Bills & Legislation

Transfer on death deeds; inter vivos deed conveying real property to another.

Transfer on death deeds; inter vivos deed conveying real property to another; emergency. Provides that an inter vivos deed is effective to revoke a recorded transfer on death deed if such inter vivos deed conveys real property to another so the transferor is no longer the owner at the time of the transferor's death. Under current law, an inter vivos deed is effective to revoke a transfer on death deed if it expressly revokes all or part of the transfer on death deed. The bill contains an emergency clause.

Marcus B. SimonDemocrat

Virginia Waterway Maintenance Grant Program and Fund; administration by Marine Resource Commission.

Marine Resources Commission; Virginia Waterway Maintenance Grant Program and Fund. Transfers from the Virginia Port Authority to the Marine Resources Commission the administration of the Virginia Waterway Maintenance Grant Program and Fund and requires the Commission to utilize the existing Municipal Dredging Operating Program and Municipal Dredging Operating Agreement adopted by the Authority for the administration of the Municipal Dredge Pilot Program operated by the Middle Peninsula Chesapeake Bay Public Access Authority. The bill also requires the Commission to utilize the Fast-Track Permitting Program for Disposal of Dredged Material when applicable for dredged material disposal in its implementation of the Virginia Waterway Maintenance Grant Program.

Robert S. Bloxom, Jr.Republican

Real property tax; exemption by classification.

Real property tax; exemption by classification. Provides that the property of an organization that is tax exempt by classification includes the property of a single member limited liability company whose sole member is such an organization.

Rodney T. WillettDemocrat

Driver training schools; definitions, operation and licensure.

Driver training schools; operation and licensure. Amends various provisions related to the operation and licensure of driver training schools. The bill grants the Commissioner of the Department of Motor Vehicles increased oversight authority over such operations.

Bill WileyRepublican

Motor vehicle sales and use tax; abandoned vehicles not sold at auction.

Motor vehicle sales and use tax; abandoned vehicles not sold at auction. Clarifies the basis by which the motor vehicle sales and use tax is calculated in cases where a person is applying for a title to an abandoned motor vehicle that is in their possession and did not sell at auction.

Scott A. WyattRepublican

Limitation on prosecution of felony due to lapse of time after finding of probable cause; exception.

Limitation on prosecution of felony due to lapse of time after finding of probable cause; exceptions; competency evaluation. Provides that the speedy trial statute is tolled for an evaluation or restoration to determine a defendant's competency to stand trial. This bill is identical to SB 804.

Jonathan "Jed" ArnoldRepublican

Charitable gaming; remuneration for bingo callers and bingo managers.

Charitable gaming; remuneration for bingo callers and bingo managers. Provides that, with certain exceptions, remuneration of up to $200 per session may paid to bingo managers or callers who have a current registration certificate issued by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services or who are exempt from such registration requirement. Current law permits such remuneration to be paid so long as it does not exceed $100 per session. The bill requires an exception for such remuneration to be paid at a rate not less than one and one-half times the normal remuneration rate when bingo managers or callers provide services on any day designated as a legal holiday. Lastly, the bill provides that by October 1, 2029, and annually thereafter, the Department shall adjust the maximum remuneration rate of $200 to reflect the rate of inflation from the previous date that such rate was established, as measured by the Consumer Price Index or other method of measuring the rate of inflation that the Department determines is reliable and generally accepted.

Jeion A. WardDemocrat

Chesapeake, City of; amending charter, dates of elections, etc.

Charter; City of Chesapeake. Amends the charter for the City of Chesapeake to clarify the dates for (i) the election and terms of members of council and the mayor, (ii) when a sitting council member must resign when running for mayor, and (iii) the election of a successor in the event of a vacancy in office. This bill is identical to SB 935.

C.E. Cliff Hayes, Jr.Democrat

Limitation on prosecution of felony due to lapse of time after finding of probable cause; certified misdemeanors.

Limitation on prosecution of felony due to lapse of time after finding of probable cause; certified misdemeanors. Provides that the existing statutory speedy trial protections applicable to a felony prosecution also apply to a misdemeanor certified to circuit court pursuant to relevant law. This bill is a recommendation of the Virginia Criminal Justice Conference.

Jonathan "Jed" ArnoldRepublican

Compounding drugs; exceptions for distribution within hospital or health system.

Compounded drugs; exceptions for distribution within health systems under common ownership. Allows for the distribution of compounded drugs within health systems under common ownership when such drugs will be administered only to patients within the hospital or health system. This bill is identical to SB 1366.

