Del. Shelly Simonds

Mining and processing of certain minerals and elements; study; permitting. Directs the Secretaries of Natural and Historic Resources, Health and Human Resources, and Commerce and Trade to convene a work group to study the mining and processing of copper, zinc, and lead in the Commonwealth and to report its findings to the General Assembly by December 1, 2023. The bill also places a moratorium until July 1, 2024, on the issuance of new permits to operate a mine for gold, copper, zinc, or lead of an area larger than 10 acres.

Health carriers; denial of coverage; quarterlyreport. Requires each health carrier in the Commonwealth to submitto the State Corporation Commission on a quarterly basis a reportof all first-time denials of coverage, including denials based onpreexisting conditions and experimental or investigational treatments.The bill states that a health carrier must inform a covered personof his right to an internal appeal or, if applicable, an externalreview, upon issuing a denial of coverage. The bill has an expirationdate of July 1, 2024.

Workers' compensation; domestic service employees.Provides that individuals who are engaged in providing domesticservice, defined in the bill, are not excluded from the Virginia Workers' Compensation Act.

Juvenile justice; human trafficking screening.Requires the Department of Juvenile Justice to use trauma-informedscreening measures to identify whether any child committed to theDepartment has been a victim of human trafficking and determine appropriate treatment and service options. The bill also requires that, in casesin which a juvenile and domestic relations district court or circuitcourt orders that a juvenile within its jurisdiction be physicallyexamined and treated by a physician or local mental health center,such examination include trauma-informed screening measures to identifywhether the juvenile has been a victim of human trafficking and determineappropriate treatment and service options.

State parks; free entry for veterans. Establishesa Veteran's Passport program for veterans of the Armed Forces of theUnited States or members of the Virginia National Guard that entitlesthe bearer to enter state parks in the Commonwealth without the paymentof a parking or admission fee.

Study; Department of Education; root causesof public school bus driver shortages and working conditions of publicschool bus drivers in the Commonwealth; report. Requests thatthe Department of Education, with the assistance of each local schoolboard, to study the root causes of public school bus driver shortagesand the working conditions of public school bus drivers in the Commonwealthby (i) administering to each public school bus driver in each localschool division in the Commonwealth and as many former public school bus drivers as is feasible a survey to determine the level of satisfactionwith and the need for improvement to the working conditions of publicschool bus drivers in the Commonwealth, (ii) analyzing such surveydata and such other information and data as it deems necessary andadvisable, including information from other states and school districtscontained therein that have had success in addressing public schoolbus driver shortages by addressing working conditions, and (iii)making recommendations for statutory, regulatory, or budgetary changesthat may contribute to the improvement of the working conditionsof public school bus drivers.

Additional local sales and use tax to support schools. Authorizes all counties and cities to impose an additional local sales and use tax at a rate not to exceed one percent, with the revenue used only for capital projects for the construction or renovation of schools. Under the bill, the tax can only be imposed if it is initiated by a resolution of the local governing body and approved by the voters in a referendum. The bill requires the governing body to specify in the enacting ordinance the time period, not to exceed 20 years, for which the tax would be imposed, and revenue from the tax is required to be used solely for capital projects for new construction or major renovation of schools in the locality enacting the tax. Under current law, only Charlotte County, Gloucester County, Halifax County, Henry County, Mecklenburg County, Northampton County, Patrick County, Pittsylvania County, and the City of Danville are authorized to impose such a tax.

Refundable income tax credit for low-incometaxpayers. Allows low-income individuals and married persons to claim either (i) a nonrefundable income tax credit equal to $300for each individual, his spouse, and any dependents or (ii) a refundableincome tax credit equal to 20 percent of the federal earned incometax credit claimed that year by the individual or married personsfor the same taxable year. Under current law, low-income individualsand married persons may elect either of these amounts; however, bothoptions for claiming the credit are nonrefundable. The provisionsof the bill apply to taxable years 2022 through 2028.

Arrest and prosecution of individual experiencing a mental health emergency; assault or assault and battery against a law-enforcement officer. Provides that no individual shall be subject to arrest or prosecution for an assault or assault and battery against a law-enforcement officer if at the time of the assault or assault and battery (i) the individual (a) is experiencing a mental health emergency or (b) meets the criteria for issuance of an emergency custody order and (ii) the law-enforcement officer subject to the assault or assault and battery was responding to a call for service requesting assistance for such individual. The bill provides that no law-enforcement officer acting in good faith shall be found liable for false arrest if it is later determined that the person arrested was immune from prosecution.

Board of Education; standards for the maintenanceand operations, renovation, and new construction of public elementaryand secondary school buildings. Requires the Board of Education(the Board) to make recommendations to the General Assembly for amendmentsto the Standards of Quality to establish standards for the maintenanceand operations, renovation, and new construction of public elementaryand secondary school buildings. The bill requires such recommendationsto include standards for the percentage of the current replacementvalue of a public school building that a school board should budget for the maintenance and operations of the building and such otherstandards as the Board deems appropriate. The bill also requires the Board to solicit the input of relevant stakeholders and the publicin developing such recommendations. Finally, the bill requires theBoard to submit its recommendations to the Chairmen of the House Committee on Education and the Senate Committee on Education and Healthno later than December 1, 2022. This bill is a recommendation ofthe Commission on School Construction and Modernization.