Drug manufacturers; permitting and registration;certain conditions related to 340B-covered drugs. Requires adrug manufacturer, as a condition of obtaining a permit or as a conditionof registration or renewal of registration, to certify that it doesnot limit the number of contract pharmacies or covered entities,as defined in relevant law, to which it ships 340B-covered drugsand that it does not impose requirements, exclusions, reimbursementterms, or other conditions on a contract pharmacy or covered entitythat differ from those applied to pharmacies or entities that arenot contract pharmacies or covered entities on the basis that thepharmacy or entity is a contract pharmacy or covered entity or thatthe pharmacy or entity dispenses 340B-covered drugs.
Sponsored bills
Health insurance; coverage for contraceptivedrugs and devices. Requires health insurance carriers to providecoverage, under any health insurance contract, policy, or plan thatincludes coverage for prescription drugs on an outpatient basis,for contraceptive drugs and contraceptive devices, as defined inthe bill, approved for use as prescribed products or for over-the-counteruse. The bill prohibits a health insurance carrier from imposingupon any person receiving contraceptive benefits pursuant to the provisions of the bill any copayment, coinsurance payment, or fee,except in certain circumstances. The provisions of the bill applyto health insurance contracts, policies, or plans delivered, issuedfor delivery, or renewed on and after January 1, 2025.
Department of Housing and Community Development;Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fee disclosure statement;work group. Requires landlords subject to the Virginia ResidentialLandlord and Tenant Act, prior to collecting any fee, deposit, orinformation from an applicant, to provide such applicant a fee disclosurestatement containing the amount and purpose of each fee or depositthat may be charged to an applicant. The bill requires the Directorof the Department of Housing and Community Development to developa sample fee disclosure statement that may be used by landlords forsuch purpose, explaining in plain language the amount and purposeof fees that may be charged to an applicant for tenancy. The billrequires the Department to convene a work group to make recommendationsfor the development of such sample fee disclosure statement.
Public service companies; pole attachments;cable television systems and telecommunications service providers. Requires a public utility, as defined in the bill, to establish and adhere to pole attachment practices and procedures that comply with certain requirements, including determining whether an attachment request is complete before reviewing such request on its merits, complying with certain timelines, and providing notice of a rearrangement to affected existing attachers. The bill provides that a public utility shall not apportion to a telecommunications service provider or cable television system the cost of replacing a red-tagged pole, as defined in the bill, provided that such utility may apportion to such provider or system the incremental cost of a taller or stronger pole that is necessitated solely by the new facilities of such provider or system. The bill authorizes the State Corporation Commission to enforce its provisions and requires the Commission to resolve disputes involving pole access within 90 days and concerning certain other matters within 120 days. This bill is identical to HB 800.
Energy efficiency programs; incremental annualsavings. Provides that it is in the public interest and the policyof the Commonwealth to deploy demand-side management programs andenergy efficiency measures throughout the Commonwealth to achievethe greatest possible reductions in energy consumption. The billpermits the State Corporation Commission to increase or decreasean investor-owned electric utility's combined rate of return basedon the utility's success in complying with energy efficiency programtargets in existing law. Additionally, the bill states that "in thepublic interest," for the purpose of assessing energy efficiencyprograms, means that the Commission determines that the program is cost-effective. The bill directs the Commission to promulgate regulationsno later than December 31, 2024, establishing a single, consistentcost-effectiveness test for use in evaluating proposed energy efficiencyprograms. Finally, the bill requires the Commission to consider,as a factor in establishing performance based adjustments to thecombined rate of return for an electric utility, the utility's compliancewith energy efficiency standards and to update ongoing proceedings to consider this factor no later than December 31, 2024. The provisionsof the bill apply to any Commission proceeding that commenced onor after January 1, 2024.
Northern Virginia Transportation Authority;technical advisory committee; appointments. Provides that sixmembers of the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority's technicaladvisory committee are appointed by the Authority rather than appointedby localities embraced by the Authority as provided in current law.
Board of Education; develop and adopt policiesrelating to supporting Students with Limited and/or Interrupted Formal Education (SLIFE). Directs the Board of Education to developand adopt policies relating to supporting Students with Limitedand/or Interrupted Formal Education (SLIFE students) in staying inand graduating from, or otherwise completing, high school in the Commonwealth and to develop formulas for calculating high school drop-outrates and graduation rates in the Commonwealth that do not includeany SLIFE student who dropped out if such student had not yet been enrolled in a public high school in the Commonwealth for at leastfour semesters.
Barrier crimes; adult substance abuse and mental health services; exception. Permits the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, providers of substance abuse or mental health services to adults, and community services boards and behavioral health authorities to hire applicants convicted of certain barrier crimes of misdemeanor assault and battery or involving controlled substances without additional screening or other requirements, provided that such conviction occurred more than five years prior to the application date for employment.
Law-enforcement training; individuals with autism spectrum disorder. Requires the Department of Criminal Justice Services to establish compulsory minimum and in-service training standards for law-enforcement officers on communicating with individuals with an intellectual disability or a developmental disability, such as autism spectrum disorder, which shall include (i) an overview and behavioral recognition of autism spectrum disorder, (ii) best practices for crisis prevention and de-escalation techniques, (iii) an objective review of any relevant tools and technology available to assist in communication, and (iv) education on law-enforcement agency and community resources for the autism community on future crisis prevention. The bill requires that such training standards be established in consultation with at least one individual with autism spectrum disorder, one family member of an individual with autism spectrum disorder, one specialist who works with individuals with autism spectrum disorder, one representative from the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, and one representative from a state or local law-enforcement agency. The bill requires the Department to establish such training standards by January 1, 2027, and requires any person employed as a law-enforcement officer prior to July 1, 2024, to complete the compulsory in-service training by July 1, 2028. This bill is identical to HB 1246.
Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services; Task Force on Transparency in Publicly Funded Animal Testing Facilities; report. Requires the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, in collaboration with the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia, to convene a Task Force on Transparency in Publicly Funded Animal Testing Facilities for the purpose of identifying potential deficiencies in publicly funded animal testing facilities in the Commonwealth and recommending methods and context for making certain information about such animal testing facilities publicly available. The bill provides that the Task Force shall consist of legislators and certain enumerated stakeholders and shall report its findings to the House Committees on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources, Finance, and Appropriations and the Senate Committees on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources and Finance and Appropriations no later than November 1, 2024.