In Opposition to HB4. Concern is that HB4 may facilitate 'affordable housing' for illegal aliens and not limited to American Citizens. Our taxes keep rising to pay for services and education, etc. for the illegal alien population and this may be a great disservice to Virginia Citizen Taxpayers, Constituents, and Lawful Voters, adding undue stress and strain upon Public Service Infrastructure such as First Responders, Fire, Police, etc. by not prioritizing Legitimate Citizenship. The Legal Citizens of Virginia must be prioritized at all times, and opportunities for fraud upon our systems/resources must be minimized/eliminated.

Members of the Virginia House of Delegates, I respectfully submit comments in support of several tenant protection bills before the committee. HB14 allows localities to act when landlords fail to correct serious health and safety violations. Giving localities this authority helps ensure Virginians are not forced to remain in dangerous living conditions simply because they lack the resources to pursue enforcement on their own. HB15 extends the waiting period before a lease may be terminated for nonpayment of rent. A longer window can prevent avoidable evictions while still allowing landlords to collect what is owed. HB95 encourages stability by requiring larger landlords to offer payment plans for limited rental arrears before moving toward termination. Short term financial hardship should not automatically result in displacement of Virginians when a reasonable path to repayment exists. HB329 strengthens protections against retaliatory conduct when tenants assert their legal rights. Tenants must be able to request repairs or report violations without fear of eviction or other punishment. HB519 adds air conditioning, when provided by the landlord, to the list of essential services. As extreme heat becomes more frequent, recognizing cooling as essential is an important step in protecting tenant health and safety. Together, these measures promote safer housing, fairer landlord-tenant relationships, and greater stability for families across the Commonwealth. I urge the committee to advance each of them. Thank you for your consideration. Respectfully, Nichelle Clark NAACP Virginia State Conference

My name is Ashley Elstad, I am the Advocacy Manager at Hamkae Center. Hamkae Center serves Asian American communities across the Commonwealth, including Prince William, Loudoun, Fairfax, and parts of Central Virginia. We support HB15 because giving tenants more time to pay their rent offers greater stability to working immigrant families in particular who are already facing barriers to accessing other basic needs.

Community Health Workers (CHWs) and Promotores de Salud regularly support individuals and families navigating housing instability, including tenants facing eviction due to short-term financial hardship. Extending the mandatory waiting period from five to 14 days provides critical time for intervention, problem-solving, and stabilization. For example, when a tenant misses rent due to a delayed paycheck or medical expense, a CHW can use this additional time to help the tenant access emergency rental assistance, negotiate a payment plan, or connect with legal or social services. Under the current five-day period, these supports often cannot be secured quickly enough, resulting in avoidable evictions and displacement. This bill supports healthier outcomes by reducing unnecessary housing disruptions, which are closely linked to worsened physical health, mental health stress, and increased use of emergency services. It also strengthens the effectiveness of CHWs by allowing sufficient time to address nonpayment issues before they escalate into eviction. We support this bill as a practical, balanced measure that promotes housing stability, supports community-based intervention, and benefits both tenants and communities across Virginia.

Members of the Virginia House of Delegates, I respectfully submit comments in support of several tenant protection bills before the committee. HB14 allows localities to act when landlords fail to correct serious health and safety violations. Giving localities this authority helps ensure Virginians are not forced to remain in dangerous living conditions simply because they lack the resources to pursue enforcement on their own. HB15 extends the waiting period before a lease may be terminated for nonpayment of rent. A longer window can prevent avoidable evictions while still allowing landlords to collect what is owed. HB95 encourages stability by requiring larger landlords to offer payment plans for limited rental arrears before moving toward termination. Short term financial hardship should not automatically result in displacement of Virginians when a reasonable path to repayment exists. HB329 strengthens protections against retaliatory conduct when tenants assert their legal rights. Tenants must be able to request repairs or report violations without fear of eviction or other punishment. HB519 adds air conditioning, when provided by the landlord, to the list of essential services. As extreme heat becomes more frequent, recognizing cooling as essential is an important step in protecting tenant health and safety. Together, these measures promote safer housing, fairer landlord-tenant relationships, and greater stability for families across the Commonwealth. I urge the committee to advance each of them. Thank you for your consideration. Respectfully, Nichelle Clark NAACP Virginia State Conference

Members of the Virginia House of Delegates, I respectfully submit comments in support of several tenant protection bills before the committee. HB14 allows localities to act when landlords fail to correct serious health and safety violations. Giving localities this authority helps ensure Virginians are not forced to remain in dangerous living conditions simply because they lack the resources to pursue enforcement on their own. HB15 extends the waiting period before a lease may be terminated for nonpayment of rent. A longer window can prevent avoidable evictions while still allowing landlords to collect what is owed. HB95 encourages stability by requiring larger landlords to offer payment plans for limited rental arrears before moving toward termination. Short term financial hardship should not automatically result in displacement of Virginians when a reasonable path to repayment exists. HB329 strengthens protections against retaliatory conduct when tenants assert their legal rights. Tenants must be able to request repairs or report violations without fear of eviction or other punishment. HB519 adds air conditioning, when provided by the landlord, to the list of essential services. As extreme heat becomes more frequent, recognizing cooling as essential is an important step in protecting tenant health and safety. Together, these measures promote safer housing, fairer landlord-tenant relationships, and greater stability for families across the Commonwealth. I urge the committee to advance each of them. Thank you for your consideration. Respectfully, Nichelle Clark NAACP Virginia State Conference

HB 170 isn't really necessary as there is now a universal requirement from the Appraiser Qualifications Board that all appraisers take qualifying and continuing education regarding valuation bias and fair housing laws and regulations. All states must require that appraisers take an 8-hour course on these topics as part of their education for initial licensing. Already licensed or certified appraisers must initially take a 7-hour course followed every two years by a 4-hour course. While there is some overlap in the topic areas that must be included in course offerings in Virginia, there are a few topics that are not required by the AQB but could be required in Virginia. This will necessitate providers developing courses with the Virginia-specific content. This would add costs and regulatory burdens for Virginia appraiser education providers. We are not opposed to requiring education in these topic areas. We just want to make sure that Virginia appraisers don't have to take two courses - one to satisfy the AQB requirements and one to satisfy the Virginia-specific requirements.

Members of the Virginia House of Delegates, I respectfully submit comments in support of several tenant protection bills before the committee. HB14 allows localities to act when landlords fail to correct serious health and safety violations. Giving localities this authority helps ensure Virginians are not forced to remain in dangerous living conditions simply because they lack the resources to pursue enforcement on their own. HB15 extends the waiting period before a lease may be terminated for nonpayment of rent. A longer window can prevent avoidable evictions while still allowing landlords to collect what is owed. HB95 encourages stability by requiring larger landlords to offer payment plans for limited rental arrears before moving toward termination. Short term financial hardship should not automatically result in displacement of Virginians when a reasonable path to repayment exists. HB329 strengthens protections against retaliatory conduct when tenants assert their legal rights. Tenants must be able to request repairs or report violations without fear of eviction or other punishment. HB519 adds air conditioning, when provided by the landlord, to the list of essential services. As extreme heat becomes more frequent, recognizing cooling as essential is an important step in protecting tenant health and safety. Together, these measures promote safer housing, fairer landlord-tenant relationships, and greater stability for families across the Commonwealth. I urge the committee to advance each of them. Thank you for your consideration. Respectfully, Nichelle Clark NAACP Virginia State Conference