A BILL to amend and reenact § 58.1-322.02 of the Code of Virginia, relating to Virginia taxable income; subtractions; volunteer firefighters and volunteer emergency medical services personnel.
HB991 amends Virginia’s individual income tax subtraction statute, § 58.1-322.02, to add a new subtraction for certain volunteer service beginning with taxable years on and after January 1, 2027. The bill allows an individual to subtract up to $2,000 per year for qualifying services performed as a bona fide volunteer. Qualifying services include volunteer firefighting and fire prevention, emergency medical services, auxiliary police officer services, and emergency rescue services performed for nonprofit organizations that operate exclusively for the public benefit, including required training and training-related activities.
The bill defines a “bona fide volunteer” as someone whose compensation is limited to reimbursement or reasonable allowances for expenses, or customary modest benefits and fees associated with the volunteer service. The subtraction is intended to reduce Virginia taxable income for eligible volunteers and would operate alongside the many existing subtractions already listed in the statute, which cover items such as military pay, retirement income, Social Security, and other targeted categories of income.
If enacted, HB991 would amend Virginia’s tax code to create a new personal income tax subtraction for qualifying volunteer public-safety service, reducing taxable income for eligible firefighters, EMS personnel, auxiliary police officers, and rescue volunteers. The change would affect § 58.1-322.02 of the Code of Virginia and would apply prospectively to taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2027. It would not broadly alter tax rates or the structure of the income tax, but would add another targeted subtraction to Virginia’s list of income exclusions.
The available legislative context suggests generally favorable treatment of the bill in concept, as it was introduced to recognize volunteer emergency and public-safety service through the tax code. However, there is no committee transcript or recorded vote history in the provided materials, and the bill was ultimately left in the House Committee on Finance. That procedural outcome indicates the proposal did not advance, but the record provided does not show explicit opposition or support statements.
The main policy issue is whether Virginia should use the income tax system to compensate or incentivize volunteer public-safety work, and whether the $2,000 subtraction is an appropriate and administrable benefit. Potential points of contention include the fiscal cost of a new subtraction, how to verify eligibility and qualifying service, and whether the benefit should extend to volunteers serving nonprofit organizations rather than only local government-affiliated responders. Because no debate transcript is provided, no specific member or stakeholder objections are documented in the record here.