Del. Rod Willett

Child abuse or neglect; prenatal use of a controlled substance or drug as prescribed. Clarifies that a pregnant woman's prenatal use of a controlled substance or drug as prescribed by such woman's health care provider for opioid addiction recovery shall not solely be a reason to suspect that a child is abused or neglected.

Office of Vital Records; fees for certified copies. Permits the Board of Health to prescribe a fee of up to $15 for a certified copy of vital records and directs the Department of Motor Vehicles to collect a fee of $15 for each certified copy of a vital record that it issues. Under current law, both fees are limited to $12.

Head Start State Collaboration Office; state of Head Start and Early Head Start in the Commonwealth; report. Requires the Head Start State Collaboration Office at the Department of Education, no later than December 1, 2026, to develop and recommend to the Commission on Early Childhood Care and Education for endorsement a report summarizing the state of Head Start and Early Head Start in the Commonwealth that is required to address several topics enumerated in the bill.

Virginia All-Payer Claims Database; disclosure of information; limitation. Specifies that the nonprofit organization facilitating the administration of the Virginia All-Payer Claims Database shall not disclose information relating to reimbursement beyond what is otherwise publicly available. Under current law, provisions against disclosure are not limited to information that is not otherwise publicly available.

Health insurance; prohibited restrictions on in-network referrals. Prohibits a health insurance carrier from prohibiting an in-network provider, as defined in the bill, from referring any enrollee or specimen to any in-network clinical laboratory or in-network pathology service provider under the terms of such insurance unless such referral would constitute a violation of certain laws. This bill is identical to SB 745.

Juvenile and domestic relations district courts; jurisdiction; definitions; petition by noncitizen aged 18 to 21 years for legal custody. Allows an unmarried noncitizen between the ages of 18 and 21 who has been abused, neglected, or abandoned to petition a juvenile and domestic relations district court to be placed in the physical custody of a proposed legal custodian. The bill also includes such unmarried noncitizen in the definitions of "child," "juvenile," and "minor," as such terms are related to juvenile and domestic relations district courts.

Protection of employees; coercion or threat based on immigration status; civil penalty. Prohibits an employer, including the Commonwealth and its agencies and political subdivisions, from using coercion or issuing a threat to an employee based on immigration status in furtherance of committing a violation of the Virginia Minimum Wage Act or provisions related to the payment of wages. An aggrieved employee is permitted to file a complaint with the Commissioner of Labor and Industry within 180 days of the alleged coercive action or threat. The bill authorizes the Commissioner to investigate such complaints and, if the allegation is substantiated, to impose a civil penalty in the following amounts: (i) up to $5,000 for the first violation, (ii) up to $9,000 for the second violation, and (iii) up to $12,000 for any subsequent violation. The bill provides that any such penalty assessed shall be paid to the Commissioner for deposit into the General Fund. The bill also authorizes the Commissioner to seek injunctive relief as may be necessary for enforcement.

Joint Commission on Health Care; comprehensive assessment of the quality of care, resident safety, and operational practices of nursing facilities in the Commonwealth; report. Directs the Joint Commission on Health Care to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the quality of care, resident safety, and operational practices of nursing facilities in the Commonwealth and report its findings and recommendations to the Governor and the Chairs of the House Committees on Appropriations and Health and Human Services and the Senate Committees on Finance and Appropriations and Education and Health by December 1, 2027.

Renewable energy portfolio standard program; geothermal heating and cooling systems; report. Requires, for purposes of the renewable energy portfolio standard program, Dominion Energy Virginia and American Electric Power to annually procure and retire certain percentages of renewable energy certificates from geothermal heating and cooling systems, as defined in the bill. The bill directs the State Corporation Commission to prepare and deliver a report evaluating the procurement and retirement of renewable energy certificates from geothermal heating and cooling systems in the Commonwealth on or before November 1, 2028. The bill also directs the Real Estate Appraiser Board to promulgate regulations requiring the development of a continuing education curriculum and required training for all licensees that includes how to properly determine the increase in value of real estate created by reductions in building energy costs associated with solar, geothermal, and solar water heating investments. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation and is identical to SB 252.

Discovery; methods of delivery. Requires the Commonwealth, upon request by the accused or his counsel, to copy or photograph any discovery materials or evidence the accused is permitted to inspect and review, including relevant police reports, criminal records, dashboard camera footage, and body-worn camera footage, and requires the Commonwealth to provide copies to the accused or his counsel, subject to the redaction, restricted dissemination, and protective order provisions of the relevant Rules of the Supreme Court of Virginia and unless such material is prohibited from being distributed by law.The bill requires the attorney for the Commonwealth in any district court to provide to counsel of record for the accused, if requested, a copy of any relevant police report at least 10 days prior to the date the case is set for trial or preliminary hearing, and such report is subject to limitations on dissemination. The bill further provides that if such materials are provided to counsel of record for the accused in district court for a preliminary hearing, the circuit court shall order such counsel to provide discovery to the attorney for the Commonwealth subject to the relevant Rules of the Supreme Court of Virginia prior to trial in circuit court. Lastly, the bill provides that if at any time during the course of the proceedings it is brought to the attention of the court that the attorney for the Commonwealth has failed to comply with such provisions, the court may order the Commonwealth to permit discovery or inspection, grant a continuance, or prohibit the Commonwealth from introducing evidence not disclosed, or the court may enter such other order as it deems just under the circumstances.