Del. Irene Shin

Constitutional amendment (second reference);marriage; repeal of same-sex marriage prohibition; affirmative rightto marry. Repeals the constitutional provision defining marriageas only a union between one man and one woman as well as the relatedprovisions that are no longer valid as a result of the United StatesSupreme Court decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, 576 U.S. 644 (2015). The amendment provides that the right to marry is a fundamental right inherent in the liberty of persons and requires the Commonwealthand its political subdivisions and agents to issue marriage licenses,recognize marriages, and treat all marriages equally under the law,regardless of the sex or gender of the parties to the marriage. Religiousorganizations and clergy acting in their religious capacity havethe right to refuse to perform any marriage.

Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act;terms and conditions of rental agreement; automatic renewal; noticeof rent increase. Requires a landlord that owns more than fourrental dwelling units to, in the case of any rental agreement thatprovides for automatic renewal of such agreement, provide separatewritten notice to the tenant notifying the tenant of any increasein rent. The bill provides that such notice shall be provided tothe tenant no less than 30 days before the automatic renewal takeseffect.

Fund to Assist Localities with Translation ofEssential Information; established. Establishes the Fund toAssist Localities with Translation of Essential Information to beadministered by the Department of Housing and Community Developmentfor the purpose of making grants to local governments to addressthe lack of translated documents for those citizens and taxpayersof the Commonwealth and its localities for whom English is a secondlanguage. The bill provides that the Fund shall make grants to local governments for the purpose of translating essential documents intoforeign languages.

Retail Small Business Grant Program and Fund.Establishes the Retail Small Business Grant Program and Fund to supportexisting Virginia small businesses, attract new businesses, increasethe Commonwealth's tax base, create new job opportunities for Virginiaresidents, and enhance commercial activity in Virginia. The billprovides that an eligible Virginia small business, defined in thebill, is eligible for grants of up to $50,000. The total amount ofgrants awarded in a fiscal year is capped at $10 million.

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families; Virginia Initiative for Education and Work; sanctions. Lowers from thefull amount of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)grant to a maximum of six percent of the TANF grant the amount alocal department of social services can impose as a sanction on aparent for noncompliance with the requirements of the Virginia Initiativefor Education and Work.

Public institutions of higher education; admission, in-state tuition, and tuition waivers; members of certain AmericanIndian tribes. Requires each public institution of higher educationto establish and implement an admissions policy whereby a certainnumber of annual offers of student admission is reserved for individualswho are members of a state-recognized or federally recognized American Indian tribe that is headquartered in the Commonwealth. The billdeclares eligible for in-state tuition charges regardless of domicileany non-Virginia student who is a member of a state-recognized or federally recognized American Indian tribe that is headquarteredin the Commonwealth. The bill also provides that any student whois a member of a state-recognized or federally recognized AmericanIndian tribe headquartered in the Commonwealth and who has been admittedto a public institution of higher education is eligible for a tuitionwaiver up to the amount necessary to cover the last-dollar cost ofthe institution's in-state tuition and mandatory fees after all other federal and state financial aid to which the student is entitledis taken into account.

Family caregiver tax credit. Creates a nonrefundableincome tax credit for taxable years 2022 through 2026 for expensesincurred by an individual in caring for an eligible family member,defined in the bill, who requires assistance with one or more activitiesof daily living, also defined in the bill. The credit equals 50 percentof eligible expenditures incurred by the caregiver up to $1,000. Inorder to qualify for the credit, the family caregiver must (i) notreceive any compensation or reimbursement for the eligible expendituresand (ii) have federal adjusted gross income that is no greater than$100,000 for an individual or $200,000 for married persons. The billrequires the Tax Commissioner to establish guidelines for claimingthe credit and provides that any unused credit may be carried forwardby the taxpayer for five taxable years following the taxable yearfor which the credit was issued. The bill is a recommendation ofthe Joint Commission on Health Care.

Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act;landlord remedies; noncompliance with rental agreement. Increasesfrom five days to 14 days the mandatory waiting period after a landlordserves written notice on a tenant notifying the tenant of his nonpaymentof rent and of the landlord's intention to terminate the rental agreementif rent is not paid before the landlord may pursue remedies for terminationof the rental agreement.

Study; Department of Medical Assistance Services;feasibility of a spend down provision for the Community Living, Familyand Individual Support, and Building Independence waivers; report.Requests the Department of Medical Assistance Services to study thefeasibility of implementing a spend down provision for the CommunityLiving, Family and Individual Support, and Building Independencewaivers. The Department shall complete its work by November 30, 2022.

Fines, costs, forfeitures, penalties, and restitution; collection fees; assessment against incarcerated individuals. Providesthat notwithstanding any other provision of law, no collection fees,including the fees of any private attorneys or collection agencies,administrative fees, or any other fees related to collection activities,shall be assessed for the collection of any fines, costs, forfeitures,penalties, or restitution imposed in a criminal case or in a caseinvolving a traffic infraction (i) for any period during which thedefendant is incarcerated and (ii) for a period of 90 days followingthe date of the defendant's release from incarceration if the sentenceincludes an active term of incarceration.