Legislative Update J A N U A R Y 2 5,

Transcription

1 Legislative Update HANOVER COUNTY LEGISLATIVE AGENDA 2017 GENERAL ASSEMBLY SESSION J A N U A R Y 2 5,

2 HB 1565 Local tax and regulatory incentives; green development zones. Patron: Michael J. Webert Authorizes localities to create green development zones that provide certain tax incentives and regulatory flexibility for up to 10 years to a business operating in an energy-efficient building or to a business that produces products used to reduce negative impact on the environment. HB 1578 Students who receive home instruction; participation in interscholastic programs. Patron: Robert B. Bell Prohibits public schools from joining an organization governing interscholastic programs that does not deem eligible for participation a student who (i) receives home instruction; (ii) has demonstrated evidence of progress for two consecutive academic years; (iii) is in compliance with immunization requirements; (iv) is entitled to free tuition in a public school;(v) has not reached the age of 19 by August 1 of the current academic year;(vi) is an amateur who receives no compensation but participates solely for the educational, physical, mental, and social benefits of the activity;(vii) complies with all disciplinary rules and is subject to all codes of conduct applicable to all public high school athletes; and (viii) complies with all other rules governing awards, all-star games, maximum consecutive semesters of high school enrollment, parental consents, physical examinations, and transfers applicable to all high school athletes. The bill provides that no local school board is required to establish a policy to permit students who receive home instruction to participate in interscholastic programs. The bill permits reasonable fees to be charged to students who receive home instruction to cover the costs of participation in such interscholastic programs, including the costs of additional insurance, uniforms, and equipment. The bill has an expiration date of July 1, 2022.

3 HB 1697 Extension of approvals to address housing crisis. Patron: Daniel W. Marshall III Extends the sunset date for several measures related to various land use approvals from July 1, 2017, to July1, The bill also expands the scope of such measures that will be subject to the extension to include those measures approved by January 1, HB 1884 Real property tax exemption; certain surviving spouses. Patron: Timothy D. Hugo Authorizes localities to exempt the primary residence of the surviving spouse of a law-enforcement officer, firefighter, search and rescue personnel, and emergency medical services personnel who is killed in the line of duty. The exemption does not apply to that portion of the value of the residence in excess of the average assessed value of dwellings in the locality. The bill is pursuant to Article X, Section 6-B of the Constitution of Virginia, which was adopted by the voters in 2016.

4 HB 1900 Dogs running at large; civil penalty. Patron: William J. Howell Prohibits dog owners from allowing dogs to run at large on the property of another after the landowner has given notice to the dog owner to keep the dog off of the property. The bill provides for a $100 per dog civil penalty enforced by animal control, conservation police, and other law enforcement officers for each violation. Notice may be given verbally, in writing, with signs, or with blue tree markings. HB 1925 Local cigarette tax. Patron: Jeffrey L. Campbell Authorizes all counties to impose a cigarette tax. Under current law, only the Counties of Fairfax and Arlington are authorized to impose a cigarette tax. HB 1934 Excessive calls for police service; civil penalty. Patron: Betsy B. Carr Provides that any locality may by ordinance declare that when a property requires an excessive number of calls for police service within a specified time period, the owner of the property is subject to a civil penalty. The locality shall determine in its ordinance the number of calls that is excessive, but no owner shall be cited under such ordinance for fewer than five calls in a 12-month period. The bill requires the ordinance to contain an exclusion for all calls related to domestic violence.

5 HB 1941 Immunity of persons; defamation; statements regarding matters of public concern. Patron: Terry G. Kilgore Adds defamation to the causes of action from which a citizen shall be immune when making statements (i) regarding matters of public concern, as defined in the bill, to a third party or (ii) at a public hearing before the governing body of any locality or other political subdivision, or the boards, commissions, agencies, and authorities thereof, and other governing bodies of any local governmental entity. The bill changes from permissive to mandatory the provision that reasonable attorney fees and costs be awarded to any individual who has a suit against him dismissed pursuant to such immunity. The bill requires the court to give priority on its docket to any pleading brought invoking such immunity. HB 1983 School calendar; opening day of the school year. Patron: Thomas A. Tag Greason Makes local school boards responsible for setting the school calendar and determining the opening day of the school year and eliminates the post-labor Day opening requirement and "good cause scenarios for which the Board of Education may grant waivers of this requirement. The bill contains technical amendments.

