Del. Vivian Watts

Purchase, possession, sale, transfer, etc.,of assault firearms and certain ammunition feeding devices prohibited;penalty. Creates a Class 1 misdemeanor for any person who imports,sells, manufactures, purchases, possesses, transports, or transfersan assault firearm, as that term is defined in the bill, and prohibitsa person who has been convicted of such violation from purchasing,possessing, or transporting a firearm for a period of three yearsfrom the date of conviction. The bill provides that an assault firearmdoes not include any firearm that is an antique firearm, has been rendered permanently inoperable, is manually operated by bolt, pump,lever, or slide action, or was manufactured before July 1, 2024.The bill also prohibits the sale of a large capacity ammunition feedingdevice, as that term is defined in the bill. The bill provides thatany person who willfully and intentionally (i) sells an assault firearmto another person or (ii) purchases an assault firearm from anotherperson is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor and that any person whoimports, sells, barters, or transfers a large capacity ammunition feeding device is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. The bill alsomakes it a Class 1 misdemeanor for any person younger than 21 yearsof age to import, sell, manufacture, purchase, possess, transport,or transfer an assault firearm regardless of the date of manufactureof such assault firearm.

Health insurance; coverage for contraceptivedrugs and devices. Requires health insurance carriers to providecoverage, under any health insurance contract, policy, or plan thatincludes coverage for prescription drugs on an outpatient basis,for contraceptive drugs and contraceptive devices, as defined inthe bill, approved for use as prescribed products or for over-the-counteruse. The bill prohibits a health insurance carrier from imposingupon any person receiving contraceptive benefits pursuant to theprovisions of the bill any copayment, coinsurance payment, or fee, except in certain circumstances. The provisions of the bill applyto health insurance contracts, policies, or plans delivered, issuedfor delivery, or renewed on and after January 1, 2025.

Equity in public school funding; student need; English language learner, special education, and at-risk students. Places several parameters on Standards of Quality funding calculations performed by the Department of Education, including (i) requiring the Department, when calculating the cost of salaries under the Standards of Quality funding formula, to include facilities staff and transportation staff salaries in the calculation of any cost of competing adjustment to salaries for instructional and support positions that is provided as part of the state share of basic aid pursuant to the general appropriation act; (ii) requiring the Department, when estimating the cost of any compensation supplement for instructional and support positions under the Standards of Quality funding formula, to include and estimate the cost of such a compensation supplement for facilities staff; (iii) prohibiting the Department from applying any cap on inflation rate adjustments to non-personal cost categories during the biennial process of rebenchmarking the direct aid to public education budget; and (iv) requiring the Department to utilize a three-year average of the most recently available data to calculate the composite index of local ability-to-pay for each school division. The bill also amends Standard of Quality 2 by (a) including in the definition of "support services position" any central office clerical position that is not otherwise set forth in such definition, (b) requiring a per-pupil Standards of Quality funding add-on to be provided for English language learner and special education students, (c) requiring, in addition to the positions supported by basic aid, state funding, pursuant to the general appropriation act, to be provided to cover the actual average school division cost to educate children with disabilities, and (d) establishing the At-Risk Program, defined in the bill as any state funding provided for programs of prevention, intervention, or remediation or pursuant to the at-risk add-on for the purpose of supporting programs for students who are educationally at risk. The bill requires (1) the determination of the amount of state funding for which a school division is eligible pursuant to such At-Risk Program to be based on the school division's identified student percentage, defined in the bill as the fraction, expressed as a percentage, that results from dividing the number of identified students enrolled in a school division by the total number of students enrolled in such school division, weighted by the factor of 1.5, and then adjusted by the addition of a percentage that corrects for undercounting English language learner students as identified students and (2) such funding to be distributed as follows: 60 percent on a flat per-student rate and 40 percent on a variable rate set out in the general appropriation act based on the concentration of poverty in the school division. The bill is a recommendation of the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission.

Minimum wage; farm laborers or farm employees;temporary foreign workers. Eliminates the exemptions from Virginia'sminimum wage requirements for (i) persons employed as farm laborers or farm employees and (ii) certain temporary foreign workers. This bill incorporates HB 866.

Weapons; possession or transportation; hospital that provides mental health services or developmental services; penalty. Makes it a Class 1 misdemeanor for any person to knowingly possess in or transport into the building of any hospital that provides mental health services or developmental services in the Commonwealth, including an emergency department or other facility rendering emergency medical care, any (i) firearm or other weapon designed or intended to propel a missile or projectile of any kind; (ii) knife, except a pocket knife having a folding metal blade of less than three inches; or (iii) other dangerous weapon, including explosives and stun weapons. The bill also provides that notice of such prohibitions shall be posted conspicuously at the public entrance of any hospital and no person shall be convicted of the offense if such notice is not posted, unless such person had actual notice of the prohibitions. The bill provides that any such firearm, knife, explosive, or weapon shall be subject to seizure by a law-enforcement officer and forfeited to the Commonwealth and specifies exceptions to the prohibition. This bill is identical to HB 861.

