Virginia taxable income; standard deduction.Removes the sunset on elevated standard deduction amounts for single individuals and married persons that was scheduled to expirefor taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2026.
Property Owners' Association Act; managed conservation landscaping; unreasonable restrictions prohibited. Provides thatno association shall prohibit an owner from installing managed conservation landscaping, defined in the bill, upon such owner's property unlesssuch prohibition was recorded in the declaration for the association.The bill allows associations to establish reasonable restrictionsconcerning the management, design, and aesthetic guidelines for managedconservation landscaping features.
Office of the Children's Ombudsman; powers.Grants the Children's Ombudsman with regard to children receivingchild-protective services, in foster care, or placed for adoptionand children who may have died as a result of alleged abuse or neglectthe power to directly oversee local departments of social services,reverse the decisions of local departments of social services, andpetition a court to reverse any custody or visitation changes madeas a result of the error of a local department of social services.
Virginia Retirement System; additional servicecredit. Allows an individual who serves concurrently as a full-time primary or secondary school teacher and as a full-time school busdriver to receive additional service credit in the Virginia RetirementSystem for providing such services. The bill specifies that the amount of credit allowable shall be equivalent to the amount of creditthat the individual would earn if he were employed only as a full-timeschool bus driver.
Towing; registration for tow truck drivers;Driver Authorization Document; penalty. Requires tow truck drivers,prior to registration or the first renewal on or after January 1,2025, with the Department of Criminal Justice Services, to obtaina Driver Authorization Document, for which such drivers must take instructional courses, the requirements for which are set forth inthe bill, and complete a drug test. The bill has a delayed effectivedate of January 1, 2025.
Photo speed monitoring devices; location.Authorizes the governing body of any county, city, or town to provideby ordinance for the placement and operation of photo speed monitoringdevices on any highway in such locality with a speed limit of 45 milesper hour or less that is located in a priority pedestrian corridoras identified by the Department of Transportation in the statewidePedestrian Safety Action Plan or other high-risk pedestrian corridoras designated by the Commissioner of Highways for the purposes ofrecording violations resulting from the operation of a vehicle inexcess of the speed limit. The bill provides the same requirementsfor such devices, information collected from such devices, and any enforcement actions resulting from information collected from suchdevices as current law applies to the use of such devices in schoolcrossing zones and highway work zones. The bill requires that twosigns, rather than one, be placed warning of such device if the deviceis placed somewhere other than a school crossing zone or highwaywork zone.
Income tax subtraction; state police retirementbenefits. Establishes an income tax subtraction for up to $10,000of state police retirement benefits in taxable year 2024 and eachyear thereafter. The bill defines state police retirement benefitsto include retirement income received by a Virginia State Policeofficer who is at least 55 years of age and benefits paid to thesurviving spouse of such officer whose death occurred in the lineof duty.
Department of Medical Assistance Services; Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services; 1915(c) Home and Community-Based Services Medicaid Waivers; state plan amendments; program rule modifications. Directs the Department of Medical Assistance Services and the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services to seek to modify the program rules for certain 1915(c) Home and Community-Based Services Medicaid Waivers to eliminate the requirement that in order for a legally responsible individual to receive reimbursement for personal care services, no one else be available to provide such services to the Medicaid member. This bill was incorporated into HB 1318.
Department of Housing and Community Development;Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; Manufactured Home LotRental Act; notice of tenant screening criteria. Requires landlordsgoverned by the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act or ManufacturedHome Lot Rental Act to provide applicants for tenancy with (i) theamount and purpose of fees to be charged to such applicant, (ii) information that will be used to assess such applicant's eligibilityfor tenancy, and (iii) any criteria that may result in automatic denialof an application. The bill requires such landlords to notify applicantsof certain rights protected by the federal Fair Credit ReportingAct prior to performing any background, credit, or other pre-occupancycheck on such applicants. Finally, the bill requires the Directorof the Department of Housing and Community Development to developa sample notice of tenant screening criteria and a standardized statementregarding an applicant's rights protected by the federal Fair CreditReporting Act and to make such sample notice and statement availableon the Department's website.
Virginia Housing Trust Fund; eligibility. Expands eligibility for loans from the Virginia Housing Trust Fund to include low, moderate, or middle income persons and families and requires the Department of Housing and Community Development to (i) include definitions for such income levels in program guidelines for administering the Fund and (ii) prioritize funding for low income and middle income housing projects in program guidelines for administering the Fund. Under current law, such loans may be provided only to low or moderate income citizens of Virginia.
Department of Medical Assistance Services; Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services; Medicaid Waivers; program rule modifications. Directs the Department of Medical Assistance Services and the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services to modify the program rules for certain Medicaid waivers to eliminate the requirement that certain visits for individuals enrolled in Family and Individual Support Waivers, Community Living Waivers, Building Independence Waivers, and CCC Plus Waivers be conducted face-to-face.
Certified nursing facilities; administrative sanctions; facilities subject to minimum standards. Amends the administrative sanctions that may be imposed on certified nursing facilities in relation to compliance with staffing requirements. The bill directs the State Health Commissioner, in determining whether or not to impose sanctions, to make the determination of whether a certified nursing facility was located in a medically underserved area that severely limited the ability of the certified nursing facility to recruit and retain direct care staff. The bill requires nursing facilities subject to a corrective action plan to demonstrate compliance with the corrective action plan on a quarterly basis. Under the bill, in determining whether a corrective action plan is needed, the Commissioner shall consider certain evidence of direct care staff hours, unless the facility has had a change in ownership. The bill changes from three to two the number of corrective action plans after which, if a a certified nursing facility fails to show compliance or improvement, the Commissioner may place the facility on probation. The bill also includes all nursing homes eligible to receive Medicaid reimbursement for residents in the list of facilities subject to minimum standards for (i) construction and maintenance; (ii) operation, staffing, and equipping; and (iii) the qualifications and training of staff. The bill changes the effective date of certain provisions passed in the 2023 Session of the General Assembly relating to staffing requirements for certified nursing facilities from July 1, 2025, to July 1, 2024.
