{"formats":[{"name":"JSON","format":"json","url":"\/downloads\/2026\/code-json\/30-28.18.json"},{"name":"Plain Text","format":"text","url":"\/downloads\/2026\/code-text\/30-28.18.txt"},{"name":"XML","format":"xml","url":"\/downloads\/2026\/code-xml\/30-28.18.xml"},{"name":"HTML","format":"html","url":"\/downloads\/2026\/code-html\/30-28.18.html"}],"law_id":358669,"edition_id":2,"section_id":358669,"structure_id":51300,"section_number":"30-28.18","catch_line":"Requests for drafting bills or resolutions; bills to conform to request; public access","history":"1966, c. 676; 1976, c. 112; 1988, c. 214; 1989, cc. 412, 512; 2001, cc. 568, 584; 2002, c. 2; 2005, c. 839; 2017, c. 489.","full_text":"A\n\nAll requests for the drafting of bills or resolutions by the Division shall be submitted in person, in writing, or by voice transmission. Each request shall contain a general statement respecting the policies and purposes that the requester desires incorporated in and accomplished by the bill. All written requests shall be signed by the person submitting them. Neither the Director nor any employee of the Division shall reveal to any person outside of the Division, except to the Division of Legislative Automated Systems in fulfilling its duties as provided in \u00a7 30-34.14, the contents or nature of any request or statements except with the consent of the person signing such request. Exceptions to this general rule are as follows:\n\n1\n\nWhen the Director or an employee receives a request that is substantially the same as one previously received, he may, unless specifically directed not to do so by the person first submitting such request, so inform the person submitting the similar request;\n\n2\n\nUnless specifically directed otherwise, the Director or employee may reveal the nature of a request when seeking information from anyone to assist in drafting the bill; and\n\n3\n\nCopies of all floor substitute bills, conference committee reports, and substitute bills accompanying a conference committee report shall be placed in a secure electronic file immediately following the final drafting of the legislation and may be accessed by either the Clerk of the House of Delegates or the Clerk of the Senate or their employee designees after such legislation is offered for introduction in either house.\n\t\t\t\tBills drafted by the Division shall conform to the statements submitted with the request or any supplementary instructions submitted by the person who originally made the request.\n\nB\n\nAll legislative drafting requests and accompanying documents shall be maintained by the Division as permanent records. Each of these separate files shall be considered the property of the requester and no one other than members of the Division staff shall have access to any such file without the specific approval of the requester.\n\nC\n\nAll legislative drafting requests from the Governor, a Governor’s Secretary, the Lieutenant Governor, the Attorney General, or the head of any judicial, legislative, or independent agency shall be submitted to the Division on or before the same deadline applicable to members of the General Assembly for submitting legislative drafting requests for legislation to be prefiled to the Division, as established by the procedural resolution adopted by the General Assembly, or in default thereof, as adopted by the Joint Rules Committee. Requests from the Governor may also be submitted in accordance with the procedures established by the Rules Committees of the House of Delegates and the Senate for the conduct of business during a legislative session.\n\n","order_by":null,"text":{"0":{"id":1334240,"text":"All requests for the drafting of bills or resolutions by the Division shall be submitted in person, in writing, or by voice transmission. Each request shall contain a general statement respecting the policies and purposes that the requester desires incorporated in and accomplished by the bill. All written requests shall be signed by the person submitting them. Neither the Director nor any employee of the Division shall reveal to any person outside of the Division, except to the Division of Legislative Automated Systems in fulfilling its duties as provided in \u00a7 30-34.14, the contents or nature of any request or statements except with the consent of the person signing such request. Exceptions to this general rule are as follows:","type":"section","prefixes":["A"],"prefix":"A","entire_prefix":"A","prefix_anchor":"A","level":1,"next_prefix":"A1"},"1":{"id":1334241,"text":"When the Director or an employee receives a request that is substantially the same as one previously received, he may, unless specifically directed not to do so by the person first submitting such request, so inform the person submitting the similar request;","type":"section","prefixes":["A","1"],"prefix":"1","entire_prefix":"A1","prefix_anchor":"A1","level":2,"prior_prefix":"A","next_prefix":"A2"},"2":{"id":1334242,"text":"Unless specifically directed otherwise, the Director or employee may reveal the nature of a request when seeking information from anyone to assist in drafting the bill; and","type":"section","prefixes":["A","2"],"prefix":"2","entire_prefix":"A2","prefix_anchor":"A2","level":2,"prior_prefix":"A1","next_prefix":"A3"},"3":{"id":1334243,"text":"Copies of all floor substitute bills, conference committee reports, and substitute bills accompanying a conference committee report shall be placed in a secure electronic file immediately following the final drafting of the legislation and may be accessed by either the Clerk of the House of Delegates or the Clerk of the Senate or their employee designees after such legislation is offered for introduction in either house.