Del. Jeion Ward

Commission to Study Slavery and Subsequent De Jure and De Facto Racial and Economic Discrimination Against African Americans; report; sunset. Creates the Commission to Study Slavery and Subsequent De Jure and De Facto Racial and Economic Discrimination Against African Americans to (i) study the current impact and long-term inequities of slavery and the subsequent state-sanctioned de jure and de facto racial and economic discrimination practiced against African Americans and (ii) make recommendations to the General Assembly on appropriate remedies. The bill requires the Commission to annually submit a report on its interim activity and work to the Governor and the General Assembly. The bill has an expiration date of July 1, 2022.

Purchase of handguns; limitation on handgun purchases; penalty. Prohibits any person who is not a licensed firearms dealer from purchasing more than one handgun in a 30-day period and establishes such an offense as a Class 1 misdemeanor. The bill exempts from this provision (i) persons who have been issued a certificate by the Department of State Police under certain circumstances and with an enhanced background check, (ii) law-enforcement agencies and officers, (iii) state and local correctional facilities, (iv) licensed private security companies, (v) persons who hold a valid Virginia concealed handgun permit, (vi) persons whose handgun has been stolen or irretrievably lost or who are trading in a handgun, (vii) purchases of handguns in a private sale, and (viii) purchases of antique firearms. This bill incorporates HB 1502. This bill is identical to SB 69.

Virginia Food Access Investment Program andFund. Creates the Virginia Food Access Investment Program andFund to provide funding for the construction, rehabilitation, equipmentupgrades, or expansion of grocery stores, small food retailers, andinnovative food retail projects, defined in the bill, in underservedcommunities.

Landlord and tenant; statement of tenant rights and responsibilities. Requires that the Director of Housing and Community Development develop a statement of tenant rights and responsibilities explaining in plain language the rights and responsibilities of tenants under the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act and maintain such statement on the Department's website. The bill requires the Director to develop and maintain on the Department's website a printable form to be signed by the parties to a written rental agreement acknowledging that the tenant has received from the landlord the statement of tenant rights and responsibilities and requires a landlord to furnish to a prospective tenant, at the time of furnishing an unsigned copy of the proposed written rental agreement, the statement of tenant rights and responsibilities for signature by the parties to the rental agreement. The landlord may not file or maintain an action against the tenant in a court of law for any alleged lease violation until he has provided the tenant with such statement.

Health insurance; cost-sharing payments for prescription insulin drugs. Prohibits health insurance companies and other carriers from setting an amount exceeding $30 per 30-day supply that a covered person is required to pay at the point of sale in order to receive a covered prescription insulin drug. The measure also prohibits a provider contract between a carrier or its pharmacy benefits manager and a pharmacy from containing a provision (i) authorizing the carrier's pharmacy benefits manager or the pharmacy to charge, (ii) requiring the pharmacy to collect, or (iii) requiring a covered person to make a cost-sharing payment for a covered prescription insulin drug in an amount that exceeds such limitation. This bill incorporates HB 1403.

School boards; applicants for employment andvolunteer service; criminal history. Prohibits each school boardfrom employing or accepting the volunteer service of any individualwho has been convicted of a violent felony set forth in subsectionC of § 17.1-805 of the Code of Virginia or any offense involvingthe sexual molestation, physical or sexual abuse, or rape of a child.The bill permits each school board to employ or accept the volunteerservice of any individual who has been convicted of any felony orcrime of moral turpitude that is not set forth in subsection C of§ 17.1-805 of the Code of Virginia and does not involve the sexualmolestation, physical or sexual abuse, or rape of a child, providedthat in the case of a felony conviction, such individual has hadhis civil rights restored by the Governor. The bill contains parallelprovisions for contractors and their employees who have direct contactwith students on school property during regular school hours or during school-sponsored activities. Current law provides that any felonyconviction is a bar to employment and contract work in public schools.

Nonpayment of wages; private action; liability for payment of wages due under construction contracts; penalties. Provides that an employee has a private cause of action, individually, jointly, with other aggrieved employees as a collective action, on behalf of similarly situated employees as a collective action under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act against an employer who fails to pay wages to recover the amount of wages due plus interest at eight percent annually from the date the wages were due, an additional amount as liquidated damages, and reasonable attorney fees and costs. If the court finds that the employer knowingly failed to pay wages, the court shall award the employee reasonable attorney fees and costs and the employer is subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $1,000 for each violation. If the court finds that the employer's failure to pay wages was willful and with intent to defraud the employee, the court shall award the employee triple the amount of wages due and reasonable attorney fees and costs. The measure also provides that any construction contract entered into on or after July 1, 2020, shall be deemed to include a provision under which the general contractor and the subcontractor are jointly and severally liable to pay the wages due to the subcontractor's employees. If the wages due to the subcontractor's employees are not paid, the general contractor is subject to criminal and civil penalties for which an employer is liable for failing or refusing to pay wages. The measure requires the subcontractor to indemnify the general contractor for wages, damages, interest, penalties, or attorney fees owed as a result of the subcontractor's failure to pay the wages unless the subcontractor's failure to pay wages was because of the general contractor's failure to pay moneys due to the subcontractor. The measure also provides that the lack of privity between the general contractor and the employees of the subcontractor is not a defense in an action against the general contractor arising from nonpayment of wages to the subcontractor's employees. This bill incorporates HB 482.

Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion;position created. Establishes the position of Director of Diversity,Equity, and Inclusion (the Director), to be appointed by the Governor. The Director is empowered to (i) develop a sustainable frameworkto promote inclusive practices across state government; (ii) implementa measurable, strategic plan to address systemic inequities in stategovernment practices; and (iii) facilitate methods to turn feedbackand suggestions from state employees, external stakeholders, andcommunity leaders into concrete equity policy.

Misclassification of employees as independent contractors; Department of Taxation to investigate and enforce; civil penalties. Prohibits an employer from classifying an individual as an independent contractor if he is an employee. An individual shall be considered an employee of the party that pays the remuneration for purposes of Titles 40.1 (Labor and Employment), 58.1 (Taxation), 60.2 (Unemployment Compensation), and 65.2 (Workers' Compensation) unless it is demonstrated that such individual is an independent contractor. The Department of Taxation shall determine whether an individual is an independent contractor by applying Internal Revenue Service guidelines. Violators are subject to civil penalties and debarment from public contracts. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2021.

Doulas; certification; registry. Provides that no person shall use or assume the title "state-certified doula," as defined in the bill, unless such person is a community-based doula who has received training and education as a doula from an entity approved by a body approved by the Board of Health for such purpose and been certified as a doula by a body approved by the Board of Health for such purpose and that no entity shall hold itself out as providing training and education necessary to meet the requirements for certification as a doula unless its curriculum and training program has been approved by a body approved by the Board of Health for such purpose. The bill also directs the Board of Health to adopt regulations setting forth the requirements for (i) use of the title "state-certified doula" and (ii) training and education necessary to satisfy the requirements for certification by the Department of Health as a state-certified doula.