Board of Education; Individualized Education Program (IEP) meeting participant code of ethics; development. Directs the Department of Education (the Department) to convene a work group to provide recommendations for the development of a code of ethics relating to effective collaboration at Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings among school staff, parents, students, and any other participants with expertise or knowledge of the student. The bill requires the work group to include (i) a facilitator with knowledge and expertise in the scope and mission of the IEP; (ii) the director of the disAbility Law Center or his designee; (iii) representatives from (a) the Legal Aid Justice Center, (b) the Parent Educational Advocacy Training Center (PEATC), (c) the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates (COPPA), (d) the Virginia School Counselor Association, (e) the Arc of Virginia or the Virginia Down Syndrome Association, (f) ChildSavers or Communities in Schools of Virginia, (g) community service boards, and (h) the Department; (iv) three representatives from the Virginia Council of Administrators of Special Education; (v) four parents, guardians, or caregivers of children with IEPs, with attention to families of color, families for whom English is not the primary language, and families who are economically disadvantaged; (vi) an independent parent advocate; and (vii) one division superintendent. The bill requires the work group to submit its recommendations to the Department by November 30, 2023. Board of Education; Individualized Education Program (IEP) meeting participant code of ethics; development. Directs the Department of Education (the Department) to convene a work group to provide recommendations for the development of a code of ethics relating to effective collaboration at Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings among school staff, parents, students, and any other participants with expertise or knowledge of the student. The bill requires the work group to include (i) a facilitator with knowledge and expertise in the scope and mission of the IEP; (ii) the director of the disAbility Law Center or his designee; (iii) representatives from (a) the Legal Aid Justice Center, (b) the Parent Educational Advocacy Training Center (PEATC), (c) the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates (COPPA), (d) the Virginia School Counselor Association, (e) the Arc of Virginia or the Virginia Down Syndrome Association, (f) ChildSavers or Communities in Schools of Virginia, (g) community service boards, and (h) the Department; (iv) three representatives from the Virginia Council of Administrators of Special Education; (v) four parents, guardians, or caregivers of children with IEPs, with attention to families of color, families for whom English is not the primary language, and families who are economically disadvantaged; (vi) an independent parent advocate; and (vii) one division superintendent. The bill requires the work group to submit its recommendations to the Department by November 30, 2023.

Jewish American Heritage Month. Designates May, in 2023 and in each succeeding year, as Jewish American Heritage Month in Virginia.

Assault and battery; persons diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, intellectual disability, or mental illness; penalties. Provides that any person charged with a simple assault and battery offense who has been diagnosed by a psychiatrist or clinical psychologist with an autism spectrum disorder, an intellectual disability or developmental disability, or serious mental illness shall not be subject to a mandatory minimum punishment if the court finds that the violation was caused by or had a direct and substantial relationship to the person's disorder or disability. Under current law, certain simple assault and battery offenses carry a mandatory minimum punishment when such offenses are committed against certain groups of people, including judges, law-enforcement officers, first responders, school employees, and health care providers.

Local rent stabilization authority; civil penalty. Local rent stabilization authority; civil penalty. Provides that any locality may by ordinance adopt rent stabilization provisions. The bill provides for notice and a public hearing prior to the adoption of such ordinance and specifies that all landlords who are under rent stabilization may be required to give up to a two-month written notice of a rent increase and cannot increase the rent by more than the locality's rent stabilization allowance, described in the bill as the maximum amount a landlord can increase a tenant's rent during any 12-month period, in effect at the time of the increase. The bill sets such allowance as equal to the annual increase in the Consumer Price Index for the region in which the locality sits, states that such allowance is effective for a 12-month period beginning July 1 each year, and requires the locality to annually by June 1 publish such allowance on its website. Certain facilities, as outlined in the bill, are exempt from any such ordinance. The bill also requires such ordinance to provide a procedure by which a landlord may apply for an exemption from the rent stabilization provisions in situations where the net operating income generated by the rental facility has not been maintained due to escalating operating expenses or for other appropriate reasons as established by the locality. Finally, the bill provides that a locality may establish a civil penalty for failure to comply with the requirements set out in the ordinance that shall not exceed $2,500 per separate violation.

