Sen. Christie Craig

Nursing facilities; electronic monitoring in resident rooms. Gives residents of nursing facilities the right to place electronic monitoring devices in their rooms. "Electronic monitoring" is defined in the bill as video or audio monitoring or recording of residents of a nursing facility as a means of monitoring resident wellbeing.

Attorney General; instituting or conductingcriminal prosecutions for violations of criminal sexual assault andcommercial sex trafficking committed against children. Authorizesthe Attorney General to institute or conduct criminal prosecutionsin cases involving a violation of criminal sexual assault or commercialsex trafficking when such crimes are committed against children.

Tax credit; nonfamily adoptions. Createsa $4,000 nonrefundable tax credit for taxable years 2024 through2028 for an individual or married couple who, during the taxableyear, finalize a legal nonfamily adoption as defined in the bill.

Virginia Retirement System; return to work;break in service. Reduces, from six months to one month, thelength of the required break in service after retirement for a teacher,bus driver, specialized student support instructor, or law-enforcementofficer before such person may return to work full time and continueto receive his pension under the Virginia Retirement System (VRS).

Income tax subtraction; firefighter benefits. Establishes an income tax subtraction for up to $20,000 of firefighterbenefits in taxable year 2024, up to $30,000 in taxable year 2025,and up to $40,000 in taxable year 2026 and each year thereafter.The bill defines firefighter benefits to include retirement incomerelated to professional firefighting services and benefits paid tothe surviving spouse of a firefighter whose death occurred in theline of duty.

Exemptions to article; cruise ship gaming inthe offshore waters of the Commonwealth.

Virginia Retirement System; service retirement allowance; hazardous duty. Provides that members of the State Police Officers' Retirement System, political subdivision employees eligible for enhanced hazardous duty coverage, and members of the Virginia Law Officers' Retirement System who are eligible for a hazardous duty supplement shall receive such supplement amount from the date of retirement. Under current law, the supplement is only allowed from the date of retirement until (i) for the State Police Officers' Retirement System and political subdivisions with enhanced hazardous duty coverage, the member's retirement age under federal social security laws and (ii) for the Virginia Law Officers' Retirement System, the member's sixty-fifth birthday. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2025, and provides that its provisions apply only to eligible members who retire on and after July 1, 2025.

Local tax; penalties and interest. Requireslocalities to apply voluntary payments made by a taxpayer to thetax return that accompanies such payment. The bill provides thatno interest will accrue on any unpaid balances 90 days after thedate on which a taxpayer files an application for correction by thelocality, an administrative appeal, or an application to court formeals taxes, until such appeal is resolved. The bill creates noticeprocedures prior to a locality making a levy on property due to delinquent tax payments.

Income tax subtraction; state police retirementbenefits. Establishes an income tax subtraction for up to $10,000of state police retirement benefits in taxable year 2024 and eachyear thereafter. The bill defines state police retirement benefitsto include retirement income received by a Virginia State Policeofficer who is at least 55 years of age and benefits paid to thesurviving spouse of such officer whose death occurred in the lineof duty.

Virginia Retirement System; enhanced retirement benefits for 911 dispatchers. Allows local governments to provide enhanced retirement benefits for hazardous duty service to full-time salaried 911 dispatchers. The bill provides that such enhanced retirement benefits apply only to service earned as a full-time salaried 911 dispatcher on or after July 1, 2025, but allows an employer, as that term is defined in relevant law, to provide such enhanced retirement benefits for service earned as a full-time salaried 911 dispatcher before July 1, 2025, in addition to service earned on or after that date. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2025.