Tangible personal property tax; indoor agriculture equipment and machinery. Specifies that farm machinery, farmequipment, and farm implements used by an indoor, closed, controlled-environmentcommercial agricultural facility are a class of farm machinery andfarm implements that a locality may exempt from personal property taxation.
Window tint; emergency vehicles. Authorizeswindow tinting on all emergency medical services vehicles and vehiclesused to fight fire, including publicly owned state forest wardenvehicles. Current law authorizes tinting on the rear and rear sidewindows of emergency medical services vehicles used to transportpatients.
Public high school students; civics benchmarkassessment. Requires the Board of Education to develop and makeavailable to each school board a civics benchmark assessment andrequires each school board to require each public high school student enrolled in the local school division, except in the case of a publichigh school student whose individualized education program indicatesotherwise, to take such assessment at least once during grades ninethrough 12. The bill requires the Board to annually report to theGovernor and the General Assembly the state-level and school division-levelstudent results on such benchmark assessment in order to aid decision-makingregarding any policy changes that may be necessary to improve studentlearning in civics.
Charter; City of Virginia Beach; board of equalization. Amends the charter for the City of Virginia Beach by expanding theboard of equalization from four members to five members and an alternate.
Health insurance; coverage for contraceptivedrugs and devices. Requires health insurance carriers to providecoverage, under any health insurance contract, policy, or plan that includes coverage for prescription drugs on an outpatient basis,for any contraceptive drug or contraceptive device, as defined inthe bill, available for purchase with or without a prescription.The bill prohibits a health insurance carrier from imposing uponany person receiving contraceptive benefits pursuant to the provisionsof the bill any copayment, coinsurance payment, or fee, except incertain circumstances. The provisions of the bill apply to healthinsurance contracts, policies, or plans delivered, issued for delivery,or renewed on and after January 1, 2025.
Department of Education; review physical accessibility challenges in public schools; report. Requires the Departmentof Education, in consultation with each school board, the VirginiaBoard for People with Disabilities, and such other stakeholders asit deems appropriate, to review the extent to which (i) public elementaryand secondary school buildings and grounds in the Commonwealth presentphysical accessibility challenges and barriers for individuals withdisabilities, including challenges and barriers that may preventsuch individuals from fully participating in school activities; (ii) such schools have begun or plan to address and eliminate such challengesand barriers; and (iii) state agencies can assist such schools toaddress and eliminate such challenges and barriers and fully complywith all applicable state and federal laws. The bill requires theDepartment of Education to report its findings and any associated recommendations to the Board, the Governor, the General Assembly,and each local school board no later than November 1, 2024.
Special license plates; CEDAR BLUFF POW/MIAMEMORIAL. Authorizes the issuance of special license plates forsupporters of the Cedar Bluff Overlook Park POW/MIA Memorial bearingthe legend CEDAR BLUFF POW/MIA MEMORIAL.
Local government; water-filled fire sprinklersystems. Permits a locality to allow the installation of automaticwater-filled or wet-pipe fire sprinkler systems in new townhome construction.The bill provides that such ordinance shall require the installationbe completed in compliance with standards, requirements, and specificationsfor the installation of an automatic water-filled or wet-pipe firesprinkler system as prescribed by the National Fire Protection Association'sNFPA 13, Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler Systems.An automatic water-filled or wet-pipe fire sprinkler system shallnot be required when additions or alterations are made to existingtownhomes that do not have an automatic residential fire sprinklersystem installed.
Department of Education; uniform system of disciplinefor disruptive student behavior. Requires the Department of Educationto establish, within its regulations governing student conduct, andeach school board to adhere to, a uniform system of discipline fordisruptive behavior and the removal of a student from a class that includes, among other things, (i) criteria for teachers to removedisruptive students from their classes, including a requirement fora teacher to remove a disruptive student from a class if the disruptivebehavior is violent and a requirement to implement a three-strikesystem for nonviolent disruptive behavior whereby a teacher is requiredto remove a student from a class if the student repeats or continuesthe nonviolent disruptive behavior after the teacher provides twowarnings to the student; (ii) a prohibition against holding a teacherliable for taking reasonable actions or utilizing reasonable methodsto control a physically disruptive or violently disruptive student; and (iii) appropriate exceptions and modifications for childrenwith disabilities based on the unique needs of each such student.
Electric vehicle charging equipment tax credit. Provides an income tax credit for the costs of installing electricvehicle charging equipment at a gas station. The credit shall extendfor five years once claimed. For the first year of the credit, theamount of the credit shall be 100 percent of the allowable costs,defined in the bill, which are incurred in the taxable year or $5,000,whichever is less. For the subsequent four years of the credit, theamount of the credit shall be one percent of the allowable costsincurred by the taxpayer in the taxable year.
Distribution of state sales and use tax basedon the population of cities and counties ages five to 19 and for the state's share of Standards of Quality basic aid payments.
Localities; liability for owning or operatingvehicle. Provides that in any case in which a locality is theowner of, or operator through medium of a driver of, or otherwiseis the insured under the policy upon a vehicle involved in an accident,or is self-insured, the defense of governmental immunity shall notbe a bar to action or recovery of damages arising from such accidentagainst such locality.
