Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources; protection of existing tidal and nontidal wetlands; wetland restoration and creation; policy task force; report. Directs the Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources to establish a policy task force to develop (i) strategies to protect existing tidal and nontidal wetlands and restore, create, and plan for the persistence of such wetlands in the Commonwealth and (ii) mechanisms to incorporate such strategies into appropriate plans, including the Virginia Flood Protection Master Plan and the Virginia Coastal Resilience Master Plan, to address losses and adverse impacts from human activities and climate change. The bill requires the task force to include certain relevant stakeholders, to meet at least two times annually, to report its initial findings and recommendations to the Chairs of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources and House Committee on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources by December 1, 2025, and to update its report at least every two years.
Del. Irene Shin
Sponsored bills
Prevailing wage rate; apprenticeship requirements; RPS-eligible source work; penalties. Requires each public service company, including its contractors and subcontractors, or third-party developer to ensure payment at the prevailing wage rate set by the Department of Labor and Industry for any mechanic, laborer, or worker employed, retained, or otherwise hired to perform construction, maintenance, or repair work for certain electricity generating sources. The bill requires each public service company to (i) ensure that 15 percent of the total labor hours of such work is performed by qualified apprentices and (ii) employ at least one qualified apprentice if four or more individuals are employed to perform such work. Under the bill, a public service company that fails to meet the requirements of its provisions is required to make penalty payments to the Commissioner of Labor and Industry. This bill is identical to SB 853.
Purchase of firearms; waiting period; penalty. Provides that no person shall sell a firearm unless at least five days have elapsed from the time the prospective purchaser completes the written consent form to have a licensed dealer obtain criminal history record information, with exceptions enumerated in relevant law. The amendments to the Code of Virginia in the bill are identical to the amendments to the Code of Virginia in SB 891.
Department of Criminal Justice Services; standards and training for security at nonprofit institutions. Requires the Department of Criminal Justice Services to establish statewide best practices, including training, for any law-enforcement officer, unarmed security officer, or armed security officer providing security services at nonprofit institutions that serve individuals and communities at risk of hate crimes within the Commonwealth.
Department of Education; culturally responsive and language-appropriate mental health support and services; guidance and policies. Requires, no later than October 1, 2026, the Department of Education to develop, adopt, and provide to each local school board guidance on the adoption of policies governing the provision of culturally responsive and language-appropriate mental health support and services for students in the local school division and permits any school board to develop and adopt policies in the local school division that are consistent with the guidelines adopted and provided by the Department of Education.
Weapons; possession prohibited in a hospital that provides mental health services or developmental services; penalty. Makes it a Class 1 misdemeanor for any person to knowingly and intentionally possess in the building of any hospital that provides mental health services or developmental services in the Commonwealth, including an emergency department or other facility rendering emergency medical care, a (i) firearm, (ii) knife with a blade over three and one-half inches, or (iii) other dangerous weapon, including explosives and stun weapons. The bill also provides that notice of such prohibitions shall be posted conspicuously at each public entrance of any hospital and no person shall be convicted of the offense if such notice is not posted, unless such person had actual notice of the prohibitions. The bill provides that any such firearm, knife, explosive, or weapon shall be subject to seizure by a law-enforcement officer and forfeited to the Commonwealth and specifies exceptions to the prohibition. This bill is identical to SB 1110.
Overtime for certain employees; domestic service workers and live-in domestic workers. Adds domestic workers, as defined in the bill, to provisions related to overtime pay. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2026. This bill is identical to SB 897.
Placing Nazi symbol or emblem on certain property with intent to intimidate; penalty. Creates a Class 6 felony for any person who, with the intent of intimidating any person or group of persons, places a Hakenkreuz, hooked cross, or Nazi symbol or emblem, sometimes referred to as the Nazi swastika, on the private property of another without permission. The bill also makes it a Class 6 felony if such Nazi symbol or emblem is placed on a highway or other public place in a manner having a direct tendency to place another person in reasonable fear or apprehension of death or bodily injury. Finally, the bill clarifies that such Nazi symbol or emblem does not include and is distinct from the sacred swastika word and symbol of peace and prosperity used by Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Zoroastrianism, or Native American religions.
Elections administration; duties of local electoral board; certification of election; grounds for removal; civil penalty. Provides that the certification of the results of an election is a clear ministerial duty of the local electoral boards and that a member of the local electoral board who neglects or refuses to perform such duty in accordance with law shall be subject to removal proceedings by the State Board of Elections and assessed a penalty not exceeding $1,000. The bill also authorizes the State Board of Elections to intervene and carry out the duties related to election certification in the event a local electoral board fails or refuses to do so.
An Act to amend and reenact §§ 2.2-2499.8, 3.2-4113, 4.1-352, 4.1-600, 4.1-601, 4.1-603, 4.1-604, 4.1-606, 4.1-607, 4.1-611, 4.1-614, 4.1-621, 4.1-1100, 4.1-1101, 4.1-1121, 4.1-1500, 4.1-1501, 4.1-1502, 4.1-1601, 4.1-1604, 5.1-13, 9.1-1101, 16.1-69.40:1, 16.1-260, 16.1-273, 16.1-278.9, 18.2-46.1, 18.2-247, 18.2-248, 18.2-248.01, 18.2-251, 18.2-251.03, 18.2-251.1:1, 18.2-251.1:2, 18.2-251.1:3, 18.2-252, 18.2-254, 18.2-255, 18.2-255.1, 18.2-255.2, 18.2-258, 18.2-258.02, 18.2-258.1, 18.2-265.1, 18.2-265.2, 18.2-265.3, 18.2-287.2, 18.2-308.012, 18.2-308.4, 18.2-460, 18.2-474.1, 19.2-66, 19.2-81, 19.2-81.1, 19.2-83.1, 19.2-188.1, 19.2-303.01, 19.2-386.22 through 19.2-386.25, 19.2-389, 19.2-389.3, as it is currently effective and as it shall become effective, 19.2-392.02, 19.2-392.6, 22.1-206, 22.1-277.08, 23.1-1301, 46.2-105.2, 46.2-347, 48-17.1, 53.1-231.2, 54.1-2903, 58.1-301, and 59.1-200, as it is currently effective and as it shall become effective, of the Code of Virginia; to amend the Code of Virginia by adding in Chapter 6 of Title 4.1 sections numbered 4.1-629, 4.1-630, and 4.1-631, by adding in Title 4.1 chapters numbered 7 through 10, consisting of sections numbered 4.1-700 through 4.1-1008, by adding sections numbered 4.1-1102 through 4.1-1105, 4.1-1106, 4.1-1113, 4.1-1114, 4.1-1115, 4.1-1117, 4.1-1118, and 4.1-1119, by adding in Title 4.1 a chapter numbered 12, consisting of sections numbered 4.1-1200 through 4.1-1206, by adding in Chapter 13 of Title 4.1 sections numbered 4.1-1300, 4.1-1301, and 4.1-1303 through 4.1-1309, by adding in Chapter 14 of Title 4.1 sections numbered 4.1-1403 through 4.1-1406, by adding in Article 2 of Chapter 1 of Title 6.2 a section numbered 6.2-108, and by adding in Chapter 44 of Title 54.1 a section numbered 54.1-4426; and to repeal §§ 4.1-1101.1, 4.1-1105.1, 18.2-248.1, and 18.2-251.1 of the Code of Virginia, relating to cannabis control; retail market; penalties.