General Laws Subcommittee advances mold rules, geologist licensure, and other professional regulation bills

General Laws Subcommittee members met Feb. 20 and advanced a slate of bills affecting professional regulation, licensing and technical standards, voting to report most measures to the full committee and tabling one pending further review.

The session matters because the bills affect consumer protections, occupational standards and program eligibility across the Commonwealth — from tenants dealing with mold to engineers and geologists on infrastructure projects and people seeking entry to licensed careers.

Votes at a glance: House bills acted on Feb. 20, 2025 - HB 2195 (substitute): Consumer-protection and mold inspection/remediation bill — reported to full committee (substitute adopted; roll call reported unanimously, tally not specified). - HB 2736: Expand Virginia Values Veterans grant to include military spouses — reported to full committee (unanimous, tally not specified). - HB 1835 (with substitute): Create mandatory licensure for professional geologists, convert existing voluntary certificates to licenses — reported to full committee (substitute adopted; unanimous, tally not specified). - HB 2612: Increase minimum massage-therapy education hours from 500 to 625 — motion to lay bill on the table carried (bill tabled for further consideration). - HB (ear piercing statute change; sponsor Simon): Create an ear-piercing salon category and allow needle-based ear-piercing licensing distinct from full body-piercing licensure — reported as amended (unanimous, tally not specified). - HB 2503: Update statutory references to the Virginia State Plane Coordinate System of 2022 (delayed enactment tied to NOAA NGS release) — reported as amended (unanimous, tally not specified). - HB 2557: Clarify authority for unlicensed property managers to sign routine lease documents in residential transactions — reported as amended (unanimous, tally not specified). - Several other technical or committee-management bills (line‑amendments, incorporations…