Del. Jackie Glass

Phase I and Phase II Utilities; electric grid utilization metrics. Requires Dominion Energy and Appalachian Power to petition the State Corporation Commission for approval of grid utilization metrics by October 15, 2026, which petition may be consolidated with the integrated resource plan filing for Dominion Energy in 2026. Under the bill, the petition shall include certain assessments comparing current electric grid system performance with optimal utilization of existing electric grid assets. The bill also requires the Commission to include in an existing annual report its findings on each applicable utility's assessment of relevant grid utilization metrics, which shall include an analysis of the potential for each applicable utility to increase electric grid utilization through the deployment of non-wires alternatives. This bill is identical to SB 621.

Virginia Consumer Protection Act; prohibited practices; kratom products. Prohibits selling or offering for sale (i) any kratom product to a person younger than 21 years of age; (ii) any kratom product that does not include a label listing all ingredients and the required disclosure; (iii) any kratom product not stored in an area that is not directly accessible to consumers, including behind a retail counter or in a locked display case, except for kratom products required to be refrigerated which may be stored, in accordance with relevant Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority regulations, in the same beverage cooler or refrigerator as wine and beer; (iv) any kratom product containing any synthesized material, semi-synthetic alkaloid, or synthetic kratom-like compound; (v) any kratom product containing 7-hydroxymitragynine in an alkaloid fraction exceeding one percent of total alkaloids in the container or providing more than one milligram of 7-hydroxymitragynine per serving; (vi) any kratom product adulterated with any dangerous, poisonous, or otherwise deleterious non-kratom ingredient, including any substance listed as a controlled substance under state or federal law; (vii) any kratom product that is combustible or intended for vaporization or injection; (viii) any kratom product that is manufactured, packaged, or marketed in a manner attractive to children; or (ix) any kratom extract product containing residual solvent levels exceeding applicable statutory or pharmacopeial limits.

Department of Corrections; functional literacy program for incarcerated individuals; Virginia Prison Education Task Force established; report. Requires the Superintendent employed by the Director of Corrections to (i) by January 1, 2027, develop a functional literacy program for inmates testing below at least an eighth grade level, instead of a twelfth grade level as required by current law, and include in such program evidence-based literacy instruction, as defined in accordance with applicable law; (iii) share data with (a) the state entity that oversees the management, direction, and governance of the Commonwealth's education and workforce data for the purpose of developing educational, health, social service, and employment outcome data and improving the efficacy of state services and (b) the Virginia Community College System necessary for comprehensive community colleges to apply for and maintain eligibility as Federal Pell Grant-eligible prison education programs; and (iv) track and publicly report at least annually the number of incarcerated individuals eligible for, enrolled in, and waitlisted for the literacy and education programs. The bill also establishes the Virginia Prison Education Task Force for the purpose of implementing a consistent education program across all state correctional facilities operated by the Department. The bill requires the Task Force to submit a report to the Governor and the General Assembly on its activities, findings, and recommendations by November 1, 2026. Finally, the bill requires the Department of Education to, by November 1, 2026, (a) review and update the salary schedules for teachers licensed by the Board of Education and employed by the Department of Corrections to provide instruction in the schools of the correctional centers to be competitive with those in effect for the school division in which the correctional facility is located and (b) make recommendations for the inclusion of such teacher salary increases in the appropriation act.

Virginia Boys and Men Advisory Commission established; report; emergency. Establishes the Virginia Boys and Men Advisory Commission as an advisory commission in the legislative branch of state government for the purpose of advising the General Assembly on issues of concern, including education inequity, economic opportunities, disparity in health outcomes, and the impact of social media use, as such issues relate to boys and men in the Commonwealth. The bill contains an emergency clause.

