Rep. Wendy Gooditis

Board of Education; membership; qualifications. Requires the nine-member Board of Education, all of whom are appointedby the Governor, to include at least one member with experience orexpertise in local government leadership or policymaking, at leastone member with experience or expertise in career and technical education,and at least one member with experience or expertise in early childhoodeducation.

Health insurance; coverage for prosthetic devices.Requires health insurers, corporations providing health carecoverage subscription contracts, health maintenance organizations,and the Commonwealth's Medicaid program to provide coverage for prostheticdevices, including myoelectric, biomechanical, or microprocessor-controlledprosthetic devices that have a Medicare code. The provisions of thebill apply only in the large group markets. The bill repeals theexisting requirement that coverage for prosthetic devices be offeredand made available. The bill has a delayed effective date of January1, 2023.

Kinship foster care; notice and appeal. Requires local boards of social services (local boards), upon receiving a request from a child's relative to become a kinship foster parent, to provide the relative with any forms and materials that must be submitted to become a kinship foster parent within 15 days. The bill requires local boards, upon denying a relative's request to become a kinship foster parent, to provide to the relative (i) a clear and specific explanation of the reasons for denial, (ii) a statement that such denial is appealable, and (iii) information regarding the procedure for filing such appeal. The bill allows relatives to file an appeal regarding such decisions with the Commissioner of Social Services and requires the Board of Social Services to adopt certain regulations regarding the timeline of such appeals. This bill is identical to SB 307.

Early childhood care and education entities; administration of epinephrine. Requires the Board of Education to amend its regulations to require each early childhood care and education entity to implement policies for the possession and administration of epinephrine in every such entity to be administered by any nurse at the entity, employee at the entity, or employee of a local health department who is authorized by a prescriber and trained in the administration of epinephrine to any child believed to be having an anaphylactic reaction. The bill mandates that such policies shall require that at least one school nurse, employee at the entity, or employee of a local health department who is authorized by a prescriber and trained in the administration of epinephrine has the means to access at all times during regular facility hours any such appropriate weight-based dosage of epinephrine that is stored in a locked or otherwise generally inaccessible container or area. This bill shall be known as Elijah's Law. This bill is identical to SB 737.

Small renewable energy projects; impact on natural resources. Requires, as a condition for a permit by rule for a small energy project, that the applicant conduct an analysis of the beneficial and adverse impacts of the proposed project on natural resources. The bill requires that if the Department of Environmental Quality determines that there will be a significant adverse impact on wildlife, historic resources, prime agricultural soils, or forest lands, the applicant must also submit a mitigation plan with a 90-day public comment period. The bill specifies that a disturbance of (i) more than 10 acres of prime agricultural soils, (ii) more than 50 acres of contiguous forest lands, or (iii) forest lands enrolled in a forestry preservation program is deemed to be a significant adverse impact on natural resources. The bill directs the Department to convene an advisory panel to assist in developing regulations to further develop criteria for determining significant adverse impact on natural resources and guidelines for plans to mitigate such adverse impacts. Any application for a small renewable energy project received by the promulgation of new regulations or December 31, 2024, whichever is earlier, would not be subject to the act.

Local Food and Farming Infrastructure GrantProgram. Increases from $25,000 to $50,000 the amount of a grantthat may be made to a political subdivision for projects that supportlocal food production and sustainable agriculture.

Breeding of dogs and cats for research; reporting.Requires any person who or entity that breeds dogs and cats for animal testing facilities to report certain to the State Veterinarianon a monthly basis. The report shall include information regardingthe birth, acquisition, death, sale, transfer, or other dispositionof a dog or cat in the prior month.

Limited liability companies; prepayment of annual registration fees. Permits domestic and foreign limited liabilitycompanies to prepay annual registration fees for two or three years.Under the bill, a domestic or foreign limited liability company mustmake the election to prepay its annual registration fees before itsannual registration fee would otherwise be due and seek approvalfrom the State Corporation Commission to engage in prepayment fortwo or three years. The bill provides that such optional prepaymentdoes not apply to the initial annual registration fees assessed againsta limited liability company that is newly formed or recently convertedfrom another entity. The bill requires that, if applicable, the Commissionprovide notice of this prepayment option to a foreign or domesticlimited liability company that has failed to pay its annual registrationfee as a method of avoiding future delinquencies.

Public schools; instruction concerning gambling. Requires instruction concerning gambling and the addictive potential thereof to be provided by the public schools as prescribed by the Board of Education. The bill requires the Board of Education to report to the Chairmen of House Committee on Education and the Senate Committee on Education and Health a description of such instruction.

Celebrating the life of the Honorable FloraLonette Davis Crittenden.