Emergency Shelters Upgrade Assistance Grant Fund. Allows funds in the Emergency Shelters Upgrade Assistance Grant Fund to be paid to entities outlined in local shelter plans to install, maintain, or repair infrastructure for backup energy generation for emergency shelters, including solar energy generators, and improve the hazard-specific structural integrity of shelter facilities owned by the locality or identified in the shelter plan of the locality.

Board of Pharmacy; written certification for the use of cannabis products. Requires the Board of Pharmacy to provide a form for practitioners to issue as written certification for the use of cannabis products. Current law requires the Office of the Executive Secretary of the Supreme Court to provide the form.

Virginia Human Rights Act; nondiscrimination in employment; definition of employer, statute of limitations, and provision of attorney fees. Amends the definition of "employer" to mean a person employing five or more employees, instead of 15 or more employees under current law, for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year, and any agent of such person. The bill provides that a person claiming to be aggrieved by an unlawful discriminatory practice may file a written complaint with the Division of Human Rights within two years of the occurrence of the alleged unlawful discriminatory practice and that an aggrieved person who has been provided a notice of his right to file a civil action for such grievance may do so within one year of receiving such notice or within two years after the alleged discriminatory practice occurred, whichever is later. The bill also changes a court's award of reasonable attorney fees and costs to a successful plaintiff from discretionary to mandatory. Virginia Human Rights Act; nondiscrimination in employment; definition of employer, statute of limitations, and provision of attorney fees. Amends the definition of "employer" to mean a person employing five or more employees, instead of 15 or more employees under current law, for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year, and any agent of such person. The bill provides that a person claiming to be aggrieved by an unlawful discriminatory practice may file a written complaint with the Division of Human Rights within two years of the occurrence of the alleged unlawful discriminatory practice and that an aggrieved person who has been provided a notice of his right to file a civil action for such grievance may do so within one year of receiving such notice or within two years after the alleged discriminatory practice occurred, whichever is later. The bill also changes a court's award of reasonable attorney fees and costs to a successful plaintiff from discretionary to mandatory.

Cemeteries; registration; publication prior to sale. Expands provisions that allow localities to adopt an ordinance setting forth a register of identified cemeteries, graveyards, or other places of burial located on private property not belonging to any memorial or monumental association by providing that such localities shall publish a notice prior to the public sale of any publicly owned property that contains a known cemetery, graveyard, or other place of burial, or as soon thereafter as possible. The notice shall specify that a cemetery is present on the property. If the property falls under an exception provided for significant historic and archeological sites that would be jeopardized by public disclosure of their location, then no such notice is required. Cemeteries; registration; publication prior to sale. Expands provisions that allow localities to adopt an ordinance setting forth a register of identified cemeteries, graveyards, or other places of burial located on private property not belonging to any memorial or monumental association by providing that such localities shall publish a notice prior to the public sale of any publicly owned property that contains a known cemetery, graveyard, or other place of burial, or as soon thereafter as possible. The notice shall specify that a cemetery is present on the property. If the property falls under an exception provided for significant historic and archeological sites that would be jeopardized by public disclosure of their location, then no such notice is required.

Additional local sales and use tax; use of revenues for construction or renovation of schools. Allows any county or city to levy a local general retail sales tax and a local use tax at a rate not to exceed one percent as determined by its governing body to provide revenues solely for capital projects for the construction or renovation of schools if such levy is approved in a voter referendum. Under current law, the power to levy such local sales and use taxes for the construction or renovation of schools is limited to the qualifying localities of Charlotte, Gloucester, Halifax, Henry, Mecklenburg, Northampton, Patrick, and Pittsylvania Counties and the City of Danville.

Virginia Public Procurement Act; project labor agreements. Requires every public body, prior to requiring bidders, offerors, contractors, subcontractors, or operators on public works contracts to enter into, become or remain signatories to, or adhere to project labor agreements, to make a written determination that such project labor agreements (i) meet certain criteria that serve to advance the public's interests, (ii) contain certain procedures and guarantees related to resolving disputes and preventing strikes, lockouts, or other related concerted actions, (iii) permit the selection of the lowest responsive and responsible bidder without regard to labor organization affiliation, and (iv) bind all contractors and subcontractors to the terms of the project labor agreement. Virginia Public Procurement Act; project labor agreements. Requires every public body, prior to requiring bidders, offerors, contractors, subcontractors, or operators on public works contracts to enter into, become or remain signatories to, or adhere to project labor agreements, to make a written determination that such project labor agreements (i) meet certain criteria that serve to advance the public's interests, (ii) contain certain procedures and guarantees related to resolving disputes and preventing strikes, lockouts, or other related concerted actions, (iii) permit the selection of the lowest responsive and responsible bidder without regard to labor organization affiliation, and (iv) bind all contractors and subcontractors to the terms of the project labor agreement.

Constitutional amendment (first reference); limitations on power of the General Assembly; parole. Provides that, with the exception of the eligibility of a person convicted of a felony offense committed while such person was a juvenile, the General Assembly shall not enact any law authorizing the eligibility of a person convicted of a felony offense committed on or after January 1, 1995, and sentenced and committed to the Department of Corrections by a court under the laws of the Commonwealth for an early release from incarceration on discretionary parole.

Payment of small amounts to certain persons without involvement of fiduciary; threshold. Increases from $25,000 to $50,000 the amount under which a payment to certain persons may be made without the involvement of a fiduciary.

