Transient occupancy tax; Arlington County. Removes the July 1, 2021, sunset date from Arlington County's authority to impose a transient occupancy tax at a rate not to exceed 0.25 percent to be used for the purpose of promoting tourism and business travel in the county. Under current law, in addition to this tax, Arlington County is authorized to impose a transient occupancy tax at a rate not to exceed five percent. This bill is identical to SB 107.
Department of Health; Department of Health Professions Medical Excellence Zone Program; telemedicine; reciprocal agreements. Directs the Department of Health to determine the feasibility of establishing a Medical Excellence Zone Program to allow citizens of the Commonwealth living in rural underserved areas to receive medical treatment via telemedicine services from providers licensed or registered in a state that is contiguous with the Commonwealth and directs the Department of Health Professions to pursue reciprocal agreements with such states for licensure for certain primary care practitioners licensed by the Board of Medicine. The bill requires the Department of Health to set out the criteria that would be required for a locality or group of localities in the Commonwealth to be eligible for the designation as a medical excellence zone and report its findings to the Senate Committee on Education and Health and the House Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions by November 1, 2020. The bill states that reciprocal agreements with states that are contiguous with the Commonwealth for the licensure of doctors of medicine, doctors of osteopathic medicine, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners shall only require that a person hold a current, unrestricted license in the other jurisdiction and that no grounds exist for denial based on the acts of unprofessional conduct. The Department of Health Professions is required to report on its progress in establishing such agreements to the Senate Committee on Education and Health and the House Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions by November 1, 2020. The bill requires the Board of Medicine to prioritize applications for licensure by endorsement as a doctor of medicine or osteopathic medicine, a physician assistant, or a nurse practitioner from such states through a streamlined process with a final determination regarding qualification to be made within 20 days of the receipt of a completed application. This bill is identical to HB 1701.
Employee misclassification; retaliatory actions prohibited; civil penalty. Prohibits an employer from discharging, disciplining, threatening, discriminating against, or penalizing an employee or independent contractor because the employee or independent contractor reported or plans to report that an employer or any officer or agent has failed to properly classify an individual as an employee and failed to pay required benefits or other contributions. The measure also prohibits such actions against an employee or independent contractor who is requested or subpoenaed by an appropriate authority to participate in an investigation, hearing, or inquiry by an appropriate authority or in a court action. These prohibitions apply only if an employee or independent contractor acts in good faith and upon a reasonable belief that the information is accurate. The measure authorizes the Commissioner of Labor and Industry to institute proceedings against an employer who has taken such prohibited retaliatory action. Available remedies include reinstatement of the employee and recovery of lost wages. An employer that violates these provisions is subject to a civil penalty equal to the employee's lost wages. This bill is identical to SB 662.
Organ, eye, or tissue transplantation; discrimination prohibited. Provides that an individual who is a candidate to receive an anatomical gift for organ, eye, or tissue transplantation and who is otherwise eligible to receive such gift shall not be deemed ineligible to receive an anatomical gift or denied services related to organ, eye, or tissue transplantation solely because of his physical, intellectual, developmental, or other disability. The bill also prohibits each insurer proposing to issue individual or group accident and sickness insurance policies providing hospital, medical and surgical, or major medical coverage on an expense-incurred basis; each corporation providing individual or group accident and sickness subscription contracts; and each health maintenance organization providing a health care plan for health care services, whose policy, contract, or plan, including any certificate or evidence of coverage issued in connection with such policy, contract, or plan, includes coverage for services related to organ, eye, or tissue transplantation, including referral to a transplant center or specialist, inclusion on an organ, eye, or tissue transplantation waiting list, evaluation, surgery and related health care services, counseling, and post-transplantation treatment and services, from (i) denying coverage to a covered person solely on the basis of the person's disability; (ii) denying a person eligibility or continued eligibility to enroll or to renew coverage under the policy, contract, or plan for the purpose of avoiding the requirements of the bill; (iii) penalizing a health care provider, reducing or limiting the reimbursement of a health care provider, or providing monetary or nonmonetary incentives to a health care provider to induce such health care provider to act in a manner inconsistent with the requirements of the bill; or (iv) reducing or limiting coverage for services related to organ, eye, or tissue transplantation, including referral to a transplant center or specialist, inclusion on an organ, eye, or tissue transplantation waiting list, evaluation, surgery and related health care services, counseling, and post-transplantation treatment and services. The bill applies to any such policy, contract, or plan delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed in the Commonwealth on and after January 1, 2021. This bill is identical to HB 1273.
