SB 567

Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services; Virginia Family Grocery Basket; civil penalty. Directs the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (the Department) to establish and maintain on its website a standardized list of no more than 25 essential grocery items known as the Virginia Family Grocery Basket that includes common household staple food items including milk, bread, eggs, and various types of proteins, grains, and produce. The bill requires a large grocery retail chain, as defined in the bill, to submit to the Department average retail prices for such Basket items on a monthly basis for each locality in which the large grocery retail chain operates and to publish such information on its website beginning on April 1, 2027. The bill directs the Department to issue a written notice of noncompliance for violations of the bill and to provide a 30 day period to rectify such violations, after which the Department may assess a civil penalty not to exceed $1,000 for each day of violation following such 30 day period.