Kinship foster care; barrier crimes; exception. Allows local boards of social services and child-placing agencies to approve as a kinship foster parent an applicant who has been convicted of possessing a Schedule I or Schedule II controlled substance, provided that (i) the offense did not involve possession of heroin, fentanyl, or methylenedioxy-methamphetamine, (ii) five years have elapsed from the date of the conviction, and (iii) the local board or child-placing agency makes a specific finding that approving the kinship foster care placement would not adversely affect the safety and well-being of the child. Under current law, such applicants may be approved as a kinship foster parent if 10 years have elapsed from the date of conviction. Kinship foster care; barrier crimes; exception. Allows local boards of social services and child-placing agencies to approve as a kinship foster parent an applicant who has been convicted of possessing a Schedule I or Schedule II controlled substance, provided that (i) the offense did not involve possession of heroin, fentanyl, or methylenedioxy-methamphetamine, (ii) five years have elapsed from the date of the conviction, and (iii) the local board or child-placing agency makes a specific finding that approving the kinship foster care placement would not adversely affect the safety and well-being of the child. Under current law, such applicants may be approved as a kinship foster parent if 10 years have elapsed from the date of conviction.

Association health plans; base rates based on employer member's risk profile. Provides that for association health plans, an insurer may (i) establish base rates formed on an actuarially sound, modified community rating methodology that considers the pooling of all participant claims and (ii) utilize each employer member's specific risk profile to determine contribution rates for each individual employer member's share of the premium by actuarially adjusting above or below established base rates.

Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services; data reporting on children and adolescents; reporting requirements. Removes the requirement that the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services collect certain data relating to children and adolescents from each community policy and management team and each community services board or behavioral health authority.

School counselors; staff time. Defines the terms "direct counseling" and "program planning and school support" for the purpose of the provision of law that requires each school counselor to spend at least 80 percent of his staff time during normal school hours in the direct counseling of individual students or groups of students and clarifies that each school counselor may also spend up to 20 percent of his staff time during normal school hours on program planning and support.

Behavioral Health Commission; agency assistance; access; records. Clarifies the duty of agencies and political subdivisions of the Commonwealth to cooperate with and assist the Behavioral Health Commission in the performance of its duties and requires such agencies and political subdivisions to provide to the Commission (i) to the fullest extent possible and except as prohibited by law, any records, including data and information, requested by the Commission and (ii) upon request and availability, access to the facilities of any such agency or political subdivision. The bill also excludes from the mandatory disclosure provisions of the Virginia Freedom of Information Act records of the Commission.

Virginia Employment Commission; attorney authorization; powers. Provides that the Commissioner of the Virginia Employment Commission may authorize any attorney employed by the Commission to issue subpoenas to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, papers, correspondence, memoranda, and other records deemed necessary as evidence in connection with the investigation or adjudication of any disputed claim or the administration of the Virginia Unemployment Compensation Act. The bill permits any party to file a motion to quash any such subpoena prior to the date production is required in a miscellaneous action in circuit court.

Community services boards; behavioral health authorities; performance contracts. Modifies and reorganizes provisions related to the requirements of performance contracts entered into by the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services with community services boards and behavioral health authorities. As introduced this bill was a recommendation of the Behavioral Health Commission and the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission. Certain subsections of the bill have a delayed effective date of July 1, 2024.

Public utilities; delay of termination of service for certain residential customers; serious medical Public utilities; delay of termination of service for certain residential customers; serious medical condition; report. Requires the State Corporation Commission to establish by regulation exemptions to termination of service by a public utility that provides electric, gas, or water and wastewater services for certain residential customers. The bill requires such regulations to require a public utility to delay termination of service for any residential customer (i) who has not filed a serious medical condition form with the public utility, for 15 calendar days upon oral or written notification from the residential customer that such customer or a family member residing with the customer has a serious medical condition; for such customer, the utility shall delay disconnection for at least 60 calendar days upon receiving a serious medical condition form during the 15-day period; (ii) who has filed a serious medical condition form with the public utility, for at least 60 days beyond the expiration of any required termination notice; or (iii) or who certifies to the utility that the customer's household includes primary residents who are not younger than 65 years of age, not older than 12 months of age, or have a disability, for a minimum of 60 calendar days beyond the expiration of any required termination notice. The bill requires that for any residential customer who is experiencing financial hardship and whose serious medical condition will last beyond the 60-calendar-delay period described in clause (ii), the utility shall work to establish a payment plan and make all due effort to avoid service termination; The bill requires such regulations to permit a residential customer to delay termination of service up to three times within a 12-month period. Each public utility subject to the provisions of the bill shall report monthly by the fifteenth day of each month information related to the filing of serious medical condition forms, exemptions from disconnections granted under the provisions of the bill, and payment plans entered into with residential customers.

Unlawful picketing or parading to obstruct or influence justice; penalty. Provides that any person who, with the intent of interfering with, obstructing, or impeding the administration of justice, or with the intent of influencing or intimidating in the discharge of his duty any judge, juror, witness, court officer, or court employee, pickets or parades in or near a residence occupied or used by such person is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. The bill also provides that the provisions regarding the issuance and service of summons in place of a warrant do not apply to such violations. Unlawful picketing or parading to obstruct or influence justice; penalty. Provides that any person who, with the intent of interfering with, obstructing, or impeding the administration of justice, or with the intent of influencing or intimidating in the discharge of his duty any judge, juror, witness, court officer, or court employee, pickets or parades in or near a residence occupied or used by such person is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. The bill also provides that the provisions regarding the issuance and service of summons in place of a warrant do not apply to such violations.

