Contractor exam language access bill passes Virginia House and Senate under Del. Thomas

A legislative proposal from State Del. Joshua E. Thomas will enhance language access for contractor licensing exams by bringing requirements in line with federal voting rights law, as documented by the Virginia State House.

The measure passed both the House and Senate and was formally enrolled by March 2, 2026, with a House vote of 92-6 and a Senate vote of 31-7.

Submitted as HB165 on Jan. 14, 2026, during the regular session, the bill is summarized in the official record as follows: “Contractors, Board for; examinations available in alternative languages.”

Presented here is our summary based on the actual bill text, with some interpretive clarification of the bill’s elements.

The legislation tasks the Board for Contractors with offering any exam, averaging over 50 administrations per year for the previous four years, in additional languages determined by federal guidelines. Specifically, if a language meets the criteria for translated election materials under Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the board will be required to provide the relevant contractor licensing exam in that language. This aims to expand testing access for frequently administered licenses and to synchronize with federal voting rights criteria.

Within the House, 64 Democrats and 28 Republicans supported the legislation, while six Republicans opposed it.

For the Senate, support came from 20 Democrats and 11 Republicans, with seven Republicans against the bill.

Primary sponsorship belonged to Del. Joshua E. Thomas (Democrat-21st District), Del. Adele Y. McClure (Democrat-2nd District), and Del. Atoosa R. Reaser (Democrat-27th District), together with 10 additional sponsors.

Thomas holds a BA from Vanderbilt University (2010) and a JD from The College of William and Mary (2018).

Elected in 2024, Thomas represents Virginia’s 21st House district, having succeeded former delegate Kelly Convirs-Fowler.

In Virginia, a bill begins in the House of Delegates or Senate. It is reviewed, and possibly amended, in committees, before moving to both chambers for debate and votes. After passage in both, the legislation moves to the governor for approval or veto, or can become law without a signature. The General Assembly meets every year in regular session starting the second Monday of January, with hundreds of bills introduced each session and only some being enacted.

Information in this article was obtained from the Virginia State House. The source data can be found here.