Del. Jeion Ward

Right to work. Repeals the provisions ofthe Code of Virginia that, among other things, prohibit any agreementor combination between an employer and a labor union or labor organizationwhereby (i) nonmembers of the union or organization are denied theright to work for the employer, (ii) membership in the union or organization is made a condition of employment or continuation ofemployment by such employer, or (iii) the union or organization acquiresan employment monopoly in any such enterprise.

Commemorating the 150th anniversary of the ratificationof the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.Commemorates the 150th anniversary of the ratification of the FifteenthAmendment to the Constitution of the United States. This resolutionis a recommendation of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Commission.

Celebrating the life of the Honorable Mary T.Christian.

Tree conservation ordinance; Chesapeake BayPreservation Act locality; designated trees. Adds "Chesapeake Bay watershed tree," as defined in the bill, to the types of treethat a locality with a tree conservation ordinance is authorizedto designate individually for preservation. Current law allows individualdesignation of heritage, memorial, specimen, and street trees. The bill contains technical amendments.

Flood Insurance Fund; low-income Virginians.Creates a Flood Insurance Fund and directs the Executive Director of the Board of Directors of the Virginia Resources Authority toestablish a program to use the Fund to subsidize the purchase offlood insurance by low-income Virginians. Such program shall includean application process, application guidelines, and a ranking systemthat prioritizes the use of the Fund to support the purchase of floodinsurance in the most flood-prone areas.

Virginia Diverse Educator Scholarship Fund and Programestablished. Establishes the Virginia Diverse Educator Scholarship Fund andProgram, to be administered by the State Council of Higher Education forVirginia, for the purpose of annually providing to each Historically BlackCollege or University in the Commonwealth (Hampton University, Norfolk StateUniversity, Virginia State University, and Virginia Union University) such sumsas are necessary for each such institution to annually provide scholarships ona competitive basis to no more than two students who (i) identify as AfricanAmerican, Asian, Hispanic or Latino, Native American or Native Alaskan, orNative Hawaiian or Pacific Islander; (ii) are accepted to or enrolled in suchinstitution's education preparation program; and (iii) are eligible for afederal Pell Grant to attend such institution. The bill provides that each suchscholarship would consist of the following sums: (a) the cost of tuition,mandatory fees, room and board, and textbooks at such institution; (b) therecipient's teacher licensure fees; (c) $5,000 toward teacher professionaldevelopment activities for the recipient, including coursework, seminars, andconferences; and (d) $10,000 toward mentorship of the recipient by anexperienced teacher who is deemed by the relevant school board to be highlyeffective and able to provide high quality mentorship. The bill requires eachstudent who is awarded a scholarship pursuant to the Program to agree inwriting to (1) teach in a public elementary or secondary school in theCommonwealth in which at least half of the enrolled students qualify for freeor reduced price lunch or are members of families whose income is below the federalpoverty guidelines established by the U.S. Department of Health and HumanServices upon graduation for a period that is at least as long as the periodduring which the recipient used scholarship funds to attend a HistoricallyBlack College or University and (2) be mentored by an experienced teacher, asdescribed in clause (d), during such period of employment.

Employment health and safety standards; heatillness prevention. Requires the Safety and Health Codes Boardto adopt regulations establishing reasonable standards designed toprotect employees from heat illness. The measure directs the standardsto apply to all indoor and outdoor places of employment and requireemployers to provide water, shade or a climate-controlled environment,rest periods of 15 to 45 minutes per hour, training, and emergencyresponse procedures. The standards are also directed to require employersin certain industries to implement high-heat procedures when thetemperature is 90 degrees Fahrenheit or warmer. The measure requiresemployers to pay employees one additional hour of pay at his regularcompensation for each workday that it fails to provide the employeewith a required rest period. The measure authorizes a person to bring a court action based on a violation in which he may seek to obtaininjunctive relief; to recover damages of $500 or actual monetaryloss, whichever is greater; or both.

Right to reproductive choice. Provides thatevery individual has a fundamental right to choose or refuse contraceptionand that a pregnant person has a fundamental right to choose to carrya pregnancy to term, give birth to a child, or terminate a pregnancy.The bill states that the Commonwealth shall not, in the regulationor provision of benefits, facilities, services, or information, denyor interfere with an individual's fundamental rights, including individualsunder state control or supervision. The bill states that any stateor local official who is charged with violating provisions of thissection shall be subject to an action in federal or state court forinjunctive relief and damages. Such action may be brought by any person or entity that may be aggrieved by such official's actions.

Virginia Fair Housing Law; unlawful discriminatoryhousing practices; sexual orientation and gender identity. Addsdiscrimination on the basis of an individual's sexual orientationor gender identity as an unlawful housing practice. The bill defines"sexual orientation" and "gender identity." This bill was incorporatedinto HB 1663.

Eligibility for TANF; drug-related felonies.Provides that a person who is otherwise eligible to receive TemporaryAssistance for Needy Families (TANF) shall not be denied such assistancesolely because he has been convicted of a felony offense of possessionof a controlled substance in violation of § 18.2-250, provided thatsuch person is complying with, or has already complied with, allobligations imposed by the criminal court, is actively engaged inor has completed a substance abuse treatment program, participatesin periodic drug screenings, and meets any other obligations as determinedby the Department of Social Services.