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.
Absentee voting; no excuse required. Permits any registered voter to vote by absentee ballot in any election in which he is qualified to vote. The bill removes the current list of statutory reasons under which a person may be entitled to vote by absentee ballot and removes references to those reasons from other sections of the Code. This bill incorporates HB 25, HB 208, and HB 209.
Virginia Human Rights Act; discrimination on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions; reasonable accommodation for the known limitations of persons related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. Requires employers, defined in the bill, to make reasonable accommodation for the known limitations of a person related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, if such accommodation is necessary to assist such person in performing a particular job, unless the employer can demonstrate that the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the employer. The bill also prohibits employers from taking any adverse action against an employee who requests or uses a reasonable accommodation and from denying employment or promotion opportunities to an otherwise qualified applicant or employee because such employer will be required to make reasonable accommodation to the applicant or employee. The bill creates a cause of action against any employer who denies any of the rights afforded by the bill and permits the court or jury to award compensatory damages, back pay, and other equitable relief. The bill contains technical amendments and is identical to SB 712.
Commission for Historical Statues in the United States Capitol; replacement of Robert E. Lee statue in National Statuary Hall Collection. Creates the Commission for Historical Statues in the United States Capitol to determine whether the Robert E. Lee statue in the National Statuary Hall Collection at the United States Capitol should be replaced and, if so, to recommend to the General Assembly as a replacement a statue of a prominent Virginia citizen of historic renown or renowned for distinguished civil or military service to be commemorated in the National Statuary Hall Collection.The Commission will consist of eight members appointed as follows: one member of the House of Delegates appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates; one member of the Senate appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules; two nonlegislative citizen members who are Virginia or American historians appointed by the Governor; three nonlegislative citizen members appointed upon the vote of the Commission members appointed by the Speaker, the Senate Committee on Rules, and the Governor; and the Director of the Department of Historic Resources, who serves ex officio with nonvoting privileges. The Department of Historic Resources will provide staff support to the Commission.The Commission will also be required to (i) select a sculptor for the new statue, with preference given to a sculptor from Virginia; (ii) estimate the costs associated with the replacement of the Robert E. Lee statue, including costs related to construction and placement of the new statue, for the removal and transfer of the Robert E. Lee statue, and for any unveiling ceremony of the new statue; and (iii) recommend to the General Assembly a suitable state, local, or private nonprofit history museum in the Commonwealth for placement of the Robert E. Lee statue.The bill requires the Commission to hold at least one public hearing prior to making any recommendation to the General Assembly on a new statue and requires the costs of the Commission's work to be borne by the Commission from such private funds as are collected by the Commission and general funds as are appropriated by the General Assembly.This bill incorporates HB 181 and is identical to SB 612.
Health insurance; payment to out-of-network providers. Provides that when an enrollee receives emergency services from an out-of-network health care provider or receives out-of-network surgical or ancillary services at an in-network facility, the enrollee is not required to pay the out-of-network provider any amount other than the applicable cost-sharing requirement and such cost-sharing requirement cannot exceed the cost-sharing requirement that would apply if the services were provided in-network. The measure also provides that the health carrier's required payment to the out-of-network provider of the services is a commercially reasonable amount based on payments for the same or similar services provided in a similar geographic area. If such provider disputes the amount to be paid by the health carrier, the measure requires the provider and the health carrier to make a good faith effort to reach a resolution on the amount of the reimbursement. If the health carrier and the provider do not agree to a commercially reasonable payment and either party wants to take further action to resolve the dispute, then the measure requires the dispute will be resolved by arbitration. The measure establishes a framework for arbitration of such disputes that includes (i) a timeline for the proceedings, (ii) a method for choosing an arbitrator, (iii) required and optional factors for the arbitrator to consider, (iv) non-disclosure agreements, (v) reporting requirements, and (vi) an appeals process for appeals on certain procedural grounds. The measure requires the State Corporation Commission to contract with Virginia Health Information (VHI) to establish a data set and business protocols to provide health carriers, providers, and arbitrators with data to assist in determining commercially reasonable payments and resolving disputes. The measure requires the Commission, in consultation with health carriers, providers, and consumers, to develop standard language for a notice of consumer rights regarding balance billing. The measure authorizes the Commission, the Board of Medicine, and the Commissioner of Health to levy fines and take action against a health carrier, health care practitioner, or medical care facility, respectively, for a pattern of violations of the prohibition against balance billing. Additionally, the measure prohibits a carrier or provider from initiating arbitration with such frequency as to indicate a general business practice. The measure provides that such provisions do not apply to an entity that provides or administers self-insured or self-funded plans; however, such entities may elect to be subject such provisions. The measure authorizes the Commission to adopt rules and regulations governing the arbitration process. The measure has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2021. This bill incorporates HB 58, HB 189, HB 901, HB 1494, and HB 1546 and is identical to SB 172.
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.
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.
Expanded polystyrene food service containers; prohibition; civil penalty. Prohibits the dispensing by a food vendor of prepared food to a customer in a single-use expanded polystyrene food service container, as defined in the bill. The bill requires certain chain restaurants to stop using such containers by July 1, 2023, and sets the date for compliance by all food vendors as July 1, 2025. The bill exempts certain institutions, including correctional facilities and public schools, from the definition of "food vendor" and provides a process by which a locality may grant consecutive one-year exemptions to individual food vendors on the basis of undue economic hardship. The bill provides a civil penalty of not more than $50 for each day of violation, to be collected in a civil action brought by the Attorney General or the relevant locality. The penalties collected are to be deposited in the Litter Control and Recycling Fund or to the treasury of the relevant locality, as appropriate. A portion of the penalties deposited in the Fund are to be used for public information campaigns to discourage the sale and use of expanded polystyrene products. Finally, the bill directs the Department of Environmental Quality to post to its website information on compliance and the filing of complaints. This bill incorporates HB 1046 and HB 1347.
