Virginia House passes bill on January 6 instruction after sharp floor exchange

House Bill 333, a measure addressing instruction on the January 6, 2021, events in public-school courses, passed the Virginia House of Delegates on Feb. 3, 2026, by a 63–35 vote. The bill drew an emotionally charged exchange on the floor, with Representative debate centered on academic content and whether the bill constrained classroom instruction.

Delegate Doug Garrett (Buckingham) used his floor time to denounce the bill in strongly worded terms, calling it "evil" and likening imposed curricula to historical examples of authoritarian control. Garrett said the bill "tells our teachers that they have to teach certain things" and warned it could require students to learn a prescribed narrative. "It takes lives, mister speaker, and makes them law," he said, accusing the measure of mandating opinions in the classroom.

Delegate Paul Helmer (Fairfax) responded directly on the floor, arguing the bill does not bar teachers from telling the truth about January 6 and that the legislation clarifies what public schools may teach when school boards choose to include the topic. "If [a teacher] wants to tell [students] that Trump was responsible for the January sixth insurrection, he can," Helmer said, urging his colleagues to focus on the bill's text rather than rhetorical amplification. He framed the measure as consistent with honoring the service of state troopers and National Guard members.

After the exchange, the clerk closed the roll and recorded 63 ayes and 35 noes; the Speaker announced that the bill passed. The transcript shows both the denunciation and the rebuttal in full on the House floor and the formal recorded tally that carried the measure.

The immediate next step for House Bill 333, by standard legislative process, is whatever committee referrals or Senate consideration follow; the transcript does not record subsequent Senate action or an effective date.

(End of report)