Division of Human Rights; renamed as Officeof Civil Rights. Renames the Division of Human Rights in theDepartment of Law as the Office of Civil Rights.
Property Owners' Association Act; Condominium Act; rulemaking authority of property owners' associations and unit owners' associations; smoking. Permits (i) except to the extent that the declaration provides otherwise, the board of directors of a property owners' association to establish reasonable rules that restrict smoking in the development, including (a) rules that prohibit smoking in the common areas and, (b) for developments that include attached private dwelling units, rules that prohibit smoking within such dwelling units, and (ii) except to the extent that the condominium instruments provide otherwise, the executive board of a condominium unit owners' association to establish reasonable rules that restrict smoking in the condominium, including rules that prohibit smoking in the common elements and within units. The bill clarifies the authority of executive boards of condominium unit owners' associations to establish, adopt, and enforce rules and regulations with respect to the use of the common elements of the condominium and with respect to such other areas of responsibility assigned to the unit owners' association by the condominium instruments, except where expressly reserved by the condominium instruments to the unit owners. The bill also permits unit owners, by a majority of votes cast at a meeting of the unit owners' association, to repeal or amend any rule or regulation adopted by the executive board. This bill is a recommendation of the Virginia Housing Commission.
Department of Health and the Office of the ChiefMedical Examiner; plan for the establishment of a Fetal and InfantMortality Review Team; report. Directs the Department of Healthand the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner to develop a plan forthe establishment of a Fetal and Infant Mortality Review Team andto report such plan to the Chairmen of the House Committees on Appropriationsand Health, Welfare and Institutions and the Senate Committees onFinance and Appropriations and Education and Health by December 1,2021. The bill also requires the Department of Health to convenea work group to participate in development of the plan and, uponinclusion in a general appropriation act adopted by the General Assemblyof funds for such purpose, to hire such contract staff as may benecessary to assist the work group with development of the plan.
Department of Human Resource Management, alternative application for employment for persons with a disability. Directs the Department of Human Resource Management to create an alternative application process for the employment of persons with a disability. The process must be noncompetitive in nature and provide state agencies using the process an option for converting positions filled through the noncompetitive process into positions that are normally filled through a competitive process. The bill directs the Department of Human Resource Management to develop and disseminate a policy to implement the provisions of the bill.
DMAS; work group to study options for the permanentuse of virtual supports and increasing access to virtual supportsand services; individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.Directs the Department of Medical Assistance Services to study anddevelop recommendations for the permanent use of virtual supportsand increasing access to virtual supports and services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities by promoting accessto assistive technology and environmental modifications and to reportits findings and recommendations to the Governor and the General Assembly by November 1, 2021.
Electric utilities; advanced renewable energybuyers. Provides that certain accelerated renewable energy buyersthat are customers of Dominion Energy Virginia and had subscribedto, as of March 1, 2020, a voluntary companion experimental tariffoffering for the purchase of renewable attributes from renewableenergy facilities that requires a renewable facilities agreementand the purchase of a minimum of 2,000 renewable attributes annuallyis exempt from the allocation of the net costs related to procurementof new solar or onshore wind generation capacity, energy, or environmentalattributes, or energy storage facilities, by Dominion Energy Virginia.The exemption is based on the amount of Renewable Energy Certificatesassociated with the customer's renewable facilities agreements associatedwith the tariff offering in proportion to the customer's total electricenergy consumption, on an annual basis.
Child support payments; juvenile in custody of or committed to the Department of Juvenile Justice. Provides that the Department of Juvenile Justice is no longer required to apply for child support from, and the parent of a juvenile is no longer responsible to pay child support to, the Department of Social Services for a juvenile who is in the temporary custody of or committed to the Department of Juvenile Justice.
Accrual of cause of action; diagnosis of latent injury or disease. Provides that a cause of action for a latent injury shall accrue when such injury and its causal connection to an injurious or disease-causing substance, product, or circumstance is first communicated to the injured person or his agent by a physician. The bill further provides that a diagnosis of a nonmalignant substance-related, product-related, or circumstance-related latent injury or disease shall not accrue an action based upon the subsequent diagnosis of a malignant substance-related latent injury or disease.
Certain school boards; student meals; participationin the Afterschool Meal Program. Requires each school board thatgoverns a local school division that has a student population thatqualifies for free and reduced-price meals at a minimum percentageof 50 percent in the prior school year and simultaneously offerseducational or enrichment activities and is consequently eligibleto participate in the Afterschool Meal Program administered by theU.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) Childand Adult Care Food Program to apply to the Department of Educationto participate in the Afterschool Meal Program for each such schoolto subsequently and simultaneously serve federally reimbursable mealsand offer an afterschool education or enrichment program, pursuantto FNS guidelines and state health and safety standards. The billrequires the Department of Education to administer the AfterschoolMeal Program on behalf of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The bill provides that the Superintendent of Public Instruction shallissue a waiver to this requirement upon determination that participation is not financially viable for a school or group of schools. The billrequires the Department of Education to develop a process and criteriafor evaluating such waivers. The bill has a delayed effective dateof July 1, 2022.
Child Care Assistance Program; emergency. Provides that regulations governing the Child Care Subsidy Program (the Program) shall be amended to provide that (i) a family shall be eligible for assistance through the Program if the family's income does not exceed 85 percent of the state median income, the family includes at least one child who is five years of age or younger and has not yet started kindergarten, and the family meets all other income and eligibility requirements of the Program and (ii) job search activities shall be considered eligible activities for the purposes of the Program. The bill provides that a family determined to be eligible for assistance through the Program shall be eligible to receive assistance for a period of 12 months or until the family's household income exceeds 85 percent of the state median income, whichever occurs sooner. The Department of Social Services shall administer the program, as amended by the bill, in cooperation with the Department of Education. The bill contains an emergency clause and provides that the provisions of the bill shall be applicable to applications for assistance through the Program received prior to August 1, 2021.
