Del. Cia Price

Health insurance; coverage for diabetes. Requires that each insurer providing coverage for diabetes shall include benefits for FDA-approved insulin, continuous blood glucose monitoring, and regular foot care and eye care exams in addition to equipment, supplies, and self-management training and education. The bill allows for such self-management training and education to be provided either in-person outpatient or through telemedicine. Under the bill, such coverage for self-management training and education shall include up to three outpatient visits upon an individual receiving an initial diagnosis of diabetes and up to two medically necessary visits to a qualified provider upon a significant change in the patient's symptoms or medical condition. The bill also repeals certain provisions of law related to cost-sharing for insulin and provides that the coverage required by the bill shall be exempt from any deductible or cost-sharing payment requirement. The provisions of the bill apply to insurance policies, contracts, and plans issued for delivery, reissued, extended, or amended on and after January 1, 2025.

Maddy summaryHB 1536 would exempt certain baby products, such as diapers and baby food, from state retail sales tax. This policy change directly affects parents and caregivers who purchase these items, reducing their out-of-pocket costs. The key provision removes the existing sales tax requirement for qualifying baby products listed in the bill. The bill is currently pending in the Finance Committee with no final action taken as of November 2024.

Virginia Center for Firearm Violence Intervention and Prevention; Virginia Firearm Violence Intervention and Prevention Fund; creation. Creates the Virginia Center for Firearm Violence Intervention and Prevention (the Center) within the Department of Criminal Justice Services and the Virginia Firearm Violence Intervention and Prevention Fund, to be administered by the Center, to replace the existing Virginia Gun Violence Intervention and Prevention Fund.

Family caregiver tax credit. Creates a nonrefundable income tax credit for taxable years 2024 through 2028 for expenses incurred by an individual in caring for an eligible family member, defined in the bill, who requires assistance with one or more activities of daily living, also defined in the bill. The credit equals 50 percent of eligible expenditures incurred by the caregiver up to $1,000. In order to qualify for the credit, the family caregiver must (i) not receive any compensation or reimbursement for the eligible expenditures and (ii) have federal adjusted gross income that is no greater than $100,000 for an individual or $200,000 for married persons. The bill requires the Tax Commissioner to establish guidelines for claiming the credit and provides that any unused credit may be carried forward by the taxpayer for five taxable years following the taxable year for which the credit was issued.

Health professions; universal licensure; requirements. Requires health regulatory boards within the Department of Health Professions to recognize licenses or certifications issued by other United States jurisdictions, as defined in the bill, as fulfillment for licensure or certification in the Commonwealth if certain conditions are met. The bill also requires such health regulatory boards to recognize work experience as fulfillment for licensure or certification in the Commonwealth if certain conditions are met. The bill does not apply to licensure for physicians or dentists.

Earned income tax credit. Allows eligible low-income taxpayers to claim a refundable income tax credit equal to 20 percent of the federal earned income tax credit claimed that year by the taxpayer for the same taxable year. The bill also states that individuals who would have been entitled to the federal equivalent of this credit but for the fact that the individual, the individual's spouse, or one or more of the individual's children does not have a valid social security number are eligible to claim this credit.

Maddy summaryThis resolution honors the memory of Erma Dean Wiggins Price, a respected educator and band director who passed away in May 2024. It recognizes her decades of service to Newport News Public Schools, where she directed choirs and bands and became the district's first African American female band director. The document formally records the House of Delegates' respect for her contributions and instructs the Clerk to provide a copy of the resolution to her family.

Maddy summaryThis resolution formally commends the Peninsula Alcohol Safety Action Program on the occasion of its 50th anniversary. The program, based in Newport News, assists individuals convicted of driving under the influence by providing court-mandated monitoring, education, and treatment services to reduce impaired driving incidents. The House of Delegates voted to recognize the organization's efforts and directed the Clerk to present a copy of the resolution to the program as a gesture of appreciation.

Maddy summaryThis House resolution honors the life and legacy of Dr. Golden Bethune-Hill, a prominent healthcare executive and civil rights advocate who passed away in April 2024. The document formally acknowledges her significant contributions to health equity, including her role in founding a community health clinic and leading legal efforts to expand voting access. It directs the Clerk of the House to send a copy of the resolution to her family as a gesture of respect from the legislative body.

Shared solar programs; Dominion Energy Virginia; minimum bill; capacity. Amends existing shared solar program provisions for Dominion Energy Virginia (Phase II Utility). The bill provides that a customer's net bill for participation in the shared solar program means the resulting amount a customer must pay the utility after the bill credit, defined in relevant law, is deducted from the customer's monthly gross utility bill. The bill requires the State Corporation Commission to establish a minimum bill, below which a subscriber's net bill cannot go, that is calculated based on the amount of kilowatt-hours billed by the utility. The bill also changes the shared solar program capacity to at least 10 percent of each utility's adjusted Virginia peak load and requires the Commission's regulations to allow for program participation by all jurisdictional and nonjurisdictional customer classes. Under the bill, co-location of two or more shared solar facilities is permitted for shared solar program participation if the facilities are located on a single parcel of land or on adjacent parcels of land for facilities up to five megawatts. The bill requires the Commission to (i) establish regulations that prohibit early termination fees and credit reporting for low-income customers, (ii) require net financial savings for subscribers relative to the subscription fee, (iii) require a customer's affirmative consent before providing customer billing and usage data to a subscriber organization, and (iv) establish customer engagement rules. Under the bill, any net crediting fee imposed by the shared solar program shall not exceed one percent of the bill credit value and shall be charged to the subscriber organization. The bill also provides that a utility is permitted to seek recovery of bill credit costs in its triennial base review only if such costs would result in the utility being unable to meet its revenue requirement after accounting for all avoided costs that can be realized by ratepayers. The bill specifies that the Commission shall update its shared solar program consistent with the requirements of the bill by January 1, 2025, and shall require each utility to file any associated tariffs, agreements, or forms necessary for implementing the program by July 1, 2025. Additionally, the bill requires the Department of Energy to convene a stakeholder work group to determine the amounts and forms of project incentives for (a) projects located on rooftops, brownfields, or landfills; (b) projects that are dual-use agricultural facilities; or (c) projects that satisfy another category as established by the Department and to submit a written report to the Chairs of the House Committee on Commerce and Energy and the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor no later than November 30, 2024.