Del. Dan Helmer

Careers in Law Enforcement Incentive Grant Program established. Requires the Department of Education, with suchfunds as may be appropriated for such purpose pursuant to the generalappropriation act, to establish and administer the Careers in LawEnforcement Incentive Grant Program whereby any school board may apply for a grant in an amount up to $250,000, to be awarded on acompetitive basis, with which to offer courses relating to criminaljustice or law enforcement in at least one public high school inthe local school division.

Collective bargaining by public employees; labor organization representation. Repeals the existing prohibitionon collective bargaining by public employees. The bill creates thePublic Employee Relations Board, which shall determine appropriatebargaining units and provide for certification and decertificationelections for exclusive bargaining representatives of state employeesand local government employees. The bill requires public employersand employee organizations that are exclusive bargaining representativesto meet at reasonable times to negotiate in good faith with respectto wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment. Thebill repeals a provision that declares that, in any procedure providingfor the designation, selection, or authorization of a labor organizationto represent employees, the right of an individual employee to voteby secret ballot is a fundamental right that shall be guaranteed from infringement.

Fetal and Infant Mortality Review Team established;penalty; report. Establishes the Fetal and Infant Mortality ReviewTeam to develop and implement procedures to ensure that fetal andinfant deaths occurring in the Commonwealth are analyzed in a systematicway. The bill requires the Team to compile triennial statisticaldata regarding fetal and infant deaths and to make such data availableto the Governor, the General Assembly, and the Department of Health.The bill provides that information and records obtained or createdby the Team and portions of meetings of the Team at which individualfetal and infant deaths are discussed shall be confidential.

State plan for medical assistance services;fertility preservation treatments; genetic material misuse; penalty. Directs the Board of Medical Assistance Services to amend the stateplan for medical assistance services to include a provision for paymentof medical assistance for coverage of fertility preservation for individuals diagnosed with cancer who need treatment for that cancerthat may cause a substantial risk of sterility or iatrogenic infertility,as defined in the bill, including surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy.The bill also establishes that it is a Class 3 felony for a healthcare provider to provide assisted conception treatment to a patientand use the health care provider's own gamete without the writtenconsent of the patient.

Alcoholic beverage control; mixed beverage performingarts facility license; Pulaski County. Amends certain provisionsrelated to the granting of a mixed beverage performing arts facilitylicense by the Board of Directors of the Virginia Alcoholic BeverageControl Authority to allow certain facilities in Pulaski County tobe eligible for such license.

Department of Education and Department of Workforce Development and Advancement; work group; regional workforce developmentand child care initiative in Southwest Virginia; report. Requires the Department of Education and the Department of Workforce Development and Advancement to jointly establish and appoint such members assuch departments deem appropriate to a work group to monitor theimplementation of the regional workforce development and child careinitiative being implemented by the United Way of Southwest Virginia,the Wellspring Foundation of Southwest Virginia, Food City, and theTown of Abingdon in Abingdon and in four other locations throughoutthe surrounding region. The bill requires such work group to monitorthe extent to which such initiative achieves its stated goals, includingin the areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics(STEM) education, teacher training, and access to child care, andto report its findings and any associated recommendations for thereplication of such initiative in other regions of the Commonwealthto the Chairmen of the House Committee on Commerce and Energy, theHouse Committee on Education, the House Committee on General Laws,the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor, the Senate Committeeon Education and Health, and the Senate Committee on General Lawsand Technology no later than November 1, 2025.

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.

Insurrections; elections; prohibition from serving in position of public trust; civil penalty. Prohibits any person from serving in any position of public trust within the Commonwealth for life if such person is convicted of certain offenses related to rioting and unlawful assembly or any substantially similar offense under the laws of the United States or any of its states or territories when such offense occurs (i) at a polling place, a voter satellite office, or any other location being used for voting or registration purposes; (ii) during the certification of an election; or (iii) at any other official proceeding related to an election. The bill provides that any person who violates such prohibition shall be subject to a civil penalty of $1,000, and such person shall also immediately resign from any such position of public trust such person holds. The bill authorizes the attorney for the Commonwealth and their assistants to enforce these provisions.The bill defines "position of public trust" as any position in which a person performs work that involves a significant degree of public trust and confidence that such person will carry out the work in accordance with applicable laws, regulation, and guidelines. Such positions may involve policy making, major program responsibility, fiduciary responsibilities, or other duties demanding a significant degree of public trust and shall include positions in administering or conducting elections, public safety or public health, law enforcement, and education.The bill also provides a procedure for any person prohibited from serving in any position of public trust within the Commonwealth to petition the circuit court of the jurisdiction in which he resides or, if the person is not a resident of the Commonwealth, the circuit court of any county or city where such person was last convicted of a disqualifying offense, for a restoration order that unconditionally authorizes his ability to serve in a position of public trust within the Commonwealth.Lastly, the bill provides that the attack on the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021, constitutes an insurrection, and the provisions of the bill shall apply to any person convicted of an offense in relation to such insurrection.

Health insurance; coverage option for fertility services; essential health benefits benchmark plan. Requires health insurance policies, subscription contracts, and health care plans to offer and make available coverage for the diagnosis and treatment of infertility and for standard fertility preservation procedures, as defined in the bill. Such coverage includes coverage for in vitro fertilization, provided that procedures are performed at medical facilities or clinics that conform to guidelines published by the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology or the American Fertility Society for in vitro fertilization procedures. The bill also requires the Health Insurance Reform Commission to consider such coverage in its 2025 review of the essential health benefits benchmark plan. The bill directs the Commission to include such coverage in its recommendation to the General Assembly for a new essential health benefits benchmark plan unless the Commission identifies a compelling reason to exclude such coverage.

Broadband access in farmland and rural areas; information and reporting. Requires the Department of Housing and Community Development to create and maintain, in consultation with the Commonwealth Broadband Chief Advisor, the Broadband Advisory Council, and the Virginia Information Technologies Agency, an interactive tool or application to provide current information on connectivity and broadband access in rural areas of the Commonwealth and on farmland in the Commonwealth and permits such tool or application to be incorporated into the Department's website. The bill also directs the Department to, with the assistance of any necessary agencies of the Commonwealth, collect and incorporate information and data regarding connectivity and broadband access in rural areas and on farmland into such interactive tool or application and annually report to the Broadband Advisory Council any such information and data.