Shared solar programs; American Electric Power; minimum bill; capacity. Requires the State Corporation Commission to establish by regulation a shared solar program, defined in the bill, that allows customers of American Electric Power (Phase I Utility) the opportunity to purchase electric power through a subscription in a shared solar facility, defined in the bill. 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 the bill, is deducted from the customer's monthly gross utility bill. The bill also requires the 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 and specifies that low-income customers are exempt from such minimum bill. The bill prescribes a shared solar program capacity of 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.
Del. Cia Price
Sponsored bills
Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies; noncompliance with rental agreement. Increases from five days to 14 days the mandatory waiting period after a landlord serves written notice on a tenant notifying the tenant of his nonpayment of rent and of the landlord's intention to terminate the rental agreement if rent is not paid before the landlord may pursue remedies for termination of the rental agreement. The bill also provides that if a summons for unlawful detainer is filed to terminate a tenancy specifically for nonpayment of rent pursuant to the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, the initial hearing on such summons shall occur as soon as practicable, but not more than 14 days from the date of filing, and if the case cannot be heard within 14 days from the date of filing, the initial hearing shall be held as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 21 days after the date of the filing.
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. This bill is identical to SB 273.
Preservation of affordable housing; definitions; civil penalty. Creates a framework for localities to preserve affordable housing by exercising a right of first refusal on publicly supported housing, defined in the bill. The bill authorizes localities to implement an ordinance that requires an owner to accept a right of first refusal offer by the locality or qualified designee, defined in the bill, in order to preserve affordable housing for a period of not less than 15 years. The bill requires that any locality adopting such an ordinance to preserve affordable housing submit an annual report to the Department of Housing and Community Development by December 31.
Teacher and support staff compensation; at orabove national average. Requires that public school teachersbe compensated at a rate that is at or above the national averageteacher salary. Under current law, compensation at such rate is aspirational.The bill also requires that public school instructional and noninstructionalsupport staff be compensated at a rate that is at or above the nationalaverage salary for such staff. The bill requires state funding tobe provided pursuant to the general appropriation act in a sum sufficientto fund an annual increase for public school teacher and instructionaland noninstructional support staff salaries such that, no later thanthe 2028-2029 school year, such individuals are compensated at arate that is at or above the respective national average salary.
Department of Housing and Community Development;Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; ManufacturedHome Lot Rental Act; notice of tenant screening criteria. Requireslandlords governed by the Virginia Residential Landlord and TenantAct or Manufactured Home Lot Rental Act to provide applicants for tenancy with (i) the amount and purpose of fees to be charged tosuch applicant, (ii) information that will be used to assess suchapplicant's eligibility for tenancy, and (iii) any criteria that mayresult in automatic denial of an application. The bill requires suchlandlords to notify applicants of certain rights protected by thefederal Fair Credit Reporting Act prior to performing any background,credit, or other pre-occupancy check on such applicants. Finally,the bill requires the Director of the Department of Housing andCommunity Development to develop a sample notice of tenant screening criteria and a standardized statement regarding an applicant's rightsprotected by the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act and to make suchsample notice and statement available on the Department's website.
Additional local sales and use tax to support schools; referendum. Authorizes all counties and cities to impose an additional local sales and use tax at a rate not to exceed one percent with the revenue used only for capital projects for the construction or renovation of schools if such levy is approved in a voter referendum. The bill removes the requirement that such a tax must have an expiration date on either (i) the date of the repayment of any bonds or loans used for such capital projects or (ii) a date chosen by the governing body. Under current law, only Charlotte, Gloucester, Halifax, Henry, Mecklenburg, Northampton, Patrick, and Pittsylvania Counties and the City of Danville are authorized to impose such a tax. This bill is identical to HB 805.
Rights of voters; covered practices; civil cause of action; standing, jurisdiction, and venue. Provides that, in addition to voters who are members of a protected class and the Attorney General, any organization whose membership includes voters who are members of a protected class or any organization whose mission, in whole or in part, is to ensure voting access shall be entitled to institute a civil cause of action for alleged violations of certain laws related to the rights of voters. The bill provides that the Circuit Court of the City of Richmond shall have jurisdiction over such actions and such actions shall be subject to expedited pretrial and trial proceedings and receive an automatic calendar preference. The bill allows the governing body of any county or city to establish, by ordinance, a plan each year for the number and location of voter satellite offices and the dates and hours of operation of such satellite offices for all elections to be held in the county or city that year. The bill also adds to the definition of "covered practice" any change that reduces the number of voter satellite offices in a locality or reduces the number of days or the hours of operation of a voter satellite office in a locality or that deviates from the plan established by the governing body each year.
Public elementary and secondary schools; student discipline; evidence-based restorative disciplinary practices. Prohibits, except in certain cases involving specific offenses enumerated in applicable law or in cases in which the division superintendent or his designee finds that aggravating circumstances, as defined by the Department of Education, exist, any public elementary or secondary school student from being suspended, expelled, or excluded from attendance at school without first considering at least one evidence-based restorative disciplinary practice such as community conferencing, community service, mentoring, a peer jury, peer mediation, positive behavioral interventions and supports, a restorative circle, or the Virginia Tiered Systems of Supports. The bill also requires the Department to add as part of the student behavior and administrative response collection required pursuant to relevant law the use of evidence-based restorative disciplinary practices as a behavioral intervention in order to evaluate the use and effectiveness of such practices. This bill is identical to SB 586.
Board of Education; instructional materialson climate change and environmental literacy; model policies andprocedures for selection. Requires the Board of Education tomake available to each local school board instructional materialson climate change and environmental literacy that are based on andinclude peer-reviewed scientific sources. The bill requires the Boardof Education to develop, adopt, and make available to each localschool board model policies and procedures, based on peer-reviewedscientific sources, pertaining to the selection of instructionalmaterials on climate change and environmental literacy, includinga requirement for any such selected material to accurately portray changes in weather and climate patterns over time, the impacts ofhuman activity on changes in weather and climate patterns, and theeffects of climate change on people and resources.