Local review of zoning decisions. Clarifiesthat a locality may schedule regular reviews of previous zoning decisionsin order to determine whether provisions of the zoning ordinance(i) continue to meet the general purpose of promoting the health,safety, or general welfare of the public and (ii) are compatiblewith changes in land use patterns.
Health insurance; denial of referral by directprimary care provider prohibited. Prohibits a health insurancecarrier from (i) denying payment for any health care service coveredunder an enrollee's health benefit plan based solely on the basisthat such enrollee's referral was made by a direct primary care provideror (ii) imposing a cost-sharing requirement greater than the applicablecost-sharing requirement that would apply to the same health careservice if the service was referred by a participating provider.The bill provides that a health insurance carrier may require a directprimary care provider to provide information demonstrating that suchprovider has entered into a direct primary care agreement with theenrollee.
Virginia Retirement System; enhanced retirementbenefits for 911 dispatchers. Allows local governments to provideenhanced retirement benefits for hazardous duty service to full-time salaried 911 dispatchers. The bill provides that such enhanced retirementbenefits apply only to service earned as a full-time salaried 911dispatcher on or after July 1, 2025, but allows an employer, as thatterm is defined in relevant law, to provide such enhanced retirement benefits for service earned as a full-time salaried 911 dispatcherbefore July 1, 2025, in addition to service earned on or after thatdate. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2025.
Local prohibition or regulation of gas-poweredleaf blowers; civil penalty. Provides that any locality may byordinance prohibit or regulate the use of gas-powered leaf blowers.The bill provides that the ordinance may include provisions for acivil penalty and that the funds from such civil penalties may beused by the locality to assist with the purchase of nonprohibitedleaf blowers by residents and local businesses.
Securities Act; digital tokens; exemption.Provides that an issuer or seller of a digital token, as definedin the bill, shall be exempt from the registration requirements ofthe Securities Act if (i) the digital token cannot be consideredan investment contract, as defined in the bill; (ii) the primarypurpose of the token is consumptive, as defined in the bill; (iii)the issuer or seller of the digital token did not market the digitaltoken to the initial buyer as a financial investment; and (iv) atleast one of four additional criteria are satisfied. The bill requiresan issuer or seller of a digital token to file a notice of intentwith the State Corporation Commission prior to qualifying for suchexemption. The bill also requires the Commission to make a noticeof intent form available on its website for this purpose and permitsthe Commission to promulgate rules as necessary to implement theprovisions of the bill.
Virginia Alcohol Safety Action Program; fee.Raises from $300 to $350 the maximum fee that may be charged to aperson required by the court to enter the Virginia Alcohol SafetyAction Program upon conviction of certain offenses related to drivinga motor vehicle or commercial vehicle while intoxicated, operatinga boat while intoxicated, or refusing to have samples of breath taken for chemical tests to determine alcohol content of blood.
Workers' compensation; presumption of compensabilityof infertility for firefighters. Provides that firefighters whosuffer from infertility are presumed to have developed infertilityduring the course and scope of employment as a firefighter in certaininstances. The bill provides that such infertility is compensableunder the Virginia Workers' Compensation Act if diagnosed by a medicalprofessional and that such compensation may include medical treatment,temporary total incapacity benefits, and temporary partial incapacitybenefits for a maximum period of 52 weeks from the date of diagnosis.The bill also requires each employer of firefighters to refer a firefighterseeking infertility health care services to a licensed medical professionalafter January 1, 2025.
Guardianship and conservatorship; duties andpowers of guardian and conservator; self-dealing prohibited.Provides that a guardian and conservator shall avoid all conflictsof interest and self-dealing, including all appearances of conflictsof interest and self-dealing, when addressing the needs of the incapacitatedperson to whom the guardian or conservator owes a fiduciary duty.The bill provides that a conflict of interest arises when the guardianor conservator has a personal or agency interest that can be perceivedas self-serving or adverse to the position or best interest of theincapacitated person, and self-dealing arises when the guardian orconservator seeks to take advantage of his position as guardian or conservator and acts for his own interests rather than for the interestsof the incapacitated person. The bill further provides that anysale or transaction that constitutes self-dealing shall be voidableby the court.
Pilot program for underground transmission lines; qualifying projects. Increases the maximum capacity of qualifying electrical transmission lines, for purposes of the pilot projectfor underground transmission lines, from 230 kilovolts to 500 kilovolts.The bill provides that the State Corporation Commission shall approveadditional qualifying projects as part of the pilot program thattraverse along highways in developed areas where the route of proposedtransmission lines and towers traverse areas protected by a sceniceasement, view shed easement, areas of registered historic designation,or areas of conservation easements. Under the bill, existing requirementsfor qualifying projects shall continue to apply to such new categoryof qualifying projects.
Virginia Retirement System; enhanced retirementbenefits for 911 dispatchers. Allows local governments to provideenhanced retirement benefits for hazardous duty service to full-time salaried 911 dispatchers. The bill provides that such enhanced retirementbenefits apply only to service earned as a full-time salaried 911dispatcher on or after July 1, 2025, but allows an employer, as thatterm is defined in relevant law, to provide such enhanced retirement benefits for service earned as a full-time salaried 911 dispatcherbefore July 1, 2025, in addition to service earned on or after thatdate. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2025.
Division of Early Childhood Care and Education; Department of Education; comprehensive review of certain findingsand recommendations relating to the quality of early childhood careand education in the Commonwealth; report. Requires the Division of Early Childhood Care and Education of the Departmentof Education, in consultation with the Virginia Early Childhood Foundationand such other stakeholders as it deems appropriate, to (i) conducta comprehensive review of the findings and recommendations containedin the 2017 report of the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission,Improving Virginia's Early Childhood Development Programs, to determine what barriers, gaps, and deficiencies continue to existin the provision of high-quality early childhood education and carein the Commonwealth, with a particular focus on gaps and deficienciesin the ongoing monitoring of Virginia Preschool Initiative programquality, including the collection and analysis of data relating tooutcomes and kindergarten readiness, and (ii) report its findingsand any associated policy recommendations to the Board of Education,the Governor, and the General Assembly no later than November 1,2024.
Electric utilities; data center demand; allocationof costs among customer classes. Directs the State CorporationCommission to ensure that any plan, petition, or proposal from autility to meet demand associated with data centers considers generation,transmission, and distribution system costs so as to meet such demandat the lowest aggregate reasonable cost. The bill also directs theCommission to initiate a proceeding, on or before December 31, 2024,(i) to determine if the current allocation of costs among customersand the different classifications of customers of electric utilitiesresults in customers that are data centers receiving unreasonablesubsidies from other customers or classifications of customers and (ii) if it determines unreasonable subsidies exist, to amend suchallocation of costs.
