Del. Dan Helmer

Paid family and medical leave insurance program; notice requirements; civil action. Requires the Virginia Employment Commission to establish and administer a paid family and medical leave insurance program with benefits beginning January 1, 2027. Under the program, benefits are paid to covered individuals, as defined in the bill, for family and medical leave. Funding for the program is provided through premiums assessed to employers and employees beginning January 1, 2026. The bill provides that the amount of a benefit is 80 percent of the employee's average weekly wage, not to exceed 80 percent of the state weekly wage, which amount is required to be adjusted annually to reflect changes in the statewide average weekly wage. The bill caps the duration of paid leave at 12 weeks in any application year and provides self-employed individuals the option of participating in the program.

Celebrating the life of Karen Harrison Jones.

Celebrating the life of Richard Carlton Griffin,Sr.

Voter registration; registration of Departmentof Motor Vehicles customers; automatic update. Provides thatthe information gathered by the Department of Motor Vehicles fora person who indicates that he is already registered to vote isto be automatically transmitted to the Department of Elections forthe purpose of updating an existing voter registration record. Undercurrent law, a person must be presented with the option to declineto have his information transmitted to the Department of Electionsbefore such information may be transmitted.

Employment; paid sick leave; civil penalties. Expandsprovisions of the Code that currently require one hour of paid sick leave forevery 30 hours worked for home health workers to cover all employees of privateemployers and state and local governments. The bill requires that employees whoare employed and compensated on a fee-for-service basis accrue paid sick leavein accordance with regulations adopted by the Commissioner of Labor andIndustry. The bill provides that employees transferred to a separate divisionor location remain entitled to previously accrued paid sick leave and thatemployees retain their accrued sick leave under any successor employer. Thebill allows employers to provide a more generous paid sick leave policy thanprescribed by its provisions. Employees, in addition to using paid sick leavefor their physical or mental illness or to care for a family member, may usepaid sick leave for their need for services or relocation due to domesticabuse, sexual assault, or stalking.The bill provides that certain health care workers who work nomore than 30 hours per month may waive the right to accrue and use paid sickleave. The bill also provides that employers are not required to provide paidsick leave to certain health care workers who are employed on a pro re nata, oras-needed, basis, regardless of the number of hours worked. The bill requiresthe Commissioner to promulgate regulations regarding employee notification andemployer recordkeeping requirements.The bill authorizes the Commissioner, in the case of a knowingviolation, to subject an employer to a civil penalty not to exceed $150 for thefirst violation, $300 for the second violation, and $500 for each successiveviolation. The Commissioner may institute proceedings on behalf of an employeeto enforce compliance with the provisions of this bill. Additionally, anaggrieved employee is authorized to bring a civil action against the employerin which he may recover double the amount of any unpaid sick leave and theamount of any actual damages suffered as the result of the employer'sviolation. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2025.

Presidential electors; National Popular VoteCompact. Enters Virginia into an interstate compact known asthe Agreement Among the States to Elect the President by NationalPopular Vote. Article II of the Constitution of the United Statesgives the states exclusive and plenary authority to decide the mannerof awarding their electoral votes. Under the compact, Virginia agreesto award its electoral votes to the presidential ticket that receivesthe most popular votes in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.The compact goes into effect when states cumulatively possessinga majority of the electoral votes have joined the compact. A statemay withdraw from the compact; however, a withdrawal occurring withinsix months of the end of a President's term shall not become effectiveuntil a President or Vice President has qualified to serve the next term.

Constitutional amendment (first reference);qualifications of voters; right to vote; persons not entitled tovote. Provides that every person who meets the qualificationsof voters set forth in the Constitution of Virginia shall have thefundamental right to vote in the Commonwealth and that such rightshall not be abridged by law, except for persons who have been convictedof a felony and persons who have been adjudicated to lack the capacityto understand the act of voting. A person who has been convictedof a felony shall not be entitled to vote during any period of incarcerationfor such felony conviction, but upon release from incarceration forthat felony conviction and without further action required of him,such person shall be invested with all political rights, includingthe right to vote. Currently, in order to be qualified to vote a personconvicted of a felony must have his civil rights restored by theGovernor or other appropriate authority. The amendment also providesthat a person adjudicated by a court of competent jurisdiction aslacking the capacity to understand the act of voting shall not be entitled to vote during this period of incapacity until his capacityhas been reestablished as prescribed by law. Currently, the Constitutionof Virginia provides that a person who has been adjudicated to bementally incompetent is not qualified to vote until his competencyis reestablished.

Consumer protection; failure to honor servicewarranty. Prohibits a supplier in connection with a consumertransaction from failing to honor a service warranty of another supplierafter acquiring the business of such other supplier. A violationof the provisions of the bill constitutes a violation of the VirginiaConsumer Protection Act.

Firearms instructors and safety programs; NationalRifle Association and United States Concealed Carry Association.Removes references to the National Rifle Association (the NRA)and the United States Concealed Carry Association from the Code thatallow the organizations to certify ranges and instructors and forcourses offered by them to serve as proof of demonstrated competencein firearms safety and training for the purpose of obtaining a concealedhandgun permit or receiving training as a minor in the use of pneumaticguns. The bill also repeals authority for special license platesin support of the NRA.

Workers' compensation; post-traumatic stressdisorder incurred by dispatchers. Allows dispatchers, as definedin the bill, to claim workers' compensation benefits relating topost-traumatic stress disorder under the Virginia Workers' CompensationAct. Currently, only law-enforcement officers and firefighters mayclaim such benefits.