6 HB 2024 Condemnation powers and proceedings; imminent threat to public health, safety, and welfare. Patron: Nicholas J. Freitas Provides that "quick take" condemnation proceedings, the procedure for which is governed by Chapter 3 ( et seq.) of Title 25.1 (Transferring Defeasible Title by Certificate), are available for use only when a court determines that the use of such procedure is necessary to protect against an imminent threat to public health, safety, and welfare. The bill further allows for entities allowed to exercise eminent domain only in the manner provided for by Chapter 3 of Title 25.1 to alternatively use the procedures outlined by Chapter 2 ( et seq.) of Title 25.1 (Condemnation Procedures).

7 HB 2108 Virginia Broadband Deployment Act. Patron: Kathy J. Byron Provides that a locality or a locality's affiliate may own and operate a broadband or Internet communications system, including ownership or lease of fiber optic or other communications lines and facilities, to provide broadband expansion services if a variety of conditions are met, including a report or study by an independent consulting firm knowledgeable and experienced in analyzing broadband deployment, such as the Center for Innovative Technology, which report or study specifically identifies any unserved areas. An unserved area is an area in which broadband speeds are not generally available from any provider. The bill defines "broadband speeds" as average Internet speeds of both 10 Mbps or more download and 1 Mbps or more upload. A locality or a locality's affiliate that seeks or desires to provide "overbuild broadband services," shall not do so unless it complies with various operating requirements. The bill defines "overbuild broadband services" as broadband or Internet services offered by a locality or its affiliate in exchange for compensation that do not qualify as internal government services or broadband expansion services. The bill also repeals several disclosure exclusions related to local telecommunications services that currently exist under the Freedom of Information Act ( et seq.).

8 HB 2196 Wireless communications infrastructure. Patron: Terry G. Kilgore Provides a uniform procedure for the way in which wireless communications infrastructure is approved by localities and approved and installed in public rights-of-way. HB 2223 Virginia Freedom of Information Act; right to speak at open meetings. Patron: Kay Kory Requires that every public body afford an opportunity for public comment during any open meeting and requires that the public comment periods be noticed on the public body's agenda. The bill permits the public body to have discretion in where it places the public comment period on its agenda and permits the public body to adopt reasonable rules governing the public comment portion of the meeting, including imposing reasonable restrictions on time, place, and manner. The bill requires that for meetings of all public bodies, not just those state public bodies on which there is at least one member appointed by the Governor as in current law, the notice provided for any such meeting include a statement as to approximately at what point during the meeting public comment will be received.

9 HB 2401 Virginia Freedom of Information Act; minutes of closed meetings required; audio recordings. Patron: Rick L. Morris Provides that a public body shall (i) take closed meeting minutes, (ii) also make an audio recording of the entirety of every meeting that is closed to the public, and (iii) use a means of recording that fully captures and can clearly reproduce all statements made during a closed meeting. The bill provides that the minutes or recordings made shall not be subject to the disclosure provisions of FOIA. HB 2402 Virginia Freedom of Information Act; willful violations; grounds for termination. Patron: Rick L. Morris Provides that if the court finds that any officer or employee of a public body (i) receives a request for records that was sent by a requester by certified mail, return receipt requested, and (ii) without legal excuse or justification, deliberately, willfully, and knowingly fails to make a response to such request, such officer or employee may be terminated for cause by his appointing authority or agency head.

10 HB 2447 Local licensure of motor vehicles. Patron: Robert G. Marshall Eliminates the ability of a locality to assess local license fees for motor vehicles, trailers, and semitrailers. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, HJ 577 Constitutional amendment (first resolution); real property tax; assessed value. Patron: Mark L. Cole Provides that the General Assembly may authorize any locality to reduce the assessed value of real property, until the property is sold or the owner dies, whose fair market value has increased significantly as a result of public improvements abutting the property. HJ 737 Commending the Atlee High School softball team. Patron: Hyland F. Buddy Fowler, Jr. Commending the Atlee High School softball team. HJ 802 Commending the Hanover High School baseball team. Patron: Hyland F. Buddy Fowler, Jr. Commending the Hanover High School baseball team.

