Interference with commercial fishing vessel;penalties. Provides that a person who approaches a commercialfishing vessel without the consent of the owner or person in chargeof such vessel with the intent to coerce, intimidate, or harass thecaptain or crew of such vessel or interfere with the operations ofsuch vessel is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. The bill makes ita Class 6 felony to communicate to another person by any means any threat to (i) kill or do bodily injury to a person or persons engagedin the activity of commercial fishing on the waters of the Commonwealthor (ii) bomb, burn, destroy, or in any manner damage any commercialfishing vessel, and increases this penalty to a Class 5 felony ifsuch threat places the captain or crew in reasonable apprehensionof death or bodily injury. The bill makes it a Class 6 felony tointentionally or recklessly damage, injure, tamper with, deface,or destroy a commercial fishing vessel or any associated gear. Finally,the bill deems a person to be ineligible for any hunting or fishinglicense for a certain period of time if such person is found guiltyof an offense set out in the bill.
Sponsored bills
Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services; blue catfish work group; report. Requires the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to convene a work group of relevant stakeholders in order to support and encourage coordination regarding efforts to create a robust and resilient market for blue catfish. The work group shall (i) review past and ongoing efforts to promote the creation of a market for blue catfish, (ii) identify and explore potential sectors for the blue catfish market, and (iii) identify any actions that the Commonwealth can take to promote and expand the market for blue catfish. The Department shall submit a report of the findings and recommendations of the work group to the Governor, the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry, the Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources, and relevant committees of the General Assembly no later than September 1, 2025. This bill is identical to HB 1135.
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.
Drug Treatment Court Act; eligibility.Replaces the restriction that renders persons convicted of certainviolent felonies or acts of violence within the preceding 10 years ineligible to participate in a drug treatment court with a restrictionon participation if any of the following conditions apply: (i) theoffender is presently charged with a felony offense or is convictedof a felony offense while participating in any drug treatment courtwhere (a) the offender carried, possessed, or used a firearm or anydangerous weapon during such offense; (b) the death or serious bodilyinjury of any person occurred during such offense; or (c) the useof force against any other person besides the offender occurred duringsuch offense or (ii) the offender was previously convicted as an adult of any felony offense that involved the use of force or attempteduse of force against any person with the intent to cause death orserious bodily injury. This bill is a recommendation of the VirginiaCriminal Justice Conference.
Fisheries Innovation for Sustainable HarvestFund established. Establishes the Fisheries Innovation for SustainableHarvest Fund for the purposes of supporting and promoting the economicgrowth and development of Virginia's seafood economy. The Fund shallbe administered by the Marine Resources Commission for the sole purposeof supporting and promoting the economic growth and development ofVirginia's seafood economy while enhancing the sustainability ofVirginia's marine fisheries resources through the awarding of grants,revolving loans, or other financial tools. The bill provides thatthe Commercial Fishing Advisory Board shall advise the Commissionon expenditures from the Fund and also requires royalties collectedby the Commission on or after July 1, 2024, as a result of the generationor transmission of electrical or compressed air energy from certainoffshore renewable sources to be credited to the Fund. The bill alsoprovides that any such royalties appropriated to the Virginia CoastalEnergy Research Consortium under current law shall instead be appropriatedto the Fund.
Virginia Waste Management Board; open burningof solid wastes; transportation of vegetative waste. Requiresthe Virginia Waste Management Board to amend regulations to allowfor vegetative waste to be transported to another location for destructionif it is impractical or unsafe to destroy such waste on the premisesof private property.
Department of Environmental Quality; data; groundwaterand surface water withdrawal permits. Authorizes the Departmentof Environmental Quality to utilize and incorporate comprehensivegroundwater, surface water, and aquifer data in its decision-makingprocesses related to the issuance and renewal of groundwater withdrawalpermits and surface water withdrawal permits. Such data may includeinformation relating to water levels, flow rates, and water quality.
Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services;blue catfish work group; report. Directs the Department of Agricultureand Consumer Services, in collaboration with certain stakeholders,to convene a work group to evaluate strategies to reduce the negativeecological effects of blue catfish and to increase the sales andmarketing of blue catfish. The bill requires the work group to (i)review past and ongoing efforts to promote the creation of a marketfor blue catfish, (ii) identify and explore potential sectors forthe blue catfish market, and (iii) identify any actions that theCommonwealth can take to promote and expand the market for blue catfish.The bill requires the Department to report its findings and recommendationsto the Governor, the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry, and theChairmen of the Senate Committees on Agriculture, Conservation andNatural Resources and Finance and Appropriations and the House Committeeson Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources and Appropriationsby December 1, 2024.
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.
Conveyance of easement. Authorizes the Department of Wildlife Resources to grant and convey an easement and right-of-way at Land's End Wildlife Management Area to Joseph C. Frank III, Betty J. Frank, Jacob C. Ackerman, and Crystal F. Ackerman. The easement will allow ingress and egress from State Route 625 (Salem Church Road) to the grantees' properties.