Del. Joe McNamara

Driver improvement clinics; motorcycle driver improvement clinics; Motorcycle Driver Improvement Clinic Fund; created. Creates motorcycle driver improvement clinics, defined in the bill, as a subset of existing driver improvement clinics and provides requirements and parameters for the instruction and administration of the motorcycle driver improvement clinics. The bill authorizes courts to direct defendants who have committed violations while operating a motorcycle to attend a motorcycle driver improvement clinic and satisfy the requirements thereof. The bill also creates the Motorcycle Driver Improvement Clinic Fund for the operation and administration of motorcycle driver improvement clinics. The bill specifies that priority be given to the creation of motorcycle driver improvement clinics that operate as computer-based clinics.

Electric utilities; renewable portfolio standard program; deficiency payments. Changes from $45 to $0.01 the amount of deficiency payment required by certain electric utilities that are unable to meet the compliance obligations of the renewable energy portfolio standard program requirements and removes provisions requiring a payment of $75 per megawatt-hour of shortfall in procuring renewable energy certificates for solar, wind, or anaerobic digesters.

Income tax; real property tax relief credit. Provides a refundable income tax credit in taxable years 2026 through 2030 to eligible taxpayers, defined in the bill, who incur real property taxes in an amount equal to or greater than four percent of their federal adjusted gross income for up to $500 for single individuals and $1000 for married persons filing jointly.

Tangible personal property tax relief; rate of taxation. Requires, for tax year 2027 and all tax years thereafter, each county, city, or town to reduce its local tax rate on qualifying vehicles to no greater than $0.000001 per $100 of the eligible assessed value of the qualifying vehicle. The bill defines "eligible assessed value" as $5,000 of the assessed value of a qualifying vehicle. For tax year 2028 and all tax years thereafter, for any year in which the revenues of a county, city, or town grow by five percent or more, the bill provides that the eligible assessed value applied in such county, city, or town shall increase by an additional $5,000 until such time that the eligible assessed value equals $20,000.

Electric utilities; virtual power plant pilot program; Phase I Utilities. Requires Appalachian Power to petition the State Corporation Commission for approval to conduct a pilot program to evaluate methods to optimize demand through various technology applications, including the establishment of virtual power plants, by December 1, 2026. The bill requires the pilot program to evaluate electric grid capacity needs and the ability of such virtual power plants to provide grid services, including peak-shaving, during times of peak electric demand.

Sales and use tax; sales through vending machines. Provides that, beginning January 1, 2027, only a one percent local sales and use tax shall be applied to sales through vending machines of food purchased for human consumption or essential personal hygiene products. Under current law, the rate applicable to such sales is 5.3 percent or six percent, as applicable depending on the locality, plus the one percent local sales and use tax.

Motor vehicles; insurance; highway use fee; tangible personal property tax relief for certain vehicles. Removes the highway use fee for fuel-efficient vehicles, and maintains the same highway use fee for electric vehicles and alternative fuel vehicles. The bill removes the prohibition on motor vehicle insurers establishing a repair facility network. Under current law, insurers are prohibited from requiring an insured or claimant to utilize designated replacement or repair facilities or services as a prerequisite to settling or paying any claim arising under a policy or policies of insurance. The bill also directs each county, city, or town that receives annual reimbursements from the Commonwealth for providing tangible personal property tax relief on qualifying vehicles to, beginning in tax year 2027, ensure that after first reimbursing certain tax attributable to qualifying vehicles leased by active duty members of the United States military, as is currently required by law, (i) no qualifying vehicle owned by an individual with an annual household income in excess of $200,000 receives any reimbursement for such vehicle and (ii) the remainder of the reimbursement provided to such locality is distributed based on a sliding scale for household incomes of residents of such locality, adopted by an ordinance of the governing body of such locality, as described in the bill.

Western Virginia Public Education Consortium; governance; funding; duties. Makes several changes relating to the Western Virginia Public Education Consortium, including (i) clarifying that the establishment and maintenance of the Consortium is subject to the appropriation of funds by the General Assembly and providing that if the Western Virginia Public Education Consortium is not funded by a separate appropriation in the general appropriation act for fiscal year 2027, it shall expire on January 1, 2027; (ii) adjusting the membership of the governing board of the Consortium to accurately reflect changes in House and Senatorial Districts and school division consolidation that occurred after the Consortium's initial establishment; and (iii) removing the requirement for the governing board of the Consortium to develop and maintain linkages with schools and school divisions in Northern Virginia to promote enhanced usage of educational technology.

Real property tax; classification of land and improvements. Reclassifies improvements to real property as a separate class of real property and authorizes any locality to impose a real property tax on improvements to real property at a tax rate that is different than the rate applied to the land on which such improvements are located. Such rate may exceed, equal, or be less than the tax imposed upon the land on which the improvements are located. Under current law, such classification is allowed only for the Cities of Fairfax, Poquoson, Richmond, and Roanoke. For the Cities of Fairfax, Richmond, and Roanoke, the rate applied shall not exceed the rate applied to land under current law. The City of Poquoson is currently the only locality authorized to impose a rate in excess of the rate applied to land. The bill applies only to taxable years beginning on and after July 1, 2026.

Income tax; standard deduction. Removes the sunset from and makes permanent the enhanced standard deduction amounts of $8,750 for single individuals and $17,500 for married individuals filing jointly. Under current law, the standard deduction is scheduled to revert to $3,000 for single individuals and $6,000 for married individuals filing jointly after taxable year 2026.