Virginia Community College System; duties of State Board for Community Colleges; standardization of health care-related programs. Directs the State Board for Community Colleges to develop and implement a plan to standardize across all comprehensive community colleges the courses offered for health care-related degree, credential, or licensure programs, excluding any registered nursing programs. The bill requires such plan to include procedures and criteria for (i) standardizing such courses by name, curriculum, coursework, quality, academic rigor, and standard of evaluation; (ii) awarding credit toward the completion of any such health care-related program; and (iii) standardizing the manner in which academic and clinical hour credits are awarded for such courses to ensure that they are stackable and transferrable across all comprehensive community colleges.

Electric utilities; pilot program for underground transmission or distribution lines; additional projects. Adds one project to the existing pilot program for underground transmission lines. The bill requires the State Corporation Commission to approve one additional application filed between January 1, 2023, and October 1, 2023, as a qualifying project to be constructed in whole or in part underground, as a part of the pilot program. The bill requires that the added qualifying project be a newly proposed 230-kilovolt underground line and that (i) an engineering analysis demonstrates that it is technically feasible to place the proposed line, in whole or in part, underground; (ii) the governing body of each locality in which a portion of the proposed line will be placed underground indicates, by resolution, general community support for the project and that the governing body supports the transmission line to be placed underground; (iii) a project has been filed with the Commission or is pending issuance of a certificate of public convenience and necessity by October 1, 2023; (iv) the estimated additional cost of placing the proposed line, in whole or in part, underground does not exceed $40 million or, if greater than $40 million, the cost does not exceed 2.5 times the cost of placing the same line overhead, assuming accepted industry standards for undergrounding to ensure safety and reliability; if the public utility, the affected localities, and the Commission agree, a proposed underground line whose cost exceeds 2.5 times the cost of placing the line overhead may also be accepted into the pilot program; (v) the public utility requests that the project be considered as a qualifying project under the pilot program; and (vi) the primary need of the project is for purposes of grid reliability or grid resiliency or to support economic development priorities of the Commonwealth, including the economic development priorities and the comprehensive plan of the governing body of the locality in which at least a portion of line will be placed, and not to address aging assets that would have otherwise been replaced in due course. Electric utilities; pilot program for underground transmission or distribution lines; additional projects. Adds one project to the existing pilot program for underground transmission lines. The bill requires the State Corporation Commission to approve one additional application filed between January 1, 2023, and October 1, 2023, as a qualifying project to be constructed in whole or in part underground, as a part of the pilot program. The bill requires that the added qualifying project be a newly proposed 230-kilovolt underground line and that (i) an engineering analysis demonstrates that it is technically feasible to place the proposed line, in whole or in part, underground; (ii) the governing body of each locality in which a portion of the proposed line will be placed underground indicates, by resolution, general community support for the project and that the governing body supports the transmission line to be placed underground; (iii) a project has been filed with the Commission or is pending issuance of a certificate of public convenience and necessity by October 1, 2023; (iv) the estimated additional cost of placing the proposed line, in whole or in part, underground does not exceed $40 million or, if greater than $40 million, the cost does not exceed 2.5 times the cost of placing the same line overhead, assuming accepted industry standards for undergrounding to ensure safety and reliability; if the public utility, the affected localities, and the Commission agree, a proposed underground line whose cost exceeds 2.5 times the cost of placing the line overhead may also be accepted into the pilot program; (v) the public utility requests that the project be considered as a qualifying project under the pilot program; and (vi) the primary need of the project is for purposes of grid reliability or grid resiliency or to support economic development priorities of the Commonwealth, including the economic development priorities and the comprehensive plan of the governing body of the locality in which at least a portion of line will be placed, and not to address aging assets that would have otherwise been replaced in due course. Additionally, the bill adds one project to place underground an electric distribution mainline as part of a transportation infrastructure improvement project incorporating transit that has been initially accepted for partial funding of at least $250 million pursuant to a federal program. The bill provides that such project is qualified to be placed underground if (a) the estimated additional cost of placing the proposed mainline, in whole or in part, underground does not exceed $40 million or, if greater than $40 million, the cost does not exceed 2.5 times the cost of placing the same line overhead, assuming accepted industry standards for undergrounding to ensure safety and reliability; if the public utility, the affected localities, and the Commission agree, a proposed underground line whose cost exceeds 2.5 times the cost of placing the line overhead may also be accepted into the pilot program and (b) the public utility requests that the project be considered as a qualifying project under this section. The provisions of the bill related to the underground distribution mainline expire on July 1, 2028.

