Campaign finance; prohibited personal use of campaign funds; civil penalty. Adds a definition of "personal use of campaign funds" and prohibits the use of contributions, or conversion of items acquired using contributions, to a candidate or campaign committee for a strictly personal purpose with no intended, reasonable, or foreseeable benefit to the candidate's campaign or public office. Complaints of alleged violations may be made to the State Board of Elections (the State Board) by any person who contributed to the candidate or candidate's campaign committee. The subject of the complaint has 30 days to either (i) reimburse the campaign committee the complained-of amount or (ii) provide to the State Board documentation or other evidence that the use of the campaign funds had an intended, reasonable, or foreseeable benefit to the campaign or the candidate's public office. If the subject of the complaint provides such documentation or other evidence, the State Board shall review the response made by the subject of the complaint and determine whether the use of campaign funds had any intended, reasonable, or foreseeable benefit to the campaign or the candidate's public office. The State Board shall assess a civil penalty, in an amount not to exceed $250, against a complaining party who is found to have filed a frivolous complaint. The bill amends the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (§ 2.2-3700 et seq.) to allow closed meetings for the State Board to review complaints related to the personal use of campaign funds. If the State Board determines that there were no intended, reasonable, or foreseeable benefits and the complained-of amount has not been reimbursed, it shall call a public hearing. If the complaining party declines to participate in the hearing, the complaint shall be dismissed. A person found by a unanimous vote of the State Board to have willfully and knowingly violated the prohibition on personal use of campaign funds must repay to the campaign committee the amount unlawfully converted to the personal use of the candidate or a member of the candidate's immediate family and must return to the complaining party the full amount of the complaining party's contribution to the campaign. The State Board may also assess an additional civil penalty, in an amount not to exceed $250. The person found to be in violation may seek review under the Administrative Process Act. The bill authorizes the Virginia Conflict of Interest and Ethics Advisory Council (the Council) to issue formal advisory opinions regarding the provisions governing the personal use of campaign funds pursuant to the Campaign Finance Disclosure Act of 2006 (§ 24.2-945 et seq.). A person who has relied on such an opinion in good faith after he provides full disclosure of the facts will not be subject to the penalties outlined in the bill. In addition, the bill requires the Council to develop and publish guidance on the provisions of the Campaign Finance Disclosure Act that prohibit the personal use of campaign funds. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2021.
Sponsored bills
Professions and occupations; expediting the issuance of credentials to spouses of military service members and veterans. Provides for the expedited issuance of credentials to the spouses of military service members who are ordered to federal active duty under Title 10 of the United States Code or are veterans if the spouse accompanies the service member or veteran to the Commonwealth or an adjoining state or the District of Columbia. Under current law, the expedited review is provided more generally for active duty members of the military who are the subject of a military transfer to the Commonwealth. The bill also authorizes a regulatory board within the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation or the Department of Health Professions or any other board in Title 54.1 (Professions and Occupations) to waive any requirement relating to experience if the board determines that the documentation provided by the applicant supports such waiver. This bill was incorporated into HB 967.
Use of transportation funds. States that it is the policy of the Commonwealth that revenues dedicated to transportation purposes shall not be used or redirected for any non-transportation purpose. Any attempt to repurpose funds dedicated to transportation as of July 1, 2019, shall be deemed invalid and shall not be effectuated.
State subsidy of property tax exemptions fordisabled veterans and surviving spouses. Requires the Commonwealthto subsidize local real estate tax relief for disabled veterans andsurviving spouses of members of the armed forces killed in actionwhen more than one percent of a locality's real estate tax base islost due to such state-mandated tax relief programs. The Commonwealthwould subsidize only that portion of tax exempt real estate thatexceeds the one percent threshold. Thebill requires the Auditor of Public Accounts to establish an applicationprocess whereby a locality would demonstrate that more than one percentof its real estate tax base was lost. The Auditor would certify tothe Governor and the General Assembly those localities that wouldbe eligible for a subsidy, and the Governor would include in theBudget Bill a proposed appropriation of the amount of the state subsidyto be provided to localities certified as eligible localities.
Constitutional amendment (first resolution); qualifications of Governor and Lieutenant Governor; residency requirement. Increases from five to eight the number of years a person must have been a resident of and registered voter in the Commonwealth in order to be eligible to the office of the Governor and, by reference, the Lieutenant Governor.
Commending Maureen Caddigan.
Commending the Washington Nationals.
Public schools; electives on the Hebrew Scriptures/OldTestament and the New Testament. Requires the Board of Educationto authorize local school boards to offer as an elective in gradesnine through 12 with appropriate credits toward graduation a courseon the Hebrew Scriptures/Old Testament of the Bible or the New Testamentof the Bible or a combined course on both. The bill requires theBoard of Education to develop Standards of Learning and curriculumguidelines for such courses. The bill provides that the purpose ofsuch courses is to introduce students to biblical content, characters,poetry, and narratives that are prerequisites to understanding contemporarysociety and culture, including literature, art, music, mores, oratory,and public policy. The bill prohibits students from being requiredto use a specific translation of a religious text when taking thecourses and provides that such courses shall maintain religious neutralityand shall not endorse, favor, promote, disfavor, or show hostilitytoward any particular religion or nonreligious perspective.
Commending the Virginia 4-H shotgun developmentteam.
Commending The American Legion Auxiliary.