Advocacy Blog, March 5, 2026

Vocal Virginia continues to engage throughout the 2026 General Assembly session to elevate the voices of people with lived experience and strengthen recovery-oriented behavioral health services across the Commonwealth. As legislation and the state budget move through the final stages of the process, we encourage our members and allies to stay informed and engaged. We also want to thank our members, allies, and advocates for standing with us throughout this session. Because of your voices, your persistence, and your advocacy, we are seeing meaningful progress. When lived experience leads and our community stands together, real change is possible.

Vocal Virginia strongly supports Item 301 (PP) in the state budget, which appears in both HB30 and SB30 . This item provides a little over $3.3 million each year for two years to support peer wellness stay programs. Peer wellness stays are voluntary, short-term, non-clinical places where people can stay when they are experiencing a mental health or substance use crisis. These peer-run programs focus on recovery and help reduce unnecessary hospitalizations by providing community-based alternatives. This legislation has been approved in each of the bill’s respective chambers with the differences between the bills now being worked out in Conference Committee. Vocal Virginia will continue advocating for the inclusion of this funding in the state budget.

Vocal Virginia supports HB209, which directs the  Virginia Department of Health (VDH) and the Virginia Department of Corrections (VADOC) to develop guidelines for hiring Peer Recovery Specialists. The legislation recognizes the importance of lived experience within the behavioral health workforce and supports expanding peer-led recovery services across systems. By encouraging the integration of peers into additional settings, the bill reflects the growing recognition that individuals with lived experience play a critical role in helping others navigate behavioral health challenges and recovery. This bill has passed both chambers of the General Assembly and is awaiting action by the Governor’s office. To contact the Governor’s office, please click here.

Vocal Virginia is also monitoring Delegate Watts’ HB245, the Behavioral Health Docket Act. This expands the jurisdiction of district courts in felony cases involving specialty dockets and supports the development of behavioral health dockets. These dockets help connect individuals involved in the justice system to treatment, recovery supports, and community-based services rather than incarceration. Behavioral health dockets are designed to promote recovery, reduce recidivism, and strengthen coordination between the courts and behavioral health providers. This bill has passed both chambers of the General Assembly and is awaiting action by the Governor. To contact the Governor’s office, please click here.

Additionally, HB248, also sponsored by Delegate Watts, supports the development of behavioral health co-response teams. This legislation allows for interjurisdictional agreements between law enforcement agencies to help establish and expand co-response programs where behavioral health professionals respond alongside law enforcement officers during mental health crises. These programs help ensure that individuals experiencing behavioral health emergencies are connected to appropriate services and supports in their communities.This bill has passed both chambers of the General Assembly and is awaiting action by the Governor’s office. To contact the Governor’s office, please click here.

For a list of other bills that Vocal Virginia is tracking please click here.

We encourage each of you to reach out to your legislators on these important topics as well as other issues that you feel strongly about. If you would like your legislators’ contact information, you may visit: https://whosmy.virginiageneralassembly.gov/

To research legislation and learn more about where it is in the legislative process, please visit: https://lis.virginia.gov/

If you have any questions, or if you would like to connect with Vocal Virginia, please email network@vocalvirginia.org.

Want to learn more about advocacy and how you can help? Join our Network Program Director next Friday at 1:00 PM for an Advocacy Call via Zoom (please monitor your email for the link). Bring a friend or co-worker who wants to learn more, be of service, or simply support Vocal Virginia (vocalvirginia.org), because advocacy is stronger when we show up together.