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WHAT VIRGINIANS ARE SEEING: ATTORNEY GENERAL JAY JONES SHARES WEEKLY ROUNDUP OF ACTIONS TAKEN        

Keeps Virginia’s elections free and fair, launches new unit, and takes action to protect Virginians 

RICHMOND, Va. -- Attorney General Jones continues to deliver on his promise to protect Virginians by fighting to keep Virginia’s elections free from federal overreach, launches new unit to hold reckless firearm industry members accountable, and protects consumers. 

Fighting Federal Overreach 

Attorney General Jones demanded an investigation into reports that the Department of Homeland Security may have violated Virginia’s laws as part of new DHS program. Also this week, Attorney General Jay Jones, a coalition of 24 attorneys general, and the Governor of Pennsylvania won in the Supreme Court, blocking the United States Postal Service from carrying out Donald Trump’s sweeping changes to mail voting for November elections. Voters will now be able to cast their ballot without being misled by the federal government.  

The New York Times: Virginia Attorney General: D.H.S. May Have Broken State Laws in Voter Fraud Investigation 

The attorney general of Virginia sent a letter on Thursday warning Markwayne Mullin, the homeland security secretary, that the department’s hunt for evidence of election fraud “potentially violates several Virginia laws” and demanding that the investigation cease immediately. 

The New York Times previously reported that hundreds of Homeland Security agents have been assigned to an intensive, weekslong hunt for noncitizens among the nation’s registered voters despite an absence of evidence of widespread fraud. The Times also reported this week that, according to a whistle-blower report, the agents may have broken state laws by effectively posing as voters on public-facing state websites to gain access to individual voting records. 

Some states include clear proclamations that the sites and records are meant only for individual use. Virginia is among them. Its voter information portal requires users to check a box attesting: “I certify and affirm that the information provided to access my voter registration is my own or I am expressly authorized by the voter to access this information. I understand that it is unlawful to access the record of any other voter.” 

In his letter, Attorney General Jay Jones of Virginia, a Democrat, declared that agents who checked that box while trying to look up voter information may have broken state laws. 

“Users that falsely make this certification in an effort to gather protected voter information may be violating several Virginia criminal statutes,” he wrote, citing three Virginia statutes. Because voter registration information and voter history are protected from disclosure by Virginia state law, he added, Homeland Security’s actions required a court order. 

Mr. Jones also questioned justifications found in training materials from the office of the chief counsel at the Department of Homeland Security that agents were allowed to use tools to look up state voters for investigatory purposes. 

“The Office of the Attorney General of Virginia is not aware of any blanket legal authority that would permit” Homeland Security agents “to obtain protected information from state officials without a court order, let alone any authority that would permit agents to gather that information through fraudulent means.” 

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Rae Pickett, a spokeswoman for Mr. Jones, said in a statement that the office “cannot confirm the existence or scope of investigations,” but confirmed the authenticity of the letter. 

“The reported access and use of protected personally identifiable information in a federal search of state voter systems is deeply concerning, particularly because it comes from the highest echelons of government,” Ms. Pickett said in a statement. She added: “The Office of Attorney General is reviewing this troubling report and will take all appropriate actions to preserve Virginians’ private information and the integrity of our elections.” 

The Unlawful Voter Initiative, as the Homeland Security investigation is internally known, offers a clear window into the extent to which the federal government, prodded by President Trump’s false claims about American elections, is searching for evidence of fraud ahead of the November elections. The government pulled hundreds of agents from their normal duties, which include investigating serious crimes such as human trafficking and terrorism. 

Mr. Jones demanded that the operation be halted and that any records pertaining to Virginia be turned over to his office. He also seized on details from the whistle-blower account released on Monday as evidence that Homeland Security leadership was aware of the legal ramifications. 

“The whistle-blower also alleged that” the chief counsel “informed agents that they would not be ‘personally liable for conducting these searches,’ which further suggests that leadership is aware that the underlying conduct violates state law,” Mr. Jones wrote. 

Associated Press: Virginia’s attorney general says DHS may have violated state election law after whistleblower report 

Virginia’s attorney general said Thursday that the Department of Homeland Security may have violated several state laws after a whistleblower accused its employees of misrepresenting themselves on voter lookup tools to hunt for noncitizen voters. 

