Parole Board; monthly reports. Requires that statements issued by the Virginia Parole Board regarding actions taken on the parole of prisoners (i) be published within 30 days of such actions and (ii) include the name of each prisoner considered for parole, the offense for which the prisoner considered for parole was convicted, the jurisdiction in which such offense was committed, the length of the prisoner's sentence and the date such sentence was imposed, the amount of time the prisoner has served, and whether parole was granted or denied and the basis for denial. Under current law, the Board is required to publish a monthly statement that lists the name of each prisoner considered for parole and indicates whether parole was granted or denied and the basis for denial. This bill was incorporated into SB 1104.
Sponsored bills
Constitutional amendment (first resolution);public schools in the Commonwealth; equal educational opportunities.Requires the General Assembly to provide for a system of public schoolsin the Commonwealth with equal educational opportunities for allchildren and to ensure that all school age children are providedwith equal educational opportunities.
Animal shelter euthanasia rate. Requires any public or private animal shelter or releasing agency to annually file with the State Veterinarian (i) a copy of its intake policy, (ii) the number of animals on which a euthanasia procedure was performed, and (iii) of such number, the number of animals (a) surrendered with the intent to euthanize and (b) presented by the public animal shelter to a licensed veterinarian prior to euthanasia. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriation act.
Study; Virginia Polytechnic Institute and StateUniversity; teaching hospital; report. Requesting Virginia PolytechnicInstitute and State University to study the requirements for the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine to be designated as a teaching hospitalin the Code of Virginia.
Animal testing; breeding. Prohibits anyperson from breeding a dog or cat for the express purpose of producingoffspring for (i) use in research, experimentation, or testing thatis not required pursuant to federal law or regulation or (ii) saleto a manufacturer, institution of higher learning, or contract testingfacility outside the United States.
Destruction of criminal history information for certain charges and convictions. Provides that a court shall enter an order of destruction for police and court records, in the absence of good cause shown to the contrary by the Commonwealth, for a deferred disposition dismissal of (i) underage alcohol possession when one year has passed since the date of dismissal and all court costs and fines and all orders of restitution have been satisfied or (ii) possession of marijuana when three years have passed since the date of dismissal and all court costs and fines and all orders of restitution have been satisfied. The bill also provides that any person who has received such deferred disposition dismissals may file a petition with the court that disposed of such charge for an order of destruction at any time provided that all court costs and fines and all orders of restitution have been satisfied. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the Virginia Criminal Justice Conference. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriation act. This bill incorporates SB 287.
Possession and consumption of marijuana; penalty. Decriminalizes simple marijuana possession and provides a civil penalty of no more than $25. Current law imposes a maximum fine of $500 and a maximum 30-day jail sentence for a first offense, and subsequent offenses are a Class 1 misdemeanor. The bill provides that any violation of simple possession of marijuana shall be charged by a summons in form the same as the uniform summons for motor vehicle law violations and that no court costs shall be assessed for such violations. The bill also provides that a person's criminal history record information shall not include records of any charges or judgments for such violations and records of such charges or judgements shall not be reported to the Central Criminal Records Exchange. However, the bill states that if a violation occurs while an individual is operating a commercial motor vehicle, such violation shall be reported to the Department of Motor Vehicles and shall be included on such individual's driving record. Also, the bill states that the procedure for appeal and trial of any violation of simple possession of marijuana shall be the same as provided by law for misdemeanors. The bill also provides that if requested by either party on appeal to the circuit court, trial by jury shall be provided and the Commonwealth shall be required to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt. Additionally, the bill provides that the suspended sentence/substance abuse screening provisions apply only to criminal violations. The bill defines "marijuana" to include hashish oil and creates a rebuttable presumption that a person who possesses no more than one ounce of marijuana possesses it for personal use. The bill also (i) makes records relating to the arrest, criminal charge, or conviction of possession of marijuana not open to public inspection and disclosure, except in certain circumstances; (ii) prohibits employers and educational institutions from requiring an applicant for employment or admission to disclose information related to such arrest, criminal charge, or conviction; and (iii) prohibits agencies, officials, and employees of the state and local governments from requiring an applicant for a license, permit, registration, or governmental service to disclose information concerning such arrest, criminal charge, or conviction. Also, the bill allows a person charged with a civil offense who is acquitted, a nolle prosequi is taken, or the charge is otherwise dismissed to file a petition requesting expungement of the police records and court records related to the charge. Finally, the bill requires the Secretaries of Agriculture and Forestry, Finance, Health and Human Resources, and Public Safety and Homeland Security to convene a work group to study the impact on the Commonwealth of legalizing the sale and personal use of marijuana and report the recommendations of the work group to the General Assembly and the Governor by November 30, 2020. This bill incorporates SB 815 and is identical to HB 972.
