Environment

Motor vehicle glass repair and replacement; emissions inspection; penalties. Establishes various notice requirements for motor vehicle glass repair shops, defined in the bill, and provides that a violation of such requirements is a prohibited practice under the Virginia Consumer Protection Act. The bill permits a motor vehicle to qualify for an emissions inspection waiver if such vehicle has failed an inspection and the vehicle's onboard diagnostic system is in a not-ready condition to be tested when presented for reinspection. This bill is identical to HB 312.

Air Pollution Control Board regulations; small renewable energy projects; anaerobic digestion technology; report. Provides that for the purposes of a permit by rule for a small renewable energy project under existing law, a small renewable energy project includes an electrical generation facility in a locality in Planning District 8 with a rated capacity not exceeding 100 megawatts that generates electricity from biomass, energy from waste, or municipal solid waste and its dedicated associated interconnection facilities, provided that such facility is capable of processing the majority of its organic waste, including food waste and municipal sludge, with anaerobic digestion technology by January 1, 2030. The bill directs the Department of Environmental Quality, in coordination with relevant stakeholders, to (i) assess all practicable technologies available to waste-to-energy facilities to reduce carbon dioxide and methane emissions, (ii) assess technologies to create biomethane, and (iii) recommend any legislative changes necessary to create market conditions to ensure the viability of such program. The bill also directs the Department to report its findings to the Air Pollution Control Board by December 1, 2026.

Marine Resources Commission; prohibition of commercial electrofishing in the Rappahannock River; report. Directs the Marine Resources Commission to temporarily prohibit commercial electrofishing in the portion of the Rappahannock River north of the Downing Bridge in Tappahannock until January 1, 2027, and to examine the practice of commercial electrofishing in the waters of the Commonwealth and submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the Chairs of the House Committee on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources and the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources no later than January 1, 2027.

A BILL to amend the Code of Virginia by adding in Article 2 of a chapter numbered 14.4, consisting of sections numbered 10.1-1465.1 through 10.1-1465.15, relating to establishing the Virginia Recycling Development Center and the Virginia Recycling Infrastructure Fund; supporting statewide recycling infrastructure; incentivizing voluntary stewardship programs; authorizing public-private partnerships; and addressing priority materials including waste tires, mattresses, and bulky waste.

Virginia Erosion and Stormwater Management Program authority; right of entry; performance bond. Removes the requirement for a Virginia Erosion and Stormwater Management Program (VESMP) authority to have a performance bond with surety, cash escrow, letter of credit, any combination thereof, or such other legal arrangement in order to enter any establishment or upon any property, public or private, for the purpose of initiating or maintaining appropriate actions that are required by conditions imposed by the VESMP authority on a land-disturbing activity when an owner, after proper notice, has failed to take acceptable action within the time specified.

Electric utilities; RPS requirements; Air Pollution Control Board; regulations. Delays for 20 years the timeline by which Appalachian Power and Dominion Energy Virginia are required to produce 100 percent of their electric energy from 100 percent renewable resources. Under the bill, the annual percentage requirements are paused after the 2023 compliance year and do not resume until 2044. The bill provides that Appalachian Power and Dominion Energy Virginia are required to meet the 100 percent requirement by 2070 and 2065, respectively. Additionally, the bill provides that the Air Pollution Control Board is required to adopt regulations for the period of 2051 to 2070 to reduce carbon emissions from electric power generating facilities. Under current law, the Board is required to adopt regulations to reduce emissions for the period of 2031 through 2050.

Expanded polystyrene food service containers; repeal of prohibition. Repeals the statute prohibiting food vendors and certain restaurants from dispensing prepared food to a customer in a single-use expanded polystyrene food service container.