Resilient Virginia Revolving Fund; projects; low-income geographic areas; nature-based solutions. Provides that the Department of Conservation and Recreation shall give additional weight to projects located in low-income geographic areas and projects that incorporate nature-based solutions when distributing loans or grants from the Resilient Virginia Revolving Fund to particular local governments.

Department of Education; development of Title IX and sexual harassment prevention training modules for high school students. Requires the Department of Education to develop culturally appropriate, age-appropriate, and trauma-informed Title IX and sexual harassment prevention training modules concerning Title IX rights and protections, consent, and sexual harassment prevention and reporting and to make such training modules available to each school board for the education of high school students. The bill also requires each school board to (i) ensure that all high school students complete such training modules within 31 days of the start of each school year, (ii) set aside instructional time during school hours for the completion of such training modules, (iii) allow all high school students to opt-out of participation in the completion of such training modules by request of the student's parents if such student is under the age of 18, or by request of the student if such student is 18 years of age or older, and (iv) inform all high school students of any counseling services related to sexual harassment that are available to them prior to such students completing such training modules. Finally, the bill requires (a) the Department to develop and make available to each school board such training modules by December 31, 2024; (b) the Department to revise such training modules to ensure continued compliance with applicable state and federal laws no later than December 31 of each year; and (c) each school board to adopt policies to implement such training modules by the beginning of the 2025–2026 school year.

Special justices and independent evaluator fees; emergency custody and voluntary and involuntary civil admissions. Increases the fee that a special justice receives for presiding over emergency custody and voluntary and involuntary civil admissions from $86.25 to $120 for each commitment hearing and from $43.25 to $70 for each certification hearing. The bill also increases the fee that an independent evaluator receives if required to serve as a witness or an interpreter from $75 to $120 for each commitment hearing and from $43.25 to $70 for each certification hearing. Lastly, the bill specifies that any such necessary expenses incurred by such special justices or independent evaluators, or by attorneys appointed to such commitment and certification hearings, shall be paid in accordance with guidelines established by the Supreme Court of Virginia. The bill contains technical amendments.

Juveniles; evidence of trafficking, sexual abuse, or rape by the alleged victim prior to or during the commission of the alleged offense; treatment and rehabilitation. Requires a juvenile and domestic relations district court, when determining whether to retain jurisdiction of a juvenile defendant during a transfer hearing, to consider any evidence that such juvenile was a victim of felonious sexual assault or trafficking by the alleged victim prior to or during the commission of the alleged offense and that such alleged offense was a direct result of the juvenile being a victim of such felonious sexual assault or trafficking. The bill also requires that a study and report prior to a transfer hearing include any relevant information supporting an allegation that such juvenile was a victim of felonious sexual assault or trafficking by the alleged victim. The bill also creates a procedure for a juvenile to present such evidence in mandatory transfer cases that under current law require the juvenile and domestic relations district court to transfer the case to the circuit court and provides that upon a finding that the alleged offense was a direct result of the juvenile being a victim of such felonious sexual assault or trafficking, the juvenile and domestic relations district court can instead conduct a transfer hearing to determine whether to keep the case in juvenile court. The bill also creates a similar procedure allowing a juvenile to present such evidence in certain cases where current law requires the juvenile and domestic relations district court to transfer the case to circuit court if the attorney for the Commonwealth gives notice of an intent to proceed with such transfer. Also, in juvenile cases that are tried in circuit court, the bill allows the court to set aside a guilty verdict and instead render the juvenile delinquent if prior to the final order or within 21 days of such order, the court receives evidence that the juvenile was a victim of such felonious sexual assault or trafficking. Lastly, the bill states that it is the intent of the General Assembly that these juveniles be viewed as victims and provided treatment and services in the juvenile system.

Heated tobacco; taxation. Redefines "cigarette" for state cigarette tax purposes to include any product containing nicotine that is intended to be burned or heated under ordinary conditions of use, and heated tobacco products. Under current law, heated tobacco products are distinct from cigarettes for the purpose of taxation. The bill also subjects such cigarettes intended to be heated to an excise tax of 2.25 cents per cigarette on and after July 1, 2021, and subjects other cigarettes to an excise tax of three cents on and after July 1, 2020. Under current law, heated tobacco products are subject to the tobacco products tax at such rate.