Del. Karrie Delaney

State Board of Health; hospitals; emergency treatment for substance use-related emergencies; services. Requires each hospital with an emergency department that is currently regulated by the State Board of Health (the Board) to establish a protocol for treatment and discharge of individuals experiencing a substance use-related emergency, which shall include provisions for (i) appropriate screening and assessment of individuals experiencing substance use-related emergencies and (ii) recommendations for follow-up care, which may include dispensing of naloxone or other opioid antagonist used for overdose reversal, issuance of a prescription for naloxone, and information about accessing naloxone at a community pharmacy or organization that dispenses naloxone or other opioid antagonist to persons without a prescription. Such protocols may also include referrals to peer recovery specialists and community-based providers of behavioral health services or providers of pharmacotherapy for the treatment of drug or alcohol dependence or mental health diagnoses. The bill also directs the Department of Health, together with the Department of Health Professions, to convene a work group to develop recommendations for best practices for the treatment and discharging of patients in emergency departments experiencing opioid-related emergencies, including overdose, which shall include recommendations for best practices related to (a) performing substance use assessments and screenings for patients experiencing opioid-related overdose and other high-risk patients; (b) prescribing and dispensing naloxone or other opioid antagonists used for overdose reversal; (c) connecting patients treated for opioid-related emergencies, including overdose, and their families with community substance abuse resources, including existing harm reduction programs and other treatment providers; and (d) identifying barriers to and developing solutions to increase the availability and dispensing of naloxone or other opioid antagonist used for overdose reversal at hospitals and community pharmacies and by other community organizations. The bill also provides that hospitals in the Commonwealth may enter into agreements with the Department of Health for the provision to uninsured patients of naloxone or other opioid antagonist used for overdose reversal.

Alcoholic beverage control; sale and deliveryof mixed beverages and pre-mixed wine for off-premises consumption.Allows distillers that have been appointed as agents of the Board of Directors (the Board) of the Virginia Alcoholic BeverageControl Authority (the Authority), mixed beverage restaurant licensees,and limited mixed beverage restaurant licensees to sell mixed beveragesfor off-premises consumption and deliver such mixed beverages toconsumers subject to requirements set forth in the bill. The billallows the Board to summarily revoke a licensee's privileges to selland deliver mixed beverages for off-premises consumption for noncompliancewith the requirements set forth in the bill or applicable provisionsof current law. The bill also allows farm winery licensees to sellpre-mixed wine for off-premises consumption. The bill directs theAuthority to convene a work group to study the sale and delivery of mixed beverages and pre-mixed wine for off-premises consumption andreport its findings to the Chairmen of the House Committee on GeneralLaws and the Senate Committee on Rehabilitation and Social Servicesby November 1, 2021. The provisions of the bill sunset on July 1,2022.

Certain students in kindergarten through grade3; reading intervention services. Requires reading interventionservices for students in kindergarten through grade three who demonstratedeficiencies based on their individual performance on the Standardsof Learning reading test or any reading diagnostic test that meetscriteria established by the Department of Education to be evidence-basedand aligned with the science of reading and structured literacy approaches,both defined in the bill, and to include the components of effectivereading instruction and explicit, systematic, sequential, and cumulativeinstruction. The bill requires the parent of each student who receivessuch reading intervention services to be notified before the servicesbegin and the progress of each such student to be monitored throughoutthe provision of services. The bill also requires the Departmentof Education, no later than the beginning of the 2021%962022 school year, to compile and provide to each local school division a listof materials, resources, and curriculum programs that are supportedby the science of reading and based on instruction that is explicit,systematic, cumulative, and diagnostic, including (i) evidence-baseddyslexia programs that are aligned to structured literacy or groundedin the Orton-Gillingham methodology and (ii) evidence-based readingintervention programs, including programs that are grounded in thescience of reading.

Virginia Fair Housing Law; unlawful discriminatory housing practices. Prohibits any locality, its employees, or its appointed commissions from discriminating (i) in the application of local land use ordinances or guidelines, or in the permitting of housing developments, on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, elderliness, familial status, source of funds, sexual orientation, gender identity, status as a veteran, or disability; (ii) in the permitting of housing developments because the housing development contains or is expected to contain affordable housing units occupied or intended for occupancy by families or individuals with incomes at or below 80 percent of the median income of the area where the housing development is located or is proposed to be located; or (iii) by prohibiting or imposing conditions upon the rental or sale of dwelling units, provided that the provisions of this subsection shall not be construed to prohibit ordinances related to short-term rentals. The bill provides that it shall not be a violation of the Virginia Fair Housing Law if land use decisions or decisions relating to the permitting of housing developments are based upon considerations of limiting high concentrations of affordable housing. The bill also requires the Fair Housing Board, after determining the existence of an unlawful discriminatory housing practice and after consultation with the Attorney General, to immediately refer the matter to the Attorney General for civil action.

Court-appointed special advocates; information sharing. Permits court-appointed special advocates to participate in and verbally share information with family partnership meetings and in meetings of family assessment and planning teams, multidisciplinary child sexual abuse response teams, individualized education program teams, and multidisciplinary teams related to child abuse.

Compensating victims of crime; reporting requirement; sexual abuse. Provides that the requirement that the VirginiaWorkers' Compensation Commission find that police records show thecrime was promptly reported no more than 120 hours after it occurredin order to award a claimant funds from the Criminal Injuries CompensationFund does not apply to claims of sexual abuse. Under current law,the exception to such requirement applies only to claims of sexualabuse that occurred while the victim was a minor.

Assistance for certain voters; curbside voting. Clarifies that any voter with a permanent physical disability, temporary physical disability, or injury is entitled to vote outside of thepolling place. The bill further provides that during a declared stateof emergency related to a communicable disease of public health threat,any voter shall be entitled to vote outside of the polling place.The bill requires that the area designated for voting outside ofthe polling place be clearly marked and instructions on how the voteris to notify an officer of election of his request to vote outsideof the polling place be prominently displayed. The bill makes technical amendments for clarity and organizational purposes.

Solicitation of prostitution; reorganization. Reorganizes the statute penalizing prostitution into two distinctsections. The penalties for all offenses remain unchanged. This billis a recommendation of the Virginia State Crime Commission.

Commercial driver's licenses. Disqualifiesfor life from holding a commercial driver's license persons convictedof a felony involving an act or practice of severe forms of traffickingin persons while driving a commercial motor vehicle. The bill prohibitsthe Department of Motor Vehicles and every district court or circuitcourt or the clerk thereof from reducing, dismissing, deferring,or otherwise concealing a conviction of any offense committed whileoperating a commercial motor vehicle or of any holder of a commercialdriver's license or permit charged with any offense committed whileoperating a noncommercial motor vehicle and requires the Departmentand the courts to comply with federal laws and regulations regardingsuch convictions. The bill also authorizes Class A driver trainingschools to administer the commercial driver's license knowledge examinations.

George Mason University; management agreement. Provides a management agreement between the Commonwealth and George Mason University pursuant to the Restructured Higher Education Financial and Administrative Operations Act (§ 23.1-1000 et seq.).