Sen. Lamont Bagby

Commending Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc.

Commemorating the life and legacy of Dr. RobertRussa Moton.

Safe reporting of overdoses; immunity from prosecution. Providesthat no individual (i) who sought or obtained emergency medical attention forhimself or for another individual because of a drug or alcohol-related overdoseor (ii) is experiencing a drug or alcohol-related overdose and anotherindividual, in good faith, seeks or obtains emergency medical attention forsuch individual shall be prosecuted for unlawful purchase, possession, orconsumption of alcohol, simple possession of a controlled substance, possessionof marijuana, intoxication in public, or possession of controlledparaphernalia. Under current law, an affirmative defense against such offensesis available for an individual who sought or obtained emergency medicalattention for himself or for another individual because of a drug-related oralcohol-related overdose. The bill also adds the statewide poison controlsystem to the list of emergency care providers to whom individuals mustcontemporaneously report such overdoses in order to qualify for immunity fromprosecution. The bill also states that no individual who is immune fromprosecution pursuant to the provisions of the bill shall be found to be inviolation of any term or condition of probation, parole, postreleasesupervision, pretrial supervision, a suspended sentence, or bail, bond, orrecognizance on the basis of evidence obtained as a result of an individual'sseeking or obtaining emergency medical attention and that the real or personalproperty of an individual who is immune from prosecution that was used inconnection with or derived from the specified offenses shall not be subject toforfeiture to the Commonwealth. The bill also provides that immunity fromprosecution does not apply to an individual who seeks or obtains emergencymedical attention for himself or another individual, or who is experiencing anoverdose when another individual seeks or obtains emergency medical attentionfor such individual, during the execution of a search warrant or during theconduct of a lawful search or a lawful arrest.

Virginia Diverse Educator Scholarship Fund and Program established. Establishes the Virginia Diverse Educator Scholarship Fund and Program, to be administered by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia, for the purpose of annually providing to each Historically Black College or University in the Commonwealth (Hampton University, Norfolk State University, Virginia State University, and Virginia Union University) such sums as are necessary for each such institution to annually provide scholarships on a competitive basis to no more than two students who (i) identify as African American, Asian, Hispanic or Latino, Native American or Native Alaskan, or Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander; (ii) are accepted to or enrolled in such institution's education preparation program; and (iii) are eligible for a federal Pell Grant to attend such institution. The bill provides that each such scholarship would consist of the following sums: (a) the cost of tuition, mandatory fees, room and board, and textbooks at such institution; (b) the recipient's teacher licensure fees; (c) $5,000 toward teacher professional development activities for the recipient, including coursework, seminars, and conferences; and (d) $10,000 toward mentorship of the recipient by an experienced teacher who is deemed by the relevant school board to be highly effective and able to provide high quality mentorship. The bill requires each student who is awarded a scholarship pursuant to the Program to agree in writing to (1) teach in a public elementary or secondary school in the Commonwealth in which at least 75 percent of the enrolled students qualify for free or reduced price lunch or are members of families whose income is below the federal poverty guidelines established by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services upon graduation for a period that is at least as long as the period during which the recipient used scholarship funds to attend a Historically Black College or University and (2) be mentored by an experienced teacher, as described in clause (d), during such period of employment.

Virginia Lottery Board; repeal prohibition against sale of lottery tickets over the Internet; regulation of the manufacturing, distributing, hosting, and playing of electronic gaming devices; penalties. Renames the Virginia Lottery as the Virginia Lottery and Gaming Department and the Virginia Lottery Board as the Virginia Lottery and Gaming Oversight Board. The bill authorizes the manufacture, distribution, hosting, and playing of electronic gaming devices in the Commonwealth, to be regulated by the Virginia Lottery and Gaming Oversight Board. The bill specifies the licensing requirements for the manufacture, distribution, and hosting of electronic gaming devices and imposes criminal and civil penalties for violations of the law and regulations related to electronic gaming devices. The bill prohibits any host location licensee from offering more than five electronic gaming devices to the public for play at such host location's establishment and allows for a maximum of 15,000 electronic gaming devices in the Commonwealth. The bill imposes a 35 percent tax on all gross profits from the play of electronic gaming devices and provides for disbursement of the tax proceeds. The bill also establishes the Problem Gambling Treatment and Support Fund, administered by the Commissioner of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, to provide counseling and other support services for compulsive and problem gamblers, develop problem gambling treatment and prevention programs, and provide grants to support organizations that provide assistance to compulsive and problem gamblers. The bill authorizes the Lottery to sell tickets over the Internet. Under current law, it is prohibited from doing so.

