Del. Rip Sullivan

Financial institutions; reporting financialexploitation of elderly or vulnerable adults. Permits a financial institution, as defined in the bill, to allow an elderly or vulnerableadult, as defined in the bill, to submit and periodically updatea list of trusted persons whom such financial institution or financialinstitution staff, as defined in the bill, may contact in the caseof suspected financial exploitation of such adult. In such a case,the bill also allows a financial institution or financial institutionstaff to convey such suspicion to one or more certain individuals,provided that the recipient of such conveyance is not the suspectedperpetrator of financial exploitation. The bill provides that a financialinstitution or financial institution staff shall be immune from any criminal, civil, or administrative liability for any act taken oromission made in accordance with the bill's provisions.

Commending the McLean High School softball team.

Commending Iridium Communications, Inc.

Commending the Honorable Mark C. Simmons.

Commending John T. Frey.

Electric utilities; energy efficiency programs.Adds electrification to the definition of "energy efficiency program"for the purposes of the Virginia Electric Utility Regulation Act,provided that the electrification measures reduce total onsite energy consumption and, to the maximum extent practical, seek to utilizefederally authorized customer rebates for heat pump technology.

Adoption; parental placement and agency adoption. Makesvarious changes to statutes governing parental placement and agency adoptions.The bill authorizes a hospital to release a child to his adoptive parents when thebirth parent has executed a health care power of attorney. The bill providesthat when a juvenile and domestic relations district court enters an orderwaiving the consent of one or both birth parents who have failed, without goodcause, to appear at a hearing to execute consent for which they were givenproper notice and transferring custody of a child who has been in the physicalcare and custody of prospective adoptive parents, such adoption shall beconsidered a parental placement adoption. The bill also allows the juvenile anddomestic relations court to find, even if a birth parent has been given propernotice and appears at a hearing to execute consent or withholds consent, thatthe consent of such birth parent is withheld contrary to the best interest ofthe child or is unobtainable. The bill also clarifies that the effect of anorder of the juvenile and domestic relations district court accepting a birthparent's consent and finding that any applicable revocation period has expiredis to terminate a consenting birth parent's residual parental rights. The billprovides that a juvenile and domestic relations court shall accept consent froman out-of-state birth parent. Under current law, a juvenile and domesticrelations district court is required to request consent from an out-of-statecourt having jurisdiction over custody matters in the jurisdiction where abirth parent resides when such birth parent does not reside in theCommonwealth.The bill adds licensed child-placing agencies and prospectiveadoptive parents to those with the authority to consent to surgical and medicaltreatment of certain minors, subject to certain requirements. The billdecreases from 45 to 10 days the time for which a hearing is required to beheld upon the filing of a petition for the approval of an entrustment agreementby a local board of social services or a child welfare agency. The bill alsomakes technical amendments.

Commending Sandra Gioia Treadway.

Commending the Army Navy Country Club.

Commending the Honorable Grace Burke Carroll.