Parental Choice Education Savings Accounts established.Permits the parents of qualified students, defined in the bill, to apply to the school division in which the qualified student residesfor a one-year, renewable Parental Choice Education Savings Accountthat consists of an amount that is equivalent to a certain percentage of all applicable annual Standards of Quality per pupil state funds appropriated for public school purposes and apportioned to the residentschool division in which the qualified student resides, includingthe per pupil share of state sales tax funding in basic aid and any state per pupil share of special education funding for which thequalified student is eligible. The bill permits the parent of thequalified student to use the moneys in such account for certain education-relatedexpenses of the qualified student, including tuition, deposits, fees,and required textbooks at a private elementary school or secondaryschool that is located in the Commonwealth. The bill also contains provisions relating to auditing, rescinding, and reviewing expensesmade from such accounts.
Commending the 2020 and 2022 inductees intothe Virginia Sports Hall of Fame.
Immunizations; authority of the Commissionerof Health; religious exception. Exempts a person, including aparent or guardian on behalf of a child, who objects to administrationof a vaccine on religious grounds from mandatory immunization requirementsduring an epidemic. Currently, exemption from mandatory immunization requirements during an epidemic is available only to those personsto whose health the administration of the vaccine would be detrimental,as certified in writing by a licensed physician.
Public elementary and secondary education; schoolboards and employees; cultural competency training; evaluations.Requires the evaluation of each public school teacher and principaland division superintendent to include an evaluation of culturalcompetency if the relevant local school board has adopted and implementedpolicies to require cultural competency training. Under current law,such an evaluation of cultural competency is required and not conditionedupon any such action of the local school board. The bill permitsany school board to adopt and implement policies that require eachteacher and any other school board employee holding a license issuedby the Board of Education to complete cultural competency training,in accordance with guidance issued by the Board of Education, atleast every two years, but only after providing 30 days' advancedwritten notice of and holding a public hearing regarding the adoptionand implementation of such policies. Current law requires such culturalcompetency training and makes no provision for such notice and publichearing.
Coastal Virginia Resiliency Authority; established.Establishes the Coastal Virginia Resiliency Authority (the Authority)as a body politic and corporate, a political subdivision of the Commonwealth.The bill provides that the Authority shall be governed by a 17 memberBoard of Directors as follows: (i) the Secretary of Natural and HistoricResources or his designee; (ii) the Secretary of Transportation orhis designee; (iii) the Chair of the Senate Committee on Agriculture,Conservation and Natural Resources or his designee; (iv) the Chairof the House Committee on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resourcesor his designee; (v) a member of the Senate appointed by the SenateCommittee on Rules; (vi) three members of the House of Delegatesappointed by the Speaker of the House; (vii) an Officer, defined inthe bill, from the each of the Hampton Roads, Crater, Richmond Region, Middle Peninsula, Northern Neck, and Accomack-Northampton PlanningDistrict Commissions selected by the Governor; and (viii) threenonlegislative members who reside in the Hampton Roads, Crater, Richmond Region, Middle Peninsula, Northern Neck, or Accomack-NorthamptonPlanning District Commissions appointed by the Joint Rules Committee.Certain portions of the bill have a delayed effective date of January1, 2023.
Local school boards and comprehensive community colleges; compensation structure for adjunct instructors; credit-bearing and noncredit workforce credentials. Encourages local school boards and comprehensive communities colleges to enter into local or regional agreements for the establishment and implementation of a competitive compensation structure to recruit and retain adjunct instructors to be jointly compensated by the relevant school boards and colleges to prepare both high school students and college students to earn credit-bearing workforce credentials and noncredit workforce credentials, as that term is defined in relevant law.
Public School Trades Incentive Fund and Program;established. Establishes the Public School Trades Incentive Fund(the Fund) and the Public School Trades Incentive Program (the Program)for the purpose of providing grants on a competitive basis from theFund to any school board that seeks to (i) restore high school programsthat teach students skilled trades that lead to earning industry-recognizedcertifications or credentials or (ii) create or restore middle schoolprograms that encourage and recruit students to participate in highschool programs that teach students skilled trades that lead to earning industry-recognized certifications or credentials. The bill requiresthe Department of Education to administer the Program and to establishsuch rules and procedures relating to applications and awards asit deems appropriate, provided that the Department considers andgives appropriate weight to certain criteria for grantees. The billpermits any grantee to use Program funds for equipment, curriculumdevelopment, or instructor training. The bill requires each grantee to longitudinally track students who complete any program for whichthe school board received funds in order to determine the effectivenessof the (a) new or restored middle school programs in recruiting studentsto participate in restored high school programs and (b) restoredhigh school programs in matching students with high-paying jobs inthe fields in which they are certified or credentialed.
Virginia Fair Housing Law; use of assistance animal in a dwelling; penalties. Makes it a Class 4 misdemeanor, with respect to the Virginia Fair Housing Law, for a person to knowingly and willfully misrepresent himself as needing an assistance animal. The bill provides an exception for any person, federal or state agency, or private organization participating in fair housing testing, defined in the bill, for the purpose of investigating allegations of housing discrimination. The bill also prohibits any person from providing supporting documentation in an attempt to verify the existence of a disability or disability-related need for a person seeking a reasonable accommodation in a dwelling if he does not have a therapeutic relationship with the person requesting the reasonable accommodation and provides that a violation of this provision constitutes a prohibited practice under the Virginia Consumer Protection Act.
Consumer Data Protection Act; sensitive data.Provides that, for purposes of the Consumer Data Protection Act,personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, religious beliefs,mental or physical diagnosis, sexual orientation, or citizenshipor immigration status shall only be considered sensitive data ifused to make a decision that results in a legal or similarly significanteffect for a consumer.
Confirming Governor's appointments; January 21. Confirms appointments of certain persons made by Governor Glenn Youngkin and communicated to the General Assembly January 21, 2022.
Confirming Governor's appointments; January 21. Confirms appointments of certain persons made by Governor Glenn Youngkin and communicated to the General Assembly January 21, 2022.
MEI Project Approval Commission; incentivesrequiring review. Adds to the incentive packages for economic development, film, and episodic television projects that requireMEI Project Approval Commission (the Commission) review and approvalany incentive package in which one of the incentives being soughtincludes a cash payment of more than $3.5 million from any fund priorto any performance metrics being met by the proposed project. Thebill clarifies that in calculating whether the value of proposed incentives exceeds $10 million and thus requires review under current law,the value of applicable existing tax credits and incentives shall not be considered, with the exception of the sales tax exemptionfor data centers and the motion picture tax credit. Finally, the billprovides that economic development projects that propose to relocateor expand operations in one area of the Commonwealth while closingor reducing operations in another area of the Commonwealth shallbe subject to Commission review only if the value of the proposedincentives exceeds $2.5 million.
