Administrative Law Advisory Committee work plan approved, including APA and harmless-error study

Tom Lisk, chair of the Administrative Law Advisory Committee (AAALAC), presented three items the committee will study in 2026: a work group to examine Articles 1 and 2 of the Virginia Administrative Process Act (APA) in coordination with the Department of Planning and Budget; continued research on the preservation-of-error doctrine in regulatory appeals; and a review of harmless-error language in section 2.2-4027 of the APA to align with federal and other-state practices. "Last year, working with the Department of Planning and Budget, DPB, AAALAC identified a grammatical issue in section 2.24402 b along with several other items that require clarification including the definition of an adverse effects in 2.24007," Lisk said.