Nonpayment of wages; investigations. Authorizes the Commissioner of Labor and Industry, if he acquires information during an investigation of a complaint of an employer's failure or refusal to pay wages and that information creates a reasonable belief that other employees of the same employer may not have been paid wages, to investigate whether the employer has failed or refused to make a required payment of wages to other employees. The measure also provides that if the Commissioner finds in the course of such investigation that the employer has committed a violation, the Commissioner may institute proceedings on behalf of any employee against his employer. In such proceedings, the Commissioner is not required to have obtained a written complaint of the violation or the written and signed consent of any employee. This bill is identical to HB 336.
Marriage records; divorce and annulment reports; identification of race. Eliminates the requirement that the race of married parties be included in marriage records, divorce reports, and annulment reports filed with the State Registrar. The bill also removes the requirement that the State Registrar include race data in the compilation and posting of marriage, divorce, and annulment data. This bill is identical to HB 180 and SB 62.
Misclassification of workers; cause of action. Authorizes an individual who has not been properly classified as an employee to bring a civil action for damages against his employer for failing to properly classify the employee if the employer had knowledge of the individual's misclassification. The court may award damages in the amount of any wages, salary, employment benefits, including expenses incurred by the employee that would otherwise have been covered by insurance, or other compensation lost to the individual, a reasonable attorney fee, and the costs incurred by the employee in bringing the action. The measure provides that an individual who performs services for a person for remuneration shall be presumed to be an employee unless it is shown that the individual is an independent contractor as determined under the Internal Revenue Service guidelines. This bill is identical to SB 894.
Organ, eye, or tissue transplantation; discrimination prohibited. Provides that an individual who is a candidate to receive an anatomical gift for organ, eye, or tissue transplantation and who is otherwise eligible to receive such gift shall not be deemed ineligible to receive an anatomical gift or denied services related to organ, eye, or tissue transplantation solely because of his physical, intellectual, developmental, or other disability. The bill also prohibits each insurer proposing to issue individual or group accident and sickness insurance policies providing hospital, medical and surgical, or major medical coverage on an expense-incurred basis; each corporation providing individual or group accident and sickness subscription contracts; and each health maintenance organization providing a health care plan for health care services, whose policy, contract, or plan, including any certificate or evidence of coverage issued in connection with such policy, contract, or plan, includes coverage for services related to organ, eye, or tissue transplantation, including referral to a transplant center or specialist, inclusion on an organ, eye, or tissue transplantation waiting list, evaluation, surgery and related health care services, counseling, and post-transplantation treatment and services, from (i) denying coverage to a covered person solely on the basis of the person's disability; (ii) denying a person eligibility or continued eligibility to enroll or to renew coverage under the policy, contract, or plan for the purpose of avoiding the requirements of the bill; (iii) penalizing a health care provider, reducing or limiting the reimbursement of a health care provider, or providing monetary or nonmonetary incentives to a health care provider to induce such health care provider to act in a manner inconsistent with the requirements of the bill; or (iv) reducing or limiting coverage for services related to organ, eye, or tissue transplantation, including referral to a transplant center or specialist, inclusion on an organ, eye, or tissue transplantation waiting list, evaluation, surgery and related health care services, counseling, and post-transplantation treatment and services. The bill applies to any such policy, contract, or plan delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed in the Commonwealth on and after January 1, 2021. This bill is identical to SB 846.
Records of marriages; identification of race. Eliminates the requirement that the race of married parties be included in marriage records, divorce reports, and annulment reports filed with the State Registrar. The bill also removes the requirement that the State Registrar include race data in the compilation and posting of marriage, divorce, and annulment data. This bill incorporates HB 141, HB 1158, and HB 1425 and is identical to SB 62 and SB 1066.
Comprehensive harm reduction programs; public health emergency; repeal sunset. Repeals the sunset on the program established in 2017 that allows the Commissioner of Health to establish and operate local or regional comprehensive harm reduction programs during a declared public health emergency that include a provision for the distribution of sterile hypodermic needles and syringes and the disposal of used hypodermic needles and syringes. This bill is identical to SB 864.
Holding handheld personal communications devices whiledriving a motor vehicle. Prohibits any person from holding a handheldpersonal communications device while driving a motor vehicle. Current lawprohibits (i) the reading of any email or text message and manually enteringletters or text in such a device as a means of communicating and (ii) holding apersonal communications device while driving in a work zone. The bill expandsthe exemptions to include handheld personal communications devices that arebeing held and used (a) as an amateur radio or a citizens band radio or (b) forofficial Department of Transportation or traffic incident management services.The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2021. This billincorporates HB 377, HB 387, HB 512, and HB 1672 and is identical to SB 160.
Unemployment compensation; leaving employmentto follow military spouse. Repeals the sunset provision on thecurrent statutory provision that provides that good cause for leaving employment exists if an employee voluntarily leaves a job to accompanythe employee's spouse, who is on active duty in the military or navalservices of the United States, to a new military-related assignmentestablished pursuant to a permanent change of duty order from whichthe employee's place of employment is not reasonably accessible.This provision will presently expire on December 31, 2020.