\n\t\t\t\tBills drafted by the Division shall conform to the statements submitted with the request or any supplementary instructions submitted by the person who originally made the request.","type":"section","prefixes":["A","3"],"prefix":"3","entire_prefix":"A3","prefix_anchor":"A3","level":2,"prior_prefix":"A2","next_prefix":"B"},"4":{"id":1334244,"text":"All legislative drafting requests and accompanying documents shall be maintained by the Division as permanent records. Each of these separate files shall be considered the property of the requester and no one other than members of the Division staff shall have access to any such file without the specific approval of the requester.","type":"section","prefixes":["B"],"prefix":"B","entire_prefix":"B","prefix_anchor":"B","level":1,"prior_prefix":"A3","next_prefix":"C"},"5":{"id":1334245,"text":"All legislative drafting requests from the Governor, a Governor’s Secretary, the Lieutenant Governor, the Attorney General, or the head of any judicial, legislative, or independent agency shall be submitted to the Division on or before the same deadline applicable to members of the General Assembly for submitting legislative drafting requests for legislation to be prefiled to the Division, as established by the procedural resolution adopted by the General Assembly, or in default thereof, as adopted by the Joint Rules Committee. Requests from the Governor may also be submitted in accordance with the procedures established by the Rules Committees of the House of Delegates and the Senate for the conduct of business during a legislative session.","type":"section","prefixes":["C"],"prefix":"C","entire_prefix":"C","prefix_anchor":"C","level":1,"prior_prefix":"B"}},"ancestry":[{"id":51300,"edition_id":2,"name":"Division of Legislative Services","identifier":"2.2","label":"chapter","depth":2,"order_by":4,"parent_id":51255,"metadata":{"child_laws":9,"child_structures":0},"date_created":"2026-08-02 02:40:25","date_modified":"2026-08-02 12:31:56","permalink":{"id":1426773,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":51300,"identifier":"2.2","token":"30\/2.2","url":"\/30\/2.2\/","edition_id":2,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":51255,"edition_id":2,"name":"General Assembly","identifier":"30","label":"title","depth":1,"order_by":73,"parent_id":null,"metadata":{"child_laws":476,"child_structures":87},"date_created":"2026-08-02 02:39:52","date_modified":"2026-08-02 12:31:55","permalink":{"id":1426021,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":51255,"identifier":"30","token":"30","url":"\/30\/","edition_id":2,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}}],"structure_contents":[{"id":358663,"structure_id":51300,"section_number":"30-28.12","catch_line":"Creation of Division; appointment, term and qualifications of Director","url":"\/30-28.12\/","token":"30\/2.2\/30-28.12","metadata":false},{"id":358664,"structure_id":51300,"section_number":"30-28.13","catch_line":"Assistants, draftsmen and clerks","url":"\/30-28.13\/","token":"30\/2.2\/30-28.13","metadata":false},{"id":358665,"structure_id":51300,"section_number":"30-28.14","catch_line":"Repealed","url":"\/30-28.14\/","token":"30\/2.2\/30-28.14","metadata":false},{"id":358666,"structure_id":51300,"section_number":"30-28.15","catch_line":"Use of state libraries; withdrawal of books; charges","url":"\/30-28.15\/","token":"30\/2.2\/30-28.15","metadata":false},{"id":358667,"structure_id":51300,"section_number":"30-28.16","catch_line":"Duties of Division and of Director","url":"\/30-28.16\/","token":"30\/2.2\/30-28.16","metadata":false},{"id":358668,"structure_id":51300,"section_number":"30-28.17","catch_line":"Books and documents to be accessible to officers and general public","url":"\/30-28.17\/","token":"30\/2.2\/30-28.17","metadata":false},{"id":358669,"structure_id":51300,"section_number":"30-28.18","catch_line":"Requests for drafting bills or resolutions; bills to conform to request; public access","url":"\/30-28.18\/","token":"30\/2.2\/30-28.18","metadata":false},{"id":358670,"structure_id":51300,"section_number":"30-28.19","catch_line":"Repealed","url":"\/30-28.19\/","token":"30\/2.2\/30-28.19","metadata":false},{"id":358671,"structure_id":51300,"section_number":"30-28.20","catch_line":"Repealed","url":"\/30-28.20\/","token":"30\/2.2\/30-28.20","metadata":false}],"previous_section":{"id":358668,"structure_id":51300,"section_number":"30-28.17","catch_line":"Books and documents to be accessible to officers and general public","url":"\/30-28.17\/","token":"30\/2.2\/30-28.17","metadata":false},"next_section":{"id":358670,"structure_id":51300,"section_number":"30-28.19","catch_line":"Repealed","url":"\/30-28.19\/","token":"30\/2.2\/30-28.19","metadata":false},"metadata":false,"official_url":"https:\/\/law.lis.virginia.gov\/vacode\/30-28.18\/","history_text":"