11 SB 857 Conditional rezoning; certain conditional rezoning proffers, floor area ratio. Patron: Mamie E. Locke Reduces from 3.0 to 2.0 the minimum floor area ratio necessary for a new residential development to be exempted from provisions applicable to certain proffers as a condition for rezoning. SB 926 Noise violations; civil penalty. Patron: J. Chapman Petersen Allows localities to authorize the chief law-enforcement officer in the locality to enforce a uniform schedule of civil penalties for violation of that locality's noise ordinance. SB 976 Va. Economic Development Partnership Authority; site and building assessment program. Patron: Emmett W. Hanger, Jr.. Lowers the minimum size of industrial sites that may be included in the Authority's site and building assessment program from 250 acres to 100 acres. The bill contains a technical amendment.

12 SB 1005 Community services boards and behavioral health authorities; services to be provided. Patron: Emmett W. Hanger, Jr. Provides that the core of services provided by community services boards and behavioral health authorities shall include, effective July 1, 2018, (i) same-day access to mental health screening services and (ii) outpatient primary care screening and monitoring services for physical health indicators and health risks and follow-up services for individuals identified as being in need of assistance with overcoming barriers to accessing primary health services. The bill provides that the core of services provided by community services boards and behavioral health authorities shall additionally include, effective July 1, 2021, crisis services for individuals with mental health or substance use disorders; outpatient mental health and substance abuse services; psychiatric rehabilitation services; peer support and family support services; mental health services for certain members of the armed forces and veterans; care coordination services; and case management services, including targeted mental health case management services. The bill also requires the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services to report annually regarding progress in the implementation of this act.

13 SB 1102 Virginia Freedom of Information Act; completed unattended death investigations; disclosure. Patron: Scott A. Surovell Requires that records of completed unattended death investigations be released to immediate family members of the victim, provided that (i) such information is in a form that does not reveal the identity of persons supplying information or other individuals involved in the investigation and (ii) the immediate family members of the victim have been ruled out as suspects. The bill defines "immediate family" as the spouse, children, parents, grandparents, brothers, or sisters of the victim. SB 1103 Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA); closed meeting violations; civil penalty. Patron: Scott A. Surovell Provides that in addition to any penalties imposed under FOIA, if the court finds that a member of a public body voted to certify a closed meeting and at the time of such certification such certification constituted a departure from the requirements of FOIA, the court shall impose on all members voting to certify in their individual capacity, whether or not a writ of mandamus or injunctive relief is awarded, a civil penalty of $500 each, which amount shall be paid into the State Literary Fund.

14 SB 1128 Virginia Freedom of Information Act; failure to respond to request for records. Patron: Bill R. DeSteph, Jr. Provides that there shall be a rebuttable presumption that a failure to respond to a request for records was willful and knowing. SB 1139 Vested property rights. Patron: Mark D. Obenshain Provides that if a structure is one that requires no building permit, and an authorized local government official informs the property owner that the structure will comply with the zoning ordinance, and the owner relies upon the representation and constructs the improvements, a zoning ordinance may provide that the structure is nonconforming but shall not provide that such structure is illegal and subject to removal solely due to such nonconformity. The provisions of the bill are declared to not be deemed retroactive.

15 SB 1157 Lobbyist disclosure; reporting by certain political subdivisions. Patron: Bryce E. Reeves Requires the governing body of any association or other nonstock corporation that is established by a political subdivision or combination of political subdivisions of the Commonwealth to file a separate registration statement on behalf of their officers and employees who will be engaged in lobbying. The bill also prohibits such political subdivisions from using public funds to support lobbying efforts and requires funds used for lobbying to be segregated from public funds and held in a separate bank account. SB 1268 Localities; public hearings for tax rate increases. Patron: Adam P. Ebbin Authorizes localities to hold hearings on tax rate increases at the same time as the annual budget hearing. Current law requires a hearing on a tax rate increase to occur at a separate proceeding.

16 SB 1283 Public schools; Board of Education to establish. Patron: Mark D. Obenshain Authorizes the Board of Education (Board) to establish regional charter school divisions consisting of two or more existing school divisions in regions in which one or more of the underlying school divisions have an enrollment of more than 3,000 students and one or more schools that have accreditation denied status for two out of the past three years. The bill requires such regional charter school divisions to be supervised by a school board that consists of eight members appointed by the Board and one member appointed by the localities of each of the underlying divisions. The bill authorizes the school board, after a review by the Board, to review and approve public charter school applications in the regional charter school divisions and to contract with the applicant. The bill requires the state share of Standards of Quality per pupil funding of the underlying school district in which the public charter school is physically located transferred to such school.

