Del. Shelly Simonds

Civil penalty for demolition of historic structures. Authorizes any locality to adopt an ordinance establishing a civil penalty for the razing, demolition, or moving of a building or structure that is located in a historic district or that has been designated by a governing body as a historic structure or landmark in violation of an ordinance that no such building or structure shall be razed, demolished, or moved without the approval of a review board. The bill provides that such civil penalty shall not exceed the market value of the property as determined by the assessed value of the property at the time of razing, demolition, or moving of the building or structure.

Nonjudicial sale of tax delinquent real properties;unimproved properties within urban redevelopment or revitalizationzone. Allows the nonjudicial sale of tax delinquent propertywhen such property is (i) unimproved, (ii) one-half acre or lessin size, and (iii) located within a designated urban redevelopmentor revitalization zone.

Public institutions of higher education; Hunger-FreeCampus Grant Program established; report. Establishes the Hunger-FreeCampus Grant Program (the Program) to address student food insecurityat public institutions of higher education. The bill provides thatthe Program shall be managed by the State Council of Higher Educationfor Virginia and available for participation by public institutions of higher education; however, participation in the Program shallbe optional for such institutions. Under the bill, if a public institutionof higher education satisfies certain criteria set out in the bill,including creating initiatives on campus to address student foodinsecurity, it shall be designated as a "Hunger-Free Campus" andthe Council shall award a grant to such institution. A public institutionof higher education that receives a grant under the bill shall utilizethe funds to support on-campus efforts and initiatives to eliminatestudent food insecurity at such institution. The bill requires theCouncil to submit a report to the Chairmen of the Senate Committeeon Education and Health and the House Committee on Education no laterthan two years after the establishment of the Program.

Annual retail sales and use tax holiday. Establishes an annual retail sales and use tax holiday that takes place on the first full weekend in August beginning on July 1, 2025, through July 1, 2030. During such weekend, state retail sales and use tax will not apply to certain (i) school supplies, (ii) clothing and footwear, (iii) qualified products designated as Energy Star or WaterSense, (iv) portable generators, or (v) hurricane preparedness equipment. This bill is identical to SB 116.

Public school staffing ratios; teachers; Englishlanguage learner students. Requires state funding to be providedpursuant to the general appropriation act to support divisionwideratios of English language learner students in average daily membershipto full-time equivalent teaching positions as follows: (i) for eachEnglish language learner identified as proficiency level one or two,one position per 20 students; (ii) for each English language learneridentified as proficiency level three or four, one position per 40 students; and (iii) for each English language learner identifiedas proficiency level five or in monitor status, one position per100 students. Current law requires state funding to be provided pursuantto the general appropriation act to support one such teaching positionper 50 English language learner students, regardless of the identifiedEnglish proficiency level of such students.

Barrier crimes; adult substance abuse and mental health services; exception. Permits the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, providers of substance abuse or mental health services to adults, and community services boards and behavioral health authorities to hire applicants convicted of certain barrier crimes of misdemeanor assault and battery or involving controlled substances provided that such conviction occurred more than four years prior to the application date for employment. This bill is identical to SB 626.

State Department of Social Services; Home Energy Assistance Program. Authorizes the State Department of Social Services to allow applications for the Home Energy Assistance Program to be submitted over an application period that provides adequate time for individuals to apply and is extended beyond the current application period subject to the availability of adequate funding.

Eligibility for participation in community corrections alternative program; evaluation and diagnosis; referral to the Departmentof Corrections. Provides that a probation and parole officermay refer a defendant on probation to the Department of Correctionsfor evaluation and diagnosis to determine eligibility and suitabilityfor participation in the community corrections alternative programprior to the approval of the court. Under current law, such referralmay take place with the approval of the court. The bill also makestechnical amendments.

Compensation of court-appointed counsel. Raises the limitation of fees that court-appointed counsel can receive for representation on various offenses in district and circuit courts. The bill also limits the fees charged for the cost of court-appointed counsel or public defender representation to persons determined to be indigent to an amount no greater than the amount such person would have owed if such fees had been assessed on or before June 30, 2024. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2025. This bill is identical to SB 356.

Animal testing facilities; public notification;report. Requires any animal testing facility, contract testingfacility, or manufacturer, as defined in relevant law, that uses an animal test method to make publicly available, on or before December1 for the preceding federal fiscal year, the total number of animalsused for research, education, testing, or experimental, scientific,or biomedical purposes. The bill requires the report to identifyand group such animals according to species (i) by displaying a linkto access such information on the homepage or landing page of theanimal testing facility's, contract facility's, or manufacturer'swebsite or (ii) if such animal testing facility does not have a website,by making such information available by means of a press releaseor other similar publication.