Del. Scott Wyatt

Absentee voting; signature match; provisionalballot status. Requires the signature on the voter affirmationstatement on an absentee ballot return envelope to match the signatureof the voter on the application for the absentee ballot or the signatureof the voter on file in his registration record. The general registrarsare required to review the affirmation statement upon receipt ofan absentee ballot returned by mail and to compare the signatures.An absentee ballot that is missing the signature or has a signaturethat does not match shall be handled as a provisional ballot. Thevoter is entitled to submit a cure affidavit, affirming that the ballotwas submitted by him, is his ballot, and that he is registered andqualified to vote in such election, and a copy of a form of identificationcontaining his name, signature, and photograph, until noon on thethird day following the election. If, at the electoral board meetingfor determining the validity of provisional votes, a majority ofthe board finds that the signature on the cure affidavit matchesthe signature on the absentee ballot, the vote shall be counted.Notice to the voter is required by email, text message, or telephone call, and if the absentee ballot is received on or before the seventhday preceding the election, by first-class mail as well.

Special hunting and fishing license for disabledveterans; 50 percent disabled. Authorizes any resident veteranwho has a service-connected disability of 50 percent or more to receiveat no cost from the Department of Wildlife Resources a lifetime licenseto hunt and freshwater fish. Current law authorizes the provisionof such license at no cost to a veteran who is totally and permanentlydisabled and at half-cost to a veteran who is 70 percent disabled.

Absentee ballots; witness requirement; printedname and residence address. Requires that a witness to a voter's absentee ballot provide, in addition to his signature, his printedname and residence address.

Same-day voter registration; repeal. RepealsChapter 1153 of the Acts of Assembly of 2020, which provided thatany person who is qualified to register to vote would be permittedto do so up to and including on the day of the election, regardlessof the close of the registration records provided elsewhere in law.

Public education; student education accounts.Permits any school division to establish a program to create savingsaccounts for students to be used for alternative educational programs.The bill requires the Department of Education to establish policiesand procedures under which the parent of each student may use suchfunds on public or private educational programs.

Constitutional amendment (first reference);executive power; state of emergency; special session. Limitsthe authority of the Governor to issue an executive order declaringa state of emergency that restricts, limits, or prohibits otherwiselawful action by a private business, nonprofit entity, or individualfor a period more than 45 days in duration without approval by theGeneral Assembly. The Governor is required to convene a special sessionfor the purpose of the General Assembly approving the extension ofsuch executive order beyond the forty-fifth day after its originalissuance and if the General Assembly does not approve such extension,the Governor is prohibited from issuing a subsequent executive orderin the same form for the same declared emergency. The General Assemblyis permitted to extend the executive order to a date requested bythe Governor or to a date of the General Assembly's choosing, butit shall not approve the extension to a date beyond the first fullweek of the next regular session of the General Assembly, unlesssuch date is requested by the Governor.

Absentee voting; definition of postmark; legibility requirement. Requires an absentee ballot returned to the generalregistrar after the closing of the polls on election day to be legiblypostmarked on or before the date of the election in order to be counted.Current law does not specify that the postmark must be legible. Thebill defines postmark, for purposes of absentee ballots returnedafter the closing of the polls on election day, to mean (i) an officialUnited States Postal Service imprint indicating the date of mailingor any other official indicia of the United States Postal Serviceused to identify the date of mailing or (ii) the mailing confirmationdata of a commercial delivery service.

Conduct of elections; vote counting; requiredlive video recording. Requires the general registrar of each county and city to provide for a live video recording of each pollingplace while absentee ballots are cast, votes are counted, and returnsare completed, and of each central absentee precinct while ballots are handled and returns are completed. The general registrars arerequired to ensure the video coverage is recorded and retained untilthe deadline to request a recount has passed and, if any contestor recount is pending thereafter, until it has been concluded. The bill provides that each live video recording must include date andtime indicators and be linked to the official website of the countyor city. The Department of Elections is required to post links onits official website to the video coverage for viewing by the public.The bill provides that any disruption in video coverage shall notaffect or prevent the continued casting of absentee ballots, countingof votes, or completion of returns, and is not grounds for an electioncontest.

Voting Rights for Women Month. DesignatesNovember, in 2021 and in each succeeding year, as Voting Rights forWomen Month in Virginia.

Issuing citations; certain traffic offenses.Authorizes law-enforcement officers to lawfully stop a motorvehicle for operating (i) without a light illuminating a licenseplate, (ii) with defective and unsafe equipment, (iii) without brakelights or a high mount stop light, (iv) without an exhaust systemthat prevents excessive or unusual levels of noise, (v) with certainsun-shading materials and tinting films, and (vi) with certain objects suspended in the vehicle. The bill authorizes a law-enforcement officerto stop a pedestrian for jaywalking or entering a highway where thepedestrian cannot be seen. The bill provides that law-enforcement officers are permitted to stop a motor vehicle for an expired safetyinspection or registration sticker immediately following the originalexpiration date. The bill removes the prohibition on using evidencediscovered or obtained due to an impermissible stop, including evidenceobtained with the person's consent, in any trial, hearing, or otherproceeding. The bill removes prohibitions on stopping or arrestinga driver of a motor vehicle for the violation of a local ordinancerelating to the ownership or maintenance of a motor vehicle that isnot a jailable offense.