Del. Mark Sickles

Probation, revocation, and suspension of sentence; limitations. Limits the amount of active incarceration a court can impose as a result of a revocation hearing for a probation violation. The bill provides that if the court finds the basis of a violation of the terms and conditions of a suspended sentence or probation is that the defendant was convicted of a criminal offense or violated another condition other than a technical violation, the court may pronounce whatever sentence might have been originally imposed. The bill defines "technical violation" and provides specific limitations on the sentence a court may impose depending on whether the violation is a first, second, or third or subsequent technical violation. The bill also provides that a court may fix the period of probation for up to the statutory maximum period for which the defendant might originally have been sentenced to be imprisoned and any period of supervised probation shall not exceed five years from the release of the defendant from any active period of incarceration. The bill also provides that a court must measure any period of suspension of sentence from the date of entry of the original sentencing order.

Virginia Human Rights Act; definition of employer;person employing one or more domestic workers. Expands the definitionof "employer" for all purposes of the Virginia Human Rights Act toinclude a person employing one or more domestic workers, as definedin the bill.

Neonicotinoid pesticides; local regulation andnotice; penalty. Requires a person who uses a neonicotinoid pesticide,defined in the bill, to give prior written notice at every addresswithin one-half mile and authorizes the Board of Agriculture andConsumer Services to adopt regulations to enforce the provisionsof the bill. A violation of the failure to give notice is a Class1 misdemeanor and shall be subject to an additional fine of up to $500,000 if death or serious physical harm to any person is causedby the violation. The bill also authorizesany locality to regulate or prohibit the distribution, possession,or sale of any neonicotinoid or other pesticide that the localitydeems harmful to pollinators or to regulate or prohibit any outdooruse in an area that is zoned for residential, business, commercial,or industrial use. A person who violates such ordinance shall besubject to a civil penalty, not to exceed $50 for the first violationor violations arising from the same set of operative facts, and $200for subsequent violations within a 12-month period, but not to exceed$3,000 within a 12-month period.

Constitutional amendment (first reference); marriage; repeal of same-sex marriage prohibition; affirmative right to marry. Repeals the constitutional provision defining marriage as only a union between one man and one woman as well as the related provisions that are no longer valid as a result of the United States Supreme Court decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, 576 U.S. 644 (2015). The amendment provides that the right to marry is a fundamental right inherent in the liberty of persons and requires the Commonwealth and its political subdivisions and agents to issue marriage licenses, recognize marriages, and treat all marriages equally under the law, regardless of the sex or gender of the parties to the marriage. Religious organizations and clergy acting in their religious capacity have the right to refuse to perform any marriage. This resolution incorporates HJ 539 and HJ 557.

Commonwealth Health Reinsurance Program. Requires the State Corporation Commission (Commission)  to establish, upon approval of a state innovation waiver request pursuant to § 1332 of the Affordable Care Act, a reinsurance program, known as the Commonwealth Health Reinsurance Program (the Program).  The bill provides that the Program is funded through federal funding provided under the state innovation waiver, an assessment on carriers, and state appropriations. The bill requires that the Commission impose an annual assessment of one percent of a carrier's net written premiums on entities authorized to issue individual and group health insurance overage including grandfathered plans but excluding plans offered in the small group market. The bill provides requirements for payment parameters, data submissions, recordkeeping, reporting, and audits of health carriers. The bill requires the Secretary of Health and Human Resources to convene a work group to develop recommendations for developing a state-based subsidy program to increase affordability of health plans to individuals and to increase enrollment in the Virginia Health Benefit Exchange. The bill requires the Commission to evaluate the program following its second year of operation.The provisions of the bill, other than the requirements that the Commission apply for the state innovation waiver, will become effective 30 days after notice of approval of the waiver request.

Homicides and assaults and bodily woundings; certain matters not to constitute defenses. Provides that the discovery of, perception of, or belief about another person's actual or perceived sex, gender, gender identity, or sexual orientation, whether or not accurate, is not a defense to any charge of capital murder, murder in the first degree, murder in the second degree, voluntary manslaughter, or assault and bodily wounding-related crimes and is not provocation negating or excluding malice as an element of murder.

