Virginia State Police; Bureau of Homeland Security established; powers and duties; work group; report. Establishes the Bureau of Homeland Security within the Virginia State Police to coordinate efforts in the ongoing assessment of the Commonwealth's vulnerability to and ability to detect, prevent, prepare for, respond to, and recover from acts of terrorism or potential threats to the security of the Commonwealth. The bill directs the Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secure and Resilient Commonwealth Panel, the Department of Emergency Management, and the Department of State Police, to convene a work group to study the proper allocation of responsibilities for the detection of, prevention of, preparedness for, response to, and recovery from threats to the security of the Commonwealth and to report the findings of the work group to the Governor and the Chairmen of the House Committee on Public Safety and the Senate Committee on General Laws and Technology by November 1, 2025.
Dinwiddie Airport and Industrial Authority; residency requirements. Requires all members of the Dinwiddie Airport and Industrial Authority to be residents of Dinwiddie County and requires the removal by the governing body of the County of any such appointee who ceases to reside within the County. Currently, four of the seven members of the Authority are required to be residents of the County and removal of an appointee for ceasing to reside within the County is at the discretion of the governing body of the County.
Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services; electric vehicle battery suppliers; certification; penalty. Requires each supplier of electric vehicle batteries operating in the Commonwealth to certify under penalty of perjury to the Commissioner of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services that no electric vehicle batteries sold in consumer transactions, as defined in the bill, are manufactured in or sourced from African cobalt mines and that the manufacture or sourcing of such electric vehicle batteries involves no child or slave labor. The bill specifies that such certification is required by suppliers by July 1, 2026, and annually thereafter. Under the bill, it is unlawful for an electric vehicle battery supplier to sell, lease, or license any electric vehicle battery without first obtaining a certificate of compliance from the Commissioner, and a violation of this requirement constitutes a violation of the Virginia Consumer Protection Act.
Board of Wildlife Resources; trout-fishing access-site registry; income tax credit. Requires the Board of Wildlife Resources to establish and manage a trout-fishing access-site registry through which eligible landowners may register real property to allow valid fishing-license holders access to such property for the sole purpose of fishing trout. The bill authorizes such registrants to claim a nonrefundable income tax credit in the amount of $2,000 for each full tax year that such person had real property registered as a trout-fishing access site with the Board.
Marine Resources Commission; Virginia Institute of Marine Science; study of ecology, fishery impacts, and economic importance of Atlantic menhaden; report. Directs the Marine Resources Commission in collaboration with the Virginia Institute of Marine Science and certain stakeholders, as provided in the bill, to conduct a three-year study of the ecology, fishery impacts, and economic importance of the Atlantic menhaden population in the waters of the Commonwealth. The bill requires the Commission to provide a report on its findings and recommendations to the Chairmen of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources and the House Committee on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources and the Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources no later than October 1, 2028.
Erosion and sediment control for certain localities; bond for sediment basin. Limits the amount of the performance bond that an agency issuing a permit for a land-disturbing activity under the erosion and sediment control laws for certain localities can require when the final site plan includes a stormwater management facility that is built on top of a sediment basin or other sediment trap. The bill also sets a cap on the amount of the security that must be in the form of a letter of credit or cash required for performance for a sediment basin of 25 percent of the estimated cost.
Right to farm; minimum area requirements; animal husbandry practices. Changes the standards under the Right to Farm Act allowing a locality to adopt minimum area requirements for land on which any agriculture activity occurs by restricting a locality from adopting minimum area requirements for agricultural operations involving an animal inconsistent with and more restrictive than standard animal husbandry practices.
Transportation district commissions; contracts or agreements. Expands the localities and entities with which transportation district commissions may enter into contracts or agreements to provide transit facilities and services and other modes of transportation.
Signs or advertisements within the limits of a highway; civil penalty. Increases the civil penalty for placing advertisements and signs within the limits of any highway from $100 to $250 but retains the $100 civil penalty for identical signs and advertisements located within a 100-yard radius of a sign or advertisement for which the $250 civil penalty is imposed. The bill clarifies that when such signs and advertisements are removed, civil penalties may be collected in addition to the cost of removing such advertisements or signs.
Vehicle safety inspections; new motor vehicles. Extends from 12 months to 24 months the period for which a vehicle safety inspection is valid for new motor vehicles. The bill requires the fee for a 24-month inspection approval sticker to be double the price of a 12-month inspection approval sticker. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2026.
Animal-drawn vehicles; equipment requirements. Establishes certain equipment requirements for animal-drawn vehicles operating on the highways of the Commonwealth, including requirements for brake systems, tires and wheels, headlamps, reflectors, hazard lights, rearview mirrors, and horns. The bill replaces existing light and reflector requirements for animal-drawn vehicles under current law with such equipment requirements for headlamps, reflectors, and hazard lights.
Commercial fishing pier; public fishing pier owned by a political subdivision; exclusion. Excludes a political subdivision that operates a public fishing pier over or upon the subaqueous beds of the Commonwealth from commercial fishing pier licensing fees and permitting requirements.