Rodney T. WillettDemocrat

Nursing, Board of; waiver of regulations related to nursing faculty ratios.

Board of Nursing; faculty supervision of direct client care; faculty-to-student ratio. Directs the Board of Nursing to allow nursing education programs to apply for a waiver of the student-to-faculty ratios for direct client care. Under the bill, such waiver would permit a nursing education program to increase the ratio of students to faculty engaged in direct client care from 10 students per faculty member up to, but not to exceed, 15 students per faculty member. Current regulations permit faculty to supervise up to 10 students providing such care per faculty member without the utilization of a preceptor.

Marcia S. "Cia" PriceDemocrat

License to teach dentistry; foreign dental program graduates; repeal sunset.

License to teach dentistry; foreign dental program graduates; repeal sunset. Repeals the July 1, 2025, sunset on the current provision of law allowing the Board of Dentistry to grant, without examination, a faculty license to teach dentistry in an accredited dental program to a graduate of a dental school or college or the dental department of an institution of higher education in a foreign country who has been granted a certification letter from the dean or program director of an accredited dental program confirming that the applicant has clinical competency and clinical experience that meet the credentialing standards of the dental school with which the applicant is to be affiliated. This bill is identical to SB 1360.

Rodney T. WillettDemocrat

Commonwealth of Virginia Higher Educational Institutions Bond Act of 2025; created.

Bonds for public institutions of higher learning; emergency. Authorizes issuance of bonds in an amount up to $206,085,243 for revenue-producing capital projects at James Madison University and The College of William and Mary in Virginia. The bill contains an emergency clause and is identical to SB 1121.

Luke E. TorianDemocrat

Current and Mature Semiconductor Technology Grant Fund; established.

Current and Mature Semiconductor Technology Grant Fund. Establishes the Current and Mature Semiconductor Technology Grant Fund to, subject to appropriation, fund 15 annual grant award installments, in an aggregate amount not to exceed $60 million, to a qualified company that engages in the manufacture of semiconductors and that executes a memorandum of understanding with the Commonwealth and, on and after July 1, 2024, but before June 30, 2040, is expected to (i) make a capital investment, defined in the bill, of at least $2,170,130,850 and (ii) create and maintain at least 340 new full-time jobs, in an eligible locality, defined in the bill. The bill also authorizes bonus grants of up to $10 million that a qualified company may earn for certain new full-time job creation and maintenance. The bill also repeals the existing Semiconductor Manufacturing Grant Fund and is identical to SB 1208.

Luke E. TorianDemocrat

Agricultural commodity boards; Agricultural Council, appointment and membership terms.

Agricultural commodity boards; Agricultural Council; appointment and membership terms; production areas. Amends various provisions relating to the appointment, terms, and quorums of agricultural commodity boards, including the Cotton Board, Egg Board, and Tobacco Board. The bill eliminates the Pork Industry Board and amends membership terms for the Agricultural Council so that (i) each term is for four years and (ii) no member other than an ex officio member is eligible to serve more than two consecutive terms, except that any person appointed to fill a vacancy may serve two additional consecutive terms after the term of such vacancy that such person was appointed to fill has expired. The bill also amends the production areas for the purposes of membership appointment procedures for the Cotton Board and the Tobacco Board. This bill is identical to HB 1798.

Russet PerryDemocrat

Escape from jail or custody; penalty.

Escape from jail or custody; penalty. Specifies that the definition of law-enforcement officer that currently applies for the crime of assault and battery of a law-enforcement officer shall be used for the purposes of the crimes related to escaping from jail or custody of a law-enforcement officer. This bill is identical to SB 861.

Phillip A. ScottRepublican

Virginia Parole Board; investigation of cases for executive clemency.

Virginia Parole Board; investigation of cases for executive clemency. Requires all public bodies engaged in criminal law-enforcement activities to provide, to the extent permitted by law, copies of certain specified records upon request by the Virginia Parole Board related to cases in which executive clemency is sought or the Virginia Parole Board believes action on the part of the Governor is proper or in the best interest of the Commonwealth. The bill specifies that records of any general district court, juvenile and domestic relations district court, or circuit court and the Department of Forensic Science shall be subject to such provisions and that any records requested shall be provided to the Virginia Parole Board at no cost. The bill requires any requested records be provided within 30 working days of receiving the request. Additionally, the bill specifies that records obtained pursuant to such request shall be excluded from mandatory public disclosure in the same manner as the correspondence and working papers of the Office of the Governor under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act.