Underground utility facilities; Fairfax County. Removes the sunset on a pilot program allowing a locality that has adopted the urban county executive form of government (Fairfax County) to request an electric utility to place underground electric distribution lines as part of a transportation infrastructure improvement project and changes a number of provisions in the program including (i) expanding the scope to include electric cooperatives, telecommunications providers, cable providers, and other utilities; (ii) expanding the scope to include all underground facilities; (iii) making negotiable in the agreement the costs of relocating the facilities; (iv) placing additional limits on the levy to fund the project and the types of projects for which it may be imposed; and (v) authorizing the locality to secure necessary permits on behalf of the utility or provider.

Prohibited discrimination; status as activemilitary or a military spouse. Prohibits discrimination in publicaccommodations, employment, and housing on the basis of a person'sstatus as active military or a military spouse.

Absentee voting; procedural and process reforms; availability and accessibility reforms; penalty. Makes various reforms to absentee voting processes and procedures, including those related to availability and accessibility. The bill requires certain actions to be taken to process absentee ballots returned before the day of an election, including verifying the correct completion of the voter affirmation statement, and provides for an opportunity for an absentee voter to make corrections to the statement in certain circumstances. The bill requires the establishment of drop-off locations for the return of voted absentee ballots. Additionally, a central absentee voter precinct is required to be established in each locality; currently, establishment is optional. On the day of the election, officers of election are required to begin processing absentee ballots in the central absentee voter precincts prior to the close of polls, but no ballot vote counts are permitted to be transmitted outside of the central absentee voter precinct before the close of polls; a violation of such prohibition is a Class 1 misdemeanor. When reporting election results to the Department of Elections, the general registrars are required to report absentee ballots cast early in person separately from all other absentee ballots. Additionally, a voter who has applied for and received an absentee ballot may choose to instead vote at his polling place on election day, and such voter shall be entitled to cast a provisional ballot. The bill requires a ballot marking tool with screen reader assistive technology to be made available for absentee voters with a print disability. Restrictions on the availability of absentee voting for first-time voters who registered by mail are repealed. The bill contains technical amendments for organizational and readability purposes.

Paid sick leave. Requires employers to provide certain employees paid sick leave. An employee is eligible for paid sick leave under the bill if the employee is an essential worker and works on average at least 20 hours per week or 90 hours per month. The bill provides for an employee to earn at least one hour of paid sick leave benefit for every 30 hours worked. An employee shall not use more than 40 hours of earned paid sick leave in a year, unless the employer selects a higher limit. The bill provides that earned paid sick leave may be used for (i) an employee's mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition; an employee's need for medical diagnosis, care, or treatment of a mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition; or an employee's need for preventive medical care or (ii) care of a family member with a mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition; care of a family member who needs medical diagnosis, care, or treatment of a mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition; or care of a family member who needs preventive medical care. The bill prohibits employers from taking certain retaliatory actions against employees related to leave. The bill provides for a hardship waiver for employers that demonstrate that providing paid sick leave threatens the financial viability of the employer, jeopardizes the ability of the employer to sustain operations, significantly degrades the quality of the employer's business operations, or creates a significant negative financial impact on the employer. The bill requires the Commissioner of Labor and Industry to promulgate regulations that (a) identify workers as essential based on the categories listed in the bill; (b) include reasonable requirements for recordkeeping, confidentiality, and notifying employees of their rights under provisions of the bill; (c) establish complaint, investigation, and enforcement procedures that include fines, not to exceed $500, for violations of provisions of the bill; (d) establish requirements for compensation and accrual of paid sick leave for employees employed and compensated on a fee-for-service basis; and (e) include procedures and requirements for an employer to qualify for a hardship waiver. The provisions of the bill do not apply to a retail business with fewer than 25 employees.