Adds local probation officers to the list of persons among whom the medical and mental health information and records of any person committed to jail, and transferred to another correctional facility, may be exchanged.
Authorizes the Board of Corrections (Board) to establish minimum standards for health care services in local, regional, and community correctional facilities and procedures for enforcing such minimum standards, with the advice of and guidance from the Commissioner of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services and State Health Commissioner. The bill provides that (i) such standards shall require that each local, regional, and community correctional facility submit a standardized quarterly continuous improvement report documenting the delivery of health care services, along with any improvements made to those services, to the Board and (ii) such reports shall be available to the public on the Board's website. The bill also authorizes the Board to determine that a local, regional, or community correctional facility accredited by the American Correctional Association or National Commission on Correctional Health Care meets such minimum standards solely on the basis of such accreditation; however, without exception, the requirement to submit standardized quarterly continuous quality improvement reports shall be a mandatory minimum standard. This bill is a recommendation of the Joint Commission on Health Care. This bill is identical to
Establishes requirements for net energy metering by electric cooperatives effective upon the earlier of July 1, 2019, or the effective date of implementing regulations by the State Corporation Commission. Instances where the new net energy metering program's requirements differ from those of the existing program include (i) the cap on the capacity of generating facilities, which will initially be two percent of system peak for residential customers, two percent of system peak for not-for-profit and nonjurisdictional customers, and one percent of system peak for other nonresidential customers; (ii) authorizing an electric cooperative to raise these caps up to a cumulative total of seven percent of its system peak; (iii) legalizing third-party partial requirements power purchase agreements for those retail customers and nonjurisdictional customers of an electric cooperative that are exempt from federal income taxation; and (iv) establishing registration requirements for third-party partial requirements power purchase agreements, including a self-certification system under which a provider is required to affirm certain information to Commission staff, under penalty of revocation of its registration. The measure authorizes the board of directors of an electric cooperative to adjust its rates, terms, conditions, and rate schedules governing net energy metering and prohibits a cooperative after the date of such an adjustment from collecting stand-by charges. The measure authorizes an electric cooperative to adopt a new rate schedule or rider containing demand charges based upon a net energy metering customer's noncoincident peak demand and provides for alternative caps on its net energy metering program. The measure authorizes a cooperative's fixed monthly charge covering the fixed costs of owning and operating its electric distribution system as an alternative to volumetric charges associated with demand and to rebalance among any of the fixed monthly charge, distribution demand, and distribution energy charges. The measure authorizes an investor-owned utility participating in the pilot program for community solar development to move the Commission to make its pilot program permanent. The measure also requires Dominion Power to (a) convene a stakeholder process, using an independent facilitator, to make recommendations to the utility concerning issues related to the implementation of advanced metering technology and related investments in customer information systems; (b) submit to the Commission for approval retail rate schedules designed to offer time-varying pricing; and (c) submit to the Commission for approval an incentive program for the installation of solar equipment for customers served under time-varying retail rate schedules that have advanced-metering technology equipment.
Sets out sections in Title 15.2 that are currently carried by reference only. Locality descriptions are replaced with locality names, and various technical amendments are made. This bill is a recommendation of the Virginia Code Commission.
Requires the Department of General Services (DGS), the Virginia Information Technologies Agency (VITA), and the Office of the Attorney General, as appropriate, to review contract solicitations and contracts for any public contract with a state public body for goods, services, insurance, or construction that meets the definition of high-risk contract provided in the bill. The bill directs DGS and VITA to develop guidelines for state agencies to use when assigning staff to administer high-risk contracts and requires that such guidelines (i) provide that any staff designated as a contract administrator must have prior contract administration experience and (ii) direct an agency's chief procurement officer to communicate to such contract administrator, when he first assumes his role, his responsibilities for effectively administering the contract. Some provisions of the bill have a delayed effective date for implementation for certain high-risk contract review processes.
Approved by Governor-Chapter 604 (effective 7/1/19)
Authorizes Halifax County to impose an additional local sales and use tax at a rate not to exceed one percent, as determined by the governing body, if initiated by a resolution of the local governing body and approved by the voters at a referendum. The bill requires the governing body to specify in the enacting ordinance the time period, not to exceed 20 years, for which the tax would be imposed. Revenue from the tax shall be used solely for capital projects for new construction or major renovation of schools in Halifax County.
Eliminates the Virginia Department of Emergency Management's requirement to submit an annual Commonwealth Threat and Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment (C-THIRA) to the Governor and General Assembly. The bill also consolidates other additional annual reporting requirements into one annual tabulated report called the Virginia Comprehensive Emergency Management Report, which shall be submitted by the State Coordinator of Emergency Management to the Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security and the Chairmen of the Senate Committee on Finance, the Senate Committee for Courts of Justice, the House Committee on Appropriations, and the House Committee on Militia, Police and Public Safety by November 1 of each year.
Approved by Governor-Chapter 618 (effective 7/1/19)
Requires the State Corporation Commission to establish pilot programs under which Dominion Energy and Appalachian Power may submit a petition to provide or make available broadband capacity to nongovernmental Internet service providers in areas of the Commonwealth that are unserved by broadband. The costs of Dominion Power and Appalachian Power's proposals are each capped at $60 million annually. The provision of such broadband capacity is declared to be in the public interest. The measure authorizes the utilities to recover the net costs of the pilot program from customers through a rate adjustment clause. The measure authorizes such utility to own or lease broadband capacity equipment. The measure requires the Commission to conduct proceedings to determine whether an area is unserved by broadband.
Requires the Board of Education to waive the requirement that school divisions provide additional teaching days or teaching hours to compensate for school closings resulting from an evacuation directed and compelled by the Governor for up to five teaching days. The bill provides that there shall be no proportionate reduction in the amount paid by the Commonwealth from the Basic School Aid Fund or the amount paid by a local governing body. This bill is identical to
Directs the Board of Education to develop and submit to the Chairmen of the House Committee on Education and the Senate Committee on Education and Health no later than November 1, 2019, guidelines for local school boards to develop and implement a senior capstone project, portfolio, performance-based assessment, or structured experiment, in consultation with stakeholders representing a variety of local school divisions, industries, and education organizations, considering (i) the diversity of school divisions across the Commonwealth, (ii) the need for local flexibility, and (iii) the needs of communities and industries across the Commonwealth. The bill also directs the Board of Education, in establishing high school graduation requirements, to require students to complete a senior capstone project, portfolio, performance-based assessment, or structured experiment that relates to a work-based learning, service-learning, or community engagement activity and aligns with and further develops the knowledge and skills attained through such work-based learning, service-learning, or community engagement activity, provided, however, that such provisions shall not become effective unless reenacted by the 2020 Session of the General Assembly.
