Technology

Unauthorized use of voice or likeness; punitive damages; statute of limitations. Expands the existing ability for any person to maintain a suit in equity, including the accompanying remedies available and statute of limitations, for the unauthorized use of his name, portrait, or picture for advertising purposes or for the purposes of trade to include the unauthorized use of his voice or likeness. This bill is identical to SB 753.

Government Data Collection and Dissemination Practices Act; dissemination of personal information to federal government; civil penalties. Provides that any agency or political subdivision of the Commonwealth shall only disseminate personal information (i) to the extent necessary to comply with state or federal law, including the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act; (ii) to the extent necessary to carry out the administration of a state or federal program pursuant to state or federal law; (iii) to comply with a subpoena, court order, or administrative proceeding; (iv) to the extent necessary to ensure fulfillment of the obligations of a purchase or contract made in accordance with the Virginia Public Procurement Act or a memorandum of understanding or management agreement made in accordance with the Restructured Higher Education Financial and Administrative Operations Act; (v) when the data subject has given consent; or (vi) to the extent necessary to accomplish a proper purpose of the agency. The bill also prohibits an agency or political subdivision from selling personal information. The bill authorizes a court, in the case of a willful and knowing violation, to subject a specific public officer, appointee, or employee of any agency to civil penalties.

Circuit court clerks; fees; Technology Trust Fund Fee; report; recordation tax of certain deeds; report. Increases the Technology Trust Fund Fee from $5 to $8. The bill also increases the amount of the fee to be allocated for one of the purposes as described in current law from $4 to $6. The bill authorizes the remaining $2 of the fee to be allocated to individual circuit court clerks' offices for one of the purposes as described in current law. The bill also provides that no recordation tax shall be required of a quitclaim deed or deed to correct a fraudulently recorded deed, including a deed of trust, between a grantor and grantee when no consideration has passed between the parties. Finally, the bill directs (i) the clerk in each circuit court in the Commonwealth to provide detailed information to the Compensation Board and the Auditor of Public Accounts on the total amount of local Technology Trust Fund Fee revenue collected and expended and (ii) the Compensation Board to aggregate such information and submit a report summarizing the information to the Chairs of the House Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations by December 1, 2026.

Department of Education; assessment; certified student support agencies; report. Requires the Department of Education (the Department) to assess the impact of developing a program to provide student support programs to students enrolled in a public elementary or secondary school through certified student support agencies, as defined in the bill. The bill requires the Department, in conducting such assessment, to consider (i) a framework by which a certified student support agency would enter into a memorandum of understanding with a school board for the purpose of providing student support programs, as defined in the bill, and suggested components of such memorandums of understanding, such as (a) documentation establishing the organization's nonprofit status, (b) a description of each student support program that such organization provides, (c) policies and procedures relating to privacy, background checks, mandated reporting, and the transmission, collection, use, and disposal of student personal information, and (d) consent forms and procedures to be used by such student support programs to obtain the necessary consent from the parent of any student under 18 years of age; (ii) the feasibility of establishing and administering a certification process for certified student support agencies; (iii) potential compliance monitoring and enforcement mechanisms and subsequent penalties for noncompliance to ensure that each certified student support agency complies with such program; (iv) policies and procedures for the secure disposal of a student's personal information upon such student's withdrawal from a student support program, upon the cessation of any such program, or upon such student's graduation or transfer from the school division; and (v) cost estimates, including staffing needs, for the development and implementation of such program. The bill requires the Department to submit a report on its findings to the Chairs of the Senate Committees on Finance and Appropriations and Education and Health and the House Committees on Appropriations and Education no later than November 1, 2026. This bill is identical to HB 178.

Use of artificial intelligence system by mental health service providers; civil penalty. Permits the use of an artificial intelligence system by mental health service providers to assist in providing therapy or counseling services if such mental health service provider maintains full responsibility for all interactions, outputs, and data use associated with the system. The bill prohibits the use of an artificial intelligence system to provide therapy or counseling services without a mental health service provider. The bill specifies that records kept by mental health service providers must comply with health records privacy requirements; creates an exception for religious counseling, peer support, or self-help materials and educational resources; and establishes a civil penalty not to exceed $10,000 for violations of the statute.

Consumer Data Protection Act; prohibitions and duties relating to minors. Prohibits a controller of an online service, product, or feature from entering into certain agreements with a known minor, unless such controller obtains verified consent from the minor's parent as specified in the bill. The bill imposes certain duties on a controller of an online service, product, or feature related to advertising, algorithm use, and reasonable care toward known minors. The bill expands the consumer rights of a parent to minors and adds a provision allowing a parent to obtain a copy of the minor's data. Current law offers certain consumer rights to the parents of children younger than age 13. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 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.

Joint Commission on Technology and Science; artificial intelligence; independent verification organizations. Directs the Joint Commission on Technology and Science (JCOTS) to evaluate the feasibility and impact of developing a framework for any person or entity seeking to act as an independent verification organization that assesses artificial intelligence models' or applications' adherence to standards reflecting best practices for the prevention of personal injury and property damage. The bill directs JCOTS to submit a report with its recommendations and any findings to the Chairs of the Senate Committees on Finance and Appropriations and General Laws and Technology and the House Committees on Appropriations and Communications, Technology and Innovation by November 1, 2026. This bill is identical to SB 384.

Electric utilities; virtual power plant pilot program; Phase I Utilities. Requires Appalachian Power to petition the State Corporation Commission for approval to conduct a pilot program to evaluate methods to optimize demand through various technology applications, including the establishment of virtual power plants, by July 1, 2027. The bill requires the pilot program to evaluate electric grid capacity needs and the ability of such virtual power plants to provide grid services, including peak-shaving, during times of peak electric demand.

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.