Local prohibition or regulation of gas-poweredleaf blowers; civil penalty. Provides that any locality may byordinance prohibit or regulate the use of gas-powered leaf blowers.The ordinance may include provisions for a civil penalty.
Loan repayment programs; mental health professionals. Creates a loan repayment program for persons who have worked as mentalhealth professionals in the Commonwealth for at least five years.
Income tax; Foreign Service retirement benefits subtraction. Establishes for certain individuals receiving ForeignService retirement benefits an income tax subtraction of such benefitsup to $5,000 in taxable year 2024, up to $10,000 in taxable year2025, up to $15,000 in taxable year 2026, and up to $20,000 in taxableyear 2027 and each taxable year thereafter. The bill defines ForeignService retirement benefits as any retirement income received byan individual for employment in the Foreign Service of the UnitedStates and as an eligible member of the Foreign Service Retirementand Disability System or the Foreign Service Pension System.
Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act; local government ordinances; criteria for local governments; Resource Protection Area exceptions. Amends the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act to requirethe State Water Control Board, in developing criteria for local governmentsto use as they consider development in Chesapeake Bay Preservation Areas, to allow use and development of land that is reasonable inthe circumstances and does not deprive the owner of all economicallyviable use of the property. The bill also requires a locality subjectto the Act to provide exclusive authority in its implementing ordinanceto the local governing body and certain boards and commissions ofthe locality to grant exceptions to any land development within aResource Protection Area, as defined by the State Water Control Board,or expanded by the locality in accordance with such rules of theBoard. The bill allows any adjacent or otherwise affected propertyowner to seek certain equitable remedies against the locality inthe appropriate circuit court.
Restrictions on the sale of nicotine vapor products containing liquid nicotine and hemp products intended for smoking;civil penalties. Provides restrictions and prohibitions on certainretail sales that include (i) restrictions on the number of nicotinevapor products containing liquid nicotine, liquid nicotine containers,and hemp products intended for smoking, as such terms are defined in the bill, that may be sold in one transaction to a consumer; (ii)packaging, labeling, and signage requirements for those selling anynicotine vapor products containing liquid nicotine or hemp productsintended for smoking; (iii) advertising and marketing requirementsfor those selling any nicotine vapor products containing liquid nicotineor hemp products intended for smoking; (iv) education requirementsfor employees at retail establishments selling nicotine vapor productscontaining liquid nicotine or hemp products intended for smoking;and (v) online delivery sale requirements of nicotine vapor productscontaining liquid nicotine or hemp products intended for smoking.The Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority and the VirginiaDepartment of Agriculture and Consumer Services, as applicable, shallenforce such requirements and restrictions and shall impose civilpenalties on violations thereof.
Campaign finance; prohibited personal use of campaignfunds; complaints, hearings, civil penalty, and advisory opinions.Prohibits any person from converting contributions to a candidate or hiscampaign committee to personal use. Current law only prohibits such conversionof contributions with regard to disbursement of surplus funds at thedissolution of a campaign or political committee. The bill provides that acontribution is considered to have been converted to personal use if thecontribution, in whole or in part, is used to fulfill any commitment,obligation, or expense that would exist irrespective of the person's seeking,holding, or maintaining public office but allows a contribution to be used forthe ordinary and accepted expenses related to campaigning for or holdingelective office, including the use of campaign funds to pay for the candidate'schild care expenses that are incurred as a direct result of campaign activity.The bill provides that any person subject to the personal use ban may requestan advisory opinion from the State Board of Elections on such matters. The billdirects the State Board of Elections to adopt emergency regulations similar tothose promulgated by the Federal Election Commission to implement theprovisions of the bill and to publish an updated summary of Virginia campaignfinance law that reflects the State Board of Elections' and Attorney General'sguidance on the provisions of such law that prohibit the personal use ofcampaign funds and any new regulations promulgated by the State Board ofElections.
Promise to appear after the issuance of a summons; issuance of summons instead of warrant in certain cases; nonviolent felonies. Provides that if any person refuses to give a written promise to appear after the issuance of a summons, the arresting officer shall give such person notice of the time and place of the hearing, note such person's refusal to give his written promise to appear on the summons, and forthwith release him from custody. Under current law, any person refusing to give such written promise to appear is required to be taken immediately by the arresting officer before a magistrate or other issuing officer having jurisdiction.The bill also provides that a law-enforcement officer, at his discretion, may issue a summons instead of a warrant for certain felony offenses, described in the bill, if (i) in the judgment of the officer, the person charged will cease committing the illegal act; (ii) in the judgement of the officer, the person charged does not pose an immediate threat to public safety; and (iii) the person charged signs a written promise to appear at the time and place of the hearing. The bill prohibits a law-enforcement agency from creating a policy that requires or prohibits release for persons meeting such criteria.
Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission; court records; online access to case management systems. Provides that if a clerk of the circuit court provides secure remote access to nonconfidential court records, the clerk shall, by a signed agreement with the Director of the Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission, provide secure remote access to such records to staff of the Commission. The bill clarifies that a clerk is not prohibited from providing online access to a case management system to any person designated by law to prepare sentencing guidelines.The bill also requires the clerk of each circuit court to provide online access to a case management system that may include abstracts of case filings and proceedings in the circuit courts to the Commission for purposes related to the preparation of sentencing guidelines. The bill requires the Commission to ensure the confidentiality and security of the information obtained through such online access and prohibits the Commission from publishing personal or case identifying information. This bill is a recommendation of the Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission.
Commission to Study the History of the Uprootingof Black Communities by Public Institutions of Higher Education inthe Commonwealth established; report. Establishes the 19-memberlegislative Commission to Study the History of the Uprooting of BlackCommunities by Public Institutions of Higher Education for the purposeof studying and determining (i) whether any public institution ofhigher education in the Commonwealth has purchased, expropriated,or otherwise taken possession of property owned by any individualwithin the boundaries of a community in which a majority of the residentsare Black in order to establish or expand the institution's campusand (ii) whether and what form of compensation or relief would beappropriate for any such individual or any of his lineal descendants.The bill sunsets on July 1, 2027.
Elections; conduct of election; ranked choice voting; locally elected offices; report. Allows elections for any local or constitutional office to be conducted by ranked choice voting. Under current law, only elections of members of a county board of supervisors or a city council are allowed to be conducted by ranked choice voting. The bill also clarifies requirements for conducting elections using ranked choice voting and requires results for elections conducted by ranked choice voting to be reported along with other results reported on election night, except that such results must clearly be identified as preliminary and based on the first rankings in a ranked choice voting election. The bill provides that final tabulation for an election for a local or constitutional office that is not shared by more than one county or city is required to be conducted on the same day as other results are canvassed by the local electoral board and that final tabulation for and election for a local or constitutional office that is shared by more than one county or city is required to be conducted at a centralized facility under the supervision of the Department of Elections. The bill specifies that ranking data is required to be made publicly available by the Department and requires the State Board of Elections to provide standards and to approve vote tabulating software for use with existing voting systems in elections conducted by ranked choice voting. The bill also limits a risk-limiting audit of an election conducted using ranked choice voting to the first choice rankings reported on voting systems. Finally, the bill directs the Department to review the testing and approval framework for voting equipment in the Commonwealth and submit a report of such review no later than the first day of the 2025 Regular Session of the General Assembly.
