Employment prohibition exceptions; apprenticeships; children 16 years of age or older. Permits a child 16 years of age or older to serve in an apprenticeship program or other work-based learning experience related to culinary arts or information technology, provided that (i) the child is continuously enrolled in an accredited secondary school, (ii) the child is a registered apprentice, (iii) the child is employed in a work-training program administered under the Board of Education, and (iv) the work being performed is not in violation of federal or state laws. This bill is identical to SB 10.
College student-athletes; biometric data; protections and limitations. Prohibits any private institution of higher education, associate-degree-granting public institution of higher education, or baccalaureate public institution of higher education in the Commonwealth from disclosing to any individual or entity outside of the institution any enrolled student-athlete's biometric data, as defined in the bill, without the prior written consent of the student-athlete. The bill also prohibits any individual or entity from making the possession, use, or ownership of or the rights to any student-athlete's biometric data a condition of any contract with the student-athlete for the use of the student-athlete's name, image, or likeness without the prior written consent of the student-athlete in a writing that is separate and apart from such contract.
Damage or trespass to public services or utilities or critical infrastructure; penalties. Adds the intentional destruction of or damage to any fixture, equipment, or information technology system that is used to provide, process, transmit, or maintain public services, public utilities, cable television, broadband, or other critical infrastructure, as defined in relevant law, to the existing offense of damage or trespass to public services or utilities. The bill contains technical amendments and is identical to HB 317.
Division of Consumer Counsel; duties; artificial intelligence fraud and abuse. Expands the duties of the Division of Consumer Counsel to include establishing mechanisms for receiving and investigating complaints by the Commonwealth's consumers involving emerging technologies, including referring appropriate complaints to the federal, state, and local departments or agencies charged with the enforcement of applicable consumer laws.
Consumer Data Protection Act; social media platforms and operators; interoperability interfaces. Requires social media platforms and operators, defined in the bill, to implement third-party interoperability interfaces to allow users to share social graph data, defined in the bill, and contextual data associated with artificial intelligence systems, defined in the bill, as the user designates. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027.
Commonwealth of Virginia Innovation Partnership Act; Regional Innovation Fund; Commonwealth Commercialization Fund; matching funds. Provides that, for purposes of the Regional Innovation Fund and the Commonwealth Commercialization Fund, any awards from such funds of $100,000 or less shall not require matching funds.
Department of Law; Technology Governance and Coordination Program; report. Directs the Office of the Attorney General to establish a Technology Governance and Coordination Program to support the Commonwealth's response to emergent technologies, including artificial intelligence, algorithmic systems, biometric systems, and automated decision-making tools. The bill requires the Office of the Attorney General to submit an annual report to the Joint Commission on Technology and Science by December 1, 2026.
Department of Criminal Justice Services; law-enforcement agencies and sheriff's departments; policy on use of covered artificial intelligence systems. Requires the Department of Criminal Justice Services to establish a model policy for the use of a covered artificial intelligence system, defined in the bill, by any state or local law-enforcement agency or sheriff's department by October 1, 2026. The bill also requires each local law-enforcement agency and sheriff's department and the Department of State Police to establish and adopt a written policy for the use of a covered AI system by such agency or department that meets or exceeds the model policy established by the Department of Criminal Justice Services by January 1, 2027. The bill requires such policies be publicly available on the law-enforcement agency's or sheriff's department's website.
