The Senate Committee on Local Government on Monday reported Senate Bill 932, a bill that would require localities to permit accessory dwelling units with statewide baseline rules, after more than two hours of testimony from housing advocates and local officials and several amendments.

The measure's sponsor told the committee the bill aims to create a predictable statewide framework to increase small, “in‑place” housing options such as garage apartments and granny flats and to speed up production without requiring rezoning or special‑use permits.

Supporters from housing groups and local jurisdictions told the committee ADUs can increase housing supply, help seniors age in place and provide options for caregivers and multigenerational families. Alexander McAuley, testifying for an advocacy group, said the bill establishes “broad guardrails” while giving localities time to tailor rules; Barrett Hardiman of the Commonwealth Housing Coalition told the committee, “this is a very important step in helping to solve our housing supply crisis.”

Local governments and municipal associations urged caution. Joe Lurch of the Virginia Association of Counties and representatives from Hampton, Virginia Beach and other localities said many jurisdictions are already working on locally tailored ADU ordinances and opposed a one‑size‑fits‑all mandate. Michelle Gabbie of the Virginia Municipal League said her members “prefer the ability to have these discussions at the local level and tailor it to our localities.”

Amendments adopted in committee addressed several local concerns. The sponsor agreed to strike a provision that would have blocked local parking requirements in some smaller single‑family zones and accepted language explicitly allowing localities to set parking requirements for ADUs. The committee also revised the grandfathering date: local ordinances adopted before January 1, 2026 (changed from 2025) that meet conditions in the bill will be grandfathered. The reported version delays statewide effectiveness until July 1, 2026 to give localities time to adopt ordinances.

The committee adopted the amendments and reported SB 932 on a roll call. The final committee tally recorded Ayes 6, Noes 5, 2 abstentions. The bill will go to the Senate floor for further consideration.

Proponents said the bill balances statewide consistency with local flexibility by giving communities until mid‑2026 to adopt local ADU rules and by allowing local limits on parking, setbacks and other technical standards. Opponents said a permissive approach — allowing but not requiring local adoption — would better preserve local control.

The committee received extensive testimony from housing organizations, developers and local government officials. Several witnesses noted a phased approach would be needed for fully built‑out communities with narrow streets and infrastructure constraints. The bill as reported contains explicit language limiting when a locality may deem an ADU a special use; if a locality’s ordinance requires a special‑use permit for ADUs, that local ordinance would not receive the bill’s grandfather protection.

The committee action sends SB 932 to the Senate floor; additional amendments are possible there.