Sen. Frank Ruff

Commending Virginia Polytechnic Institute andState University.

Celebrating the life of the Honorable HarryRussell Potts, Jr.

Commending Rita Carter Forrester.

Income tax; military benefits subtraction; emergency. Establishes an income tax subtraction for up to $20,000 of militarybenefits in taxable year 2021, up to $30,000 in taxable year 2022,and up to $40,000 in taxable year 2023 and each year thereafter.The bill defines military benefits to include military retirementincome and benefits paid to the surviving spouse of a veteran. The bill contains an emergency clause.

School principals; incident reports. Requires that school principals report to law enforcement certain enumerated acts that may constitute a misdemeanor offense and report to the parents of any minor student who is the specific object of such act that the incident has been reported to law enforcement. Under current law, principals are required to make such reports only for such acts that may constitute a felony offense. This bill was incorporated into SB 36.

Commending Liberty University.

Board of Education; evaluation of and recommendations for certain current and proposed policies and performance standards for public elementary and secondary schools. Requires the Board of Education to collaborate with the Superintendent of Public Instruction and the Secretary of Education to evaluate, to implement where possible, and to otherwise make recommendations to the General Assembly regarding the following goals: (i) promoting excellence in instruction and student achievement in mathematics, including elimination of the Virginia Mathematics Pathways Initiative and an evaluation of any other proposed changes to the Mathematics Standards of Learning, in advance of the next revision of such standards by the Board, to maintain and increase the rigor of mathematics instruction in public elementary and secondary schools and permit students demonstrating aptitude and high achievement in mathematics to accelerate their progress through core mathematics classes and concepts and take advanced mathematics courses before the eleventh grade; (ii) increasing the number of academic year Governor's Schools in the Commonwealth and maintaining standards of excellence for students in all such schools; (iii) preserving the Advanced Studies Diploma as an option for students in public high schools in the Commonwealth while maintaining or increasing course and credit requirements for such diploma; (iv) increasing the transparency and honesty of performance measures for public elementary and secondary schools in the Commonwealth and ensuring that such measures do not obscure or conceal disparities in performance among student groups; (v) ensuring that performance measures for public elementary and secondary schools prioritize the attainment of grade-level proficiency in reading and mathematics for all students, especially in grades kindergarten through five; (vi) ensuring that the Commonwealth's proficiency standards on Standards of Learning assessments in reading and mathematics are rigorous in comparison with assessments administered by other states and national assessments in reading and mathematics; and (vii) restoring a strong accreditation system that promotes meaningful accountability year-over-year. The bill requires the Secretary of Education and the Superintendent of Public Instruction, no later than November 30, 2022, to report to the chairmen of the House Committee on Education and the Senate Committee on Education and Health the results of such evaluation and recommendations to achieve such goals.

Rate of tax on gasoline and diesel fuel.Lowers the rate of tax on gasoline and diesel fuel on July 1, 2022,from 26.2 cents per gallon to 21.2 cents per gallon on gasoline andfrom 27 cents per gallon to 20.2 cents per gallon on diesel fuel,the rates that were in effect before July 1, 2021. The bill providesthat the rate of tax on gasoline and diesel fuel will return to 26.2and 27 cents per gallon, respectively, on July 1, 2023, and willbe indexed based on the change in the United States Average Consumer Price Index; thereafter, the rate will be indexed annually.

Public charter schools; applications; reviewand approval. Permits the Board of Education (the Board) to receive, review, and rule upon applications for public charter schools andenter into agreements for the establishment of public charter schools.Under current law, the power to grant or deny a public charter schoolapplication and enter into an agreement for the establishment ofa public charter school rests solely with local school boards. Thebill also provides that the decision of the Board or a local schoolboard to grant or deny a public charter school application or to revoke or fail to renew a public charter school agreement is finaland is not subject to appeal. Current law contains an appeal processfor such decisions.

School principals; incident reports. Requires that school principals report to law enforcement certain enumerated acts that may constitute a misdemeanor offense and report to the parents of any minor student who is the specific object of such act that the incident has been reported to law enforcement. Under current law, principals are required to make such reports only for such acts that may constitute a felony offense. This bill was incorporated into SB 36.