Ellen H. McLaughlinRepublican

Current and Mature Semiconductor Technology Grant Fund; established.

Current and Mature Semiconductor Technology Grant Fund. Establishes the Current and Mature Semiconductor Technology Grant Fund to, subject to appropriation, fund 15 annual grant award installments, in an aggregate amount not to exceed $60 million, to a qualified company that engages in the manufacture of semiconductors and that executes a memorandum of understanding with the Commonwealth and, on and after July 1, 2024, but before June 30, 2040, is expected to (i) make a capital investment, defined in the bill, of at least $2,170,130,850 and (ii) create and maintain at least 340 new full-time jobs, in an eligible locality, defined in the bill. The bill also authorizes bonus grants of up to $10 million that a qualified company may earn for certain new full-time job creation and maintenance. The bill also repeals the existing Semiconductor Manufacturing Grant Fund and is identical to HB 2358.

L. Louise LucasDemocrat

Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission; increase membership.

Membership of Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission. Adds the executive director of the Virginia Indigent Defense Commission or his designee to the membership of the Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission. This bill is a recommendation of the Virginia Indigent Defense Commission. This bill is identical to HB 2111.

Jennifer D. Carroll FoyDemocrat

Registration of aircraft; fees.

Registration of aircraft; fees. Increases fees for registrations of aircraft and creates multiyear registrations for aircraft for a period not to exceed three years. This bill is identical to HB 2022.

Bill DeStephRepublican

Claims to unclaimed property; authority of administrator.

Claims to unclaimed property; authority of administrator; emergency. Authorizes the State Treasurer or his designee to make payments relating to unclaimed property without receiving a claim if the property is cash property, the apparent owner is a natural person and the sole owner of such property, the apparent owner has been identified by the State Treasurer or his designee, and the amount to be paid does not exceed $5,000. The bill contains an emergency clause. This bill incorporates SB 867 and SB 922 and is identical to HB 1606.

Angelia Williams GravesDemocrat

Chesapeake, City of; amending charter, dates of elections, etc.

Charter; City of Chesapeake. Amends the charter for the City of Chesapeake to clarify the dates for (i) the election and terms of members of council and the mayor, (ii) when a sitting council member must resign when running for mayor, and (iii) the election of a successor in the event of a vacancy in office. This bill is identical to HB 1645.

Christie New CraigRepublican

Fishing with trawl nets and drag nets; shrimp and horseshoe crab; license fee; penalty.

Fishing with trawl nets and drag nets; shrimp and horseshoe crab; license fee; penalty. Allows the Marine Resources Commission to issue licenses or permits to any person to take or catch fish, shellfish, or marine organisms with a trawl net, drag net, or similar device within the three-mile limit of the Virginia Atlantic shoreline for the shrimp and horseshoe crab fisheries. The bill specifies that such license or permit shall be accompanied by a fee of $100 or as subsequently revised by the Commission for each boat so employed. Current law allows any person to fish with trawl nets and drag nets for fish, shellfish, or marine organisms, provided such person has a license issued by the Commission to trawl within the three-mile limit from Cape Charles north to the Maryland line, except during September and October and from 36° 40' north latitude south to the North Carolina line at any time, and from Cape Henry south to 36° 40' north latitude between October 1 and May 1. This bill is identical to HB 1697.

Richard H. StuartRepublican

Compensation of court-appointed counsel.

Compensation of court-appointed counsel. Clarifies that, notwithstanding any provision to the contrary, no person found indigent or child's parents or other persons responsible for the care of a child found indigent and who is represented by a public defender or court-appointed counsel shall have fees assessed against him for legal representation in an amount greater than the amount such person or such child would have owed if the assessment took place on or before June 30, 2024. This bill is a recommendation of the Virginia Indigent Defense Commission. This bill is identical to HB 1757.

Russet PerryDemocrat

Compensation of court-appointed counsel.

Compensation of court-appointed counsel. Clarifies that, notwithstanding any provision to the contrary, no person found indigent, or child's parents or other persons responsible for the care of a child found indigent, and who is represented by a public defender or court-appointed counsel shall have fees assessed against him for legal representation in an amount greater than the amount such person or such child would have owed if the assessment took place on or before June 30, 2024. This bill is a recommendation of the Virginia Indigent Defense Commission. This bill is identical to SB 901.

Phil M. HernandezDemocrat

Brodnax, Town of; amending charter, election of mayor.

