Del. Kathy Tran

Public education; community schools; Officeof Community Schools at Department of Education; Community SchoolDevelopment and Implementation Planning Grant; Community School CoordinatorProgram; state goal. Requires the Department of Education toestablish the Office of Community Schools as an office within theDepartment for the purpose of supporting the development and growthof community schools throughout the Commonwealth in accordance withthe Virginia Community School Framework and requires the Office toestablish and administer (i) the Community School Development andImplementation Planning Grant for the purpose of providing grantsto school boards that seek to designate any school within the local school division as a community school to assist with the planningand implementation of such designation and (ii) the Community SchoolCoordinator Program for the purpose of providing funding to school boards that previously completed a planning grant and now seek toemploy or hire through contracted services with a qualified nonprofitorganization a community school coordinator to oversee any communityschool designated in the local school division. The bill also establishesa state goal of prioritizing funding for such initiatives and grantprograms to enable their expansion to serve the top 33 percent ofpublic elementary and secondary schools in the Commonwealth for highestidentified student percentage, as defined in the bill, based on datafrom the immediately preceding school year.

Contract actions; medical debt. Provides that in any action, including those brought by the Commonwealth, upon any contract to collect medical debt, as defined in the bill, such an action is barred if not commenced within three years from the due date applicable to the first invoice for a health care service unless the contract with a hospital or health care provider is for a payment plan that allows for a longer period of time for the collection of debt by the hospital or health care provider. The bill specifies that such limitation shall not apply to medical debt arising from services provided by programs administered by the Department of Medical Assistance Services.

Fees for electronic fund transfers; prohibited. Provides that charging any transaction or processing fee or similar surcharge for the purchase of a good or service through the use of an electronic fund transfer is a prohibited practice under the Virginia Consumer Protection Act. The bill also prohibits landlords subject to the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act from charging a transaction or processing fee for the payment of a security deposit, rent, or any other amounts payable.

Public institutions of higher education; Hunger-FreeCampus Grant Program established; report. Establishes the Hunger-FreeCampus Grant Program (the Program) to address student food insecurityat public institutions of higher education. The bill provides thatthe Program shall be managed by the State Council of Higher Educationfor Virginia and available for participation by public institutions of higher education; however, participation in the Program shallbe optional for such institutions. Under the bill, if a public institutionof higher education satisfies certain criteria set out in the bill,including creating initiatives on campus to address student foodinsecurity, it shall be designated as a "Hunger-Free Campus" andthe Council shall award a grant to such institution. A public institutionof higher education that receives a grant under the bill shall utilizethe funds to support on-campus efforts and initiatives to eliminatestudent food insecurity at such institution. The bill requires theCouncil to submit a report to the Chairmen of the Senate Committeeon Education and Health and the House Committee on Education no laterthan two years after the establishment of the Program.

Annual retail sales and use tax holiday. Establishes an annual retail sales and use tax holiday that takes place on the first full weekend in August beginning on July 1, 2025, through July 1, 2030. During such weekend, state retail sales and use tax will not apply to certain (i) school supplies, (ii) clothing and footwear, (iii) qualified products designated as Energy Star or WaterSense, (iv) portable generators, or (v) hurricane preparedness equipment. This bill is identical to SB 116.

Public school staffing ratios; teachers; Englishlanguage learner students. Requires state funding to be providedpursuant to the general appropriation act to support divisionwideratios of English language learner students in average daily membershipto full-time equivalent teaching positions as follows: (i) for eachEnglish language learner identified as proficiency level one or two,one position per 20 students; (ii) for each English language learneridentified as proficiency level three or four, one position per 40 students; and (iii) for each English language learner identifiedas proficiency level five or in monitor status, one position per100 students. Current law requires state funding to be provided pursuantto the general appropriation act to support one such teaching positionper 50 English language learner students, regardless of the identifiedEnglish proficiency level of such students.

School boards; meetings; public comment or citizen participation; enrolled students. Requires each school boardto permit any student enrolled in a public elementary or secondaryschool in the local school division who provides acceptable proofof identification, including any current student identification cardor other school document such as a report card or a personal schoolemail address, and who signs up at least 12 hours in advance of thescheduled start of a school board meeting or is physically presentat a school board meeting to submit oral comments during any publiccomment or citizen participation portion of such meeting.

Manufactured home parks; resident rights.Provides that a rental agreement with a term of one year or more will not be automatically renewed if the tenant notifies the landlord60 days prior to the expiration date of such tenant's intent to notrenew the agreement. The bill permits a tenant to not renew a rentalagreement due to a change in terms of the agreement by the landlordif such tenant notifies the landlord of his intent to not renew therental agreement within 30 days of receiving the notice of the changein terms. The bill allows a landlord to include in a written rentalagreement a late fee, not to exceed 10 percent of the amount of therent due and owed, for unpaid rental payments. The bill increasesfrom 60 days or more to less than one year the term of a rental agreementthat may be terminated by written notice at least 60 days prior tothe termination date of the agreement. Finally, the bill removes theright of a landlord to evict a tenant for two or more violationsof any rule or provision of the rental agreement occurring withina six-month period.

Department of Medical Assistance Services; Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services; 1915(c) Home and Community Based Services Medicaid Waivers; state plan amendments; program rule modifications. Directs the Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS) and the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services to seek federal authority through the necessary state plan amendments under Titles XIX and XXI of the Social Security Act to modify the program rules for certain 1915(c) Home and Community Based Services Medicaid Waivers to (i) modify the 40-hour-per-week work limit to allow legally responsible individuals with more than one waiver-receiving child to receive reimbursement for 40 hours of work per week per child receiving a waiver; (ii) eliminate the requirement that, in order for a legally responsible individual to receive reimbursement for personal care services, no one else be available to provide services to the member; and (iii) modify the program rules to allow a legally responsible individual or stepparent to be the employer of record. The bill directs DMAS to evaluate the possibility of allowing for respite services under certain 1915(c) Home and Community Based Services Medicaid Waivers and submit its recommendations, cost estimate, and methodology used for obtaining the cost estimate to the General Assembly no later than November 1, 2024. This bill is identical to SB 488.

Compensation of court-appointed counsel. Raises the limitation of fees that court-appointed counsel can receive for representation on various offenses in district and circuit courts. The bill also limits the fees charged for the cost of court-appointed counsel or public defender representation to persons determined to be indigent to an amount no greater than the amount such person would have owed if such fees had been assessed on or before June 30, 2024. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2025. This bill is identical to SB 356.