Virginia Self-Service Storage Act. Permits a rental agreement for a leased self-service storage space to be delivered and accepted electronically. The bill permits a rental agreement to contain statements that the rental agreement is deemed accepted by the owner where the owner accepts rent or where the occupant accepts possession or delivers rent. Finally, the bill permits towing of any abandoned, immobilized, unattended, or trespassing vehicles or watercraft that are not authorized to be at the self-service storage facility.
Virginia Petroleum Products Franchise Act; agreements between jobber/distributors and dealers; market valuation study. Provides that a term of an initial agreement between a jobber/distributor and a dealer relating to specific marketing premises shall not be less than one year and that the term of all subsequent agreements between the jobber/distributor and the dealer relating to the same marketing premises shall not be for less than three years. The bill provides that rental provisions in any such agreement or franchise shall be based on commercially fair and reasonable standards at a fair market value of the leased marketing premises under an objectively reasonable analysis, uniformly applied to all similarly situated dealers of the same jobber/distributor in the same geographic area. If a dealer believes the terms of the agreement offered do not meet a fair market value, such dealer may hire, at his expense, an independent third-party appraisal company from a list of appraisal companies provided by the jobber/distributor to provide a market valuation study. The bill provides that such study shall (i) be for informational purposes only, (ii) not require either party to disclose confidential business information, and (iii) not bind either party. The provisions of the bill apply to Planning District 8 and to initial franchise agreements and renewals of franchise agreements entered into after July 1, 2024. This bill is identical to HB 392.
Annual retail sales and use tax holiday. Establishes an annual retail sales and use tax holiday that takes place on the first full weekend in August beginning on July 1, 2025, through July 1, 2030. During such weekend, state retail sales and use tax will not apply to certain (i) school supplies, (ii) clothing and footwear, (iii) qualified products designated as Energy Star or WaterSense, (iv) portable generators, or (v) hurricane preparedness equipment. This bill is identical to HB 25.
Barrier crimes; adult substance abuse and mental health services; exception. Permits the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, providers of substance abuse or mental health services to adults, and community services boards and behavioral health authorities to hire applicants convicted of certain barrier crimes of misdemeanor assault and battery or involving controlled substances without additional screening or other requirements, provided that such conviction occurred more than five years prior to the application date for employment.
Eastern Virginia Groundwater Management Area;continued residential withdrawals. Directs the State Water ControlBoard to waive the expiration of any ground water withdrawal permitfor a well that serves exclusively residential users, is locatedin the Eastern Virginia Groundwater Management Area north of theOccoquan River, and is located within five miles of any commercialor industrial permitted ground water withdrawal. The bill providesthat such waiver shall continue in force until the commercial orindustrial permitted ground water withdrawals have been halted forfive years. The Department of Environmental Quality shall then assesswhether the termination of the commercial or industrial permittedground water withdrawals has substantially mitigated the stress uponthe aquifer and redetermine whether the permit for the residentialwell shall be renewed.
Deferred or installment payment agreements; certain benefits. Provides that in any case in which a defendant owes fines and costs and where such defendant's sole financial resource is a Social Security benefit or Supplemental Security Income, such defendant shall be exempt from making payments until he has another source of income and, if such defendant notifies the court that his sole financial resource is a Social Security benefit or Supplemental Security Income, the case shall not be referred to collections. The bill also prohibits a Social Security benefit or Supplemental Security Income from being considered an available resource in determining the length of time to pay under a deferred, modified deferred, or installment payment agreement and the amount of payments, if any. This bill is identical to HB 896.
Temporary detention order; alternative transportation. Provides that when a magistrate is determining whether an alternative transportation provider is available for the purposes of designating a transportation provider for the transportation of a person who is the subject of a temporary detention order, an alternative transportation provider shall be deemed available if the provider states that it is available to take custody of the person from law enforcement within six hours of issuance of the temporary detention order or an order changing the transportation provider.The bill also provides that if (i) no alternative transportation provider is available to provide transportation, willing to provide transportation, and able to provide transportation in a safe manner or (ii) the law-enforcement agency elects to provide transportation, the magistrate shall designate the primary law-enforcement agency and jurisdiction designated to execute the temporary detention order to provide transportation of the person. This bill is identical to HB 823.
Board of Accountancy; powers and duties. Repeals the requirement for an annual audit of the Board of Accountancy and amends several Code provisions relating to the Board. The bill changes the Secretariat of the Board from the Secretary of Commerce and Trade to the Secretary of Finance. The bill authorizes the Board to initiate complaints against (i) individuals or firms claiming to hold a Virginia license, as defined in the bill, and (ii) unlicensed individuals or firms using the certified public accountant title in Virginia, as defined in the bill. The bill also grants the Executive Director of the Board the power to request and receive reports from the Central Criminal Records Exchange in conjunction with the Executive Director's investigative and enforcement powers. Finally, the bill directs the Board to adopt emergency regulations to implement the provisions of the bill. This bill is identical to SB 463.
Parental admission of minors for inpatient treatment. Clarifies that for the purposes of admission of a minor to a willing mental health facility for inpatient treatment, the finding required to be made by a qualified evaluator that the minor appears to have a mental illness serious enough to warrant inpatient treatment may include a finding of substance abuse and such inpatient treatment may be related to such mental illness, which may include substance abuse. The bill also specifies that a temporary detention order shall not be required for a minor 14 years of age or older who objects to admission to be admitted to a willing facility upon the application of a parent. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the Virginia Commission on Youth. This bill is identical to HB 772.
Public school staffing ratios; teachers; Englishlanguage learner students. Requires state funding to be providedpursuant to the general appropriation act to support divisionwideratios of English language learner students in average daily membershipto full-time equivalent teaching positions as follows: (i) for eachEnglish language learner identified as proficiency level one or two,one position per 20 students; (ii) for each English language learneridentified as proficiency level three or four, one position per 40 students; and (iii) for each English language learner identifiedas proficiency level five or in monitor status, one position per100 students. Current law requires state funding to be provided pursuantto the general appropriation act to support one such teaching positionper 50 English language learner students, regardless of the identifiedEnglish proficiency level of such students.
Family cemeteries; interment rights; proof of kinship. Allows a family member or descendant, as defined in the bill, of a deceased person buried in a family cemetery, also defined in the bill, that is located on private property to petition the circuit court of the county or city where the property is located for interment rights upon such property. The bill provides that such family member or descendant may prove kinship to the court through official documentation or nonofficial documentation, such as obituaries, family Bibles or other documents with family signatures, journals or letters of the deceased person interred on the private property, family photographs, or other documentation deemed by the court to be reliable.
Office of the State Inspector General; investigationsof abuse or neglect at state psychiatric hospitals; report. Directsthe Office of the State Inspector General to (i) develop a plan tofulfill its statutory obligation to fully investigate all complaintsit receives alleging abuse, neglect, or inadequate care at a statepsychiatric hospital and (ii) submit such plan to the Chairmen ofthe House Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions and the SenateCommittee on Education and Health by November 1, 2024. The bill alsorequires the Office to submit an annual report to the General Assemblyon or before November 15 of each year regarding the number of such complaints receivedand the number of complaints that were fully investigated by theOffice.