Charter; Town of Brodnax. Amends the charter for the Town of Brodnax in Brunswick and Mecklenburg Counties to provide that the mayor elected in November 2025 shall be elected for a term of two years and thereafter for a term of four years. The bill also replaces the town's procedure for filling council vacancies by referencing the procedure provided by general law.

Thomas C. Wright, Jr.Republican

Foreign dental program graduates; license to teach dentistry, repeals sunset.

License to teach dentistry; foreign dental program graduates; repeal sunset. Repeals the July 1, 2025, sunset on the current provision of law allowing the Board of Dentistry to grant, without examination, a faculty license to teach dentistry in an accredited dental program to a graduate of a dental school or college or the dental department of an institution of higher education in a foreign country who has been granted a certification letter from the dean or program director of an accredited dental program confirming that the applicant has clinical competency and clinical experience that meet the credentialing standards of the dental school with which the applicant is to be affiliated. This bill is identical to HB 1899.

Todd E. PillionRepublican

Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority; operational plan submission.

Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority; operational plan submission. Requires the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority to include in the annual report on its operational plan the most recent available audit report from the Auditor of Public Accounts' annual examination of the accounts and books of the Authority and removes the requirement that such report contain the audited financial statements of the Authority for the year ending the previous June 30. This bill is identical to HB 1567.

Christie New CraigRepublican

Death by wrongful act; suspension of limitations.

Death by wrongful act; suspension of limitations. Provides that the statute of limitations for an action for death by wrongful act shall be tolled during the pendency of any criminal prosecution that arises out of the same facts as such action. The bill's provisions apply only to causes of action accruing on or after July 1, 2025. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the Boyd-Graves Conference.

Candi Mundon KingDemocrat

Data Governance and Analytics, Office of; changes oversight of office to VITA.

Office of Data Governance and Analytics; oversight; Chief Data Officer; duties. Changes oversight of the Office of Data Governance and Analytics from the Office of the Secretary of Administration to the Virginia Information Technologies Agency. The bill directs the Chief Data Officer to obtain from VITA the office space and human resources, procurement, fiscal, and other administrative support and resources that are necessary to support the operations of ODGA. This bill is identical to HB 1632.

Jennifer B. BoyskoDemocrat

Resale Disclosure Act; resale certificate, responsibility for payment of insurance deductible.

Resale Disclosure Act; resale certificate; responsibility for payment of insurance deductible. Requires the resale certificate form, developed by the Common Interest Community Board, to include a statement indicating that the governing documents of an association may make an owner responsible for payment of all or part of the deductible when making a claim against any insurance provided by the association for the benefit of the owners or insurance coverage recommended or required to be obtained by the owners. This bill is identical to HB 1704.

Christie New CraigRepublican

Housing and Community Development, Dept. of; consolidation of varying due dates for certain reports.

Department of Housing and Community Development reports; consolidation. Consolidates varying due dates for certain reports relating to the Department of Housing and Community Development to October 1 and requires such reports be submitted as part of one annual report, to be presented to the Governor and the General Assembly. The bill creates a requirement for (i) an annual report on the outcomes associated with closed projects that received a grant from the Virginia Growth and Opportunity Fund and requires the Department to use such report to create and maintain a public facing performance dashboard with such information to be updated annually and (ii) a comprehensive annual report on the state's homeless programs. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2026. This bill is identical to SB 787.

Terry G. KilgoreRepublican

Commonwealth Rail Fund; funds applied to Shortline Railway Preservation and Development Fund.

Commonwealth Rail Fund; Shortline Railway Preservation and Development Fund. Removes the $4 million cap on those Commonwealth Rail Fund (Fund) moneys distributed to the Department of Rail and Public Transportation that may be applied to the Shortline Railway Preservation and Development Fund and instead provides that up to 50 percent of such Fund moneys may be applied to the Shortline Railway Preservation and Development Fund. The bill retains the current provisions granting 93 percent of Fund moneys to the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority and seven percent to the Department of Rail and Public Transportation. This bill is identical to HB 1603.

Mark D. ObenshainRepublican

Cigarette delivery sales; clarifies definition of "delivery sale."

Cigarette delivery sales; definition. Removes from the exceptions enumerated in the definition of "delivery sale" the delivery of cigarettes, not through the mail or by a common carrier, to a consumer performed by the owner, employee, or other individual acting on behalf of a retailer authorized to sell such cigarettes. This bill is identical to HB 2370.

Mark J. PeakeRepublican

Housing and Community Development, Dept. of; consolidation of varying due dates for certain reports.

