Common interest communities; Virginia Real Estate Time-Share Act. Amends language in the Virginia Real Estate Time-ShareAct to clarify the use of the terms "project" and "program" as theyrelate to registration of a time-share program. The bill also differentiatesbetween a time-share and time-share interest, defined in the bill,and removes unused definitions. The bill contains technical amendments.
Commonwealth Transportation Board; revenue-sharingfunds. Increases the maximum matching allocation that the CommonwealthTransportation Board may make to a locality from $5 million to $10million and increases the portion of such funds that such localitymay use for the maintenance of highway systems from $2.5 millionto $5 million.
Health insurance; payment to out-of-networkproviders. Provides that when a covered person receives coveredemergency services from an out-of-network health care provider or receives out-of-network services at an in-network facility, the coveredperson is not required to pay the out-of-network provider any amountother than the applicable cost-sharing requirement. The measure alsoestablishes a standard for calculating the health carrier's requiredpayment to the out-of-network provider of the services, which standardis the lower of the market-based value for the service or 125 percentof the amount that would be paid under Medicare for the service.If such provider determines that the amount to be paid by the healthcarrier does not comply with the applicable requirements, the measure requires the provider and the health carrier to make a good faitheffort to reach a resolution on the appropriate amount of the reimbursementand, if a resolution is not reached, authorizes either party to request the State Corporation Commission to review the disputed reimbursement amount and determine if the amount complies with applicable requirements.The measure provides that such provisions do not apply to an entitythat provides or administers self-insured or self-funded plans; however, such entities may elect to be subject such provisions. Themeasure requires health carriers to make reports to the Bureau ofInsurance and directs the Bureau to provide reports to certain committeesof the General Assembly.
Best interests of a child; frequent and continuingcontact with each parent. Provides that, while considering thebest interests of a child for the purposes of determining custodyor visitation arrangements, the court shall, when appropriate, assurefrequent and continuing contact with each parent.
Charitable Gaming Board; Texas Hold'em pokerevents. Allows certain qualified organization to conduct Texas Hold'em poker events in conjunction with its charitable gaming activities.The conditions under which a qualified organization may manage, operate,or contract with operators of or conduct Texas Hold'em poker gamesand tournaments shall be prescribed by the Charitable Gaming Board. In addition, the bill establishes the Problem Gambling Treatmentand Support Fund administered by the Commissioner of Behavioral Healthand Developmental Services to provide counseling and other supportservices for compulsive and problem gamblers, develop problem gamblingtreatment and prevention programs, and provide grants to supportingorganizations that provide assistance to compulsive gamblers.
Board of Medical Assistance Services; definitionof therapeutic day treatment. Directs the Board of Medical AssistanceServices to revise its regulations to define "therapeutic day treatment"as a preventive mental health support available in place of partialhospitalization and reformative care.
Fall cankerworm; spraying prohibited exceptthrough opt-in program. Prohibits localities from spraying pesticidesintended to suppress an infestation of the fall cankerworm on anyproperty unless the owner of the property requests such sprayingthrough an opt-in program operated by the locality.
Dulles Greenway. Amends the powers and responsibilitiesof the State Corporation Commission (SCC) to regulate toll road operators underthe Virginia Highway Corporation Act of 1988. The bill adds requirements thattoll rates not materially discourage the public's use of the toll road, thatthe cost of operating the toll road be reasonably apportioned across all tollroad users based on the relative distance each class of user travels on thetoll road, such that the toll rates are established in a reasonable andnondiscriminatory manner in relation to the benefit obtained, and that tollrates shall provide the operator with no more than a reasonable return. Inaddition, the bill (i) requires the SCC, by October 1, 2020, to initiate aninvestigation into the tolls charged by all operators subject to the Act and toissue a ruling by April 1, 2021, on its investigation as to whether the currenttolls charged by the operator comply with such new requirements; (ii) prohibitsthe SCC from using the fact that any incremental return resulting fromincreased traffic related to a relative change in potential toll users that isgreater than zero on a cumulative basis as the sole basis for finding that theoperator's return exceeds a reasonable level as specified in such newrequirements, during any future complaint proceeding; (iii) requires the SCC,in its initial investigation, to develop a baseline from which it can measurethe relative change in potential toll users and directs how the incrementalreturn shall be computed; (iv) prohibits an operator from seeking a tollincrease that attempts to raise its return above the reasonable level; (v)requires the full disclosure, in public financial reports to the SCC, of thedetails of any related party transactions; and (vi) establishes a presumptionthat any related party transactions shall be presumed to be imprudent andexcluded from costs used for any purpose, including but not limited to costs oflobbyists, excessive compensation, and entertainment expenses, unless theoperator provides information showing that at least three separate competitivebids demonstrate that the operator could not have achieved better contractterms from a third party.
Family day homes; licensure threshold. Reducesfrom five to three the number of children for whom a family dayhome must obtain a license to provide child care services.
Speed monitoring devices; civil penalty. Authorizes law-enforcement officers to operate photo speed monitoring devices, defined in the bill, in or around school crossing zones and highway work zones for the purpose of recording images of vehicles that are traveling at speeds of at least 10 miles per hour above the posted school crossing zone or highway work zone speed limit within such school crossing zone or highway work zone when such highway work zone is indicated by conspicuously placed signs displaying the maximum speed limit and the use of such photo speed monitoring device. The bill provides that the operator of a vehicle shall be liable for a monetary civil penalty, not to exceed $125, if such vehicle is found to be traveling at speeds of at least 10 miles per hour above the posted highway work zone or school crossing zone speed limit by the photo speed monitoring device. The bill provides that if the summons for a violation is issued by mail the violation shall not be reported on the driver's operating record or to the driver's insurance agency, but if the violation is personally issued by an officer at the time of the violation, such violation shall be part of the driver's record and used for insurance purposes. The bill provides that the civil penalty will be paid to the locality in which the violation occurred.
Smoking in multi-unit residential building;civil penalty. Prohibits smoking in any multi-unit residentialbuilding, including a condominium building or apartment building.A person who violates such prohibition is subject to a civil penaltyof not more than $25, to be paid into the Virginia Health Care Fund.
Certificate of public need; psychiatric bedsand facilities. Removes mental hospitals and psychiatric hospitalsand intermediate care facilities established primarily for the medical,psychiatric, or psychological treatment and rehabilitation of individualswith substance abuse from the list of medical care facilities forwhich a certificate of public need is required prior to initiationof a project. The bill makes clear that only facilities licensedas hospitals by the Department of Health are subject to certificateof public need requirements; removes from the definition of projectthe addition of a new psychiatric or substance abuse treatment serviceand conversion of beds in an existing medical care facility to psychiatricbeds; and prohibits the conversion in an existing medical care facilityof psychiatric beds to non-psychiatric beds.
