Curtails the ability of a natural gas company to enter upon real property for the purpose of conducting surveys and other tests for its proposed line or the location of facilities by requiring that entry for the selection of a route or facility location be for public use. The measure defines "public use" as existing if the general public has a right to a certain and definite use of a private property on terms and for charges fixed by law, and the owner of the property is compelled by law to permit the general public to enjoy it or its services, and further requires that any pipeline be obligated to serve the general public and be regulated in such obligation and to distribute gas to regulated public utilities or to natural gas distribution systems within the Commonwealth. The measure also (i) establishes a procedure for a landowner to obtain a temporary injunction against entry by a natural gas company in certain circumstances; (ii) authorizes a landowner who demonstrates that a natural gas company entered or attempted to enter the landowner's real property in violation of applicable requirements or violated such requirements by breaching any agreement reached pursuant to such requirements to recover a trespass penalty of $500 per day per individual entering or attempting to enter the property or per individual granted permission to enter pursuant to agreement; (iii) authorizes the landowner or his agent to accompany surveyors and record or photograph survey activities; (iv) requires any notice of intent to enter to set forth the time and location where the first entry will occur and the duration of the surveys; and (v) requires any request for permission to inspect to be sent at least 21 days prior to any notice of intent to enter and include a description of each type of survey and each entity or agent proposed to make such survey.
Sponsored bills
Expresses the sentiment of the General Assembly in acknowledging with profound regret the existence and acceptance of lynching within the Commonwealth and calling for reconciliation among all Virginians. This resolution is a recommendation of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Commission.
Creates the Office of the Children's Ombudsman to provide ombudsman services, including investigation of complaints, advocacy, and information for children, parents, and citizens involved with child-serving agencies, as defined in the bill. The bill provides for the Office of the Governor to conduct a needs assessment with the Department of General Services to provide for the office space needs of the Office of the Children's Ombudsman. The bill also creates the Children's Advocacy Fund for the purpose of supporting the operations of the Office of the Children's Ombudsman. The Fund would be funded in part by fines collected from criminal offenses involving a child.
Prohibits public electric utilities from making nonessential expenditures, which includes expenditures related to lobbying, political contributions, certain advertising, and compensating any employee more than $5 million a year. The measure requires public electric utilities to file annual reports on nonessential spending and requires the State Corporation Commission (SCC) to conduct annual proceedings to determine if an electric public utility has made any nonessential expenditures. If the SCC finds that such a utility has made if it has nonessential expenditures, the measure requires the SCC to order the amount thereof, or in the case of exceeding the compensation limit, 10 times the amount of the compensation in excess of the limit, to be refunded to the utility's customers. The measure directs the SCC to disallow an electric utility's request to recover fuel costs resulting from the purchase by the public utility or its affiliate or subsidiary of a greater amount of firm pipeline capacity for natural gas than the SCC finds is appropriate to ensure a reliable supply of natural gas. The measure requires the SCC to conduct a review of the rates, terms, and conditions for generation, distribution, and transmission services of Dominion Energy in 2019. The measure requires future reviews for Dominion Energy and AEP to be conducted biennially; currently, such reviews are scheduled to be conducted on a triennial basis. The measure requires the SCC to review audited financial reports of investor-owned electric utilities for every year since 2015. The measure requires the utilities to refund 90 percent of over-earnings once they exceed their authorized rate of return by 0.5 percent; currently, they are required to return 70 percent of over-earnings once they exceed their authorized rate of return by 0.7 percent. The measure abolishes the use of the peer group analysis when the SCC determines a utility's fair rates of return. In lieu of the peer group analysis, the measure requires the SCC to determine a fair rates of return based on a cost-of-service methodology. The measure directs the SCC to identify alternative forms of rate analysis such as performance-based testing and to report on such alternatives.