Paid sick leave; health care providers and grocery store workers. Requires employers to provide paid sick leave to health care providers and grocery store workers. Under current law, employers are only required to provide paid sick leave to certain home health workers. The bill removes requirements that workers work on average at least 20 hours per week or 90 hours per month to be eligible for paid sick leave. The bill provides that certain health care providers may waive their right to accrue and use paid sick leave and provides an exemption for certain other health care providers. The bill requires the Department of Labor and Industry to develop guidelines for retail employers that sell groceries to provide sick leave and to publish such guidelines by December 1, 2022. The provisions of the bill other than the requirement for the Department of Labor and Industry to develop guidelines have a delayed effective date of January 1, 2023. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriation act.
Sponsored bills
Supporting the Jones Act. Expresses thesense of the General Assembly in supporting the Jones Act.
Assault and battery; persons diagnosed withautism spectrum disorder, intellectual disability, or mental illness;penalties. Provides that any person charged with a simple assaultand battery offense who has been diagnosed by a psychiatrist or clinicalpsychologist with an autism spectrum disorder, an intellectual disability,or mental illness and the violation was caused by or had a directand substantial relationship to the person's disorder or disabilityis guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor and shall not be subject to mandatoryminimum punishment. Under current law, certain simple assault and battery offenses carry a mandatory minimum punishment when such offensesare committed against certain groups of people.
Alleged wrongdoing of law-enforcement employees. Requires that all law-enforcement agencies that employ at least two law-enforcement officers, reduced from at least 10 under current law, ensure that, in the case of all written citizen complaints or complaints submitted in an electronic format, the agency (i) allows for the submission of citizen complaints through the agency's website or other electronic format; (ii) provides a receipt or written acknowledgment confirming the submission of the complaint to the individual filing such complaint; (iii) provides a written response to any individual who has filed a complaint within 30 days of the filing of such complaint indicating the status of such complaint; (iv) provides a written response to any individual who has filed a complaint within 60 days of the filing of such complaint indicating the final disposition of such complaint and if any action, including disciplinary action, was taken as a result of such complaint or, if after 60 days a resolution of the complaint has not occurred, the law-enforcement agency provides a written response indicating the reason for the delay in reaching a final disposition and an anticipated date of completion; (v) for any complaint that is not resolved within 60 days, provides a written response to any individual who has filed a complaint upon the resolution of such complaint indicating the final disposition of such complaint and if any action, including disciplinary action, was taken as a result of such complaint; and (vi) provides notice to any individual who has filed a complaint if an investigation into a previously filed complaint has been reopened upon the submission of new materials after a final resolution for the previously filed complaint has been reached. The bill also provides that all complaints, investigative materials associated with such complaints, and any dispositional information may be disclosed to the attorney for the Commonwealth when such materials are requested by the attorney for the Commonwealth and relate to a law-enforcement officer's credibility, integrity, or honesty or may constitute exculpatory or impeachment evidence.
Workers' compensation; anxiety disorder or depressive disorder incurred by law-enforcement officers and firefighters.Provides that an anxiety disorder or depressive disorder, as both are defined in the bill, incurred by a law-enforcement officer or firefighter is compensable under the Virginia Workers' CompensationAct on the same basis as post-traumatic stress disorder. The billprovides that a mental health professional must diagnose the law-enforcementofficer or firefighter as suffering from anxiety disorder or depressivedisorder as a result of a qualifying event, as defined in the Code,and includes other conditions for compensability.
Prohibition of deceptive tactics during thecustodial interrogation of a minor. Provides that any confessionof a minor, made as a result of a custodial interrogation conductedat a place of detention on or after July 1, 2022, shall be presumedto be inadmissible as evidence against such minor making such confessionin any adjudication of delinquency or criminal proceeding for anact that if committed by an adult would be a criminal offense if,during the custodial interrogation, a law-enforcement officer knowingly engages in deception, as defined in the bill. The bill provides thatthe presumption of inadmissibility for such confession of a minormay be overcome if the confession was voluntarily given.
Law-enforcement officer; purpose of trafficstop. Provides that the operator of a motor vehicle, trailer,or semitrailer that has stopped on the signal of any law-enforcementofficer shall exhibit his registration card, learner's permit, ortemporary driver's permit for the purpose of establishing his identityupon being advised of the purpose of the stop within a reasonabletime by the law-enforcement officer. Current law requires that suchmaterials be exhibited upon the law-enforcement officer's request.
Expungement of offenses civil penalty. Provides for the automatic sealing of misdemeanor marijuana offensesand the petition-based sealing for certain felony marijuana offenses.The bill requires a business screening service, defined in the bill,to destroy all expunged records, as defined in the bill, and to followreasonable procedures to ensure that it does not maintain or sellexpunged records. The bill also provides that any petition for expungementshall be kept under seal and that an indigent person may file a petitionfor expungement without the payment of fees and costs and can request court-appointed counsel, who shall be paid from the Sealing FeeFund. The bill has staggered delayed effective dates in order todevelop systems for implementing the sealing provisions of the bill.
Campaign advertisements; independent expenditures; electioneering communications; disclaimer requirements. Broadens the scope of disclaimer requirements for campaign advertisements to include electioneering communications, as defined in the bill, and messages advocating for the passage or defeat of a referendum. The bill also requires an advertisement that is an independent expenditure or expressly advocates for the passage or defeat of a referendum to contain a disclaimer providing the names of the advertisement sponsor's three largest contributors or individuals representing a contributor that is not an individual.
Celebrating the life of J. Kenneth Klinge.