Del. Mark Sickles

Celebrating the life of Erik Gutshall.

Constitutional amendment (first reference);marriage; repeal of same-sex marriage prohibition; recognition ofsame-sex marriages. Repeals the constitutional provision definingmarriage as only a union between one man and one woman, as well asthe related provisions that are no longer valid as a result of theUnited States Supreme Court decision in Obergefell v. Hodges,576 U.S. 644 (2015). The amendment provides that the Commonwealthand its political subdivisions and its agents are required to issuemarriage licenses, recognize marriages, and treat all marriages equallyunder the law, regardless of the gender of the two parties to themarriage. The amendment further provides that religious organizationsand clergy acting in their religious capacity have the right to refuseto perform any marriage.

Commending Wolf Trap Foundation for the PerformingArts.

Celebrating the life of the Honorable AugustusBenton Chafin, Jr.

Celebrating the life of the Honorable AugustusBenton Chafin, Jr.

Celebrating the life of the Honorable RobertS. Bloxom, Sr.

Conditional release of geriatric prisoners. Allows any person serving a sentence imposed upon a conviction for a felony offense, other than a Class 1 felony, who (i) is 55 years of age or older and has served at least 15 years of the sentence imposed or (ii) is 50 years of age or older and has served at least 20 years of the sentence imposed to petition the Parole Board for conditional release.

Personal data; Virginia Privacy Act. Givesconsumers the right to access their data and determine if it has been sold to a data broker. The measure requires a controller, definedin the bill as a person that, alone or jointly with others, determinesthe purposes and means of the processing of personal data, to facilitaterequests to exercise consumer rights regarding access, correction,deletion, restriction of processing, data portability, objection,and profiling. The measure also (i) requires transparent processingof personal data through a privacy notice, (ii) requires controllersto disclose if they process personal data for direct marketing orsell it to data brokers, and (iii) requires controllers to conducta risk assessment of each of their processing activities involvingpersonal data and an additional risk assessment any time there isa change in processing that materially increases the risk to consumers.The measure applies to any legal entity that conducts business inthe Commonwealth or produces products or services that are intentionallytargeted to residents of the Commonwealth and that (a) controls orprocesses personal data of not fewer than 100,000 consumers or (b)derives over 50 percent of gross revenue from the sale of personaldata and processes or controls personal data of not fewer than 25,000customers. A violation of this measure is made a prohibited practiceunder the Virginia Consumer Protection Act.

Constitutional amendment (first resolution);marriage. Proposes the repeal of the constitutional amendment dealing with marriage that was approved by referendum at the November2006 election. That amendment to the Bill of Rights (i) defines marriageas "only a union between one man and one woman"; (ii) prohibits theCommonwealth and its political subdivisions from creating or recognizing"a legal status for relationships of unmarried individuals that intendsto approximate the design, qualities, significance, or effects ofmarriage"; and (iii) prohibits the Commonwealth or its political subdivisions from creating or recognizing "another union, partnership, or otherlegal status to which is assigned the rights, benefits, obligations,qualities, or effects of marriage." The provisions of this section of the Constitution of Virginia are no longer valid as a result ofthe United States Supreme Court decision in Obergefell v. Hodges,576 U.S. ___ (June 26, 2015).

Health insurance; mandated coverage for hearing aids for minors. Requires health insurers, health maintenance organizations, and corporations providing health care coverage subscription contracts to provide coverage for hearing aids and related services for children 18 years of age or younger when a licensed audiologist prescribes such hearing aids and related services. The coverage includes one hearing aid per hearing-impaired ear, up to a cost of $1,500, every 24 months. The measure applies to policies, contracts, and plans delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed on and after January 1, 2021.