing Virginians

HJ49, SJ 66, HB1291, and SB678 - Governor’s Reorganization Plan (including creation of new agency incorporating VDDHH, DRS, Aging and Adult Protective Services)

HB218 & SB399 - Deaf Child’s Bill of Rights Bills

General Assembly Sessions

Regular Session

The General Assembly meets annually, beginning on the second Wednesday in January, for 60 days in even-numbered years and for 30 days in odd-numbered years, with an option to extend annual sessions for a maximum of 30 days.

Special Sessions

The Governor may call a special session when it is deemed necessary or advisable, and must do so when petitioned by two-thirds of the members of both houses.

Reconvened Sessions

A reconvened session is held on the sixth Wednesday after adjournment of each regular or special session for the purpose of considering governor's recommendations and vetoed legislation.