Del. Kaye Kory

Commending the passage of the Americans withDisabilities Act.

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

Death penalty; severe mental illness. Providesthat a defendant in a capital case who had a severe mental illness,as defined in the bill, at the time of the offense is not eligiblefor the death penalty. The bill establishes procedures for determiningwhether a defendant had a severe mental illness at the time of theoffense and provides for the appointment of expert evaluators. Thebill provides that when the defendant's severe mental illness isat issue, a determination will be made by the jury or by the judgein a bench trial as part of the sentencing proceeding, and the defendantbears the burden of proving his severe mental illness by a preponderanceof the evidence. The bill also provides that in the event the defendantfails to provide notice that he will offer testimony by an expert witness at such sentencing proceeding, the court may either allowthe Commonwealth a continuance or, where the defendant is unableto show good cause for untimely notice, bar the defendant from presentingsuch evidence.

Women's Equality Day. Designates August26, in 2020 and in each succeeding year, as Women's Equality Dayin Virginia.

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

Study; DEQ; revised priority ranking criteria for grants from the Stormwater Local Assistance Fund to include reduction of nitrogen pollution; report. Directs the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to study revised priority ranking criteria for grants from the Stormwater Local Assistance Fund (the Fund) to include reduction of nitrogen pollution and report its findings and recommendations for publication as a House or Senate document. In conducting its study, the DEQ shall (i) analyze the benefits and costs of nitrogen pollution reduction in Virginia's waters and compare to the benefits and costs of reductions in phosphorous pollution, and (ii) determine comparable criteria to award grants from the Fund based on nitrogen reductions and revise the Fund's award criteria accordingly. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriation act.

Public School Assistance Fund and Program created. Creates the Public School Assistance Fund and Program, to be administered by the Department of Education, for the purpose of providing grants to school boards to be used solely for the purpose of repairing or replacing the roofs of public elementary and secondary school buildings in the local school division. The bill permits any school board in the Commonwealth to apply for Program grants but requires the Department of Education to give priority in the award of grants to school boards that demonstrate the greatest need based on the condition of existing school building roofs and the ability to pay for the repair or replacement of such roofs. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriation act.

Board of Education; uniform minimum standards for modern public school buildings. Requires the Board of Education to prescribe by regulation uniform minimum standards for the erection of modern public school buildings and the modernization of existing public school buildings for the purpose of promoting positive educational outcomes for each public elementary and secondary school student. The bill requires such regulations to include uniform minimum modern public school building standards that promote (i) the delivery of instruction that complies with the Standards of Learning by addressing enrollment capacity and available space and (ii) the health and safety of each enrolled student. The bill requires each school board, once every three years, to (a) assess and report to the Board the extent to which each public school building in the local school division complies with such uniform minimum standards and (b) submit to the Board a long-range plan for compliance with such uniform minimum standards, including an assessment of the cost of such compliance, in any case in which the school board determines that a public school building in the local school division does not comply with such standards. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriation act.

Year of the Eye Exam. Designates 2020 as the Year of the Eye Exam in Virginia.

Virginia Community College System; Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Scholarship Pilot Program. Directs the Virginia Community College System (VCCS) to establish and administer a two-year Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Scholarship Pilot Program, beginning in 2020, for the purpose of providing access to postsecondary educational opportunities to students living in poverty. The Program would provide scholarships to select comprehensive community colleges in the maximum amount of $4,000 per year to 200 selected students who meet TANF eligibility requirements. The Program would be funded by the unexpended balance in federal TANF block grant funds. The bill directs VCCS to report to the Governor and the General Assembly no later than December 1 of each year of the Program regarding the effectiveness of and other information about the Program. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriation act.