Sen. Adam Ebbin

Commending Rita Carter Forrester.

Commending the Richmond Free Press.

Celebrating the life of Firefighter ChristopherGeorge Griffin.

Supplementing compensation of public defender.Requires the governing body of any county or city that elects tosupplement the compensation of the attorney for the Commonwealth,or any of his deputies or his employees, above the salary of any such officer, deputy, or employee to supplement the compensation ofthe public defender, or any of his deputies or employees. The billprovides that such supplemental compensation is proportional if thepublic defender, his deputies, and his other employees are each paidin amounts commensurate to the closest equivalent position in thelocal Office of the Commonwealth's Attorney, as adjusted for seniorityand experience level. The bill has a delayed effective date of July1, 2024.

Commending Weldon Edwards.

Exhaust systems; excessive noise. Prohibitsany individual from operating a motor vehicle with a gross weightof 6,500 pounds or less with an exhaust system that emits noise in excess of 85 decibels. The bill also allows the governing body ofany county, city, or town located within the Northern Virginia Planning District to provide by ordinance that no person shall operate anymotor vehicle on a highway or on public or private property within500 feet of any residential district unless such motor vehicle is equipped with an exhaust system of a type installed as standard equipment,or comparable to that designed for use on that particular vehicleor device as standard factory equipment, in good working order andin constant operation to prevent excessive noise.

Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord's noncompliance as defense to action for possession for nonpayment of rent. Removes the requirement that a tenant, if in possession of a dwelling unit, must pay for the court to hold the amount of rent found to be due and unpaid pending the issuance of an order pursuant to an action by the landlord for possession based upon nonpayment of rent where the tenant has asserted a defense that there exists upon the leased premises a condition that constitutes, or will constitute, a fire hazard or a serious threat to the life, health, or safety of the occupant of the dwelling unit. The bill provides that (i) a tenant may assert such a defense if, prior to the commencement of the action for rent or possession, the landlord or his agent had notice of the condition, was given a reasonable opportunity to remedy the condition, and failed to do so and (ii) while the period of time that is deemed to be a unreasonable delay is left to the court, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that a period in excess of 14 days, changed from 30 days in current law, from receipt of the notification by the landlord is reasonable. Finally, the bill clarifies that not only may the court issue an order that reduces rent by an equitable amount in consideration of the existence of an allowable condition asserted by the tenant, but the court may also refer any matter before it to the proper state or local agency for investigation and report and continue the action or complaint pending completion of such investigation and receipt of the report. Current law allows the court to terminate the rental agreement or order the surrender of the premises to the landlord or require the tenant to deposit with the court any rents that will become due during the period of continuance while the state or local agency investigates.

Refundable income tax credit for low-incometaxpayers. Allows low-income individuals and married personsto claim either (i) a nonrefundable income tax credit equal to $300for each individual, his spouse, and any dependents or (ii) a refundableincome tax credit equal to 20 percent of the federal earned incometax credit claimed that year by the individual or married personsfor the same taxable year. Under current law, low-income individualsand married persons may elect either of these amounts; however, bothoptions for claiming the credit are nonrefundable. The provisionsof the bill apply to taxable years beginning on and after January1, 2023.

Commending Chief Justice Donald W. Lemons.

Celebrating the life of the Honorable FrankDuVal Hargrove, Sr.