Richmond, VA – (Tuesday, April 14, 2026) – Virginia Governor Spanberger has just signed HB597, a bipartisan bill that will promote safer roadways for both motorists and wildlife.

“HB597: the creation of the Wildlife Corridor Grant Fund will help reduce the $533 million Virginians currently shoulder in costs annually associated with wildlife-vehicle collisions, said Trapper Fowler, Habitat Connectivity Program Director at Wild Virginia. “This bill will support wildlife crossing and habitat connectivity project initiatives prioritized in the existing Wildlife Corridor Action Plan, ensuring safer roads and sustaining biodiversity.”

Consistently every year, Virginia is ranked among the top 10 states in the nation for wildlife-vehicle collisions, costing Virginians an estimated $533 million. Wildlife crossings and habitat connectivity projects aim to mitigate these costs and promote sustainability for the Commonwealth’s biodiversity. In fact, wildlife crossings have been cited to reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions by 96% where implemented.

As seen to work successfully in other states, Virginians will now how the option to donate through two voluntary mechanisms to support wildlife crossing and habitat connectivity projects:

• By making voluntary donations when completing electronic DMV transactions
• By making voluntary donations through State income tax return filings

Donations collected in the fund will help to pay for wildlife crossing construction, planning, and research. And as an added benefit these funds can be leveraged to provide state match for federal grants to pay for large projects like wildlife overpasses.

This bill is a win for all and is a commonsense approach to a growing problem in terms of wildlife-vehicle collisions and habitat fragmentation. HB597 supports the Commonwealth’s existing Wildlife Corridor Action Plan priority projects and turns the plan into action.

“I’m really proud of this bill,” commented Delegate Simonds, HB597 Sponsor. “We all worry about the possibility of hitting an animal while driving. This fund gives people a meaningful way to do something about it and support efforts to help prevent these accidents before they happen. If we come together, this bill can help us gather data on where these collisions happen, develop plans to prevent them, and strengthen coordination between agencies.”