Rep. Lindsey Dougherty

Maddy summaryThis bill formally recognizes and honors the veterans who served in Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm. It does not create new laws or change existing policies but serves as a ceremonial acknowledgment of their military service. The legislation was passed by both the House and Senate through voice votes, indicating broad bipartisan support for the commendation.

Maddy summaryThis bill honors the life of the Honorable Gerald Edward Connolly, a former state official. It serves as a commemorative resolution to recognize his contributions and legacy within the state government. The measure does not create new laws or policies but instead formally acknowledges his service. It was passed by both the House and Senate and is now awaiting final action.

Maddy summaryThis bill formally recognizes and commends schools in Virginia that participate in the Community Eligibility Provision, a federal program that provides free breakfast and lunch to all students in qualifying schools. The legislation does not create new funding or policy changes but serves as a symbolic acknowledgment of these schools' achievements in serving their student populations. It directly affects school administrators, staff, and students in Virginia who benefit from the Community Eligibility Provision by highlighting their contributions to school nutrition programs. The bill is a ceremonial measure intended to honor rather than alter existing educational policies or funding structures.

Maddy summaryThis bill formally recognizes the Virginia Youth Poet Laureate through a commendation resolution. It does not create new laws or alter existing policies but serves as an official acknowledgment of the program's contribution to youth arts and culture. The measure passed both the House and Senate by voice vote without requiring further legislative action.

Sickle cell disease education and screening program; cancer risk. Requires the sickle cell screening and treatment program to include the offering of educational resources to health care providers on the increased risks for certain cancers among individuals with sickle cell disease or the sickle cell trait.

School nurses; sickle cell disease training. Directs local school divisions to require school nurses to complete, within six months of employment and at least every three years thereafter, an online or in-person course of instruction approved by the Board in collaboration with the Department of Health regarding recognition and management of sickle cell disease. This bill is identical to SB 822.

Nonemergency medical transportation providers; fee disclosure. Requires a nonemergency medical transportation provider or the medical care facility prearranging transport through such a provider, prior to providing such transportation services to a patient, to provide the patient or the patient's representative with a standardized disclosure form of all associated fees or other charges for which the patient will be responsible for such transportation services. The bill also requires that nonemergency medical transportation providers provide the medical care facility with the required form. Such provisions have a delayed effective date of January 1, 2027. Finally, effective July 1, 2026, the bill directs the Department of Health to develop and publish a standardized disclosure form on its website by October 1, 2026.

Department of Education; certain instructional resources; website posting. Requires the Department of Education to post in a conspicuous and publicly accessible manner on the instructional resources section of its website links to instructional resources on the Indigenous people of the Commonwealth that are developed and maintained by the Virginia Tribal Education Consortium.

Requirement that certain injuries to children be reported by physicians, nurses, teachers, etc.; penalties for failure to report. Creates a Class 1 misdemeanor for any person required to file a report, pursuant to relevant law, who fails to do so as soon as possible, but not longer than 24 hours after having reason to suspect a reportable offense of child abuse or neglect where such reportable offense is alleged to have occurred at a private or state-operated hospital, institution, or facility to which children have been committed or where children have been placed for care and treatment. The bill also provides that a second or subsequent conviction is a Class 6 felony. The bill further expands the mandatory reporting requirements for certain enumerated persons in their professional or official capacities to include certain offenses related to children and certain obscenity and related offenses and applies all such mandatory reporting requirements to all public and private school athletics program coaches, directors, and adult volunteers, including those associated with interscholastic teams and clubs. Under current law, the mandatory reporting requirements apply to such enumerated persons who suspect that a child is an abused or neglected child and to public or private sports organization or team athletic coaches, directors, or adult volunteers.

Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies; rental agreement noncompliance; victim of family abuse. Removes the requirement that a tenant who is a victim of family abuse provide the landlord prompt notification should the perpetrator return to the dwelling unit to prevent the landlord from terminating a lease solely due to such act of family abuse occurring in the dwelling unit or on the premises by a perpetrator barred from the dwelling unit. Under the bill, if the tenant provides the landlord with a copy of the protective order, should the perpetrator not already be barred from the unit by the landlord, the lease shall not be terminated due solely to an act of family abuse against the tenant by a perpetrator barred from the dwelling unit.