Department of Housing and Community Development reports; consolidation. Consolidates varying due dates for certain reports relating to the Department of Housing and Community Development to October 1 and requires such reports be submitted as part of one annual report, to be presented to the Governor and the General Assembly. The bill creates a requirement for (i) an annual report on the outcomes associated with closed projects that received a grant from the Virginia Growth and Opportunity Fund and requires the Department to use such report to create and maintain a public facing performance dashboard with such information to be updated annually and (ii) a comprehensive annual report on the state's homeless programs. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2026. This bill is identical to HB 2203.

Ryan T. McDougleRepublican

Danville, City of; new charter (previous charter repealed).

Charter; City of Danville. Establishes a new charter for the City of Danville and repeals the current charter, which was created in 1982. The proposed charter sets out the organization of the city's government and contains powers typically granted to cities. Changes in the new charter include (i) replacing the current borrowing process with the process established by state law, (ii) eliminating the city council supermajority required to pass certain ordinances related to revenue and spending in conformance with state law, (iii) clarifying that certain council actions require a majority vote of those members present and voting rather than an absolute majority, (iv) eliminating the requirement that organizational changes to city departments and divisions be by ordinance, (v) reducing the maximum dollar limit required to be approved by ordinance to reflect a mandatory requirement of state law, and (vi) reducing from three to two the number of council members who can request a special meeting to reflect a mandatory requirement of state law. The bill makes numerous other clarifying and technical changes. This bill is identical to SB 1206.

Daniel W. Marshall, IIIRepublican

Public safety communications; evaluation of need for infrastructure updates & hardware replacements.

Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security; Secretary of Finance; evaluate public safety communications infrastructure updates and hardware replacements; report. Directs the Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security, in conjunction with the Secretary of Finance, to evaluate the need for public safety communications infrastructure updates and hardware replacements, and the cost of meeting such need. The Secretaries shall report any findings and recommendations, including possible funding options, to the Chairs of the House Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations no later than December 1, 2025.

David A. ReidDemocrat

FOIA; exclusion of certain information held by Department of Workforce Development and Advancement.

Virginia Freedom of Information Act; exclusions; Department of Workforce Development and Advancement. Excludes from the mandatory disclosure requirements of the Virginia Freedom of Information Act certain information held by the Department of Workforce Development and Advancement, which includes any information of a proprietary or confidential nature, including trade secrets, employee compensation information, balance sheets and financial statements that are not available to the public through regulatory disclosure or otherwise, and revenue and cost projections supplied by a private or nongovernmental entity to the Department for the purpose of sponsoring, implementing, and operating (i) an apprenticeship program approved by the Department or (ii) a similar lawful workforce development or public-private partnership approved by the Department that assists the Department in fulfilling its mission and objectives and whose workforce development initiative could not advance without such exemption, as determined by the Commissioner of the Department and the Secretary of Labor. This bill is identical to HB 2502.

Emily M. JordanRepublican

Children; petitions for relief of care & custody, investigation by local dept. of social services.

Petitions for relief of care and custody of a child; investigation by local department of social services; Office of the Children's Ombudsman work group; report. Requires a local department of social services, as a part of its investigation after the referral of a request for a petition for relief of the care and custody of a child, to (i) refer the parent to the local family assessment and planning team and (ii) create a written report. The bill directs the Department of Social Services, in coordination with the Virginia League of Social Services Executives, to create a template for and provide guidance on what should be included in such written report.The bill also directs the Office of the Children's Ombudsman to convene a work group composed of relevant stakeholders to (a) determine the factors a court should consider when determining whether there is good cause shown for a petitioner's desire to be relieved of the care and custody of a child and (b) explore the potential benefits and considerations of raising the standard of evidence for granting temporary relief of custody from the current standard of preponderance of the evidence to clear and convincing evidence. The bill directs the work group to submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the Chairs of the House and Senate Committees for Courts of Justice and the Virginia Commission on Youth by November 1, 2025. Certain provisions of the bill have a delayed effective date of January 1, 2026. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the Virginia Commission on Youth. This bill is identical to HB 1733.

David R. SuetterleinRepublican

Lithium-ion Battery Separator Manufacturing Grant Fund; created, definitions.

