Electric utilities; electric school bus projects. Authorizes Dominion Energy Virginia to implement projects designed to encourage the proliferation of school buses that are fueled in whole or in part by electricity, along with associated charging and other infrastructure, for the purpose of transporting students and that may also serve as electric grid stabilization or peak shaving resources. Under an electric school bus project, Dominion Energy Virginia may (i) purchase, own, manage, or control electric school buses, along with associated charging or other infrastructure; (ii) enter into third-party agreements for the purchase, lease, or use of electric school buses, along with associated charging or other infrastructure; (iii) enter into agreements with any school board of any public school division located in the Commonwealth for joint ownership of or for leasing on commercially competitive terms of electric school buses, along with associated charging or other infrastructure; (iv) provide financial incentives or rebates to any school board to promote or facilitate the purchase and ownership by such public school board of electric school buses, along with associated charging or other infrastructure; and (v) engage in other activities to promote the development and proliferation of electric school bus transportation in the Commonwealth. The bill also provides a tax exemption for electric school buses and associated charging and other infrastructure that is related or incidental to an authorized electric school bus project.
No-fault divorce; corroboration requirement.Removes the corroborating witness requirement for no-fault divorces.
Political parties; notification of adoptionof primary election; certification of candidates. Directs thestate political party chairmen, or their designees, to notify theDepartment of Elections of the party's adoption of a primary electionfor any office. The bill also directs state political party chairmen,or their designees, to certify to the Department of Elections thenames of any candidate who has been nominated by the party througha nomination method other than a primary. Currently, these notification and certification responsibilities are shared by the state, district,and political subdivision party committee chairmen for their respectiveoffices. The bill also provides that if a state party chairman, orhis designee, fails to certify the name of a candidate for an office,the Department of Elections shall declare that there is no candidate nominated by the party for that office. The bill contains technicalamendments that reflect the current administrative responsibilitiesof the Department of Elections.
Local arbitration agreements; disclosure of certain information. Requires a locality, for any procurement contract for goods and services except for construction, construction-related services, transportation construction, or transportation-related construction--and any purchasing decision to ensure that solicitations require the bidder or offeror to disclose certain information regarding pre-dispute arbitration clauses and consider each bidder or offeror's policies and practices related to arbitration. The bill requires each locality to seek to contract with qualified entities and business owners that can demonstrate or will certify that they do not use pre-dispute arbitration clauses in contracts with employees or consumers, and to evaluate bidders and offerors based on disclosures required under the bill, in the event no bidder or offeror can demonstrate or will certify that they do not use pre-dispute arbitration clauses in contracts with employees or consumers. The bill authorizes a locality to cancel, terminate, or suspend, in whole or in part, the contract of any contractor who violates a provision of the bill and declare the contractor ineligible for further contracts with such locality.
Sales and use tax exemption for broadband providers. Establishes a sales and use tax exemption for broadband providers that purchase technology for improving existing broadband infrastructure. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriation act.
Judicial performance evaluation program; riskassessment tool; use of alternative sanction. Requires the VirginiaCriminal Sentencing Commission to report to the Supreme Court andthe Chairmen of the House and Senate Committees for Courts of Justicethe number of cases during a judge's term in which an offender qualifiedfor use of the risk assessment tool, received a recommendation foran alternative sanction on the basis of the assessment, and whena sentence was imposed and an alternative sanction was not given. The bill requires sentencing courts to use sentencing guidelinesto determine the cost of incarceration for an offender who receivesthe minimum recommended sentence and to include the cost on the sentencingguideline form. The bill also requires the Commission to determineand include on a judge's judicial performance evaluation the totalcosts of imposing a sentence on each offender who was evaluated bythe risk assessment tool and who received a recommendation for analternative sanction but did not receive an alternative sanctionduring a judge's term.
Alcoholic beverage control; jewelry store license. Creates a jewelry store license, which (i) may be granted to a permanent retail establishment in which at least 75 percent of its annual sales come from the sale of jewelry and (ii) authorizes the licensee to serve two five-ounce glasses of wine or two 12-ounce glasses of beer to any bona fide customer. The bill establishes state and local license fees for such license. The bill has a contingent expiration date.
Electronic transmission of sexually explicitvisual material by minors; penalties. Provides that a minorwho (i) knowingly transmits, distributes, publishes, or disseminatesto another minor an electronically transmitted communication containingsexually explicit visual material of his own person or (ii) knowinglypossesses at least one but not more than 10 electronically transmittedcommunications containing sexually explicit visual material of anotherminor is guilty of a Class 2 misdemeanor.
Purchase of service handguns or other weaponsby retired sworn law-enforcement officers. Removes the requirement that a sworn law-enforcement officer be employed in a full-time capacityat the time of his retirement to purchase his service handgun.
COPN; demonstration of public need and compliancewith State Medical Facilities Plan. Provides that, notwithstandingany other provision of law or regulation, an application for a certificateof public need for the introduction of a specialty-level neonatalspecial care service in Planning District 5 that (i) contains inthe record testimony of a neonatologist, employed or contracted byan incumbent provider of neonatal special care services in the sameplanning district, that the proposed number of bassinets in the applicationis clinically appropriate for the neonatal special care service proposedand would be beneficial to health outcomes of infants born at theapplicant's facility and (ii) includes the agreement of the applicantto accept standard charity care conditions on the proposed neonatal special care services shall be deemed to (a) demonstrate a publicneed for such proposed specialty-level neonatal special care serviceand (b) be consistent with the State Medical Facilities Plan.
Line of Duty Act; requiring Virginia licensed health practitioners to conduct medical reviews. Requires that, for any medical review of a claim made pursuant to the provisions of the Line of Duty Act (LODA), the Virginia Retirement System shall require that such review be conducted by a doctor, nurse, or psychologist who is licensed in Virginia or a contiguous state. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2021.
Larceny; subsequent offenses; penalty. Eliminatesthe enhanced Class 6 felony applicable for a third or subsequentoffense of petit larceny.