Community service work in lieu of payment of fines and costs; work performed while incarcerated. Requires a court to establish a program and allow any person upon whom a fine and costs have been imposed to discharge all or part of the fine or costs by earning credits for the performance of (i) community service work performed before or after imprisonment or (ii) work performed while incarcerated, defined in the bill as any work done on or after July 1, 2023, by a person confined in any local, regional, or state correctional facility who is paid a wage that is less than the Virginia minimum wage.The bill requires such program to be available during such person's imprisonment in a local, regional, or state correctional facility. The bill provides that a person who is performing work while incarcerated shall be credited at the same rate as the community service work rate less any wages received. Under current law, a court is required to establish a program for providing an option for community service work in lieu of payment of fines and costs but offering such option is not mandatory. The bill also requires the local, regional, or state correctional facility to provide confirmation of the hours worked and the credits earned for such work upon request of any person who has performed work while incarcerated or his representative.

Public institutions of higher education; disciplinary immunity for certain individuals who make reports; Virginia Military Institute. Removes the authority granted to Virginia Military Institute to include in its sexual violence policy, code, rules, or set of standards a provision stipulating that in the event that a cadet discloses personal consumption of drugs or alcohol in conjunction with a good faith report of an act of sexual violence and the superintendent of Virginia Military Institute determines that such cadet's personal consumption of drugs or alcohol constitutes a threat to the cadet's well-being or the well-being of others, the superintendent may require such cadet to attend drug or substance use disorder counseling.

Common-law crime of suicide. Abolishes the common-law crime of suicide. Suicide is currently a common-law crime in Virginia, although there is no statutorily prescribed punishment. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027, and also requires the Bureau of Insurance of the State Corporation Commission to review the effect and implication of abolishing the common-law crime of suicide on insurance throughout the Commonwealth and submit its findings and any recommendations by November 1, 2026, to the Chairs of the House and Senate Committees for Courts of Justice.

Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; enforcement by localities. Provides that if a condition exists in a dwelling unit that constitutes a material noncompliance by the landlord with the rental agreement or with any provision of law that, if not remedied within a reasonable time frame, constitutes a fire hazard or serious threat to the life, health, or safety of a tenant or occupant of the premises, a locality may institute an action on behalf of any tenant or occupant of the premises who is injured by such material noncompliance for injunction and damages to enforce the landlord's duty to maintain the dwelling unit in a fit and habitable condition, provided that (i) the premises where the violation occurred is within the jurisdictional boundaries of the locality and (ii) the locality has notified the landlord who owns the premises, either directly or through the managing agent, of the nature of the violation and the landlord has failed to remedy the violation to the satisfaction of the locality within a reasonable time after receiving such notice. This bill is identical to SB 290.

Modification of sentence for marijuana-related offenses. Creates a process by which a person adjudicated delinquent or convicted of certain felony offenses involving, or violations of probation or community supervision related to, the possession, manufacture, selling, giving, distribution, transportation, or delivery of marijuana committed prior to July 1, 2021, who remains incarcerated or on probation or community supervision on July 1, 2026, may receive an automatic hearing to consider modification of such person's sentence. The bill sunsets on July 1, 2029. This bill is identical to SB 62.

Phase I and Phase II Utilities; energy efficiency upgrades; low-income residents; report. States that it is the policy of the Commonwealth to reduce, wherever feasible and cost-effective, heating-related costs of living for low-income residents. The bill requires Dominion Energy Virginia and Appalachian Power to make best, reasonable efforts to provide by December 31, 2031, prescriptive efficiency measures, as defined in the bill, and related efficiency improvements to at least 30 percent of the qualifying households, as defined in the bill, identified by such utilities, provided that the State Corporation Commission determines that such measures and improvements are in the public interest. The bill requires such utilities to report to the Commission its activities, plans, and filings regarding the bill's provisions no later than January 1, 2028, annually thereafter, and in any recurring filing that the Commission deems appropriate. The bill also requires that Dominion Energy and Appalachian Power make reasonable efforts to incorporate recommendations or feedback provided by the task force that evaluates barriers to access and enrollment in programs for income-qualified energy customers. This bill is identical to SB 72.