Agriculture Subcommittee

Wednesday, January 28, 2026·1h 56m·▶ Watch / Listen

The Virginia Agriculture Subcommittee advanced eleven bills to the full House, including contested measures on exotic mammal separation (8-2) and a household toxic plant list referred to Appropriations (9-1), while also routing a wildlife license exemption bill to Appropriations amid testimony that exemptions now cost DWR $16 million annually from a $70 million budget.

Key Actions

·HB 112 – Exotic Mammal Separation and HybridizationPassed

+ 9 more actions

Controversies

HB 112 – Whether the bill unfairly exempts accredited zoos while targeting private exotic animal owners

Heidi Kroske (Virginia Animal Owners Alliance) argued the bill 'is picking winners and losers and it is actually segregating citizens' by subjecting independent exotic animal owners to enforcement while allowing others to hand-raise baby animals, calling it unconstitutional. Alisa Clements (Pet Advocacy Network) made the same point, noting the bill exempts zoos and rehabilitation centers but excludes private operators complying with state and federal regulation. Patron Delegate Laufer countered: 'We're not outlawing bottle feeding at all. This is purely separating a mammal for sale.'

+ 2 more controversies

Notable Quotes

“Our current revenue estimates would be overall license exemptions cost about $16 million a year out of a roughly $70 million budget that we have.”
Ryan Brown, Executive Director, Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources — Testifying in support of HB 45, which would require the General Assembly to reimburse DWR for revenue foregone due to hunting and fishing license exemptions it has created over the years.

+ 4 more quotes

Votes

Report HB 112 as substitutedPassed

Report HB 1016 and refer to AppropriationsPassed

Report HB 45 and refer to AppropriationsPassed

Report HB 129 as substitutedPassed

Unlock the full summary

Subscribe to see all key actions, controversies, quotes, and what's next.

TranscriptPreview

The committee will come to order. It's on. And as we wait for a quorum, I just want to manage expectations, realizing this is a busy season. Right. As soon as we get a quorum, we'll get the committee going. However, if you are here for House Bill 7:30 or House Bill. Somebody's got their. Their 7:30 or House Bill 673. Those are bills will not be heard today. So House Bill 673, House Bill 730 will not be heard today. The committee will be at ease until we get a quorum. Call this subcommittee meeting to order. We'll start with attendance. The clerk will open the roll. Clerk will close the rolls. And it looks like we do have a quorum. All right. So before we get started, we're going to do a couple administrative actions, if we could. We'll start with House Bill 761. That bill is going to be struck. Strucken from the docket. I need a motion to strike. It has been moving improperly. Second. The clerk will open the rolls. Clerk will close the roll. And hospital. 761 is going to. It's been stricken from the docket. The second administrative action we have is on…

Subscribe to unlock the full transcript, summary, and search across all Virginia committee hearings.