17 SB 1294 State and Local Government Conflict of Interests Act. Patron: Jill Holtzman Vogel Replaces the $100 annual cap on gifts to (i) members of and candidates for the General Assembly and their immediate family members from a lobbyist or lobbyist's principal and (ii) state and local officers and employees required to file a statement of economic interests and their immediate family members from a lobbyist or lobbyist's principal or a person, organization, or business who is or is seeking to become a party to a contract with the officer or employee's agency local agency with an absolute ban on gifts from such individuals. The only exceptions to this gift ban are (i) gifts from foreign dignitaries received on behalf of the Commonwealth or a locality and (ii) travel approved by the Virginia Conflict of Interest and Ethics Advisory Council. SB 1296 County food and beverage tax; referendum. Patron: Jill Holtzman Vogel Prohibits a county from holding a new referendum on the levy of a food and beverage tax in the three calendar years subsequent to the electoral defeat of such a referendum. The bill also requires the ballot for any such referendum to state the total tax, as a percentage, that would be imposed on food and beverage if the referendum were to pass, based upon a four percent food and beverage tax and any other ad valorem taxes applicable to the purchase of prepared food and beverage in the county

18 SB 1313 Reimbursement of capital costs; regional jails; regional contracts for cooperative jailing. Patron: Ryan T. McDougle Provides that on or after July 1, 2017, the Commonwealth shall reimburse a locality a maximum of onefourth of the capital costs for any regional jail construction, enlargement, or renovation project that has been approved by the Governor on or after July 1, 2017, and specifically authorized in the general appropriation act. SB 1380 Regional school boards; full-time virtual school programs. Patron: J. Chapman Petersen Requires the establishment of eight regional school boards composed of one member of each local school board that governs each local school division in each of the eight superintendent's regions in the Commonwealth and requires each such regional school board to enter into a contract with at least one approved multidivision online provider to operate a full-time virtual school program for students enrolled in each local school division in such region. The bill contains provisions relating to student eligibility, educational standards, and funding for such full-time virtual school programs. The bill requires each local school board to make the option to participate in a full-time online learning program or full-time virtual school program available to at least two percent of students enrolled in the local school division and permits school boards to satisfy such requirement by providing the option to participate in the full-time virtual school program offered by the relevant regional school board.

19 SB 1491 Agritourism activity; residence rental. Patron: Richard H. Stuart Defines "agritourism activity" to include the rental of a single-family residence for a period of at least one week. SB 1579 Short-term rental of property. Patron: William M. Stanley, Jr. Affirms the rights of localities to regulate the short-term rental of property, defined as the provision of space suitable for sleeping or lodging for fewer than 30 days. If a locality allows short-term rentals, the locality shall require that the person offering property for rental notify adjacent landowners in writing, obtain local permission to offer the property for rental, and carry a minimum of $500,000 of commercial premises liability insurance. If a locality prohibits short-term rentals, any person or entity, including an online hosting platform, that advertises the availability of a short-term rental in the locality shall be subject to a $10,000 fine per violation. SJ 240 Constitutional amendment (first resolution); charter schools. Patron: Mark D. Obenshain Grants the Board of Education authority, subject to criteria and conditions prescribed by the General Assembly, to establish charter schools within the school divisions of the Commonwealth.

20 SJ 278 Study; local government fiscal stress; report. Patron: Emmett W. Hanger, Jr. Establishes a 15-member joint subcommittee to study local government fiscal stress. The two-year joint subcommittee shall review (i) the taxing authorities of local governments, including the disparity between city and county tax authority; (ii) local responsibilities for service delivery of state-mandated or high priority programs, (iii) causes of fiscal stress among local governments, (iv) the current state tax system, including the future of the car tax; and (v) potential financial incentives and other governmental reforms to encourage increased regional cooperation and consolidation of Services. SJ 289 Study; Virginia Conflict of Interest and Ethics Advisory Council; local government officers. Patron: Adam P. Ebbin Directs the Virginia Conflict of Interest and Ethics Advisory Council to study the procedures for the filing and review of disclosure forms by local government officers and employees.