This law was first created in 1966. The record of its establishment is cataloged in chapter 676 of that year\u2019s edition of \u201cActs of Assembly,\u201d the annual state publication listing all changes made to the Code of Virginia in that year. Unfortunately, the 1966 \u201cActs\u201d aren\u2019t available online. It has been modified 7 times. Those modifications are cataloged by \u201cThe Acts of Assembly,\u201d a state publication, by year and chapter. Those modifications that can be read on the General Assembly\u2019s website will be linked accordingly. Those modifications are as follows: in 1976, chapter 112; in 1988, chapter 214; in 1989, chapters 412 and 512; in 2001, chapters 568<\/a> and 584<\/a>; in 2002, chapter 2<\/a>; in 2005, chapter 839<\/a>; in 2017, chapter 489<\/a>.<\/p>","references":false,"refers_to":[{"id":358716,"section_number":"30-34.14","catch_line":"Duties of Division","order_by":null,"url":"\/30-34.14\/"}],"permalink":{"id":1426799,"object_type":"law","relational_id":358669,"identifier":"30-28.18","token":"30\/2.2\/30-28.18","url":"\/30-28.18\/","edition_id":2,"permalink":0,"preferred":1},"url":"\/30-28.18\/","token":"30\/2.2\/30-28.18","dublin_core":{"Title":"Requests for drafting bills or resolutions; bills to conform to request; public access","Type":"Text","Format":"text\/html","Identifier":"\u00a7 30-28.18","Relation":"Code of Virginia"},"html":"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

