An Act to amend the Code of Virginia by adding a section numbered 18.2-174.2, relating to impersonating any local, town, city, or county elected official; penalty.
HB1150 adds a new criminal offense to the Code of Virginia for impersonating local elected officials. The bill makes it unlawful for a person to willfully and intentionally falsely assume or exercise the powers of any local, town, city, or county elected official, to pretend to be such an official in order to defraud or gain access to information, services, or things of value, or to impersonate an official so that another person believes the impersonator is the official for those same purposes. The definition of covered officials expressly includes constitutional officers.
The bill establishes that a violation is a Class 3 misdemeanor. In practical terms, it creates a targeted penalty for local-government impersonation and supplements existing fraud and impersonation laws by specifically addressing elected officials at the local level rather than state officers generally. It is aimed at protecting the integrity of local offices, public trust, and access to government resources and information.
HB1150 amends the Virginia Code by adding § 18.2-174.2, creating a new misdemeanor offense focused on impersonation of local, town, city, and county elected officials, including constitutional officers. It expands criminal liability to conduct involving false assumption of official powers, false representation as an official, and impersonation used to obtain access, information, services, or other value. The bill affects individuals who attempt to misuse the authority or identity of local officeholders and gives law enforcement and prosecutors a specific statute to charge such conduct as a Class 3 misdemeanor.
The available record shows no committee transcript, vote tally, or recorded debate, so there is no documented controversy or opposition in the materials provided. The bill’s enactment as Chapter 452 suggests it moved successfully through the legislative process and was approved by the Governor. Based on the text alone, the measure appears straightforward and protective in nature, with a generally neutral-to-supportive policy posture centered on preventing fraud and misuse of public office.
No specific points of contention are reflected in the provided materials because there are no committee discussions or recorded votes included. Potential areas of debate, if any, would likely have centered on the scope of the new offense, the inclusion of constitutional officers within the definition of local elected officials, and whether existing fraud or impersonation statutes already covered the conduct. However, the record supplied does not show any identified opposition or competing viewpoints.