Del. Mark L. Cole

Public education; student education accounts.Permits any school division to establish a program to create savingsaccounts for students to be used for alternative educational programs.The bill requires the Department of Education to establish policiesand procedures under which the parent of each student may use suchfunds on public or private educational programs.

Child care tax credit. Establishes an individual nonrefundable income tax credit for taxable years 2020 and 2021 ofup to $1,000 per taxable year for eligible child care expenses incurredand paid between September 1, 2020, and July 1, 2021, due to theclosure of Virginia child care facilities or primary or secondaryschools as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. If the amount of thecredit exceeds the taxpayer's tax liability for the taxable yearin which the child care expenses were incurred and paid, such excessmay be carried over for five years. The taxpayer must verify their eligible child-care expenses when claiming the credit in each taxableyear pursuant to guidelines promulgated by the Department of Taxation.

Pandemic Remediation Task Force established. Establishes the 22-member Pandemic Remediation Task Force (the task force) as an advisory task force in the executive branch of state government, to be administered by the Department of Education, for the purpose of making recommendations on strategies for improving public education in the Commonwealth in response to the COVID-19 pandemic that can be implemented in each region and local school division in order to achieve a measure of uniformity in such improvements across the Commonwealth. The bill requires the task force to (i) develop recommendations for policies and funding that would assist public elementary and secondary school students impacted by school closures and the remote learning environment during the COVID-19 pandemic to adequately obtain core educational material that they may not have otherwise successfully retained during the course of such pandemic; (ii) develop a uniform strategy for public elementary and secondary schools to effectively identify students in need of remediation as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and provide remediation coursework and resources to such students; (iii) consider the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on student achievement gaps and make recommendations on the interventions and additional services, such as tutoring, mentoring, and services from private educational service providers, that may be necessary to ensure that such gaps do not widen further beyond pre-pandemic levels; and (iv) submit to the Governor and the General Assembly, no later than December 1, an annual report on its work. The task force has a sunset date of July 1, 2024.

Individual and corporate income tax credit;employers of National Guard members and self-employed National Guardmembers. Provides for taxable years 2021 through 2025 a nonrefundabletax credit against individual and corporate income taxes for (i)wages paid by an employer to an employee who is a Virginia NationalGuard member or (ii) income of a self-employed Virginia NationalGuard member attributable to his business. The amount of the creditshall be 25 percent if such member was in a military pay status for65 days or more during such taxable year or 15 percent if such memberwas in a military pay status for 45 days or more during such taxableyear. The credit shall not be allowed if such member was in a militarypay status for fewer than 45 days during such taxable year.

General Assembly; legislative process; requiredexpiration provision. Requires any bill passed by the General Assembly when one or both houses meet and vote virtually to passthe bill to contain a provision requiring the expiration of suchbill one year following the date the bill takes effect.

Constitutional amendment (first reference);executive power; state of emergency; special session. Limitsthe authority of the Governor to issue an executive order declaringa state of emergency that restricts, limits, or prohibits otherwiselawful action by a private business, nonprofit entity, or individualfor a period more than 45 days in duration without approval by theGeneral Assembly. The Governor is required to convene a special sessionfor the purpose of the General Assembly approving the extension ofsuch executive order beyond the forty-fifth day after its originalissuance and if the General Assembly does not approve such extension,the Governor is prohibited from issuing a subsequent executive orderin the same form for the same declared emergency. The General Assemblyis permitted to extend the executive order to a date requested bythe Governor or to a date of the General Assembly's choosing, butit shall not approve the extension to a date beyond the first fullweek of the next regular session of the General Assembly, unlesssuch date is requested by the Governor.

Voter identification; optional restrictive identification requirement. Allows a voter to opt into being required to showa valid photo identification issued by the Commonwealth, one of itspolitical subdivisions, or the United States when voting in person.When a voter offers to vote and the pollbook indicates he has optedinto such requirement, he shall be required to show a valid photoidentification issued by the Commonwealth, one of its political subdivisions,or the United States in order to vote a regular ballot. The voterregistration application shall permit an applicant to opt into thisrequirement and the Department of Elections is required to providethe means for currently registered voters to opt in as well.

Empowerment Scholarship Accounts established.Permits the parents of certain children to apply to the schooldivision in which the child resides for a one-year, renewable EmpowermentScholarship Account that consists of an amount that is equivalentto a certain percentage of all applicable annual Standards of Qualityper pupil state funds appropriated for public school purposes andapportioned to the resident school division in which the studentresides, including the per pupil share of state sales tax funding in basic aid and any state per pupil share of special education fundingfor which the student is eligible. The bill permits the parent touse the moneys in such account for certain education-related expenses of the student, including tuition and fees at a private elementaryschool or secondary school that is located in the Commonwealth. Thebill also contains provisions relating to auditing, rescinding, andreviewing expenses made from such accounts.

Absentee voting; definition of postmark; legibility requirement. Requires an absentee ballot returned to the generalregistrar after the closing of the polls on election day to be legiblypostmarked on or before the date of the election in order to be counted.Current law does not specify that the postmark must be legible. Thebill defines postmark, for purposes of absentee ballots returnedafter the closing of the polls on election day, to mean (i) an officialUnited States Postal Service imprint indicating the date of mailingor any other official indicia of the United States Postal Serviceused to identify the date of mailing or (ii) the mailing confirmationdata of a commercial delivery service.

Conduct of elections; vote counting; requiredlive video recording. Requires the general registrar of each county and city to provide for a live video recording of each pollingplace while absentee ballots are cast, votes are counted, and returnsare completed, and of each central absentee precinct while ballots are handled and returns are completed. The general registrars arerequired to ensure the video coverage is recorded and retained untilthe deadline to request a recount has passed and, if any contestor recount is pending thereafter, until it has been concluded. The bill provides that each live video recording must include date andtime indicators and be linked to the official website of the countyor city. The Department of Elections is required to post links onits official website to the video coverage for viewing by the public.The bill provides that any disruption in video coverage shall notaffect or prevent the continued casting of absentee ballots, countingof votes, or completion of returns, and is not grounds for an electioncontest.