Del. Jeion Ward

Requirement for appeals bond; indigent parties;appeal of unlawful detainer. Removes the requirement for an indigentdefendant in civil actions to post an appeal bond in any civil caseappealed from the general district court. The bill also removes provisionsof the Code allowing a plaintiff in an unlawful detainer case thathas been appealed to the circuit court to request the judge to ordera writ of eviction immediately upon entry of judgment for possession.

Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity; disparity study. Requires the Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity to conduct a disparity study every five years, next due no later than January 1, 2026.

Historical African American cemeteries. Changes the date of establishment that qualifies historical African American cemeteries for appropriated funds to care for such cemeteries from prior to January 1, 1900, to prior to January 1, 1948, and provides that the total number of graves in a qualifying cemetery shall be the number of markers of African Americans who were interred in such cemetery prior to January 1, 1948. Under current law, the total number of graves is the number of markers of African Americans who lived at any time between January 1, 1800, and January 1, 1900. This bill is identical to SB 477.

Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity;agency procurement enhancement plans. Directs the Departmentof Small Business and Supplier Diversity to annually review and providefeedback on state agencies' plans to enhance procurement from small,women-owned, and minority-owned businesses.

Juvenile law-enforcement records; inspection. Provides that a juvenile, the parent, guardian, or other custodian of the juvenile, and counsel for the juvenile may inspect a law-enforcement record concerning such juvenile if (i) no other law or rule of the Supreme Court of Virginia requires or allows withholding of the record; (ii) the parent, guardian, or other custodian requesting the record is not a suspect, offender, or person of interest in the record; and (iii) any identifying information of any other involved juveniles is redacted. This bill is identical to SB 149.

Historical African American cemeteries; disbursement of funds; qualified organization. Expands the definition of a qualified organization that may receive funds for maintenance of a historical African American cemetery to include any locality whose purpose for applying for funding from the Department of Historic Resources is to maintain a neglected historical African American cemetery, or a portion thereof, that is located within its jurisdictional bounds. The bill also creates an exemption by allowing localities that are eligible for funding for the maintenance and care of historical African American cemeteries to apply to the Director of the Department for a grant to perform extraordinary maintenance, renovation, repair, or reconstruction on any such cemeteries and graves without first having received initial funding for the maintenance and care of those cemeteries and graves. Current law requires a qualified organization to apply for any such grant only after it has received initial funding for the maintenance and care of a historical African American cemetery. This bill is identical to SB 23.

Virginia Literacy Act; early student literacy; evidence-based literacy instruction; science-based reading research. Makes several changes relating to early student literacy, including requiring (i) each education preparation program offered by a public institution of higher education or private institution of higher education or alternative certification program that provides training for any individual seeking initial licensure with an endorsement in a certain area, including as a reading specialist, to demonstrate mastery of science-based reading research and evidence-based literacy instruction, as such terms are defined in the bill; (ii) the literacy assessment required of individuals seeking initial teacher licensure with endorsements in certain areas to include a rigorous test of science-based reading research and evidence-based literacy instruction; (iii) each local school board to establish a divisionwide literacy plan; (iv) each local school board to employ one reading specialist for each 550 students in kindergarten through grade three; and (v) each local school board to provide a program of literacy instruction whereby, among other things, (a) the program provides reading intervention services to students in kindergarten through grade three who demonstrate deficiencies based on their individual performance on the Standards of Learning reading assessment or an early literacy screener provided or approved by the Department of Education; (b) a reading specialist, in collaboration with the teacher of any student who receives such reading intervention services, develops, oversees implementation of, and monitors student progress on a student reading plan; and (c) each student who receives such reading intervention services is assessed utilizing either the early literacy screener provided or approved by the Department or the grade-level reading Standards of Learning assessment again at the end of that school year. The provisions of the bill become effective beginning with the 2024–2025 school year. This bill is identical to SB 616.

Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity; mentorship program. Directs the Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity to administer a mentorship pilot program under which established businesses or industry sector experts act as mentors to start-up women-owned and minority-owned businesses.

Virginia Black, Indigenous, and People of ColorHistoric Preservation Fund established. Establishes the VirginiaBlack, Indigenous, and People of Color Historic Preservation Fundfor the purpose of awarding grants to eligible state-recognized andfederally recognized Indian tribes, private nonprofit organizations,and localities for the eligible costs of acquiring land or permanentprotective interest therein, and of undertaking preservation activitieson such land, that is of cultural or historic significance to Black,indigenous, or people of color communities. The bill provides thatland or interests acquired with grant funds shall grant the Boardof Historic Resources or other holder a perpetual preservation interestin the property. This bill is identical to SB 158.