Sen. Bill Stanley

Provides that it is the legislative intent that public school buildings and facilities be designed, constructed, maintained, and operated to generate more electricity than consumed, and allows local school boards to enter into leases with private developers to achieve that goal. The bill also provides that private developers that contract with local school boards to modernize public school buildings and facilities may receive financing from the Virginia Small Business Financing Authority.

Creates the Virginia Grocery Investment Program and Fund to provide funding for the construction, rehabilitation, equipment upgrades, or expansion of grocery stores, small food retailers, and innovative food retail projects, defined in the bill, in underserved communities. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriations act. The bill incorporates

Directs the Virginia Community College System (VCCS) to establish and administer a two-year Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Scholarship Pilot Program (the Program), beginning in 2019, for the purpose of providing access to postsecondary educational opportunities to students living in poverty. The Program would provide scholarships to select comprehensive community colleges in the maximum amount of $4,000 per year to 200 selected students who meet TANF eligibility requirements. The Program would be funded by the unexpended balance in federal TANF block grant funds. The bill directs VCCS to report to the Governor and the General Assembly no later than December 1 of each year of the Program regarding the effectiveness of and other information about the Program. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriation act.

Provides that a person who was convicted of certain offenses, upon a plea of not guilty or an Alford plea, or who was adjudicated delinquent, upon a plea of not guilty or an Alford plea, by a circuit court of an offense that would be a covered offense if committed by an adult may petition the Court of Appeals to have his conviction vacated. The petition shall allege (i) the covered offense for which the petitioner was convicted or adjudicated delinquent; (ii) that the petitioner did not commit the covered offense for which the petitioner was convicted or adjudicated delinquent, nor engage in conduct that would support a conviction for a lesser offense or any other crime arising from, or reasonably connected to, the facts supporting the indictment or information upon which he was convicted or adjudicated delinquent; (iii) an exact description of the forensic scientific evidence and its relevance in demonstrating that the petitioner did not commit the covered offense; (iv) specific facts indicating that relevant forensic scientific evidence was not available or could not have been obtained in the exercise of diligence before the expiration of 21 days following entry of the final order of conviction or adjudication of delinquency, or that discredited forensic scientific evidence was admitted at the petitioner's trial or adjudication of delinquency; and (v) that the admission of the discredited forensic scientific evidence or the absence of the newly available forensic scientific evidence was not harmless. The bill provides that if the court finds by clear and convincing evidence that the admission of the discredited forensic scientific evidence or the absence of the newly available forensic scientific evidence was not harmless, the court may grant the petition and vacate the petitioner's conviction, subject to retrial in the discretion of the Commonwealth. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2020, and an expiration date of July 1, 2024. The provisions of the bill are contingent upon funding in a general appropriation act.

Increases the scholarship amount available for an eligible student with a disability from 100 percent to 300 percent of the per pupil amount distributed to the local school division as the state's share of the standards of quality costs, or the actual qualified educational expenses of the student, whichever is less. The bill broadens the definition of "eligible student with a disability" to include any child who is a resident of Virginia for whom an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) has been written and finalized in accordance with the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). In addition, the family household income of the eligible student with a disability who is receiving the scholarship must not exceed 400 percent of the federal poverty level.