Emergency Services and Disaster Law; limitation on duration of executive orders. Limits the duration of any executive order issued by the Governor pursuant to his powers under the Emergency Services and Disaster Law to no more than 45 days from the date of issuance. The bill provides that if the General Assembly does not take any action on the rule, regulation, or order within the 45 days during which the rule, regulation, or order is effective, the Governor shall thereafter be prohibited from issuing the same or a similar rule, regulation, or order relating to the same emergency. Under current law, once issued, such executive orders are effective until June 30 following the next regular session of the General Assembly. This bill incorporates SB 166 and SB 731 and is identical to HB 158.
Sponsored bills
School principals; incident reports. Requires that school principals report to law enforcement certain enumerated acts that may constitute a misdemeanor offense and report to the parents of any minor student who is the specific object of such act that the incident has been reported to law enforcement. Under current law, principals are required to make such reports only for such acts that may constitute a felony offense. The bill provides, as an exception to the requirement to report any written threats against school personnel while on a school bus, on school property, or at a school-sponsored activity, that a principal is not required but may report to the local law-enforcement agency any such incident committed by a student who has an individualized education plan. This bill is identical to SB 36.
Powers of the Governor; limited duration of rules, regulations, and orders. Limits the initial duration of any rule, regulation, or order issued by the Governor pursuant to his powers under the Emergency Services and Disaster Law to no more than 30 days after the date of issuance. The bill provides that the Governor may extend the duration after the initial 30-day period for two additional 30-day periods. Upon each extension, the Governor is required to report to the General Assembly on the status of the continued need for the order. During each of the extension periods, the General Assembly may convene to consider and take action on the rule, regulation, or order. If the Governor deems it is in the best interest of the Commonwealth for the order to be in effect for more than 90 days, the General Assembly shall be convened to consider and take action on such extension. The bill provides that unless the General Assembly takes action on the rule, regulation, or order within such 90-day period encompassing the initial issuance and any extensions during which the rule, regulation, or order is effective, the Governor shall thereafter be prohibited from issuing the same or a similar rule, regulation, or order relating to the same emergency without the approval of the General Assembly.
Health care; consent to services and disclosure of records. Eliminates authority of a minor to consent to medical or health services needed in the case of outpatient care, treatment, or rehabilitation for medical illness or emotional disturbance and the disclosure of medical records related thereto. The bill also provides that an authorization for the disclosure of health records shall remain in effect until such time as it is revoked in writing to the person in possession of the health record subject to the authorization; shall include authorization for the release of all health records of the person created by the health care entity to whom permission to release health records was granted from the date on which the authorization was executed; and shall include authorization for the person named in the authorization to assist the person who is the subject of the health record in accessing health care services, including scheduling appointments for the person who is the subject of the health record and attending appointments together with the person who is the subject of the health record. The bill also provides that every health care provider shall make health records of a patient available to any person designated by a patient in an authorization to release medical records and that a health care provider shall allow a person to make an appointment for medical services on behalf of another person, regardless of whether the other person has executed an authorization to release medical records, provided that such health care provider shall not release protected health information to the person making the appointment for medical services on behalf of another person unless such person has executed an authorization to release medical records to the person making the appointment.
Public elementary and secondary schools and public school-based early childhood care and education programs; student instruction; masks. Requires, except in the case of the 10 unscheduled remote learning days otherwise permitted by law or in certain cases of student discipline, each school board to offer in-person instruction, as defined in the bill, to each student enrolled in the local school division in a public elementary or secondary school for at least the minimum number of required annual instructional hours and to each student enrolled in the local school division in a public school-based early childhood care and education program for the entirety of the instructional time provided pursuant to such program. The bill permits, notwithstanding any other provision of law or any regulation, rule, or policy implemented by a school board, school division, school official, or other state or local authority, the parent of any child enrolled in a public elementary or secondary school, or in any school-based early childhood care and education program, to elect for such child to not wear a mask while on school property. The bill provides that no parent making such an election shall be required to provide a reason or any certification of the child's health or education status and no student shall suffer any adverse disciplinary or academic consequences as a result of this parental election. The bill clarifies that none of the foregoing provisions shall be construed to affect the authority granted to the Governor to achieve the purposes of relevant emergency services and disaster law with regard to a communicable disease of public health threat.
Virginia Employment Commission; administrative reforms; reporting requirements; electronic submissions; Unemployment Compensation Ombudsman established; emergency. Requires the Virginia Employment Commission to calculate and report the (i) average unemployment insurance benefit levels, (ii) average income replacement of unemployment insurance benefits, and (iii) recipiency rate for unemployment insurance benefits in the Commonwealth as part of the Commission's annual balance sheet. The bill also requires the Commission, as part of its biennial strategic plan submitted to the Department of Planning and Budget, to develop and maintain an unemployment insurance Resiliency Plan that describes the specific actions the agency would take, depending on the level of increase in unemployment insurance (UI) claims, to address staffing, communications, and other relevant aspects of operations to ensure continued efficient and effective administration of the UI program.The bill creates within the Commission on Unemployment Compensation a subcommittee that shall be responsible for monitoring the Virginia Employment Commission's management of the unemployment insurance program. The subcommittee shall meet at least once each quarter and shall report annually, beginning on December 1, 2022, to the House Committee on Appropriations, the House Committee on Commerce and Energy, the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor, and the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations. The bill also directs the Commission to convene an advisory committee composed of stakeholders and subject matter experts to review information related to UI claims.The bill requires employers to submit claim-related forms and separation information electronically, as well as other information and electronic tax payments upon the Commission's request, unless the employer has received a waiver by the Commission. The bill provides that a claim for unemployment benefits that has been determined invalid by the Virginia Employment Commission as a result of the claimant's monetary ineligibility shall first be reviewed upon a request for redetermination prior to filing an appeal. The bill also creates an Unemployment Compensation Ombudsman position for the purpose of providing information and assistance to persons seeking assistance in the unemployment compensation process and exempts confidential case files of the Unemployment Compensation Ombudsman from the mandatory disclosure provisions of the Virginia Freedom of Information Act. The bill directs the Virginia Department of Human Resource Management to lead a multiagency work group to discuss strategies for staffing assistance and support for agencies that might need staffing assistance during emergencies. Additionally, the Virginia Employment Commission is directed to task its internal audit division to review and revise documents and online resources related to unemployment compensation. The bill contains an emergency clause and is identical to SB 219.