A.<\/span> All requests for the drafting of bills or resolutions by the Division shall be submitted in person, in writing, or by voice transmission. Each request shall contain a general statement respecting the policies and purposes that the requester desires incorporated in and accomplished by the bill. All written requests shall be signed by the person submitting them. Neither the Director nor any employee of the Division shall reveal to any person outside of the Division, except to the Division of Legislative Automated Systems in fulfilling its duties as provided in \u00a7 30-34.14<\/a>, the contents or nature of any request or statements except with the consent of the person signing such request. Exceptions to this general rule are as follows: <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

1.<\/span> When the Director or an employee receives a request that is substantially the same as one previously received, he may, unless specifically directed not to do so by the person first submitting such request, so inform the person submitting the similar request; <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

2.<\/span> Unless specifically directed otherwise, the Director or employee may reveal the nature of a request when seeking information from anyone to assist in drafting the bill; and <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

3.<\/span> Copies of all floor substitute bills, conference committee reports, and substitute bills accompanying a conference committee report shall be placed in a secure electronic file immediately following the final drafting of the legislation and may be accessed by either the Clerk of the House of Delegates or the Clerk of the Senate or their employee designees after such legislation is offered for introduction in either house.\n\t\t\t\tBills drafted by the Division shall conform to the statements submitted with the request or any supplementary instructions submitted by the person who originally made the request. <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

B.<\/span> All legislative drafting requests and accompanying documents shall be maintained by the Division as permanent records. Each of these separate files shall be considered the property of the requester and no one other than members of the Division staff shall have access to any such file without the specific approval of the requester. <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

C.<\/span> All legislative drafting requests from the Governor, a Governor’s Secretary, the Lieutenant Governor, the Attorney General<\/span>, or the head of any judicial, legislative, or independent agency shall be submitted to the Division on or before the same deadline applicable to members of the General Assembly for submitting legislative drafting requests for legislation to be prefiled to the Division, as established by the procedural resolution adopted by the General Assembly, or in default<\/span> thereof, as adopted by the Joint Rules Committee. Requests from the Governor may also be submitted in accordance with the procedures established by the Rules Committees of the House of Delegates and the Senate for the conduct of business during a legislative session. <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>","plain_text":" CODE OF VIRGINIA\n\nREQUESTS FOR DRAFTING BILLS OR RESOLUTIONS; BILLS TO CONFORM TO REQUEST; PUBLIC\nACCESS (\u00a7 30-28.18)\n\nA. All requests for the drafting of bills or resolutions by the Division shall\nbe submitted in person, in writing, or by voice transmission. Each request shall\ncontain a general statement respecting the policies and purposes that the\nrequester desires incorporated in and accomplished by the bill. All written\nrequests shall be signed by the person submitting them. Neither the Director nor\nany employee of the Division shall reveal to any person outside of the Division,\nexcept to the Division of Legislative Automated Systems in fulfilling its duties\nas provided in \u00a7 30-34.14, the contents or nature of any request or statements\nexcept with the consent of the person signing such request. Exceptions to this\ngeneral rule are as follows:\n\n 1. When the Director or an employee receives a request that is substantially\n the same as one previously received, he may, unless specifically directed not\n to do so by the person first submitting such request, so inform the person\n submitting the similar request;\n\n 2. Unless specifically directed otherwise, the Director or employee may reveal\n the nature of a request when seeking information from anyone to assist in\n drafting the bill; and\n\n 3. Copies of all floor substitute bills, conference committee reports, and\n substitute bills accompanying a conference committee report shall be placed in\n a secure electronic file immediately following the final drafting of the\n legislation and may be accessed by either the Clerk of the House of Delegates\n or the Clerk of the Senate or their employee designees after such legislation\n is offered for introduction in either house.\n \t\t\t\tBills drafted by the Division shall conform to the statements submitted\n with the request or any supplementary instructions submitted by the person who\n originally made the request.\n\nB. All legislative drafting requests and accompanying documents shall be\nmaintained by the Division as permanent records. Each of these separate files\nshall be considered the property of the requester and no one other than members\nof the Division staff shall have access to any such file without the specific\napproval of the requester.\n\nC. All legislative drafting requests from the Governor, a Governor’s\nSecretary, the Lieutenant Governor, the Attorney General, or the head of any\njudicial, legislative, or independent agency shall be submitted to the Division\non or before the same deadline applicable to members of the General Assembly for\nsubmitting legislative drafting requests for legislation to be prefiled to the\nDivision, as established by the procedural resolution adopted by the General\nAssembly, or in default thereof, as adopted by the Joint Rules Committee.\nRequests from the Governor may also be submitted in accordance with the\nprocedures established by the Rules Committees of the House of Delegates and the\nSenate for the conduct of business during a legislative session.\n\nHISTORY: 1966, c. 676; 1976, c. 112; 1988, c. 214; 1989, cc. 412, 512; 2001, cc.\n568, 584; 2002, c. 2; 2005, c. 839; 2017, c. 489.","edition":{"id":2,"name":"2026","slug":"2026","date_created":"2026-07-16 18:40:23","date_modified":"2026-08-02 15:14:36","current":1,"order_by":2,"last_import":"2026-08-02 12:37:30"}}