Del. Nadarius Clark

Department of Juvenile Justice; work group to study Length of Stay Guidelines and Bon Air Juvenile Correctional Center; report. Directs the Department of Juvenile Justice to convene a work group to study issues related to the Department's Length of Stay Guidelines and the Department's direct care capacity in response to the Department's report on the 2023 Length of Stay Guidelines. The work group is directed to study (i) the evidence and research relied upon by the Department as identified in the Department's report, including adjusting for changes in risk profiles for committed juveniles over time; (ii) best practices on staffing ratios, the current actual staffing ratios at Bon Air Juvenile Correctional Center (BAJCC), and the projected population forecast; (iii) the ability of BAJCC to operate the community treatment model without single coverage on units and maintain consistent staffing on each residential unit and unit population not to exceed 14 residents; (iv) the ability of BAJCC to maintain all therapeutic, vocational, and educational programming; (v) a detailed comparison of youth by age, risk level, and offense level and their projected length of stay under the 2015 Length of Stay Guidelines and the 2023 Length of Stay Guidelines; (vi) trends in determinate commitments, including the percentage of such commitments in circuit court and with an active Department of Corrections sentence; and (vii) how the Department will maintain current programming and the continuum of services for youth when direct care capacity exceeds actual capacity. The work group is also directed to study the rates of serious incidents and contributing factors at BAJCC since January 2022. The bill requires the work group to submit a report with its recommendations to the Chairmen of the House Committee for Courts of Justice and the Senate Committee for Courts of Justice by November 1, 2024. Such report shall include evidence or research relating to the 2023 changes to the Length of Stay Guidelines and whether such evidence or research supports the changes.

Uniform Electronic Estate Planning Documents Act. Permits electronic nontestamentary estate planning documents, defined in the bill as certain enumerated records relating to estate planning that are readable as text at the time of signing and are not wills or contained in wills, to be signed and notarized, as appropriate, by electronic means. The bill provides that such electronic nontestamentary estate planning documents shall not be denied legal effect or enforceability or excluded as evidence in a proceeding solely because such documents are in electronic form. The bill also allows for the electronic presence, as that term is defined in the bill, of any witness who is otherwise required by law to be in the physical presence of the person signing the nontestamentary estate planning document.

Study; Department of Social Services; Department of Housing and Community Development; unaccompanied minor housing program; report. Directs the Department of Social Services and the Department of Housing and Community Development to convene a work group to study the implementation of an unaccompanied minor housing program. The bill requires the work group to report its findings and recommendations to the Governor and the relevant committees of the General Assembly no later than December 1, 2024.

Behavioral health services in correctional facilities; report. Requires the Department of Corrections to report to the General Assembly and the Governor on or before October 1 of each year certain population statistics regarding the provision of behavioral health services to persons incarcerated in state correctional facilities. The bill also requires local correctional facilities to report to the State Board of Local and Regional Jails on or before October 1 of each year certain population statistics regarding the provision of behavioral health services to persons incarcerated in local correctional facilities and for the Board to report such statistics to the General Assembly and the Governor on or before December 1 of each year.

Child Care Subsidy Program vendors; basis for periodic reimbursement. Requires the Department of Education to periodically reimburse child care providers that are vendors through the Child Care Subsidy Program on the basis of authorized child enrollment but provides that if any such enrolled child is absent from the provider for 10 or more days during one month, the Department shall periodically reimburse such provider on the basis of such child's attendance.

Commissioner of Health; work group to study the occurrence of microplastics in the Commonwealth's public drinking water; report. Directs the Commissioner of Health to convene a work group to study the occurrence of microplastics in the Commonwealth's public drinking water and develop recommendations for the reduction of microplastics in the Commonwealth's public drinking water. The bill requires the work group to report its findings and recommendations to the Governor and the Chairmen of the House Committees on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources and Health, Welfare and Institutions and the Senate Committees on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources and Education and Health by December 1, 2024.

Divorce; cruelty, reasonable apprehension of bodily hurt, or willful desertion or abandonment; divorce from bed and board. Eliminates the one-year waiting period for being decreed a divorce on the grounds of cruelty, reasonable apprehension of bodily hurt, or willful desertion or abandonment by either party. The bill also repeals the provision allowing for a divorce from bed and board on the grounds of cruelty, reasonable apprehension of bodily hurt, or willful desertion or abandonment. The provisions of the bill apply to suits for divorce filed on or after July 1, 2024.

Maddy summaryThis legislative resolution honors Rutherford Ulysses Whitfield, a school bus driver who recently retired from Suffolk Public Schools after 70 years of service. The document highlights his long career, which began when he was 16 years old and included additional roles in school cafeterias and at a local hospital. It formally commends Whitfield for his dedication to student safety and his positive influence on the community. Finally, the resolution directs the House Clerk to prepare and present a copy of the document to Whitfield as a token of appreciation for his exceptional legacy.

Maddy summaryThis bill is a House resolution honoring the memory of Geraldine Griffin, a community leader and longtime resident of Portsmouth who passed away in 2019. It recognizes her contributions to home health care and her role as a spiritual guide within the Hampton Roads area. The resolution formally notes the House of Delegates' sadness over her loss and directs the Clerk to provide a copy of the document to her family as a gesture of respect.

Maddy summaryThis House resolution honors Mary Redd Nelson for her extensive service to Virginia Union University and its alumni network. It recognizes her leadership roles, including her time as president of the university's national alumni association and her work in establishing and developing the Hampton Roads Alumni Chapter. The document formally commends her contributions and directs the House Clerk to present a copy of the resolution to her as a gesture of appreciation.