Controlled substances; manufacturing, selling, giving, distributing, etc.; adulterated or misbranded drugs; penalties. Makes it a Class 6 felony for any person, except for permitted manufacturers, to possess, purchase, sell, give, distribute, or possess with intent to sell, give, or distribute an encapsulating machine or a tableting machine that manufactures, compounds, converts, produces, processes, prepares, or otherwise introduces into the human body a controlled substance. The bill makes it a Class 5 felony if such person knows, intends, or has reasonable cause to believe that such action will result in the unlawful manufacture of a controlled substance or counterfeit controlled substance that contains (i) a controlled substance classified in Schedule I or Schedule II of the Drug Control Act; (ii) cocaine, coca leaves, or any salt, compound, derivative, or preparation thereof as described in Schedule II of the Drug Control Act; or (iii) a controlled substance analog as defined in relevant law.The bill also makes it a felony punishable by imprisonment for not less than 10 nor more than 40 years for any person 18 years of age or older to knowingly allow a minor or a mentally incapacitated or physically helpless person of any age to be present during the manufacture or attempted manufacture of any substance containing a detectable amount of fentanyl.The bill also increases from a Class 2 misdemeanor to a Class 6 felony the penalty for violations related to adulterated or misbranded drugs and cosmetics.
Sponsored bills
Charter; City of Virginia Beach; board of equalization. Amends the charter for the City of Virginia Beach by expanding the board of equalization from four members to five members and an alternate. This bill is identical to HB 415.
Department of Education; establishment of Farm to School Program Task Force. Requires the Department of Education to establish and appoint such members as it deems necessary or appropriate to the Farm to School Program Task Force for the purpose of increasing student access throughout the Commonwealth to high-quality farm to school programs, defined in the bill as programs (i) whereby public schools purchase and feature prominently in school meals locally produced food or (ii) that involve experiential student learning opportunities relating to local food and agriculture, including school and community garden programs and local farm visits. The bill requires the Task Force to collaborate with local school boards, community-based organizations, farmers, relevant state and local agencies, and other relevant stakeholders to (a) assess existing farm to school programs within the Commonwealth to identify and disseminate to each local school board best practices for implementing and sustaining such programs, (b) establish and distribute to each local school board a guidance document for the establishment and operation of school garden programs, (c) provide information and resources to each local school board to assist it in leveraging grant funds to support farm to school programs, and (d) collect such data and make such policy recommendations to local school boards, the Board of Education, and the General Assembly as it deems appropriate. This bill is identical to HB 830.
Line of Duty Act; payment of benefits. Increases from $25,000 to $75,000 the death benefit payout under the Virginia Line of Duty Act for a death caused by occupational cancer, respiratory disease, or hypertension or heart disease for those deaths that will occur on or after January 1, 2025. This bill is identical to HB 321.
Persons other than ministers who may perform rites of marriage; former statewide legislators and officials; clerk of a circuit court. Adds any (i) former member of the General Assembly; (ii) former Governor, Lieutenant Governor, or Attorney General of the Commonwealth; or (iii) current or former clerk of a circuit court of the Commonwealth who is a resident of the Commonwealth to the list of persons who may perform the rites of marriage in the Commonwealth without the necessity of bond or order of authorization.
Hate crimes and discrimination; ethnic animosity; penalties. Provides that it is the policy of the Commonwealth to safeguard all individuals within the Commonwealth from unlawful discrimination in employment and in places of public accommodation because of such individual's ethnic origin and prohibits such discrimination. The bill also adds victims who are intentionally selected because of their ethnic origin to the categories of victims whose intentional selection for a hate crime involving assault, assault and battery, or trespass for the purpose of damaging another's property results in a higher criminal penalty for the offense. The bill also provides that no provider or user of an interactive computer service on the Internet shall be liable for any action voluntarily taken by it in good faith to restrict access to material that the provider or user considers to be intended to incite hatred on the basis of ethnic origin. This bill incorporates SB 120 and is identical to HB 18.
Towed vehicles; stolen or misused vehicle; police report. Requires the owner of a vehicle that was stolen, illegally used, or used without his permission and subsequently subject to a law-enforcement initiated tow to provide the report number and the name of the law-enforcement agency receiving the report that the motor vehicle was stolen, illegally used, or used without his permission to the towing facility where the vehicle is being stored in order to remove the vehicle without paying towing and storage fees.
Drug Control Act; Schedule I; Schedule II; Schedule IV; Schedule V. Adds certain chemicals to Schedules I, II, IV, and V of the Drug Control Act. The Board of Pharmacy has added these substances in an expedited regulatory process. A substance added via this process is removed from the schedule after 18 months unless a general law is enacted adding the substance to the schedule. This bill is identical to HB 1333.
STEM+C Competition Team Grant Program and Fund;established. Establishes the Science, Technology, Engineering,Mathematics, and Computing (STEM+C) Competition Team Grant Programand Fund to encourage interest in STEM+C-related subject areas andsupport STEM+C-related extracurricular team-building activities inpublic schools in the Commonwealth by providing grants to qualifiedschools, as defined in the bill, for use in establishing or supportingSTEM+C competition teams.
Center for Rural Virginia; name change. Renames the Center for Rural Virginia as the Senator Frank M. Ruff, Jr. Center for Rural Virginia. This bill is identical to HB 1381.