Rep. Bill Wiley

Unemployment compensation; disqualificationfor benefits; misconduct does not include refusing COVID-19 vaccine.Provides that for the purposes of the Virginia Employment Commissiondetermining if an individual was separated or partially separatedfrom employment for misconduct and would be disqualified for unemploymentbenefits, the term "misconduct" does not include an employee's refusalto receive or receive in part any primary series or booster shotof a vaccine for the prevention of COVID-19.

Project labor agreements; prevailing wage; collective bargaining for employees of local governments. Provides that state agencies, when engaged in procuring products or services or letting contracts for construction, manufacture, maintenance, or operation of public works, paid for in whole or in part by state funds, shall neither require nor prohibit bidders to enter into or adhere to agreements with one or more labor organizations on the public works projects. The bill removes requirements for the payment of prevailing wage for work performed on public works contracts for state agencies. In addition, the bill removes the authority for a locality, by a local ordinance or resolution, to recognize any labor union or other employee association as a bargaining agent of any public officers or employees or to collectively bargain or enter into any collective bargaining contract with any such union or association or its agents.

Commending Virginia Polytechnic Institute andState University.

Commending the Virginia Manufacturers Association.

Multi-jurisdiction grand jury; elder abuse crimes. Adds the following to the list of crimes that a multi-jurisdiction grand jury may investigate: (i) financial exploitation of mentally incapacitated persons and (ii) abuse and neglect of incapacitated adults.

Elections; voter identification containing photographrequired; who may register up to and including the day of the election;availability of absentee voting in person; return of absentee ballots.Requires presentation of a form of identification containing a photograph inorder to vote and provides that a voter who does not have one of the requiredforms of identification is entitled to cast a provisional ballot. The billrepeals a provision that would permit any person who is qualified to registerto vote to do so in person up to and including the day of the election andlimits the persons who are entitled to register to vote after the close ofregistration records to members of a uniformed service of the United States onactive duty, persons who are residing temporarily outside of the United States,and their spouses and dependents. The bill limits the period during whichabsentee voting in person is available from 45 days to the 10 days immediatelypreceding the date of the election, including both Saturdays. The bill requiresthat absentee ballots returned by mail be returned to the office of the generalregistrar by the close of polls on election day and be postmarked on or beforethe Saturday preceding the date of the election. The bill eliminates the use ofdrop-off locations for the return of absentee ballots. The bill requiresabsentee ballot applications to contain the last four digits of the applicant'ssocial security number and provides that the failure of an absentee ballot toinclude a witness signature is a material omission, rendering the ballot void.

Heavy Equipment Dealer Act. Provides that,under the Heavy Equipment Dealer Act, a supplier's refusal to continuewith a dealer an agreement that is expiring in accordance with its terms constitutes a refusal to continue or renew the agreement evenif the supplier offers to enter into a replacement agreement withsuch dealer. The bill removes the exception to the Act's notificationrequirements for agreement amendments for cases where the supplieruniformly amends agreements as to all dealers of the supplier inquestion in all states in which the supplier is marketing its products.The bill also prohibits a supplier from prohibiting a dealer frompurchasing equipment manufactured by another supplier for purposesof rental or resale to the dealer's customers or from directly orindirectly discriminating or taking adverse action against, or otherwisepenalizing, any dealer that purchases equipment or repair parts manufacturedby another supplier for purposes of rental or resale to the dealer'scustomers.

Purchase of handguns; limitation on handgunpurchases. Removes the prohibition on any person who is not a licensed firearms dealer from purchasing more than one handgun ina 30-day period. Current law makes it a Class 1 misdemeanor for aviolation of this provision, subject to certain exemptions.

Minimum standards for local correctional facilities and lock-ups; individuals in need of behavioral health or developmental services. Requires the State Board of Local and Regional Jails (the Board) to establish minimum standards for identification and care of individuals with developmental disabilities in local correctional facilities and procedures for enforcing such minimum standards, including requirements for (i) screening of individuals committed to local correctional facilities for developmental disabilities, (ii) referral of individuals committed to local correctional facilities for whom a screening indicates reason to believe the person may have a developmental disability to an appropriate provider for an assessment to determine whether the individual has a developmental disability and is in need of developmental services, and (iii) transfer of an individual determined to have a developmental disability and to be in need of developmental services from a local correctional facility to a facility at which appropriate developmental services are provided within 72 hours of completion of the assessment. The bill also requires the Board to amend standards governing the delivery of behavioral health services in local correctional facilities and lock-ups to provide that if an individual is assessed as being in need of behavioral health services, such individual shall be transferred from the local correctional facility or lock-up to a behavioral health facility within 72 hours of the assessment. Currently, standards governing behavioral health services in local correctional facilities and lock-ups require that if a person is assessed as being in need of behavioral health services, the local correctional facility or lock-up shall provide such services.

Constitutional amendment (first reference);real property tax; exemption for certain surviving spouses of membersof the armed forces. Authorizes the General Assembly to exemptfrom tax the real property of a surviving spouse of a member of thearmed forces who died in the line of duty while performing officialmilitary activities. The amendment provides that such exemption isonly available when the death of such member of the armed forces did not result from criminal conduct. The current Constitution exemptsthe real property of a surviving spouse of a member of the armedforces who was killed in action, a disabled veteran, and the survivingspouse of a disabled veteran.