Del. R. Steven Landes

Provides that it is the policy of the Commonwealth to promote and increase the employment of individuals with disabilities. To further this policy, the bill establishes a goal to increase by five percent the level of individuals with disabilities employed by state government by fiscal year 2023. The bill designates the Secretary of Administration to coordinate efforts to achieve the goal and requires the Secretary to establish a reporting system for tracking and reporting the progress of state agencies toward meeting the employment goals and to report annually on the number of individuals with disabilities employed by the state. The bill requires each state agency to submit a plan to increase employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities to the Secretary no later than December 31, 2017, and each July 1 thereafter. This bill is identical to

Makes several changes to the Virginia Guaranteed Assistance Program, including adding requirements that (i) each student eligible for the Program receive a grant from the institution's appropriations for undergraduate student financial assistance before Commonwealth Award grants are awarded to students with equivalent remaining need, (ii) each eligible student receive a Program grant in an amount greater than Commonwealth Award grants awarded to students with equivalent remaining need, (iii) each eligible student receive a Program grant in an amount greater than the grant of each eligible student with equivalent remaining need in the next-lowest class level, and (iv) each Program grant be determined by a proportionate award schedule adopted by each institution and vary according to each student's remaining need and the total of tuition, fees, and other necessary charges, including books. This bill is identical to

Updates the purposes and priorities of the Virginia Veteran and Family Support program to, in a cost-effective manner, refer veterans to mental health, physical rehabilitation, and other services as needed to help them achieve individually identified goals and to monitor their progress toward achieving those goals. The program is available to veterans and members of the Virginia National Guard in the Commonwealth, residents of the Commonwealth in the Armed Forces Reserves who are not in active federal service, and family members of covered military members who have been affected by the covered military members' service and deployments and who are located in the Commonwealth. The bill requires an annual report on the program be sent to the Governor and the General Assembly.

Prohibits any individual or group conducting a voter registration drive from compensating its volunteers or employees on the basis of the number of completed voter registration applications the volunteer or employee collects. The bill also prohibits volunteers and employees from accepting compensation based on the number of completed voter registration applications he collects.

Establishes a process for amending death certificates to change the name of the deceased, the deceased's parent or spouse, or the informant; the marital status of the deceased; or the place of residence of the deceased when the place of residence is outside the Commonwealth. This bill is identical to

Reduces from 50 percent to 35 percent the minimum percentage of revenues that a small business must derive from out-of-state sources in order to be eligible for grants from the Small Business Jobs Grant Fund Program. The bill reduces from $100,000 to $50,000 the minimum new capital investment that a company is required to make to be eligible for assistance under the Program. Finally, the bill changes the definition of small business for purposes of the Program from a company that has 250 or fewer employees to one that has 50 or fewer employees in its base year and average annual gross receipts of $3 million or less averaged over the previous 24-month period.

Establishes a statewide policy for the regulation of professions and occupations specifying criteria for government regulation with the objective of increasing opportunities, promoting competition, encouraging innovation, protecting consumers, and complying with applicable federal antitrust laws. The bill also establishes the position of professional and occupational regulatory analyst within the Division of Legislative Services to assist the Joint Commission on Administrative Rules in (i) evaluating at least three professions and occupations in each year and (ii) to the extent feasible, reviewing legislation establishing or modifying an occupational regulation to determine whether the legislation meets the state policy of using the least restrictive regulation necessary to protect or preserve the public health, safety, and welfare. The evaluation shall include recommendations for changes to occupational regulations to improve compliance with the state policy of using the least restrictive regulation necessary.