In a letter obtained by The Associated Press, Attorney General Jay Jones demanded that DHS confirm in writing whether it had directed anyone to access Virginia voters’ information without first obtaining permission from those voters. 

“Virginia Election Code does not permit disclosure of this protected information to the federal government without a court order,” he wrote in the letter to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin. The state explicitly limits its voter lookup tools to individuals who attest under penalty of law that they are looking up their own records. 

The AP has asked DHS for comment on the letter. 

Jones also asked Mullin to preserve all related records, including access logs, correspondence and training materials mentioned in the whistleblower report. 

The anonymous report, published Monday by Democratic Senate leaders, includes transcripts of a DHS training for a group of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services staffers, who it says were forced in late August to drop other work, complete a less than two-hour training and begin running DHS-provided lists of people through state voter registration systems to find “unlawful voters.” 

The whistleblower contends that agents have been asked to review 40 individuals per day, giving them about 12 minutes to determine whether each person is a legal voter and create federal records of anyone who is not. 

ARLnow and The Alexandria Brief: Va. attorney general says DHS may have violated state election law after whistleblower report 

Virginia’s attorney general said Thursday that the Department of Homeland Security may have violated several state laws after a whistleblower accused its employees of misrepresenting themselves on voter lookup tools to hunt for noncitizen voters. 

PRESS RELEASE: Attorney General Jones Stops Trump Administration’s Illegal USPS Mail Voting Rule    

“The Commonwealth of Virginia runs free, fair, and secure elections. Contrary to the lies he peddles, the greatest threat to confidence in our elections is not Virginia’s voters, election officials, or our election system – it is Donald Trump. His administration’s broader strategy to put federal political power between voters and the ballot box will fail,” said Attorney General Jones. “I urge every Virginian to exercise their fundamental right to vote this November. Vote by mail, use a dropbox, or vote early starting Friday, September 18 – our systems are safe and secure, and every eligible vote will be counted. This office is working closely and tirelessly with the Virginia Department of Elections to make sure no one gets in the way of Virginians’ rights.”   

NBC12 and WHSV: No changes to mail-in voting in Virginia ahead of midterm elections 

There will be no changes to how Virginians vote by mail this fall. 

On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court left in place a lower-court injunction blocking the USPS requirements for the 2026 midterms. That’s welcome news for voter registrars across the state now gearing up for the kick off to early voting. 

The proposed rules would have required specific design features. 

That included unique barcodes on mail-ballot envelopes, and required state and local election officials to submit information about mail voters through a federal portal. 

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Implementing those significant changes just weeks before the election would most likely have caused major problems, and advocates feared it would make it harder for millions of Americans to cast their ballots. 

“It would have. I was looking at some contingency plans including some expedited plans like FedEx or UPS or something like that,” said David Nichols, Hanover County Director of Elections/General Registrar. 

Democrats, including Attorney General Jay Jones, are happy with how the high court ruled. 

“Virginia has safe and fair and secure elections and any attempt by the president to undermine those efforts to sow chaos and confusion, we wanted to stop that in its tracks,” said Jones, a Democrat 

UVa political analyst Larry Sabato says millions of votes would have been discarded. 

“It is far too late in the election process to be changing the rules and eliminating mail ballots and bringing the post office in to do work they’ve never done before,” said Sabato, UVa Center for Politics executive director. 

If you do want to vote by mail this year, there’s still plenty of time to make that request from your local voter registrar. That deadline is Oct. 23. 

Richmond Times-Dispatch: Ballots in the mail: Local registrars didn't wait on high court decision 

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“The Commonwealth of Virginia runs free, fair, and secure elections," said Attorney General Jay Jones, who joined a coalition with 23 attorneys general and one governor to challenge the postal service's authority to carry out its plan. 

Trump had issued an executive order in March to direct the Postal Service to develop a plan to restrict absentee voting by mail. Virginia and other states sued in federal court to block the plan, but the Supreme Court ruled last month that the action was premature. After the Postal Service adopted a final rule last month to carry out the plan, a federal judge in Massachusetts issued a temporary restraining order, which the Supreme Court upheld Monday. 