Aging services; allocation of resources; individuals with the greatest economic need. Provides that in allocating resources for aging services, the Department for Aging and Rehabilitative Services (i) shall prioritize providing services to those with the greatest economic need and (ii) among individuals with comparable levels of economic need, may prioritize providing services to individuals with the greatest social need.

Commending Daphne Tamara Fulson.

Virginia Code Commission; work group to review public notices required to be published by localities. Directs the Virginia Code Commission to convene a work group to review requirements throughout the Code of Virginia for localities to provide public notice for intended actions and events, including (i) the varying frequency for publishing notices in newspapers and other print media, (ii) the number of days required to elapse between the publications of notices, and (iii) the amount of information required to be contained in each notice, and make recommendations for uniformity and efficiency. The bill requires the Commission to submit a report to the Chairmen of the House Committee on General Laws and the Senate Committee on General Laws and Technology summarizing the work and any recommendations of the work group by November 1, 2022.

Legal holidays; Clerk of Court Day. Establishes the second Friday of August as a state holiday, in recognition of the clerks of the courts of the Commonwealth.

Study; Department of Transportation; U.S. Route 50; report. Requests that the Department of Transportation conduct a two-year study of traffic congestion on that portion of U.S. Route 50 between the intersections of Interstate 66 in Fairfax County and U.S. Route 15 in Loudoun County and the feasibility of implementing improvements to such portion of the highway.

Disaster or emergency; weather extremes; disconnection prohibitions for certain utilities; residential customers; report. Prohibits telecommunications electric, gas, water, and wastewater utilities and broadband companies from disconnecting service to a residential customer for nonpayment of bills or fees during a declared state of emergency, emergency, major disaster, disaster, resource shortage, or local emergency, as those terms are defined in the Code. The bill provides that the prohibition lasts for 60 days after the state of emergency, emergency, major disaster, disaster, resource shortage, or local emergency has ended or state or local officials determine that the prohibition need no longer be in place, whichever occurs first. The bill further prohibits electric, gas, water, or wastewater utilities from disconnecting service to a residential customer for nonpayment of bills or fees during the heating period of each year, during the cooling period of each year, when the forecasted temperature low is below 32 degrees Fahrenheit or the forecasted temperature high is to exceed 95 degrees Fahrenheit, and during, as declared by the National Weather Service, a winter storm watch or warning, winter weather advisory, freeze warning, heat advisory, or excessive heat watch or warning. Prior to disconnecting a residential customer for the nonpayment of bills, the utility shall apply any available resources to help reduce the customer's debt or enroll the customer in a repayment plan. Disconnections and reconnections based on a residential customer's nonpayment of bills or fees shall not involve extra fees. Under the bill, the State Corporation Commission is required to report annually on disconnections and reconnections for nonpayment of bills, beginning December 1, 2022, and report monthly certain information as described in the bill, beginning December 15, 2022. Disaster or emergency; weather extremes; disconnection prohibitions for certain utilities; residential customers; report. Prohibits telecommunications electric, gas, water, and wastewater utilities and broadband companies from disconnecting service to a residential customer for nonpayment of bills or fees during a declared state of emergency, emergency, major disaster, disaster, resource shortage, or local emergency, as those terms are defined in the Code. The bill provides that the prohibition lasts for 60 days after the state of emergency, emergency, major disaster, disaster, resource shortage, or local emergency has ended or state or local officials determine that the prohibition need no longer be in place, whichever occurs first. The bill further prohibits electric, gas, water, or wastewater utilities from disconnecting service to a residential customer for nonpayment of bills or fees during the heating period of each year, during the cooling period of each year, when the forecasted temperature low is below 32 degrees Fahrenheit or the forecasted temperature high is to exceed 95 degrees Fahrenheit, and during, as declared by the National Weather Service, a winter storm watch or warning, winter weather advisory, freeze warning, heat advisory, or excessive heat watch or warning. Prior to disconnecting a residential customer for the nonpayment of bills, the utility shall apply any available resources to help reduce the customer's debt or enroll the customer in a repayment plan. Disconnections and reconnections based on a residential customer's nonpayment of bills or fees shall not involve extra fees. Under the bill, the State Corporation Commission is required to report annually on disconnections and reconnections for nonpayment of bills, beginning December 1, 2022, and report monthly certain information as described in the bill, beginning December 15, 2022.

Issuing citations; marijuana and certain traffic offenses. Removes the provisions that provide that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop a motor vehicle for operating (i) without a light illuminating a license plate, (ii) with defective and unsafe equipment, (iii) without brake lights or a high mount stop light, (iv) without an exhaust system that prevents excessive or unusual levels of noise, (v) with certain sun-shading materials and tinting films, and (vi) with certain objects suspended in the vehicle, and the accompanying exclusionary provisions. The bill also repeals the provision that provides that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop, search, or seize any person, place, or thing solely on the basis of the odor of marijuana and that no evidence discovered or obtained as a result of such unlawful search or seizure shall be admissible in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding. Issuing citations; marijuana and certain traffic offenses. Removes the provisions that provide that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop a motor vehicle for operating (i) without a light illuminating a license plate, (ii) with defective and unsafe equipment, (iii) without brake lights or a high mount stop light, (iv) without an exhaust system that prevents excessive or unusual levels of noise, (v) with certain sun-shading materials and tinting films, and (vi) with certain objects suspended in the vehicle, and the accompanying exclusionary provisions. The bill also repeals the provision that provides that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop, search, or seize any person, place, or thing solely on the basis of the odor of marijuana and that no evidence discovered or obtained as a result of such unlawful search or seizure shall be admissible in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding.