Del. Liz Guzmán

Commending the Honorable Dr. William FergusonReid.

Public elementary and secondary schools; treatment of transgender students; policies. Requires the Department of Education to develop and make available to each school board, no later than December 31, 2020, model policies concerning the treatment of transgender students in public elementary and secondary schools that address common issues regarding transgender students in accordance with evidence-based best practices and include information, guidance, procedures, and standards relating to (i) compliance with applicable nondiscrimination laws; (ii) maintenance of a safe and supportive learning environment free from discrimination and harassment for all students; (iii) prevention of and response to bullying and harassment; (iv) maintenance of student records; (v) identification of students; (vi) protection of student privacy and the confidentiality of sensitive information; (vii) enforcement of sex-based dress codes; and (viii) student participation in sex-specific school activities and events, excluding athletics, and use of school facilities. The bill requires each school board to adopt, no later than the beginning of the 2021-2022 school year, policies that are consistent with but may be more comprehensive than such model policies developed by the Department of Education. This bill is identical to SB 161.

Commending the Sacred Heart Center.

Commending the passage of the Americans withDisabilities Act.

Virginia Human Rights Act; racial discrimination; hair. Provides that the terms "because of race" and "on the basis of race," and terms of similar import, when used in reference to discrimination in the Code of Virginia and acts of the General Assembly, include traits historically associated with race, including hair texture, hair type, and protective hairstyles such as braids, locks, and twists. This bill is identical to SB 50.

Gun Violence Awareness Day. DesignatesJune 1, in 2020 and in each succeeding year, as Gun Violence AwarenessDay in Virginia.

School attendance officers; petitions for violation of a school attendance order. Provides that an attendance officer, or a division superintendent or his designee when acting as an attendance officer, to complete, sign, and file with the intake officer of the juvenile and domestic relations district court, on forms approved by the Supreme Court of Virginia, a petition for a violation of a school attendance order entered by the juvenile and domestic relations district court in response to the filing of a petition alleging the pupil is a child in need of supervision. The bill provides that such actions do not constitute the unauthorized practice of law. This bill is identical to SB 237.

Commemorating the life and legacy of Secretariat.

George Mason University; establishment of a school of medicine. States that it is the sense of the General Assembly that George Mason University shall be encouraged to take steps to investigate and pursue the potential of establishing a school of medicine in the Northern Virginia area.

Indian American Heritage Month. DesignatesAugust, in 2020 and in each succeeding year, as Indian American HeritageMonth in Virginia.