An Act to amend and reenact § 54.1-2013 of the Code of Virginia, relating to real estate appraisers; educational requirements for licensure; fair housing and appraisal bias course.
HB170 amends Virginia’s real estate appraiser licensing law by directing the Real Estate Appraiser Board to require a minimum two-hour course on fair housing and appraisal bias for applicants seeking licensure as a certified residential real estate appraiser, certified general real estate appraiser, or licensed residential real estate appraiser. The required instruction must cover the history of segregation and unequal treatment in housing, unequal access to amenities and resources based on race, disability, and other protected classes, federal/state/local fair housing laws, and anti-bias practices.
The bill also preserves the Board’s existing authority to set education, experience, and examination requirements for different appraiser classifications, and it allows the Board to require examinations for licensed residential appraisers either before licensure or before renewal of an initial license. In addition, the Board must ensure its regulations continue to meet federal minimum criteria so that Virginia appraiser licenses and appraisal management company licenses remain recognized by federal financial institution regulators.
The bill directly amends § 54.1-2013 of the Code of Virginia, adding a new licensure prerequisite for certain real estate appraisers and requiring annual review of the approved fair housing and appraisal bias course by the Fair Housing Board. Its practical effect is to expand the educational requirements for entry into the appraiser profession in Virginia, while leaving the Board’s broader regulatory and licensing powers intact. It may affect applicants, appraiser training providers, the Real Estate Appraiser Board, and the Fair Housing Board, but it does not otherwise change the core structure of appraiser licensure or the federal-recognition framework for Virginia licenses.
The available record shows the bill was enacted and approved without any recorded committee transcript or vote history in the provided materials, so there is no documented opposition or debate to summarize from those sources. Based on the text, the bill appears to reflect a policy preference for strengthening fair housing awareness and addressing appraisal bias through mandatory training. The absence of recorded controversy suggests the measure was either broadly acceptable or not accompanied by publicly captured floor or committee discussion in the supplied context.
The main substantive issue raised by the bill’s text is the addition of mandatory fair housing and appraisal bias training for appraiser licensure, which could be viewed as a consumer-protection and civil-rights measure by supporters. Potential points of contention, though not documented in the provided transcripts, would likely center on whether the training is necessary, its content, the administrative burden on applicants and the Board, and whether the requirement could affect licensure timelines or costs. Another possible concern is the inclusion of instruction on race, disability, and other protected classes, which in some contexts can draw debate over scope and framing, but no specific objections are recorded here.