Real property taxes; notice by mail of proposedincrease. Requires localities, after conducting a reassessment of real estate, to provide notice to property owners by mail of certaininformation prior to adopting a tax rate that would increase theamount of real property tax collected above 101 percent of the prioryear's tax collections. The bill requires the notice to include (i)the dollar and percentage amount of increase that the proposed tax rate would levy on the owner's particular property compared to theprevious year's tax levy, (ii) the tax levy on the owner's particularproperty for the previous tax year and the proposed levy for thecurrent tax year, and (iii) all of the information regarding theproposed tax rate that under current law is required to be postedin a newspaper and a prominent public location.
Sponsored bills
Board of Education; model policies on parentalreview of instructional material; local adoption. Requires theBoard of Education to adopt and distribute to each school board modelpolicies requiring any instructional material used in any publicelementary or secondary school in the Commonwealth to be open forinspection during normal business hours by the parents of studentsenrolled in the relevant public school, regardless of the copyright status of any such material. The bill requires each school boardto adopt policies that are consistent with such model policies adoptedby the Board.
Virginia Public Procurement Act; prohibitionon boycotting Israel. Requires all public bodies to include in every contract in excess of $100,000 with a business that employsmore than 10 employees and in every subcontract or purchase orderin excess of $10,000 a provision that states that during the performanceof the contract, neither the contracting business nor any of itsaffiliates shall engage in a boycott of Israel.
Local government employees; expression of certainopinions protected. Provides that an employee of a locality shallnot be penalized by his employer for expressing his opinion regardinga current or proposed regulation, rule, policy, position, or otheraction or purpose of a public body at an open meeting of such publicbody when such employee is speaking on his own behalf. The bill excludesany speech that is unprotected under the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, including speech that (i) incites violence;(ii) is obscene, defamatory, or fraudulent; or (iii) discloses privilegedand confidential information. The bill specifies that for purposesof this provision an employee of a locality does not include anyperson appointed to a position in a locality by an elected officialor by a government body composed in whole or in part of electedofficials.
Commending Major General Timothy P. Williams,VNG.
Celebrating the life of Karen Harrison Jones.
Commending John Ray Grisham, Jr.
Commending the Plumbing Heating Cooling Contractorsof Virginia.
Commending the Honorable Dr. Luke E. Torian.
Commending Margaret L. Sanner.