Del. Alex Askew

Maddy summaryThis bill (SJ 371) is a ceremonial resolution commending Hoda Kotb, a well-known television host and co-anchor, for her contributions. It does not create any legal requirements or affect any individuals, organizations, or policies. The resolution simply expresses the legislature's appreciation through a formal statement. As a commemorative measure, it has no binding effect and passed unanimously in both chambers.

Poor debtor's exemption; depository institution account exemption. Allows a householder to hold exempt from creditor process up to $500 held in a depository institution. The bill provides that a depository institution shall, upon receipt of an order of garnishment, attachment, or other levy, answer such order and, if the householder maintains a deposit account or accounts with such depository institution, state that (i) the total amount in such account or accounts does not exceed $500 or (ii) the total amount in such account or accounts does exceed $500 and that the amount of funds in excess of $500 is being held by such institution pending further order of the court. The bill further provides that, beginning on April 1, 2027, any increases in exempt amounts shall be adjusted at three-year intervals to reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers (CPI-U), as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor. The bill provides that such adjustments shall be calculated by the Department of Planning and Budget.

Department of Medical Assistance Services; presumptive eligibility for pregnant individuals; qualified entities; performance standards for qualified entities. Directs the Department of Medical Assistance Services to seek federal authority to implement presumptive eligibility for pregnant individuals, in addition to the existing hospital presumptive eligibility program and, if the Department receives such authority, allows the Department to authorize qualified entities to make determinations of presumptive eligibility for pregnant individuals. The bill directs qualified entities to provide (i) the necessary applications for medical assistance on the day in which the presumptive eligibility decision is made and (ii) assistance with completing such applications through available modalities. Under the bill, qualified entities are authorized to make determinations of presumptive eligibility for pregnant individuals who meet eligibility criteria for certain medical assistance programs and have not had a presumptive eligibility period during the current pregnancy. The bill also sets forth certain performance standards that qualified entities must meet to remain a qualified entity, described in the bill.

Statewide unified public-private system for early childhood care and education in the Commonwealth; state goal; capacity and family choice. Requires the statewide, unified, public-private system for early childhood care and education in the Commonwealth to be established with the goal of increasing and maintaining capacity systemwide to provide each family with meaningful access to high-quality and affordable choices among publicly funded, federally funded, mixed delivery, and private providers.

Department of Education; Child Care Subsidy Program waiting list; additional priority group; target timeline for assigning slots to priority groups. Requires the Department of Education to amend its Child Care Subsidy Program Guidance Manual to add a seventh priority group to the Child Care Subsidy Program waiting list that consists of any family that meets all other Program eligibility criteria and includes a parent who is employed for at least 30 hours per week by a publicly funded child care provider in the Commonwealth that serves children from birth to age five, excluding employment by a local school division but including employment by a Head Start program that is located within a public school building. The bill also directs the Department of Education to require local departments of social services to target a maximum of 30 days for moving priority group families from the waiting list into services; regularly assess, in coordination with the Department of Social Services, the length of time it takes for priority groups to be assigned slots; and provide quarterly updates, beginning October 1, 2025, to the Commission on Early Childhood Care and Education on such timeline and any other barriers experienced by families in priority groups on the waiting list in accessing services.

Department of Human Resource Management; State Government Internship Coordinator. Requires the Department of Human Resource Management to establish and employ a State Government Internship Coordinator to attract high quality interns to the service of the Commonwealth with the goal of developing such interns to support their ability to compete for positions in agencies of the Commonwealth upon conclusion of their internships and completion of their educational programs. The bill also requires the Department to establish and administer a system to provide professional development opportunities for state agency interns, intern supervisors, and human resources staff.

Local school boards; powers and duties; binding arbitration agreements. Permits any school board to enter into a written agreement to submit any existing controversy to binding arbitration and to execute a contract, including a collective bargaining agreement, that contains a provision to submit to binding arbitration any controversy arising thereunder.

A BILL to amend and reenact § 3.01, as amended, § 3.01:1, and §§ 3.02:1 and 3.02:2, as amended, of Chapter 147 of the Acts of Assembly of 1962, which provided a charter for the City of Virginia Beach, and to repeal § 3.02:3 of Chapters 127 and 762 of the Acts of Assembly of 2020, relating to city council; voting districts.

Department of Public Safety and Homeland Security; work group; report. Directs the Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security to establish a work group to study existing emergency management needs and analyze sustainability of current funding, among other things, and to report the work group's findings and recommendations to the Chairmen of the House Committee on General Laws and the Senate Committee on General Laws and Technology on or before October 1, 2025.

First-time Homebuyer Grant Program. Establishes a First-time Homebuyer Grant Program for the purpose of assisting first-time homebuyers with first-time homebuyer expenses, as those terms are defined in the bill. The bill provides that the Department of Housing and Community Development shall award eligible first-time homebuyers a grant in an amount equal to five percent of such expenses incurred during a calendar year, not to exceed $10,000. Any grant awarded pursuant to the Program shall be repaid to the Commonwealth if the property for which expenses were incurred is sold within three years from the purchase date, unless the sale is made following a natural disaster or other act of God.