Sen. Saddam Salim

Celebrating the life of Commander Edward S.Stolle, Jr., USN, Ret.

Celebrating the life of John Oliver Wynne.

Commending the ASK Childhood Cancer Foundation.

Commending Trinity United Methodist Church.

License plate readers; penalties. Provides requirements for the use of license plate readers, defined in thebill, by law-enforcement agencies. The bill requires such agenciesto enter into an agreement with the license plate reader owners orother responsible non-law-enforcement entity to operate a data trust,defined in the bill, to store the data collected by a license platereader and requires any such law-enforcement agency to apply to thedata trust for access to such data. The bill limits the use of licenseplate readers to scanning, detecting, and identifying license plate numbers for the purpose of identifying vehicles involved in certaincrimes.

Collective bargaining by public employees; labor organization representation. Repeals the existing prohibition on collective bargaining by public employees. The bill creates the Public Employee Relations Board, which shall determine appropriate bargaining units and provide for certification and decertification elections for exclusive bargaining representatives of state employees and local government employees. The bill requires public employers and employee organizations that are exclusive bargaining representatives to meet at reasonable times to negotiate in good faith with respect to wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment. The bill repeals a provision that declares that, in any procedure providing for the designation, selection, or authorization of a labor organization to represent employees, the right of an individual employee to vote by secret ballot is a fundamental right that shall be guaranteed from infringement.

Virginia Green Infrastructure Bank; created.Creates the Virginia Green Infrastructure Bank, an authorityto promote and catalyze investment in qualified projects that reducegreenhouse gas emissions, assist climate-impacted communities, andpromote environmental justice. The bill requires the Bank to be governedby a board of directors with the authority to hire a president and create a nonstock corporation to carry out the powers and dutiesof the bank.

The Virginia African American, Asian American, Pacific Islander, Latino, and Indigenous Education Advisory Board; establishment.

License plate reader systems; civil penalty.Provides requirements for the use of license plate reader systems,defined in the bill, by law-enforcement agencies. The bill limitsthe use of such systems to scanning, detecting, and recording dataabout vehicles and license plate numbers for the purpose of identifyinga vehicle that is (i) associated with a wanted, missing, or endangeredperson or human trafficking; (ii) stolen; (iii) involved in an activelaw-enforcement investigation; or (iv) in the vicinity of a recentcrime and may be connected to that crime. The bill authorizes andrequires the Commonwealth Transportation Board to establish a permittingprocess for installing and using such systems in state highway rights-of-way.

Campaign finance; prohibited personal use of campaignfunds; complaints, hearings, civil penalty, and advisory opinions.Prohibits any person from converting contributions to a candidate or hiscampaign committee to personal use. Current law only prohibits such conversionof contributions with regard to disbursement of surplus funds at thedissolution of a campaign or political committee. The bill provides that acontribution is considered to have been converted to personal use if thecontribution, in whole or in part, is used to fulfill any commitment,obligation, or expense that would exist irrespective of the person's seeking,holding, or maintaining public office but allows a contribution to be used forthe ordinary and accepted expenses related to campaigning for or holdingelective office, including the use of campaign funds to pay for the candidate'schild care expenses that are incurred as a direct result of campaign activity.The bill provides that any person subject to the personal use ban may requestan advisory opinion from the State Board of Elections on such matters. The billdirects the State Board of Elections to adopt emergency regulations similar tothose promulgated by the Federal Election Commission to implement theprovisions of the bill and to publish an updated summary of Virginia campaignfinance law that reflects the State Board of Elections' and Attorney General'sguidance on the provisions of such law that prohibit the personal use ofcampaign funds and any new regulations promulgated by the State Board ofElections.