Del. Sam Rasoul

Elections; same-day registration; in-personabsentee and election day voting. Provides an exception to theclosing of registration records for any person who (i) is qualifiedto register to vote, (ii) is unregistered or registered in a localityin which the person no longer resides but is otherwise entitledto vote by absentee ballot, (iii) desires to vote absentee in personat the time that they present themselves to be registered, and (iv) provides proof of residency. The bill also permits same-day registrantsto vote absentee and provides an excuse for election day absentee voting for such voters. The bill requires all voters who registerto vote under the provisions of this bill to fill out an absenteeapplication, including the required oath, in order to vote. Thisbill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2022.

Absentee voting; postage prepaid on return envelope. Requires the envelope provided to an absentee voter for the return of the absentee ballot to include prepaid postage. The provisions of the bill do not become effective unless reenacted by the 2021 Session of the General Assembly.

Minimum wage; tipped employees; classification. Prohibits an employer from classifying an individual as a tippedemployee if the individual is prohibited by applicable federal orstate law or regulation from soliciting tips.

TANF; diversionary cash assistance. Imposes a minimum threshold of $1,500 on Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) diversionary cash assistance. The bill provides that any person who receives TANF diversionary cash assistance waives his eligibility for TANF for the number of days for which assistance is granted multiplied by 1.33. The bill also requires the Board of Social Services to adopt regulations to enable TANF-eligible applicants meeting certain criteria to receive a TANF emergency assistance payment of up to $1,500 to prevent eviction or to address needs resulting from a fire or natural disaster.

Virginia Gun Violence Intervention and PreventionFund. Establishes the Virginia Gun Violence Intervention andPrevention Fund to be administered by the Department of CriminalJustice Services for the purpose of supporting gun violence interventionand prevention programs, including street outreach, hospital-basedviolence intervention, and group violence intervention programs.

Criminal Injuries Compensation Fund; uncompensated medical costs; victims of sexual assault. Adds to those persons invited to participate in the annual meeting of the group led by the attorney for the Commonwealth to coordinate the multidisciplinary response to criminal sexual assault in each political subdivision (i) local health department district directors; (ii) the administrator of each licensed hospital within the jurisdiction; (iii) the director of each health safety net clinic within the jurisdiction; and (iv) any other local health care providers, or their designees, and authorizes attorneys for the Commonwealth to conduct the sexual assault response team annual meetings using other methods, such as electronic communication means, to encourage attendance. The bill also directs the Secretary of Health and Human Resources to establish a work group to evaluate the feasibility of moving responsibility for the SAFE program from the Virginia Workers' Compensation Commission to the Department of Medical Assistance Services and to provide recommendations related to (i) the feasibility and cost of expanding the type of services for which the Criminal Injuries Compensation Fund will make awards to include claims or portions of claims based on the claimant's actual expenses incurred for unreimbursed medical costs resulting from sexual abuse, including the cost of physical evidence recovery kit examinations conducted on victims of sexual assault, unreimbursed medical expenses or indebtedness reasonably incurred for medical expenses, expenses attributable to pregnancy resulting from such sexual abuse, and any other reasonable and necessary expenses and indebtedness associated with or attributable to the sexual abuse upon which such claim is based and (ii) the feasibility of transferring responsibility from the Virginia Workers' Compensation Commission to the Department of Medical Assistance Services for the Sexual Assault Forensic Examination program (the SAFE program) and related claims for medical expenses related to sexual assault, strangulation, domestic and intimate partner violence, human trafficking, and adult and child abuse. If the work group finds that it is not feasible to move responsibility for the SAFE program and related claims from the Virginia Workers' Compensation Commission to the Department of Medical Assistance Services, the work group shall develop recommendations for creation of an efficient, seamless electronic medical claim processing system for hospitals and health care providers that coordinates payments from all available sources, suppresses explanations of benefits, and removes the patient from the medical billing and reimbursement process. The work group's report shall include specific legislative, regulatory, and budgetary changes necessary to implement the work group's recommendations. The work group shall report its findings and recommendations to the Governor and the Chairmen of the House Committee on Appropriations, the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations, and the Joint Commission on Health Care by September 1, 2020. This bill is identical to SB 949.