Public elementary and secondary schools; threat assessment team membership; law-enforcement liaison for certain school administrators. Requires, in the case of any public elementary or secondary school in which a school resource officer is employed, the threat assessment team for such school to include at least one such school resource officer. The bill requires the chief local law-enforcement officer for any local school division in which a public elementary or secondary school does not employ a school resource officer to designate a law-enforcement officer to receive, either in-person or online, the school safety training for public school personnel conducted by the Virginia Center for School and Campus Safety in accordance with relevant law and requires such officer to serve as the law-enforcement liaison for the school administrator in such a school who has also received such training as prescribed by relevant law.
Retail sales and use tax; exemption for medicine and drugs purchased by veterinarians. Exempts veterinarians from sales and use tax on the purchase of prescription medicines and drugs that are administered or dispensed to patients within a veterinarian-client-patient relationship. The bill repeals provisions of current law that provide that a veterinarian dispensing or selling medicines or drugs on prescription shall be deemed to be the user or consumer of all such medicines and drugs. The bill provides that the exemption shall be in effect from July 1, 2022, until July 1, 2025. This bill is identical to SB 517.
Group health benefit plans; bona fide associations; formation of benefits consortium. Provides that certain trusts constitute a benefits consortium and are authorized to sell health benefit plans to members of a sponsoring association that (i) has been formed and maintained in good faith for purposes other than obtaining or providing health benefits; (ii) does not condition membership in the sponsoring association on any factor relating to the health status of an individual, including an employee of a member of the sponsoring association or a dependent of such an employee; (iii) makes any health benefit plan available to all members regardless of any factor relating to the health status of such members or individuals eligible for coverage through a member; (iv) does not make any health benefit plan available to any person who is not a member of the association; (v) makes available health plans or health benefit plans that meet requirements provided for in the bill; (vi) operates as a nonprofit entity under § 501(c)(5) or 501(c)(6) of the Internal Revenue Code; and (vii) has been in active existence for at least five years. The bill replaces references to "bona fide association," as used in provisions applicable to health care plans in the small employer market, with the term "sponsoring association."The bill requires any health benefit plan issued by a self-funded multiple employer welfare arrangement (MEWA) that covers one or more employees of one or more small employers to (a) provide essential health benefits and cost-sharing requirements; (b) offer a minimum level of coverage designed to provide benefits that are actuarially equivalent to 60 percent of the full actuarial value of the benefits provided under the plan; (c) not limit or exclude coverage for an individual by imposing a preexisting condition exclusion on that individual; (d) be prohibited from establishing discriminatory rules based on health status related to eligibility or premium or contribution requirements as imposed on health carriers; (e) meet the renewability standards set forth for health insurance issuers; (f) establish base rates formed on an actuarially sound, modified community rating methodology that considers the pooling of all participant claims; and (g) utilize each employer member's specific risk profile to determine premiums by actuarially adjusting above or below established base rates, and utilize either pooling or reinsurance of individual large claimants to reduce the adverse impact on any specific employer member's premiums.The bill prohibits a self-funded MEWA from issuing health benefit plans in the Commonwealth until it has obtained a license pursuant to regulations promulgated by the State Corporation Commission. The bill authorizes the Commission to adopt regulations applicable to self-funded MEWAs, including regulations addressing financial condition, solvency requirements, and the exclusion of self-funded MEWAs from the Virginia Life, Accident and Sickness Insurance Guaranty Association. This bill is identical to SB 195.
Academic year Governor's Schools; certain practices prohibited and permitted. Prohibits any academic year Governor's School or governing board member, director, administrator, or employee thereof from (i) discriminating against or granting preferential treatment to any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin; (ii) engaging in proxy discrimination, as defined in the bill, in student admissions; or (iii) seeking information on students' race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin during the application process for admission to such school unless expressly required by federal law, and to the extent it is required by federal law, the bill requires such information to be withheld to the maximum extent practicable from any individual involved in admissions decisions to the end that admissions decisions are blind as to the applicants' race, sex, color, ethnicity, and national origin. The bill permits any academic year Governor's School or governing board member, director, administrator, or employee thereof to use traditional academic success factors, as defined in the bill, in student admissions and provides that such use presumptively does not constitute proxy discrimination. The bill also contains provisions relating to evidentiary burdens of proof in certain causes of action involving such proxy discrimination or traditional academic success factors. The bill requires each local school board that jointly manages and controls a regional academic year Governor's school to collaborate to ensure that each public middle school that is eligible to send students to attend such Governor's school offers coursework, curriculum, and instruction that is comparable in content and in rigor in order to provide each student in each such middle school with the opportunity to gain admission to and excel academically at such Governor's school.