Campaign finance; prohibited personal use of campaign funds; complaints, hearings, civil penalty, and advisory opinions. Prohibits any person from converting contributions to a candidate or his campaign committee to personal use. Current law only prohibits such conversion of contributions with regard to disbursement of surplus funds at the dissolution of a campaign or political committee. The bill provides that a contribution is considered to have been converted to personal use if the contribution, in whole or in part, is used to fulfill any commitment, obligation, or expense that would exist irrespective of the person's seeking, holding, or maintaining public office but allows a contribution to be used for the ordinary and accepted expenses related to campaigning for or holding elective office, including the use of campaign funds to pay for the candidate's child care expenses that are incurred as a direct result of campaign activity. The bill provides that any person subject to the personal use ban may request an advisory opinion from the State Board of Elections on such matters. The bill directs the State Board of Elections to adopt emergency regulations similar to those promulgated by the Federal Election Commission to implement the provisions of the bill and to publish an updated summary of Virginia campaign finance law that reflects the State Board of Elections' and Attorney General's guidance on the provisions of such law that prohibit the personal use of campaign funds and any new regulations promulgated by the State Board of Elections.
Broadband access in farmland and rural areas; information and reporting. Requires the Department of Housing and Community Development to create and maintain, in consultation with the Commonwealth Broadband Chief Advisor, the Broadband Advisory Council, and the Virginia Information Technologies Agency, an interactive tool or application to provide current information on connectivity and broadband access in rural areas of the Commonwealth and on farmland in the Commonwealth and permits such tool or application to be incorporated into the Department's website. The bill also directs the Department to, with the assistance of any necessary agencies of the Commonwealth, collect and incorporate information and data regarding connectivity and broadband access in rural areas and on farmland into such interactive tool or application and annually report to the Broadband Advisory Council any such information and data.
Dam Safety, Flood Prevention, and Protection Assistance Fund; percentage of funds available; owner match requirements. Reduces from 50 percent to 30 percent the project match required of applicants to receive funds from the Dam Safety, Flood Prevention, and Protection Assistance Fund for grants (i) to a local government that owns a dam, (ii) to a local government for a dam located within the locality, or (iii) to a private entity that owns a dam for the design, repair, and safety modifications of such a dam if it is identified in a safety report. The bill provides that grants made from the Fund to a local government or private entity for the determination of the hazard classification for impounding structures, dam break analysis, the mapping and digitization of dam break inundation zones, incremental damage analysis, and other engineering requirements shall require no more than a 10 percent match by the applicant except that such applicant shall be required to provide a minimum of $5,000 of the cost of the project, if funded, and such match provided by such applicant may be used to pay the application fees for the necessary impounding structure operation and maintenance certificate. The bill removes the 50 percent limit on matching grants that owners of impounding structures may be eligible for from the Fund and other sources of funding available to the Director of the Department of Conservation and Recreation to assist in the development of dam break inundation zone maps and for conducting incremental damage assessments in accordance with the Virginia Impounding Structure Regulations. The bill also removes the limitation that the total amount of expenditures for grants in any fiscal year are not to exceed 50 percent of the total noninterest or income deposits made to the Fund during the previous fiscal year together with the total amount collected in interest or income from the investment of moneys in the Fund from the previous year as determined at the beginning of the fiscal year.
Tangible personal property tax; classification; satellite equipment. Restricts the special classification for tangible personal property that is used in manufacturing, testing, or operating satellites within a Multicounty Transportation Improvement District to only such property placed in service before January 1, 2025. Such property may be taxed at a lower rate than is applied to other tangible personal property.
