Department of General Services; point-basedprogram for prime contractors. Provides that when an awardedcontract includes a small business subcontracting plan, the primecontractor shall be required to report compliance with its smallbusiness subcontracting plans using the Department of General Services'central electronic procurement system. The bill provides that beforefinal payment is made, the purchasing agency shall confirm that theprime contractor certified compliance with the contract's small businesssubcontracting plan; that contracts and renewals shall include aprovision allowing final payment to be withheld until the prime contractorcomplies with its small business subcontracting plan; and that priorto entering into a new contract or renewing a contract with a primecontractor, a purchasing agency shall review a contractor's recordof compliance, and such compliance shall be considered in the prospectiveaward or renewal of any future contracts with the prime contractor.The bill requires the Department of General Services to create areport within the central electronic procurement system to enable cross-agency transparency into a contractor's record of compliancewith small business subcontracting plan requirements. The bill containstechnical amendments.
Magistrates; appointment and supervision.Gives supervisory control over the magistrate system to the chiefcircuit court judge and the Committee on District Courts and abolishesmagisterial regions. Under current law, the Executive Secretary ofthe Virginia Supreme Court exercises such authority with a provisionfor consultation with the chief judges of the circuit courts in theregion where the appointment is made.
Constitutional amendment (second reference); qualifications of voters and the right to vote; persons not entitled to vote. Provides that every person who meets the qualifications of voters set forth in the Constitution shall have the fundamental right to vote in the Commonwealth and that such right shall not be abridged by law, except for persons who have been convicted of a felony and persons who have been adjudicated to lack the capacity to understand the act of voting. A person who has been convicted of a felony shall not be entitled to vote during any period of incarceration for such felony conviction but upon release from incarceration for that felony conviction and without further action required of him, such person shall be invested with all political rights, including the right to vote. Currently, in order to be qualified to vote a person convicted of a felony must have his civil rights restored by the Governor or other appropriate authority. The amendment also provides that a person adjudicated by a court of competent jurisdiction as lacking the capacity to understand the act of voting shall not be entitled to vote during this period of incapacity until his capacity has been reestablished as prescribed by law. Currently, the Constitution provides that a person who has been adjudicated to be mentally incompetent is not qualified to vote until his competency is reestablished.
Income tax; geothermal tax credit. Establishes an individual income tax credit for taxable years 2023 through 2027 for qualified expenditures related to a geothermal system placed in service at a residence in a tobacco region locality. The bill provides that the geothermal tax credit amount is the lesser of $7,500 or 25 percent of qualified expenditures. The aggregate annual limit on such credits is $1 million. The bill directs the Department of Energy to evaluate whether a person's geothermal system complies with statutory and regulatory standards and to issue a certification for a compliant system to be attached to a person's income tax return in order to claim the geothermal tax credit. The bill reduces from 50 percent to 25 percent the portion of Master Settlement Agreement funds that accrue to the Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Fund and allocates 25 percent of such funds to cover the revenue loss attributable to the credit created by the bill. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2023.
Constitutional amendment (second reference);marriage; repeal of same-sex marriage prohibition; affirmative rightto marry. Repeals the constitutional provision defining marriageas only a union between one man and one woman as well as the relatedprovisions that are no longer valid as a result of the United StatesSupreme Court decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, 576 U.S. 644 (2015). The amendment provides that the right to marry is a fundamental right inherent in the liberty of persons and requires the Commonwealthand its political subdivisions and agents to issue marriage licenses,recognize marriages, and treat all marriages equally under the law,regardless of the sex or gender of the parties to the marriage. Religiousorganizations and clergy acting in their religious capacity havethe right to refuse to perform any marriage.
Retail Small Business Grant Program and Fund.Establishes the Retail Small Business Grant Program and Fund to supportexisting Virginia small businesses, attract new businesses, increasethe Commonwealth's tax base, create new job opportunities for Virginiaresidents, and enhance commercial activity in Virginia. The billprovides that an eligible Virginia small business, defined in thebill, is eligible for grants of up to $50,000. The total amount ofgrants awarded in a fiscal year is capped at $10 million.
Professions and occupations; proof of identity.Replaces the requirement for proof of citizenship to obtain a license,certificate, registration, or other authorization issued by the Commonwealthto engage in a business, trade, profession, or occupation with arequirement to provide proof of identity. The bill contains technicalamendments.
Tax credit for parents of stillborn child.Establishes a refundable income tax credit for individual filersor married persons filing jointly for taxable years on and afterJanuary 1, 2022, but before January 1, 2027, in an amount equal to$2,000 for each birth for which a Virginia certificate of birth resultingin stillbirth has been issued. The credit may be claimed only inthe taxable year in which the stillbirth occurred and only if thechild would have become a dependent of the taxpayer.
Stay of debt collection activities by health care providers; prohibited practice under Virginia Consumer Protection Act. Provides that any health care provider that undertakes any debt collection activities prior to either the issuance of an award from or the determination that a claim is noncompensable by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Fund has committed a prohibited practice under the Virginia Consumer Protection Act.
Department of Education; local school boards; instruction on climate change. Requires the Department of Education, in collaboration with environmental groups and other relevant state agencies such as the Department of Environmental Quality and the Department of Health and to assist local school boards in the implementation of programs of instruction that comply with the requirements relating to the Standards of Learning, specifically relating to citizenship and environmental issues and geography necessary for responsible participation in American society and the international community, to develop, no later than July 1, 2023, an interdisciplinary program of instruction on the causes of and potential solutions for climate change. The bill requires each local school board to incorporate, during the 2024%962025 school year, such program of instruction into curricula and instruction in the local school division in each core academic subject area at the grade levels that it deems most appropriate. The bill requires the Department of Education to implement and oversee a one-year pilot program to provide training and technical assistance to a diverse cross section of local school boards to implement such program of instruction in the local school division during the intervening 2023–2024 school year between the development and full local implementation of such program of instruction.
Income tax credit; employers of G3 Program orcybersecurity graduates. Creates a nonrefundable individual andcorporate income tax credit for employers that hire eligible employeeswho are (i) graduates of the Get Skilled, Get a Job, Give Back Program(G3 Program) or (ii) graduates with a degree in cybersecurity froma Virginia four-year institution of higher education. The creditis available for taxable years 2022 through 2026, is equal to $1,000per eligible employee hired during the taxable year who works ina full-time position, and includes an aggregate annual cap of $5million.
New Economy Workforce Credential Grant Program;eligible institutions; maximum reimbursement per completed noncreditworkforce training program. Increases from $3,000 to $4,000 themaximum amount that the State Council of Higher Education for Virginiais permitted to reimburse to an eligible institution per completednoncredit workforce training program per eligible student pursuantto the New Economy Workforce Credential Grant Program.
