Del. Ian Lovejoy

Certificate of public need; exception; critical access hospitals; swing beds; sunset. Allows critical access hospitals to utilize an average of up to 10 swing beds per day, calculated over the hospital's fiscal year, without obtaining a certificate of public need. Under current law, critical access hospitals may only use up to 10 percent of beds as swing beds. The bill directs the State Commissioner of Health to collect data annually from critical access hospitals that use fiscal year averaging for swing beds and make such data publicly available. The bill has an expiration date of July 1, 2028. This bill is identical to SB 1177.

Party with legitimate interest; parent whose rights have previously been terminated. Allows a parent whose rights previously have been terminated to be considered a party with a legitimate interest for the purposes of filing a custody or visitation petition, provided that the child whose custody or visitation is at issue (i) is at least 14 years of age, (ii) has had a permanency goal previously achieved by adoption, (iii) has had his adoptive parents die or each of such child's adoptive parents has permanently been relieved of custody of such child and each adoptive parent has had his parental rights terminated, and (iv) is in the custody of a local board of social services, and provided that the parent whose rights had previously been terminated has (a) complied with the terms of any written post-adoption contact and communication agreement entered into and (b) maintained a positive, continuous relationship with the child since termination. Under current law, a party with a legitimate interest does not include any person whose parental rights have been terminated by court order, either voluntarily or involuntarily.

Superintendent of Public Instruction; programs providing instructional experience in horse riding; exemption from licensure. Exempts from the requirements for licensure of child day programs by the Superintendent of Public Instruction programs providing instructional experience in horse riding, provided that (i) such a program is taught (a) by an adult with a recognized certification in horse riding instruction and (b) to fewer than 12 children at any time, (ii) at least one adult actively supervises no more than three children at any time during such a program, and (iii) the majority of programming for any such program relates to horse riding and equine activities.

Regional correctional facilities; investigation of acts of violence; report to law-enforcement agency; policies. Requires the jail superintendent of any regional correctional facility to promptly report to the primary local law-enforcement agency in the jurisdiction where such facility is located or to the Department of State Police any act of violence that occurs within such correctional facility. The bill also requires each regional correctional facility to adopt a policy setting forth the procedures for the investigation of such acts of violence and the respective roles and responsibilities of the jail superintendent of such correctional facility and the law-enforcement agency to which such report is made. The bill requires each regional correctional facility to provide a copy of such policy to the State Board of Local and Regional Jails prior to January 1 each year, beginning on January 1, 2026.

Motor vehicle dealers; buyer's order; leased motor vehicles. Clarifies the use of buyer's orders for leased vehicles and provides that such forms may be separate from the buyer's order forms used for a sale of a motor vehicle.

Access to minor's records; records contained in or made available through secure website. Specifies that for the purposes of allowing a parent to access the academic or health records of such parent's minor child such access includes access to such records that are stored in or accessible from a secure website. This bill is identical to SB 846.

Department of Motor Vehicles; proof of financial responsibility in the future. Clarifies when a vehicle owner is required to furnish proof of financial responsibility or proof of financial responsibility in the future. The bill specifies the forms required when providing proof of financial responsibility in the future. This bill is identical to SB 959.

Right of foster parents to prohibit disclosure of student address to parents; parental notification. Requires (i) notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, upon written request of the foster parent of an enrolled student, a school board employee to redact the address of the foster parent prior to providing such student's parent any record otherwise containing such address and (ii) at the time a child is placed in foster care, each local department of social services to, if applicable, notify the foster parents of their right to make a written request pursuant to clause (i).

Virginia coordinate systems; federal updates. Updates several references in Code to the Virginia Coordinate System of 2022 and aligns state law with federal changes with respect to measurement standards. The bill replaces the U.S. survey foot with the international foot. The provisions of the bill become effective upon the official release by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Geodetic Survey of the State Plane Coordinate System of 2022 and certification in writing to the Virginia Code Commission that such contingency has been met. This bill is identical to SB 1173.

Fingerprints, palm prints, and photographs of juveniles. Requires law-enforcement officers to obtain, electronically when possible, fingerprints, palm prints with accompanying distal prints, if available, and photographs of any juvenile taken into custody and charged with a delinquent act. The bill also requires such fingerprints, palm prints, or photographs to be both filed with the Central Criminal Records Exchange and submitted electronically, when possible, to the State Police to be maintained in a confidential and secure area within the system in which the record is maintained that is inaccessible during routine use of such system. The bill further requires any electronic record of such fingerprints, palm prints, or photographs to be destroyed as soon as possible after the State Police have been notified that a petition or warrant has not been filed against the juvenile. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2026. This bill is identical to SB 1261.