"Contrary to the lies he peddles, the greatest threat to confidence in our elections is not Virginia’s voters, election officials, or our election system — it is Donald Trump," Jones said Tuesday. "His administration’s broader strategy to put federal political power between voters and the ballot box will fail.” 

"This office is working closely and tirelessly with the Virginia Department of Elections to make sure no one gets in the way of Virginians’ rights," the Democratic attorney general said. 

Virginia registrars have been caught in a bind between the requirements of state election laws and an aggressive push by the Trump administration to curtail voting by mail in elections that will determine political majorities in both chambers of Congress. 

U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., released a whistleblower's report Monday that alleges the administration has directed Department of Homeland Security staff to identify potential registered voters in Virginia who are not citizens by going into the state elections database for their personal records, despite a state legal prohibition against doing so without voter authorization. 

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A spokesperson for the attorney general's office, said Tuesday, “The reported access and use of protected personally identifiable information in a federal search of state voter system is deeply concerning, particularly because it comes from the highest echelons of government. 

"The Commonwealth has a long track record of safely and securely administering elections, a responsibility granted expressly to the states by the Constitution of the United States," Pickett said. "The Office of Attorney General is reviewing this troubling report and will take all appropriate actions to preserve Virginians’ private information and the integrity of our elections." 

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Localities also plan to allow people to vote in person on two Sundays, Oct. 18 and 25, and two Saturdays, Oct. 24 and 31. 

Early in-person voting ends Oct. 31. 

Voters can request absentee ballots through Oct. 23 for the general election on Nov. 3. They can send those ballots by mail, deliver them to the local registrar's office, deposit them in designated drop-off boxes or cast them in person on Election Day. 

Mailed ballots must be postmarked no later than Tuesday, Nov. 3, and received by noon on Friday, Nov. 6. 

LegalAF: Virginia AG Jay Jones on the looming SCOTUS decision on mail in ballots 
 
“I really do think that the Supreme Court of the United States understands the fundamentals of what is at stake. I mean, this is truly the underpinnings of our democracy, our republic and everybody is watching,” said Attorney General Jay Jones.  

Preventing Gun Violence 

Attorney General Jones announced the creation of the Firearms Accountability & Industry Responsibility Unit, housed within the Civil and Criminal Justice & Public Safety Divisions.  Through civil enforcement, the FAIR Unit will both investigate activity across the Commonwealth and bring suits to enjoin such activity and seek damages and restitution, among other appropriate relief.   

PRESS RELEASE: Attorney General Jones Launches Firearms Accountability & Industry Responsibility Unit   

“Public safety can’t be pushed to the side or saved for another day – the cost is too high, which is why our office has created this path for Virginia to comprehensively seek justice for families who have been impacted by gun violence. While the law continues to hold perpetrators of violence accountable, the FAIR Unit allows our office the opportunity to hold those who are negligently contributing to the illicit flow of firearms in impacted communities accountable,” Attorney General Jones said. “Creating safer communities starts with holding dealers and manufacturers accountable when they are reckless with the lives of Virginians. The FAIR Unit will play an integral role in building lasting public safety in our communities.”   

Richmond Times Dispatch and Danville Register & Bee: Va. Attorney General creates unit to enforce new firearm industry law 

Attorney General Jay Jones announced Tuesday he has created a new unit within his office: the Firearms Accountability & Industry Responsibility Unit. 

The unit will investigate and bring civil enforcement actions against firearm industry members who violate a new law passed this year that requires them to implement business practices aimed at preventing giving a gun to a firearm trafficker, someone who is at risk of using a gun to harm someone, or a “straw purchaser” — someone who legally buys a gun to give it to someone who is prohibited from owning a gun. 

The new law, signed by Gov. Abigail Spanberger in April, authorizes the Office of the Attorney General to investigate firearm industry members suspected of breaking the rules. It also prohibits firearm industry members from knowingly contributing to a public nuisance through unlawful or unreasonable sales, manufacturing, importing or marketing practices. The attorney general can sue businesses over improper sales, distribution or marketing, as well as practices that make it easier for firearms to be obtained or diverted illegally. 

Augusta Free Press: AG Jay Jones using new state law to take aim at firearms industry 

The new unit, which will go by the acronym FAIR, will investigate and bring civil enforcement actions against the firearms industry under a new state law establishing responsible business practice requirements for the firearm industry. 