Commission on Wellness and Opportunity established. Creates the 21-member Commission on Wellness and Opportunity in the legislative branch to study and make recommendations relating to establishing the mission and vision of what health and wellness means for Virginia by examining various dimensions of health and wellness, including but not limited to physical, intellectual, emotional, spiritual, environmental, and social wellness, and utilizing the comprehensive theoretical framework of "the social determinants of health"; identifying and defining measurable opportunities and outcomes that build community competence around well-being; and making policy recommendations for improving the quality of life for the people of the Commonwealth. The Commission shall meet at least quarterly. The bill provides that the Commission will sunset on July 1, 2025.

Ranked choice voting; elections for local governing bodies; local option pilot program. Provides that elections for local governing bodies may be conducted by ranked choice voting, which the bill defines as the method of casting and tabulating votes in which (i) voters rank candidates in order of preference, (ii) tabulation proceeds in rounds such that in each round either a candidate or candidates are elected or the last-place candidate is defeated, (iii) votes for voters' next-ranked candidates are transferred from elected or defeated candidates, and (iv) tabulation ends when the number of candidates elected equals the number of offices to be filled. The bill allows any local governing body to decide to conduct such election by ranked choice voting and requires any such decision to be made in consultation with the local electoral board and general registrar and by a majority vote of the governing body. The bill authorizes the State Board of Elections to promulgate regulations for the proper and efficient administration of elections determined by ranked choice voting. The bill provides that any costs incurred by the Department of Elections related to technological changes necessary for the implementation of ranked choice voting pursuant to the bill shall be charged to the localities exercising the option to proceed with ranked choice voting. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2021, and sunsets on July 1, 2031.

Memorials for war veterans. Provides that a locality may remove, relocate, contextualize, or cover any monument or memorial for war veterans on the locality's public property, not including a monument or memorial located in a publicly owned cemetery, regardless of when the monument or memorial was erected, and removes certain criminal and civil penalties. Current law makes it unlawful to disturb or interfere with such monuments or memorials or to prevent citizens from taking proper measures and exercising proper means for the protection, preservation, and care of such monuments or memorials. Prior to removing, relocating, contextualizing, or covering any such publicly owned monument or memorial, the local governing body shall publish notice of such intent in a newspaper having general circulation in the locality. The notice shall specify the time and place of a public hearing at which interested persons may present their views, not less than 30 days after publication of the notice. After the completion of the hearing, the governing body may vote whether to remove, relocate, contextualize, or cover the monument or memorial. If the governing body votes to remove, relocate, contextualize, or cover the monument or memorial, the local governing body shall first, for a period of 30 days, offer the monument or memorial for relocation and placement to any museum, historical society, government, or military battlefield. The local governing body shall have sole authority to determine the final disposition of the monument or memorial. The bill authorizes the local governing body to call for an advisory referendum prior to voting on such motion. The bill repeals an 1890 act of assembly related to the placement of a statue in the City of Alexandria and does not apply to a monument or memorial located on the property of a public institution of higher education within the City of Lexington. The bill also provides that the Board of Historic Resources shall promulgate regulations governing the manner in which any monument or memorial may be contextualized. This bill incorporates HB1625 and is identical to SB 183.

Drinking water supplies; maximum contaminant levels. Directs the State Board of Health to adopt regulations establishing maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) in public drinking water systems for (i) perfluorooctanoic acid, perfluorooctane sulfonate, and for such other perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances as the Board deems necessary; (ii) chromium-6; and (iii) 1,4-dioxane. The bill requires such MCLs to be protective of public health, including the health of vulnerable subpopulations, and to be no higher than any MCL or health advisory adopted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for the same contaminant. The bill directs the Department of Health to report to the Chairmen of the Senate Committee on Education and Health and the House Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions on the status of research related to MCLs by November 1, 2020, and submit a final report by October 1, 2021, detailing the MCL regulations established by the Department of Health. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2022.