Sen. Angelia Graves

Local government hiring; people with disabilities. Requires any locality to take into consideration or give preferenceto an individual's status as a person with a disability in its employmenthiring policies and practices, provided that such person with a disabilitymeets all of the knowledge, skills, and eligibility requirementsfor the available position.

State and Local Government Conflict of Interests Act; definition of gift; certain tickets and registration or admission fees. Exempts from the definition of gift tickets and registration or admission fees to an event that are provided by an agency to its own officers or employees for the purposes of performing official duties related to the officer's or employee's public service. This bill is identical to SB 57.

Automatic renewal or continuous service offerto consumer; cancellation and online opt-out. Requires that the supplier of automatic renewals or continuous service offers thatinclude a free trial notify the consumer of the automatic renewalseven days prior to expiration of the free trial and obtain the consumer'saffirmative consent to the automatic renewal beyond the trial period.The bill also requires that suppliers of automatic renewals or continuousservice offers through an online website must make available a conspicuousonline option to cancel a recurring purchase of a good or servicewithin the website by which such purchase was made.

Health care data report; carriers. Directs the Department of Health, through its contract with the nonprofit organization that compiles and evaluates health care data on behalf of the Commonwealth and in consultation with the Bureau of Insurance of the State Corporation Commission (the Bureau), to (i) develop and implement a methodology to review and measure the efficiency and productivity of health care providers and carriers other than limited scope dental or vision plans and managed care health insurance plans and (ii) make available to the public on a website maintained by the nonprofit organization such data and information and other reports collected or produced as a result of implementation of such methodology by July 1, 2023. The bill also requires the Bureau to convene a stakeholder work group to (a) provide input on the development of the methodology required by the act; (b) identify additional measures to increase the transparency of information provided to the Bureau by carriers, managed care health insurance plans, and health care providers; and (c) determine what additional information should be provided to the nonprofit organization by carriers, managed care health insurance plan providers, and health care providers to foster transparency and competition among both carriers and health care providers and assist consumers in making educated decisions regarding options for health care coverage and access. The bill requires the work group to report its findings and recommendations to the Governor and the Chairmen of the House Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions and the Senate Committee on Education and Health by November 1, 2022.

Sharing of forfeited assets; promoting law enforcement; community investment and revitalization. Specifies that the forfeited property and assets paid to the state treasury into a special fundof the Department of Criminal Justice Services that shall be madeavailable to federal, state, and local agencies to promote law enforcementmay include expenditures for community investment or revitalizationthat may strengthen the relationships between the community and lawenforcement, encourage goodwill between the community and law enforcement,or promote cooperation with law enforcement.

Refunds of local taxes; authority of treasurer. Increases from $5,000 to $10,000 the maximum amount that the governingbody of a locality may authorize its treasurer to approve and issuefor a refund of taxes paid as a result of an erroneous tax assessment.

Hospitals; direct readmission of certain postpartum patients. Directs the Department of Health (the Department) to develop recommendations for protocols for hospitals that provide obstetrical services for (i) admission or transfer of any pregnant woman who presents herself while in labor or while experiencing a perinatal emergency and (ii) direct readmission, if appropriate, to the hospital of any patient who received obstetrical services from the hospital, experiences postpartum complications requiring immediate medical care, and is referred to the hospital by the patient's health care provider. The bill requires the Department to make such recommendations available to every hospital in the Commonwealth that provides obstetrical services by December 15, 2022.

Charter; City of Norfolk; council; elections.Makes various changes to reflect the City of Norfolk's upcomingshift in municipal elections from May to November.

Limited liability companies; prepayment of annual registration fees. Permits domestic and foreign limited liabilitycompanies to prepay annual registration fees for two or three years.Under the bill, a domestic or foreign limited liability company mustmake the election to prepay its annual registration fees before itsannual registration fee would otherwise be due and seek approvalfrom the State Corporation Commission to engage in prepayment fortwo or three years. The bill provides that such optional prepaymentdoes not apply to the initial annual registration fees assessed againsta limited liability company that is newly formed or recently convertedfrom another entity. The bill requires that, if applicable, the Commissionprovide notice of this prepayment option to a foreign or domesticlimited liability company that has failed to pay its annual registrationfee as a method of avoiding future delinquencies.

Commending David and Eunjoo Anderson.