The law, which went into effect on July 1, also allows victims of gun violence or public officials to bring civil lawsuits against the members of the industry who violate the law. 

“Public safety can’t be pushed to the side or saved for another day – the cost is too high, which is why our office has created this path for Virginia to comprehensively seek justice for families who have been impacted by gun violence,” Jones said in a statement. “While the law continues to hold perpetrators of violence accountable, the FAIR Unit allows our office the opportunity to hold those who are negligently contributing to the illicit flow of firearms in impacted communities accountable. 

[...] 

The new law passed earlier this year provides that a firearm-industry member may not, through conduct that is unlawful in itself or unreasonable, knowingly create, maintain, or contribute to a public nuisance through the sale, manufacture, importation, or marketing of a firearm-related product. 

The Office of Attorney General, under the law, is empowered to bring suit against those who engage in unlawful or improper sales, distribution practices, marketing practices, known risks associated with particular products, or practices that facilitate the illegal acquisition or diversion of firearms. 

“With the passing of this new law, and creation of the FAIR Unit, for the first time, our office is empowered to bring cases against bad actors in the firearms sale and manufacturing industries. These important new civil remedies will help keep Virginians safe and stop dangerous practices across the Commonwealth,” said Gretchen Nygaard, the deputy attorney general for civil litigation in the AG’s office. 

“The civil remedies the FAIR Unit will be able to pursue on behalf of Virginians are going to play a significant role in creating a safer Commonwealth for all. The Criminal Justice and Public Safety Division looks forward to supporting the work of this unit,” said Jae K. Davenport, the deputy AG for criminal justice and public safety. 

13NewsNow: Virginia Attorney General creates new unit to investigate firearm manufacturers 

Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones announced Tuesday the creation of a new unit that will investigate firearm dealers and manufacturers and take legal action against companies that violate state law. 

The Firearms Accountability & Industry Responsibility Unit, or FAIR Unit, will work within the Attorney General's Office. 

The unit was created after the Virginia General Assembly passed a new law in 2026 that sets standards for how firearm industry businesses must operate. 

The FAIR Unit will investigate businesses across Virginia and can file civil lawsuits against companies it finds have violated the law. The office can seek damages, repayment for losses and court orders to stop certain practices. 

“Creating safer communities starts with holding dealers and manufacturers accountable when they are reckless with the lives of Virginians,” Jones said. “The FAIR Unit will play an integral role in building lasting public safety in our communities.” 

Under the new law, firearm industry businesses cannot knowingly contribute to a public nuisance through the sale, manufacture, import or marketing of firearm-related products if their conduct is illegal or unreasonable. 

The Center Square: Virginia attorney general launches unit to enforce firearm industry law 

A Department of Planning and Budget fiscal analysis prepared as lawmakers considered HB21 estimated the law would require three additional Attorney General’s Office positions and $409,864 in annual general fund spending beginning in fiscal 2027. The estimate included two assistant attorneys general and an administrative position. 

[...] 

A Department of Planning and Budget fiscal analysis prepared as lawmakers considered HB21 estimated the law would require three additional Attorney General’s Office positions and $409,864 in annual general fund spending beginning in fiscal 2027. The estimate included two assistant attorneys general and an administrative position. 

The new unit comes as Virginia continues implementing firearm laws approved during the 2026 General Assembly session. The FAIR Unit, however, is focused specifically on the civil enforcement framework created by HB21 and SB27 and the conduct of firearm industry members covered by that law. 

Protecting Virginians 

Attorney General Jay Jones and a bipartisan coalition of 48 other attorneys general are pushing the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to strengthen its “Know Your Upstream Provider” (KYUP) requirements to help prevent scammers from using the U.S. phone network to make illegal robocalls. KYUP rules require voice service providers to ensure that they receive calls from legitimate and responsible providers and do not regularly pass through lots of illegal calls.  

WDBJ7: At Issue: Sept. 13 focuses on data centers, one-on-one with VA AG Jay Jones 

This week’s debut “At Issue with Kate Capodanno” takes the conversation surrounding data centers to WDBJ7’s Political Analyst Dr. Cayce Myers and Senior Reporter Joe Dashiell. 

[...] 