Alcoholic beverage control; suspension or revocation of certain retail licenses; reinstatement. Provides that if the Board of Directors of the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority suspends or revokes the license of a retail establishment due solely to the fact that the establishment's food establishment permit from the Department of Health was revoked or suspended, the Board shall automatically reinstate such license once the Department of Health has reinstated the food establishment permit, provided that the licensee is in compliance with all applicable provisions of law. Alcoholic beverage control; suspension or revocation of certain retail licenses; reinstatement. Provides that if the Board of Directors of the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority suspends or revokes the license of a retail establishment due solely to the fact that the establishment's food establishment permit from the Department of Health was revoked or suspended, the Board shall automatically reinstate such license once the Department of Health has reinstated the food establishment permit, provided that the licensee is in compliance with all applicable provisions of law.

Provision of abortion; abortion based on a disability or the sex or ethnicity of the unborn child prohibited; penalty. Provides that, except in a medical emergency, a person shall not perform, induce, or attempt to perform or induce an abortion unless the physician or nurse practitioner who is to perform or induce the abortion has first confirmed that the abortion is not being sought on the basis of a disability or the sex or ethnicity of the unborn child and has documented these facts in the maternal patient's chart, as well as in a report to be filed with the State Health Commissioner within 15 days of the abortion. The bill further provides that any person performing such a prohibited abortion has committed an act of unprofessional conduct, that his license to practice medicine or as a nurse practitioner in the Commonwealth shall be suspended or revoked pursuant to the rules of unprofessional conduct, and that he is subject to a civil penalty.

MEI Project Approval Commission; board-level gender and diversity requirements. Prohibits the MEI Project Approval Commission from recommending approval of any major employment and investment (MEI) project for a business that does not have and does not commit to maintaining a balanced board of directors based upon gender and racial diversity, such that at least 30 percent of such board of directors consists of women and historically underrepresented groups. The bill requires any business seeking approval of a project to submit a board diversity disclosure and to update such disclosure annually, specifying the number and percentage of diverse directors on the board of such business who self-identify as female or represent a national, racial, ethnic, indigenous, or cultural identity in the country of the business's principal executive offices. MEI Project Approval Commission; board-level gender and diversity requirements. Prohibits the MEI Project Approval Commission from recommending approval of any major employment and investment (MEI) project for a business that does not have and does not commit to maintaining a balanced board of directors based upon gender and racial diversity, such that at least 30 percent of such board of directors consists of women and historically underrepresented groups. The bill requires any business seeking approval of a project to submit a board diversity disclosure and to update such disclosure annually, specifying the number and percentage of diverse directors on the board of such business who self-identify as female or represent a national, racial, ethnic, indigenous, or cultural identity in the country of the business's principal executive offices.

Absentee voting in person; available beginning on the fourteenth day prior to election; hours of operation. Limits absentee voting in person to the two weeks immediately preceding an election. During these two weeks, the bill requires that absentee voting in person be available to the public a minimum of eight hours per day at a general registrar or voter satellite office. Current law requires absentee voting in person to be available 45 days immediately preceding an election and specifies the hours of the day that such offices be open.

Plans and programs; drought evaluation and response plans; Potomac River. Requires the State Water Control Board to recognize service areas for water utilities in the Commonwealth that use the Potomac River as a water supply source as a distinct drought evaluation region. The bill requires the Board to incorporate certain provisions from the Metropolitan Washington Water Supply and Drought Awareness Response Plan: Potomac River System (the Metropolitan Washington Plan) into the existing drought evaluation and response plans that are applicable to the Potomac River drought evaluation region. The bill directs the Board to adopt regulations that further recognize the localities that include any portion of the service area of a water supply utility in the Commonwealth that uses the Potomac River as a water supply source as a distinct regional planning area. The bill requires such regulations to incorporate certain provisions from the Metropolitan Washington Plan. The bill provides that the incorporation of such provisions shall not be construed to limit the authority of the Governor during a declared drought emergency.

Virginia Stormwater Management Program; Virginia Erosion and Sediment Control Program; exemptions for the harvesting of forest crops. Clarifies that the provisions of the Virginia Stormwater Management Program and the Erosion and Sediment Control Program do not apply to the clearing of lands for the harvesting of forest crops when the areas on which harvesting occurs are not intended to be reforested artificially or naturally or converted to bona fide agricultural or improved pasture use, provided that the land-disturbing activity is the minimum land disturbance necessary, including clearing, grading, excavating, or removal of stumps, for the harvesting of timber and the construction of roads and trails for forest management purposes. Virginia Stormwater Management Program; Virginia Erosion and Sediment Control Program; exemptions for the harvesting of forest crops. Clarifies that the provisions of the Virginia Stormwater Management Program and the Erosion and Sediment Control Program do not apply to the clearing of lands for the harvesting of forest crops when the areas on which harvesting occurs are not intended to be reforested artificially or naturally or converted to bona fide agricultural or improved pasture use, provided that the land-disturbing activity is the minimum land disturbance necessary, including clearing, grading, excavating, or removal of stumps, for the harvesting of timber and the construction of roads and trails for forest management purposes.