June 30, 2026
Each spring Chesapeake Legal Alliance takes a look back to see how well its legislative initiatives grew. Some years, the hard work sown in the fall and winter blossom in unexpected ways, creating significant new environmental laws. In other years, conditions just aren’t favorable. This year, while the results of environmental legislation were a mixed bag, CLA is nevertheless in a celebratory mood due to the important expansion of our policy work in Virginia. Thanks to the expertise and leadership of our new Virginia policy lead, Jackie Goodrum, CLA played a role in crafting a suite of bills that passed in the Commonwealth.
Virginia Legislation Will Regulate “Forever Chemicals” in Our Farm Fields for the First Time.
PFAS regulation was among CLA’s top legislative priorities of the 2026 session. With a new administration, Virginia took several small steps forward in controlling PFAS pollution in sewage sludge. First, HB1443/SB386 requires monthly PFAS testing of sewage sludge beginning January 1, 2027. This bill establishes Virginia’s first testing regime for PFAS in sewage sludge. Moreover, this bill establishes numeric limits for PFAS in sewage sludge, prohibiting land application for sludge containing concentrations of PFOA or PFOS greater than 50 ppb and limiting application when the amount is between 25-49. These limits are very high and fail to sufficiently protect public health and the environment, but it is a starting point. Most importantly, and the reason why CLA still considers HB1443/SB386 to be a win, is the inclusion of farmer/landowner notification. HB1443/SB386 requires landowners on whose land sewage sludge is to be spread to be notified of PFAS testing results 2 weeks prior to spreading. Farmers and landowners have a right to know what they’re putting on their lands, and this bill ensures that they will.
Additionally, CLA was thrilled by the passage of HB1072, a small but mighty bill that clarifies local government authority to require PFAS testing for biosolids spread in their jurisdiction. Under this bill, local governments now know for certain that they have the power to protect their citizens and local environment from PFAS contamination in sewage sludge.
Other Virginia Legislation of Note
Menhaden
Virginia made zero progress in addressing the menhaden population problem. HB1048, which would have paused industrial menhaden reduction fishing inside the Chesapeake Bay until research confirmed no negative ecosystem impacts, died in subcommittee after intense industry opposition. Also failing was HB1049, a more moderate reform that would have required the Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC) to distribute Bay harvest cap across seasonal quota periods as well as mandate independent observers on 10% of reduction fishing trips. Although this bill passed the subcommittee, it was left in appropriations. Additionally, SB474, which would have established a research fund for the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) to study Chesapeake Bay menhaden population and harvest limits was continued to the 2027 session.
Virginia did succeed, however, in defeating the short-sighted SB414 which would have removed Virginia from the Atlantic State Marine Fisheries Council, eliminating the Commonwealth’s interstate obligation to reduce the industrial menhaden harvest.
Finally, as Virginia continues to work towards finalizing a state budget for the next two years, a budget amendment requesting menhaden research funding remains alive.
Data Centers
Virginia hosts the world's largest concentration of data centers. This is a perpetual issue before the General Assembly, with dozens of bills being proposed each year. HB496/SB553 is one such bill that actually passed. Starting in 2027, this bill requires any water user (utilities, water authorities) that provides water to a data center holding a DEQ air permit to report monthly to the State Water Control Board the total volume of potable water and, separately, reclaimed water provided to each such facility. Reporting must also cover domestic, commercial/industrial, and other use categories to the extent available without billing system modifications. CLA welcomes the increased transparency around data center water usage that will result from this bill.
Maryland Also Passes Legislation to Regulate PFAS in Biosolids; Otherwise, a Quiet Session
Maryland took baby steps in clamping down on the spread of forever chemicals in our rural areas. As in Virginia, the bill to regulate PFAS in sewage sludge was substantially watered down after considerable compromises were struck with the bill’s opponents, the municipal wastewater authorities. Because the limits for the two regulated PFAS chemicals are so high, very few wastewater treatment plants will be subject to the provisions of the new law. Moreover, the bills’ effective dates for most of the new restrictions have been pushed off for a few years, meaning that little impact will be felt for a while. CLA was particularly disappointed that the new law does not provide any notice to farmers of the levels of PFAS contamination unless they cross a very high threshold.
Nevertheless, the new law does make progress in a different way. Whereas legislation introduced in the 2025 session was fairly narrow in scope, designed to focus the regulatory lens specifically on the issue of land application of sludge fertilizer in agricultural areas, this year’s legislation took a broader approach to include efforts to address PFAS at its source: the industrial facilities that send their PFAS-laden wastewaters into our public sewer systems and sewage treatment plants. The bill hearings helped educate policymakers about this issue and will provide a boost to State and local efforts to regulate these industrial facilities, which have long evaded Clean Water Act regulatory requirements.
Beyond the multi-year effort to address forever chemicals in sewage sludge, CLA unfortunately had to spend time working with other advocates to correct the record and fix a highly problematic bill introduced by the poultry industry that could have had a significant impact on Maryland’s water pollution control laws. Fortunately, after patiently working with the Maryland Department of the Environment and lawmakers on the relevant committees, the community of advocates were able to substantially amend the bill in a way that would actually fix the issue the industry raised without undue consequences on the regulatory process.
Another new law that CLA had a hand in shaping directs the Maryland Department of the Environment to work with stakeholders in 2026 to develop a plan for creating enforceable drinking water standards that control issues at the tap for many in smaller community water systems. While the federal Safe Drinking Water Act imposes regulatory requirements on systems for certain drinking water contaminants, there are no enforceable restrictions on a drinking water provider that would preclude them from serving residents with water that is discolored and smelly. In the wealthiest state in the wealthiest country in 2026, that is shocking. CLA has worked for years with several partners to help address the water pollution issues in an underserved area of Anne Arundel County and is pleased to see another concrete measure of success from this work.
Overall, while we had some success in the 2026 legislative session, by and large, this was a fairly disappointing session for most environmental advocates. Major initiatives like the “bottle deposit bill” and the multi-year effort to include much stronger protections from water pollution for overburdened communities both failed. The companion PFAS bill that would have phased out these chemicals in certain consumer products also failed. Surprisingly, a bill to require septic system inspections at the time of a home’s sale stalled just before final passage. But to end on a positive note, a multi-year effort to better protect small seasonal ponds, known as “vernal pools”, finally passed; the new law will help make sure these small but important hot spots of biodiversity are put on a map. Of course, as CLA knows better than anyone, just because an environmentally sensitive feature is on the map, and within the scope of regulatory protections, that does not mean it will actually be protected. That is why we exist: to use the power of the law to ensure these protections are actually given effect.
But while the 2026 session ended less with a bang than a thud, the good news is that CLA and many of our partners in the Maryland water advocacy community have already begun collaborating to plan advocacy around a potential landmark bill expected in 2027 to “reauthorize” the Bay Restoration Fund and hopefully modernize this law that drives more than $100 million per year of investments in water pollution control projects.
