Del. Cliff Hayes

Department of Flood Control; Commonwealth FloodPlan. Creates the Commonwealth Flood Board as a policy boardin the executive branch. The bill provides that the Board's dutiesshall include, among others, overseeing the development, implementation,and updating of the Commonwealth Flood Plan. The bill also createsthe Department of Flood Control under the authority of the Secretaryof Natural and Historic Resources to provide technical expertise in all aspects related to flood control, management, mitigation, abatement,and recovery. The Commonwealth Flooding Scientific and TechnicalAdvisory Committee is also established in the bill as an advisorycommittee of the Commonwealth Flood Board to assist the Commonwealthin developing and implementing the Commonwealth Flood Plan.

Native plant species; state agencies. Directsthe Secretaries of Natural and Historic Resources, Agriculture andForestry, and Administration to coordinate the development of strategicactions for state agencies to take to prioritize the use of nativeplant species on state properties.

Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act;landlord obligations; tenant safety. Requires a landlord whoowns more than four rental dwelling units, or more than a 10 percentinterest in more than four rental dwelling units, to require allemployees and applicants for employment to submit to fingerprintingand provide personal descriptive information to be forwarded alongwith the employee's or applicant's fingerprints through the CentralCriminal Records Exchange and the Federal Bureau of Investigationfor the purpose of obtaining criminal history record informationregarding such employee or applicant. The bill allows a landlordto disqualify from employment any person who has been convicted ofor found guilty of, or entered a plea of guilty or nolo contendereto, regardless of adjudication, a violent crime committed in anyjurisdiction. The bill also provides that a landlord must (i) establishwritten policies and procedure for the storage and management of,access to, and return of all keys for each rental dwelling unit;(ii) regulate the secure storage of and access to unissued keys;and (iii) maintain a written log for the issuance and return of allkeys. Finally, pursuant to the bill, all relevant landlords must submit certain information on a quarterly basis to the Department of Housingand Community Development to prove compliance with the provisionsoutlined in the bill.

Commending Costella B. Williams.

Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy. Requiresthe Office of the Chief Medical Examiner to take certain actionsupon the finding that an individual died from Sudden Unexpected Deathin Epilepsy (SUDEP). The bill directs the Office of the Chief MedicalExaminer to publish information on SUDEP and a SUDEP death investigationform on its website. Additionally, the bill requires the Chief MedicalExaminer and local medical examiners to complete training providedby The Epilepsy Foundation of Virginia. The bill has a delayed effectivedate of January 1, 2023.

Larceny of a catalytic converter; penalty. Provides that any person who conspires, confederates, or combines with another to commit larceny or counsels, assists, aids, or abets another in the performance of a larceny of a catalytic converter from a motor vehicle where the value of such catalytic converter is less than $1,000 is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. This bill was incorporated into SB 729.

Jail authorities; superintendent designatingjail officers with internal investigations authority. Providesthat a superintendent of a jail authority may designate jail officerswith internal investigations authority to have the same power asa sheriff or a law-enforcement officer in the investigation of allegationsof criminal behavior affecting the operations of such authority.The bill provides that such designated jail officer shall be subjectto any minimum training standards established by the Department of Criminal Justice Services for law-enforcement officers prior to exercisingany law-enforcement power granted under the bill.

Commending the Reverend Dr. Geoffrey V. Guns.

Celebrating the life of Jameel Jalal Abed.

Celebrating the life of the Honorable FrankDuVal Hargrove, Sr.