Lithium-ion Battery Separator Manufacturing Grant Fund. Establishes the Lithium-ion Battery Separator Manufacturing Grant Fund to, subject to appropriation, fund 20 annual grant award installments, in an aggregate amount not to exceed $60.597 million, to a qualified company that engages in the manufacture of lithium-ion battery separators and that executes a memorandum of understanding with the Commonwealth and the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority, and that on and after July 1, 2024, but before July 1, 2045, is expected to (i) make a capital investment, defined in the bill, of at least $1.3506 billion and (ii) create and maintain at least 2,015 new full-time jobs in Pittsylvania County. This bill is identical to HB 2540.

Tammy Brankley MulchiRepublican

Marriage; penalty for failure to certify record, persons other than minister subject to penalties.

Penalty for failure to certify record of marriage; persons other than ministers. Provides that persons other than ministers authorized to celebrate the rites of marriage are subject to a $25 penalty for failing to certify the record of marriage. Under current law, such penalty is applicable only to ministers authorized to celebrate such rites of marriage.

W. Chad GreenRepublican

Funeral directors; requirement to report certain statistics removed.

Funeral directors; requirement to report certain statistics removed. Removes the requirement that funeral directors report monthly to the State Registrar a list showing all caskets furnished, bodies prepared for disposition and transportation, and funerals performed where no casket was furnished by the funeral director for the preceding month.

Chris S. RunionRepublican

SW Va. Higher Ed. Ctr. Bd. of Trustees; authority to permit campus security to carry firearms.

Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center Board of Trustees; authority to permit campus security officers to carry firearms in performance of official duties; conditions. Authorizes the Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center Board of Trustees to permit campus security personnel employed in its campus security department to carry firearms in the performance of their official duties, provided that such campus security personnel are considered armed security officers, as such term is defined in relevant law, and comply with all relevant statutory and regulatory requirements attendant to such designation, including registration and training. This bill is identical to HB 2441.

Todd E. PillionRepublican

Carbon-free energy or clean energy; definition of fusion energy.

Carbon-free energy or clean energy; fusion energy; definitions. Adds fusion energy, as defined in the bill, to the list of generation sources that qualify as carbon-free energy or clean energy. This bill is identical to HB 1779.

David W. MarsdenDemocrat

Alcoholic beverage control; tied house exceptions.

Alcoholic beverage control; tied house exceptions. Removes certain provisions of the exceptions to the tied house limitations that state a manufacturer, bottler, importer, broker, or wholesaler cannot require, by agreement or otherwise, a retailer to exclude from sale at his establishment alcoholic beverages of other manufacturers, bottlers, importers, brokers, or wholesalers in order for the exception to apply. However, the bill retains the general prohibition that no manufacturer, bottler, importer, broker, or wholesaler of alcoholic beverages shall make an agreement, or attempt to make an agreement, with a retail licensee pursuant to which any products sold by a competitor are excluded in whole or in part from the premises on which the retail licensee's business is conducted. This bill is identical to HB 1703.

Barbara A. FavolaDemocrat

Statewide Fire Prevention Code Act; counterfeit and unsafe lighters prohibited.

Statewide Fire Prevention Code Act; counterfeit and unsafe lighters prohibited. Prohibits the offering or sale to the public of unsafe lighters or counterfeit lighters, defined in the bill, regardless of whether such offering or sale is conducted on a retail basis or wholesale basis.

Terry L. AustinRepublican

Nursing homes; establishes procedures for implementation of sanctions, civil penalty.

Nursing homes; sanctions; civil penalty. Establishes procedures for the implementation of sanctions by the State Health Commissioner on any nursing home that is licensed pursuant to the laws regulating medical care facilities and services. The bill specifies the forms of sanctions that the Commissioner may impose, the nursing home's continued responsibility for persons under its care, the use of funds remunerated in accordance with such sanctions, the process for the imposition of such sanctions, and the Commissioner's ability to revoke such nursing home's license. The bill specifies that sanctions shall not be imposed on a nursing home that is sanctioned by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. This bill is identical to HB 2253.

Lashrecse D. AirdDemocrat

Acute psychiatric bed registry; patient privacy and data security, etc.

Acute psychiatric bed registry; Bed Registry Advisory Council established; patient privacy and data security; Virginia Freedom of Information Act exemption. Requires the Commissioner of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services to include provisions for the protection of patient privacy and data security pursuant to state and federal law and regulations in contracts with private entities for the administration of the acute psychiatric bed registry. The bill requires the Commissioner to create the Bed Registry Advisory Council to advise the Commissioner and any such private entity on the administration of such registry and to review and approve requests for access to data from the registry. The bill also creates a Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) exemption for information submitted to such registry. This bill is identical to SB 1439.

Patrick A. HopeDemocrat