Juvenile detention specialists; enhanced retirement benefits.

Pensions; enhanced retirement benefits for juvenile detention specialists. Permits political subdivisions participating in the Virginia Retirement System to provide retirement benefits comparable to the benefits provided to state police officers to juvenile detention specialists. The bill applies only to service earned as a juvenile detention specialist on or after July 1, 2026, but allows an employer, as that term is defined in relevant law, to provide such enhanced retirement benefits for service earned as a full-time juvenile detention specialist before July 1, 2026, in addition to service earned on or after that date. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2026.