Historical designation for historical motorracing locations in Virginia. Directs the Department of HistoricResources to convene a group of stakeholders to initiate the creation,design, and implementation of a historical designation of historic NASCAR and other motor vehicle racing tracks and related real propertyin the Commonwealth for the promotion of tourism and economic developmentin Virginia.
Utility easements; location of broadband facilities. Declares that it is the policy of the Commonwealth that (i) easements for the location and use of electric and communications facilities may be used to provide or expand broadband or other communications services; (ii) the use of easements to provide or expand broadband or other communications services is in the public interest; (iii) the installation, replacement, or use of public utility conduit, including the costs of installation, replacement, or use of conduit of a sufficient size to accommodate the installation of infrastructure to provide or expand broadband or other communications services, is in the public interest; (iv) the use of easements to provide or expand broadband or other communications services (a) does not constitute a change in the physical use of the easement, (b) does not interfere with, impair, or take any vested or other rights of the owner or occupant of the servient estate, (c) does not place any additional burden on the servient estate other than a de minimis burden, if any; (iv) has value to the owner or occupant of the servient estate greater than any de minimis impact; and (v) the installation and operation of broadband or other communications services within easements, appurtenant or gross, are merely changes in the manner, purpose, or degree of the granted use as appropriate to accommodate a new technology. The measure further provides that (1) absent any express prohibition on the installation and operation of broadband or other communications services in an easement that is contained in a deed or other instrument by which the easement was granted, the installation and operation of broadband or other communications services within any easement shall be deemed, as a matter of law, to be a permitted use within the scope of every easement for the location and use of electric and communications facilities and (2) subject to compliance with any express prohibitions in a written easement, any incumbent utility or communications provider may use an easement to install, construct, provide, maintain, modify, lease, operate, repair, replace, or remove its communications equipment, system, or facilities, and provide communications services through the same, without such incumbent utility or communications provider paying additional compensation to the owner or occupant of the servient estate or to the incumbent utility, provided that no additional utility poles are installed. The measure provides that, in cases of a prescriptive easement, such easement is deemed to exist and that any incumbent utility or communications provider may use a prescriptive easement to install, construct, provide, maintain, modify, lease, operate, repair, replace, or remove its communications equipment, system, or facilities, and provide communications services through the same, without such incumbent utility or communications provider paying additional compensation to the owner or occupant of the servient estate or to the incumbent utility, provided that no additional utility poles are installed.
Postrelease incarceration of felons sentenced for certain offenses. Clarifies that offenders who are convicted of knowingly failing to register or reregister with, or knowingly providing materially false information to, the Sex Offender and Crimes Against Minors Registry are subject to added terms of postrelease incarceration. The bill also clarifies that when a sentence is imposed upon conviction of a felony that includes an active term of incarceration and the court does not order a suspended term of confinement of at least six months, a period of postrelease incarceration shall be imposed that is not less than six months or more than three years. The bill also clarifies that it is the period of postrelease incarceration that is required to be suspended, not the period of postrelease supervision. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the Judicial Council. This bill is identical to HB 752.