Short-term rentals; registration; civil penalty. Directs the Department of Taxation to establish a registry of short-term rental properties and require accommodations providers and intermediaries to register. Under the bill, an accommodations provider shall provide to the Department its name and the address of each property it offers for short-term rental. The bill states that the Department shall issue each such accommodations provider a unique numerical identifier for each such property. Furthermore, an accommodations intermediary shall provide the Department with its name and the contact information for the individual responsible for liaising with state and local officials regarding noncompliant short-term rental listings. The bill states that as a condition of listing a short-term rental on its platform, an accommodations intermediary shall require each accommodations provider to provide such provider's name and the unique numerical identifier and specific address for each short term-rental offered. Under the bill, such information, as well as information regarding receipts and taxes paid, shall be provided to the Department by the accommodations intermediary on a quarterly basis.The bill states that the Department shall provide the commissioner of the revenue for each locality with access to the registry and information contained therein. The commissioner of the revenue shall notify an accommodations intermediary of any short-term rental on its platform that is not lawfully authorized to be offered on its platform, and the accommodations intermediary shall remove any such listing from its platform. Under the bill, any accommodations intermediary who does not remove such a listing from its platform shall be subject to a civil penalty of $1,000, to be paid into the Virginia Housing Trust Fund.
Sage's Law; minor students experiencing gender incongruence; parental notification of certain expressions and requests and parental permission for certain plans required; parental care. Requires each public elementary or secondary school principal or his designee to (i) as soon as practicable, inform at least one parent of a minor student enrolled in such school if such minor (a) expresses to any individual who is employed in such school that such minor is experiencing gender incongruence, as defined in the bill, or (b) requests that any such employee participate in social affirmation of such minor's gender incongruence or the transition of such minor to a sex or gender different from the minor's biological sex while at school and (ii) request and receive permission from at least one parent of a minor student enrolled at such school prior to the implementation at such school of any plan concerning any gender incongruence experienced by such minor, including any counseling of such minor at school. Any such plan shall include provision for parental participation to the extent requested by the parent. The bill also clarifies, in the definition of the term "abused or neglected child," that in no event shall referring to and raising the child in a manner consistent with the child's biological sex, including related mental health or medical decisions, be considered abuse or neglect.
Juvenile and domestic relations district courts; appointment of counsel or guardian ad litem; removal or appeal. Specifies that any attorney appointed to represent a child or parent, guardian, or other adult at a hearing in the juvenile and domestic relations district court shall continue representation upon removal or appeal to the circuit court and upon the juvenile and domestic relations court being divested of the right to enter any further decrees or orders to determine custody, guardianship, visitation, or support. Under current law, such continued representation is discretionary upon appeal to the circuit court.
Paid family and medical leave insurance program; notice requirements; civil action. Requires the Virginia Employment Commission to establish and administer a paid family and medical leave insurance program with benefits beginning January 1, 2027. Under the program, benefits are paid to covered individuals, as defined in the bill, for family and medical leave. Funding for the program is provided through premiums assessed to employers and employees beginning January 1, 2026. The bill provides that the amount of a benefit is 80 percent of the employee's average weekly wage, not to exceed 80 percent of the state weekly wage, which amount is required to be adjusted annually to reflect changes in the statewide average weekly wage. The bill caps the duration of paid leave at 12 weeks in any application year and provides self-employed individuals the option of participating in the program.
Alert for missing or endangered children; VirginiaCritical Operation for a Disappeared Child Initiative (Codi) Alert Program. Creates a program for local, regional, or statewide notification of a missing or endangered child. The bill defines amissing or endangered child as a child (i) who is 17 years of ageor younger or is currently enrolled in a secondary school in theCommonwealth, regardless of age; (ii) whose whereabouts are unknown;and (iii) whose disappearance is under suspicious circumstances orposes a credible threat as determined by law enforcement to the safetyand health of the child and under such other circumstances as deemedappropriate by the Virginia State Police.
Nurse practitioners; patient care team provider; autonomous practice. Allows certain nurse practitioners to oversee patient care teams by changing "patient care team physician" to "patient care team provider." The bill defines "patient care team provider" as a patient care team physician, as defined in relevant law, or a nurse practitioner who meets certain requirements. The bill also lowers from five years to two years the amount of full-time clinical experience required before an advanced practice registered nurse may practice without a practice agreement.
Toll-relief programs; low-income residents.Requires the Department of Transportation to establish and administertoll-relief programs for low-income residents of any locality impactedby the presence of a toll facility in proximity to such locality,as determined by the Department.
Income tax subtraction; unlawful discrimination.Provides an income tax subtraction for any amount received by a claimantfor noneconomic damages as a result of unlawful discrimination, definedin the bill, for taxable years beginning on and after January 1,2024.