Institutions of higher education; intercollegiateathletics; student-athletes; compensation and representation. Prohibits anyprivate institution of higher education, baccalaureate public institution ofhigher education, athletic association, athletic conference, or otherorganization with authority over intercollegiate athletics from (i) providing aprospective student-athlete with compensation that results from the use of thestudent's name, image, or likeness; (ii) prohibiting or preventing astudent-athlete from earning from another individual or entity compensationthat results from the use of the student's name, image, or likeness, except incertain limited circumstances; (iii) prohibiting or preventing astudent-athlete from obtaining professional representation by an athlete agentor legal representation by an attorney licensed to practice law in theCommonwealth; or (iv) declaring ineligible for or revoking a scholarshipprovided to a student-athlete who earns compensation that results from the useof the student's name, image, or likeness. The bill prohibits any athleticassociation, athletic conference, or other organization with authority overintercollegiate athletics from prohibiting or preventing a private institutionof higher education or baccalaureate public institution of higher educationfrom becoming a member of or participating in intercollegiate athleticssponsored by such association, conference, or organization as a consequence ofthe compensation of a student-athlete at such institution that results from theuse of the student-athlete's name, image, or likeness. The foregoing provisionsof the bill have a delayed effective date of July 1, 2024. The bill alsorequires the Chancellor of the Virginia Community College System to convene awork group consisting of such members as the Chancellor deems appropriate toconsider and make recommendations to the Governor and the General Assembly nolater July 1, 2022, relating to the compensation and representation ofstudent-athletes enrolled at comprehensive community colleges in theCommonwealth.

Earned paid sick time. Requires public and private employers with six or more employees to provide those employees with earned paid sick time. The measure provides for an employee to earn at least one hour of paid sick leave benefit for every 30 hours worked. An employee shall not use more than 40 hours of earned paid sick time in a year, unless the employer selects a higher limit. Employees shall not be entitled to use accrued earned paid sick time until the ninetieth calendar day following commencement of their employment, unless otherwise permitted by the employer. The bill provides that earned paid sick time may be used (i) for an employee's mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition; an employee's need for medical diagnosis, care, or treatment of a mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition; or an employee's need for preventive medical care; (ii) to provide care to a family member under similar circumstances; (iii) when there is a closure of the employee's place of business or the employee's child's school or place of care due to a public health emergency; or (iv) when an employee's or employee's family member's presence in the community may jeopardize the health of others because of their exposure to a communicable disease. The bill authorizes the Commissioner of Labor and Industry, in the case of a knowing violation, to subject an employer to a civil penalty not to exceed $150 for the first violation, $300 for the second violation, and $500 for each successive violation, if the second or successive violation occurs within two years of the previous violation. The Commissioner of Labor and Industry may institute proceedings on behalf of an employee to enforce compliance with this measure and to collect specified amounts from the employer, which shall be awarded to the employee. Alternatively, an aggrieved employee is authorized to bring a civil action against the employer in which he may recover double the amount of any unpaid earned sick time and the amount of any actual damages suffered as the result of the employer's violation. The measure has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2021. This bill incorporates HB 418 and HB 1684.

Standards of Quality; work-based learning; teacher leadersand mentors; principal mentors; certain personnel positions and initiatives. Makesseveral changes to the Standards of Quality, including requiring the establishmentof units in the Department of Education to oversee work-based learning andprincipal mentorship statewide in Standard 1 and requiring the Board ofEducation to establish and oversee the local implementation of teacher leaderand teacher mentor programs in Standard 5. The bill also makes several changesrelating to school personnel in Standard 2, including (i) establishingschoolwide ratios of students to teachers in certain schools with highconcentrations of poverty and granting flexibility to provide compensationadjustments to teachers in such schools; (ii) requiring each school board toassign licensed personnel in a manner that provides an equitable distributionof experienced, effective teachers and other personnel among all schools in thelocal school division; (iii) requiring each school board to employ teacherleaders and teacher mentors at specified student-to-position ratios; (iv)requiring state funding in addition to basic aid to support at-risk studentsand granting flexibility in the use of such funds by school boards; (v)lowering the ratio of English language learner students to teachers; (vi)requiring each school board to employ reading specialists and establishing astudent-to-position ratio for such specialists; (vii) requiring school boardsto employ one full-time principal in each elementary school; (viii) loweringthe ratio of students to assistant principals and school counselors inelementary, middle, and high schools; and (ix) requiring each school board toprovide at least four specialized student support positions, including schoolsocial workers, school psychologists, school nurses, and other licensed healthand behavioral positions, per 1,000 students.

Vehicle registration fees; Public Safety TrustFund. Imposes an additional vehicle registration fee to be depositedinto the Public Safety Trust Fund, established by the bill. The additionalregistration fee would be $1.25 per year beginning July 1, 2020, andwould be increased over a period of 10 years to $12.50 per year. Therevenues in the Public Safety Trust Fund would be used to addressstaffing, retention, and pay suppression issues at the Departmentof State Police.

Department of Housing and Community Development; Percentage of Income Payment Program. Creates the Percentage of Income Payment Program (PIPP), which caps the monthly electric utility payment of low-income participants at six percent or, if the participant's home uses electric heat, 10 percent, of the participant's household income. The bill sets forth eligibility criteria for participation in PIPP, establishes the PIPP Fund to pay electric utility providers the balance of low-income participants' accounts and to fund energy efficiency and weatherization initiatives, and provides directives to the Department of Housing and Community Development regarding the administration of PIPP. The bill repeals the energy assistance and weatherization pilot program operated by all Phase I and II Utilities for low-income, elderly, and disabled individuals.