Meanwhile, a landmark settlement with tech giant Meta will end up delivering $353 million to Virginia. The payout comes after a bipartisan group of Attorneys General filed a lawsuit against the parent company of Facebook and Instagram. The legal fight centered around social media addiction and mental health harms in children and teens. 

Kate Capodanno sits down with Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones to talk about safety online and the results of this case. 

She also asked Jones about balancing safety and privacy now that many localities are pressing pause on their use of Flock Safety technology and its license plate-reading cameras. 

PRESS RELEASE: Attorney General Jones Pushes Federal Government to Strengthen ‘Know Your Upstream Provider Rules’ to Combat Illegal Robocalls   

“The FCC must do its part to protect Virginians. When illegal robocalls and texts slip through the system and reach consumers, the cost is too high. We must build a stronger safety net, and that involves holding service providers accountable,” said Attorney General Jones.    

13NewsNow: Virginia attorney general joins effort to crack down on robocalls 

Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones is joining a group of attorneys general pushing for stronger protections against illegal robocalls. 

Jones is joining attorneys general from across the country in an effort to strengthen “Know Your Customer” protections and make it more difficult for scammers to access consumers’ information and place illegal calls. 

Claudell Clark, president of the Better Business Bureau of Greater Hampton Roads, said consumers can make their information available to robocallers through everyday activities, including entering sweepstakes, signing up for subscriptions and making online purchases. 

“They kind of stem from any time you’re giving your information away for sweepstakes, or subscriptions, or things you order, or false and phishing things that you ordered, or thought you ordered,” Clark said. 

Clark said stronger protections could help limit how companies access and transfer consumers’ information. 

[...] 

Jones has worked on efforts to combat robocalls and scams in the past. 

“We worked hard with a consortium of states to make sure we were combating these robocalls — combating these scammers,” Jones said. 

Cardinal News: Attorney General Jay Jones joins nationwide effort to pressure the FCC to limit spam robocalls 

Tired of spam calls? It appears Virginia’s attorney general is, too. 

Attorney General Jay Jones joined a coalition of 48 other states across the country on Thursday in an effort to pressure the Federal Communications Commission to strengthen its “Know Your Upstream Provider” requirements to prevent scammers from using the U.S. phone network to make illegal robocalls. 

According to Jones’ office, calls get routed through a series of phone companies before they reach a person’s phone. The FCC requires all voice service providers to take reasonable measures to vet the phone companies that originate and route calls. However, some voice service providers fail to do so, allowing illegal robocalls onto the U.S. communications network. Last year, Americans received more than 29.6 billion scam robocalls and texts and lost nearly $2 billion to these scams, Jones’ office said. 

Attorneys general across the country are asking the FCC to strengthen voice service providers’ obligation to vet their upstream provider customers and to require the same scrutiny and diligence of the entities involved in the implementation of a framework developed to prevent caller ID spoofing. “Spoofing” is a caller’s effort to falsify their number to appear legitimate on caller ID.  

“The FCC must do its part to protect Virginians. When illegal robocalls and texts slip through the system and reach consumers, the cost is too high. We must build a stronger safety net, and that involves holding service providers accountable,” Jones said in a statement. 

Henrico Citizen: Virginia AG joins effort seeking stronger federal rules against illegal robocalls 

Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones has joined attorneys general from 48 other jurisdictions in asking the Federal Communications Commission to strengthen requirements intended to prevent illegal robocalls from entering the nation's telephone network. 

The coalition is seeking stronger “Know Your Upstream Provider” requirements, which govern how voice-service providers vet companies whose calls they transmit. The attorneys general argue that stronger requirements could make it more difficult for scammers to route illegal calls through intermediary providers. 

Royal Examiner: Virginia Joins Bipartisan Push for Stronger Rules to Fight Illegal Robocalls 

Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones has joined a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general calling on federal regulators to tighten rules designed to keep illegal robocalls and scam messages from reaching consumers. 

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The coalition wants the FCC to establish stronger baseline requirements for telephone companies dealing with upstream providers. Those requirements would include collecting more detailed and verified information about companies sending calls into their networks. 

Providers would also be expected to check whether those companies comply with FCC rules, monitor them regularly, and refuse or terminate service when an upstream provider fails to follow the law. 

Published on: September 18, 2026

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