Sen. Amanda Chase

Requires electronic pollbooks to contain the photographs of registered voters that are obtained by the general registrars in the production of voter photo identification cards or contained in a voter's Department of Motor Vehicles record. The bill also provides that if the electronic pollbook contains the voter's photograph, the officer of election is required to access that photograph and the voter is not required to present one of the statutorily required forms of identification. The bill prohibits lists of voters furnished pursuant to current law from containing any voter's photograph. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2018.

Grants to the General Assembly the authority to review any administrative rule to ensure it is consistent with the legislative intent of the statute that the rule was written to interpret, prescribe, implement, or enforce. The amendment provides that after such review, the General Assembly may approve or reject, in whole or in part, any rule as provided by law and that the approval or rejection of a rule by the General Assembly shall not be subject to veto by the Governor.

Authorizes the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission to establish an operational and programmatic efficiency and effectiveness review and assessment of state agencies, under a contract with a United States-based private management consulting firm. The purpose of the review and assessment is to provide an objective and independent cost-savings assessment of the Commonwealth's organizational structure and its programs in order to provide information to the Governor and the General Assembly to effect savings in expenditures, a reduction in duplication of effort, and programmatic efficiencies in the operation of state government. The bill also (i) provides certain required terms for the contract with the private entity and (ii) requires the Commission to submit a report to the General Assembly on the results of any review and assessment by December 1 of the year in which the review is conducted.

Waives any penalties related to taxes administered by the Department of Taxation for a small business during its first two years of operation as long as the business enters into an installment agreement with the Tax Commissioner for the payment of taxes. However, the bill provides that the Department of Taxation shall not be required to waive penalties for conversion of trust taxes or failure to remit state sales or withholding taxes.

Creates a new program of parental leave benefits for full-time state employees with one or more years of continuous employment with the Commonwealth who (i) adopt an infant under one year of age or (ii) are the natural father of an infant under one year of age. The amount of leave would be equivalent to the amount of paid leave awarded to an employee pursuant to short-term disability for maternity leave. The bill specifies that the parental leave coverage shall apply only to eligible state employees who take custody of an infant in the course of an adoption on or after July 1, 2018, or, for a natural father, for an infant born on or after July 1, 2018. The Department of Human Resource Management is directed to develop guidelines and policies for implementing the parental leave benefits. The bill also directs the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission to analyze parental leave benefits for state employees in other states and the costs of providing such benefits to the employees of the Commonwealth. The bill has a reenactment clause that applies to all provisions of the bill except the JLARC study, which is effective July 1, 2017.

Prohibits public institutions of higher education from abridging the constitutional freedom of any individual, including enrolled students, faculty and other employees, and invited guests, to speak on campus, except as otherwise permitted by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.

Requires school boards to (i) make Advanced Placement (AP), Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), and PreACT examinations available to students receiving home instruction; (ii) adopt written policies that specify the date by which such students shall register to participate in such examinations; and (iii) notify such students and their parents of such registration deadline and the availability of financial assistance to low-income and needy students to take such examinations. This bill is identical to

Requires the Veterans Services Foundation to provide an annual report on its funding levels and services to the General Assembly. The bill also (i) authorizes the board of trustees of the Foundation to appoint an Executive Director and exercise personnel authority over the position, (ii) clarifies that the Foundation may make direct request for appropriations from the General Assembly, (iii) clarifies that only the unrestricted portion of the Veterans Services Fund may be used for Foundation expenses, (iv) requires the Department of Veterans Services to provide qualified finance and development personnel to perform the duties of the treasurer and secretary of the Foundation, and (iv) provides that expenditures and disbursements from the Fund shall be made upon written authorization of the Executive Director with the approval of the board of trustees. The bill requires that allocations and expenditures of donated restricted funds be in accordance with cited provisions of the Uniform Prudent Management of Institutional Funds Act relating to the standard of conduct in managing and investing institutional funds.

Requires the Department of Planning and Budget to revise and reissue its economic impact analysis within the time limits set forth for the Department's review of regulations at the final stage pursuant to the Governor's executive order for executive branch review if one of the following conditions is present and would materially change the Department's analysis: (i) public comment timely received at the proposed stage indicates significant errors in the economic impact analysis or (ii) there is a significant or material difference between the agency's proposed economic impact analysis and the anticipated negative economic impacts to the business community as indicated by public comment. The bill provides that the determination as to whether either such condition is present shall be made by the Department and shall not be subject to judicial review. The bill contains an emergency clause. This bill is identical to