Firearms-related offenses; mandatory minimum sentence; penalty. Increases from five to 10 years for a second or subsequent offense the mandatory minimum sentence for use or display of a firearm during the commission of certain felonies.
Failure of Commonwealth or locality to communicate or cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement; waiver of sovereign immunity. Provides that when (i) the Commonwealth adopts any rule, regulation, or policy or passes any law or (ii) any locality adopts any ordinance, resolution, or motion that impedes the ability of law-enforcement officers, corrections officers, or jail officers to communicate or cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement about a person in the United States illegally, the Commonwealth or such locality waives sovereign immunity as it relates to any injuries or damages sustained by victims of crimes committed by such person.
Elections; absentee voting; drop-off locations for return of absentee ballots; 24-hour video surveillance requirement. Requires 24-hour video surveillance of all absentee ballot drop-off locations.
Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services; electric vehicle battery suppliers; certification; penalty. Requires each supplier of electric vehicle batteries operating in the Commonwealth to certify under penalty of perjury to the Commissioner of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services that no electric vehicle batteries sold in consumer transactions, as defined in the bill, are manufactured in or sourced from African cobalt mines and that the manufacture or sourcing of such electric vehicle batteries involves no child or slave labor. The bill specifies that such certification is required by suppliers by July 1, 2026, and annually thereafter. Under the bill, it is unlawful for an electric vehicle battery supplier to sell, lease, or license any electric vehicle battery without first obtaining a certificate of compliance from the Commissioner, and a violation of this requirement constitutes a violation of the Virginia Consumer Protection Act.
Fishing license requirements; exemptions; free fishing days. Increases from three to six days the maximum number of free fishing days, during which a person is allowed to fish without a fishing license, that the Board of Wildlife Resources may designate for inland waters in the Commonwealth and the Commissioner of Marine Resources may designate for saltwater recreational fishing in the Commonwealth.
Local officers; removal of officer appointed for a term certain; officers compensated by the appointing authority. Allows any officer appointed to an office for a term established by law and who receives compensation for his services by the appointing authority to be removed from office if the officer fails to perform his duties as outlined in the description of his position or the rules of the public body to which he has been appointed. The bill specifies that, prior to removal, the officer must be issued a warning from the appointing authority that includes a description of the violation committed and that if an additional violation occurs after the warning, the officer may be removed by a majority vote of the appointing authority upon the motion of the supervisor or council member representing the district for which the officer serves.
Department of Wildlife Resources; free or partially discounted fees to hunt, fish, and trap; reimbursement. Requires the Department of Wildlife Resources to maintain an annual accounting of revenue that would have been received by the Department from license exemptions or free or partially discounted fees to hunt, fish, or trap that are established by the General Assembly on or after July 1, 2025, and to submit such accounting to the Department of Accounts by August 1 of each year. The bill requires the Department of Accounts to pay the actual amount of such revenue within 30 days into the Game Protection Fund and also allows the accounting required by the bill and any other records relating to such accounting to be subject to audit by the State Comptroller.
Authority of Attorney General; criminal cases; human and sex trafficking. Authorizes the Attorney General to prosecute violations of criminal law relating to human and sex trafficking offenses in connection with racketeering.
School boards; employment of school resource officers in each public elementary and secondary school. Requires each school board to enter into a collaborative agreement with the local law-enforcement agency to employ at least one school resource officer in each public elementary and secondary school in the local school division and provides that no school board shall be granted any full or partial waiver from such staffing requirements. The bill contains a contingent effective date that states that the foregoing requirement shall become effective beginning with the fiscal year in which funding has been provided pursuant to the general appropriation act to fully fund such requirement.
Reckless exposure of illegal fentanyl to certain persons; penalty; arrest and prosecution when experiencing or reporting overdoses. Provides that any person who unlawfully possesses fentanyl, including its isomers, esters, ethers, salts, and salts of isomers, and recklessly exposes a law-enforcement officer, correctional officer, jail officer, firefighter, search and rescue personnel, or emergency medical services personnel, as those terms are defined in relevant law, to such fentanyl and causes severe bodily injury or an overdose to such officer, firefighter, or personnel is guilty of a Class 4 felony. The bill also provides that no individual incarcerated in a local, regional, or state correctional facility shall be subject to arrest or prosecution for such offense if such individual seeks or obtains emergency medical attention for himself or another individual experiencing an overdose or is experiencing an overdose and another individual seeks or obtains emergency medical attention for him.
