Del. Josh Cole

Maddy summaryHJ 607 is a ceremonial resolution commending Thomas Heilman for his contributions. It does not create new laws or affect any policies, rights, or individuals. The resolution passed unanimously in both the House (February 10) and Senate (February 13) with voice votes and was formally adopted on March 20, 2025. As a non-binding expression of appreciation, it has no practical impact beyond the formal recognition.

Maddy summaryHJ 584 is a commemorative resolution honoring Dr. Golden Bethune-Hill, recognizing her contributions to the community. It does not create new policies or affect any specific group through legislative action. The resolution was passed unanimously by the Senate on February 12, 2025, and formally adopted by the legislature. As a ceremonial measure, it has no substantive policy impact.

Petitions for relief of care and custody of a child; investigation by local department of social services; Office of the Children's Ombudsman work group; report. Requires a local department of social services, as a part of its investigation after the referral of a request for a petition for relief of the care and custody of a child, to (i) refer the parent to the local family assessment and planning team and (ii) create a written report. The bill directs the Department of Social Services, in coordination with the Virginia League of Social Services Executives, to create a template for and provide guidance on what should be included in such written report. The bill also directs the Office of the Children's Ombudsman to convene a work group composed of relevant stakeholders to (a) determine the factors a court should consider when determining whether there is good cause shown for a petitioner's desire to be relieved of the care and custody of a child and (b) explore the potential benefits and considerations of raising the standard of evidence for granting temporary relief of custody from the current standard of preponderance of the evidence to clear and convincing evidence. The bill directs the work group to submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the Chairs of the House and Senate Committees for Courts of Justice and the Virginia Commission on Youth by November 1, 2025. Certain provisions of the bill have a delayed effective date of January 1, 2026. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the Virginia Commission on Youth. This bill is identical to SB 1372.

Children with disabilities; annual individualized education program planning process; dual enrollment courses; certain parental notice required; model notice. Requires, during the annual individualized education program (IEP) planning process prior to any year in which a child with a disability who is enrolled at a public high school is entering the eleventh grade or twelfth grade, the IEP team to provide to the parent of such student written notice of the student's rights and obligations relating to dual enrollment courses, consistent with a model notice developed and made available by the Board of Education, including detailed information on the process for ensuring that the student is receiving both a free and appropriate public education pursuant to the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act as a student enrolled in a public high school and the necessary educational accommodations pursuant to the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 as a student enrolled in a comprehensive community college.

Petitions for relief of care and custody of a child; investigation by local department of social services; Office of the Children's Ombudsman work group; report. Requires a local department of social services, as a part of its investigation after the referral of a request for a petition for relief of the care and custody of a child, to (i) refer the parent to the local family assessment and planning team and (ii) create a written report. The bill directs the Department of Social Services, in coordination with the Virginia League of Social Services Executives, to create a template for and provide guidance on what should be included in such written report.The bill also directs the Office of the Children's Ombudsman to convene a work group composed of relevant stakeholders to (a) determine the factors a court should consider when determining whether there is good cause shown for a petitioner's desire to be relieved of the care and custody of a child and (b) explore the potential benefits and considerations of raising the standard of evidence for granting temporary relief of custody from the current standard of preponderance of the evidence to clear and convincing evidence. The bill directs the work group to submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the Chairs of the House and Senate Committees for Courts of Justice and the Virginia Commission on Youth by November 1, 2025. Certain provisions of the bill have a delayed effective date of January 1, 2026. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the Virginia Commission on Youth. This bill is identical to HB 1733.

Maddy summaryHJ 527 is a ceremonial resolution honoring Janet Gullickson, Ed.D., for her contributions to education. It does not create new laws or affect any policies, as it solely serves to recognize her work. The resolution passed unanimously in both the House and Senate (by voice vote on January 27 and 30, 2025) and was finalized on March 18, 2025. This type of resolution has no direct impact on constituents or legislation.

Death by wrongful act; suspension of limitations. Provides that the statute of limitations for an action for death by wrongful act shall be tolled during the pendency of any criminal prosecution that arises out of the same facts as such action. The bill's provisions apply only to causes of action accruing on or after July 1, 2025. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the Boyd-Graves Conference.

Office of Data Governance and Analytics; oversight; Chief Data Officer; duties. Changes oversight of the Office of Data Governance and Analytics from the Office of the Secretary of Administration to the Virginia Information Technologies Agency. The bill directs the Chief Data Officer to obtain from VITA the office space and human resources, procurement, fiscal, and other administrative support and resources that are necessary to support the operations of ODGA. This bill is identical to SB 1137.

Claims to unclaimed property; authority of administrator; emergency. Authorizes the State Treasurer or his designee to make payments relating to unclaimed property without receiving a claim if the property is cash property, the apparent owner is a natural person and the sole owner of such property, the apparent owner has been identified by the State Treasurer or his designee, and the amount to be paid does not exceed $5,000. The bill contains an emergency clause. This bill is identical to SB 996.

State plan for medical assistance services and health insurance; pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders associated with streptococcal infections and pediatric acute-onset neuropsychiatric syndrome. Directs the Board of Medical Assistance Services to amend the state plan for medical assistance services to include a provision for payment of medical assistance for the prophylaxis, diagnosis, and treatment of pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders associated with streptococcal infections (PANDAS) and pediatric acute-onset neuropsychiatric syndrome (PANS) that includes payment for treatment using antimicrobials, medication, and behavioral therapies to manage neuropsychiatric symptoms, immunomodulating medicines, plasma exchange, and intravenous immunoglobulin therapy.The bill also requires each insurer proposing to issue individual or group accident and sickness insurance policies providing hospital, medical and surgical, or major medical coverage on an expense-incurred basis; each corporation providing individual or group accident and sickness subscription contracts; and each health maintenance organization providing a health care plan for health care services to provide coverage for the prophylaxis, diagnosis, and treatment of PANDAS and PANS. The bill requires such coverage to include coverage for treatment using antimicrobials, medication, and behavioral therapies to manage neuropsychiatric symptoms, immunomodulating medicines, plasma exchange, and intravenous immunoglobulin therapy.The bill prohibits an insurer, corporation, or organization from (i) denying or delaying the coverage of PANDAS or PANS because the enrollee previously received treatment or because the enrollee was diagnosed with or received treatment for his condition under a different diagnostic name, including autoimmune encephalopathy; (ii) limiting coverage of immunomodulating therapies for the treatment of PANDAS or PANS in a manner that is inconsistent with the treatment guidelines developed by a consortium convened for the purposes of researching, identifying, and publishing best practice standards for diagnosis and treatment of PANDAS or PANS that are accessible for medical professionals and are based on evidence of positive patient outcomes; (iii) requiring a trial of therapies that treat only neuropsychiatric symptoms before authorizing coverage of immunomodulating therapies for the treatment of PANDAS or PANS; or (iv) denying coverage for out-of-state treatment if the service is not available within the Commonwealth. This bill is a recommendation of the Health Insurance Reform Commission.