Electric utilities; cost recovery; alternative to rate adjustment clause. Provides that in any proceeding regarding petitions for a rate adjustment clause, the State Corporation Commission may, as an alternative to a rate adjustment clause, authorize recovery of any proposed cost through the utility's rates for generation and distribution services, if the Commission, in its discretion, determines that such cost recovery better serves ratepayers while still providing the utility the opportunity to recover its costs and earn a fair rate of return.

Study; Department of Social Services; marijuana possession or use as justification for removal of child or denial of custody or visitation; report. Requests the Department of Social Services to study marijuana possession or use as justification for removal or denial of custody or visitation.

Special license plates; BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY FOUNDATION. Authorizes the issuance of revenue-sharing special license plates for supporters of the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation bearing the legend BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY FOUNDATION.

Fines and costs assessed against juveniles in criminal and traffic cases; report. Gives a court discretion in determining the appropriate amount, if any, of fines and fees imposed against a juvenile for a traffic infraction or other traffic offense and eliminates the court's authority to impose a fine as an order of disposition for a juvenile delinquency. The bill also provides that after a juvenile is adjudicated to be delinquent but prior to the imposition of any penalty, the court shall determine the applicable fees and costs, including attorney fees, to be assessed against the juvenile's parents and shall determine if such juvenile's parents are financially able to pay for the attorney in whole or in part and refuse to do so. The bill provides that while determining if any fees or costs should be imposed, the court shall give the juvenile, or the juvenile's attorney, and the parents an opportunity to be heard. Finally, the bill requires the Office of the Executive Secretary of the Supreme Court of Virginia to annually report to the Governor and General Assembly on the total fines and costs assessed in the preceding calendar year in all criminal and traffic cases for each circuit court participating in the Office of the Executive Secretary's case management system and for each general district court and juvenile and domestic relations district court. The bill requires that the report include the fines and costs assessed by race of the defendant. The bill contains technical amendments.

Fines and costs; period of limitations on collection. Changes the period of limitations for the collection of court fines and costs from within 60 years from the date of the offense or delinquency giving rise to imposition of such penalty if imposed by a circuit court or within 30 years if imposed by a general district court to within 10 years from the date of the judgment whether imposed by a circuit court or general district court. The bill provides that upon the expiration of the period of limitations, the fines imposed and costs taxed are extinguished, there shall be no right to collect the debt, and the period of limitations shall not be extended or revived on account of a partial payment; a written or verbal affirmation of any fines, monetary penalties, or costs; or a change in collection methods.

Abortion or other reproductive health care services; prohibitions on extradition for certain crimes; prohibited practices under Virginia Consumer Protection Act. Provides that no demand for extradition of a person charged with a criminal violation of law of another state shall be recognized by the Governor if such alleged violation involves the receipt of or assistance with reproductive health care services unless the alleged violation would also constitute a criminal offense under the laws of the Commonwealth. The bill adds obtaining, disclosing, selling, or disseminating certain enumerated personal reproductive or sexual health information without the consent of the consumer as a prohibited practice under the Virginia Consumer Protection Act.

State plan for medical assistance services; dental care; anesthesia. Directs the Board of Medical Assistance Services to amend the state plan for medical assistance services to provide for the payment of medical assistance for charges incurred and anesthetics provided in conjunction with dental care that is provided to a recipient (i) in a hospital or ambulatory surgical center if the recipient has a medical condition that requires hospitalization or general anesthesia for dental care or the recipient is a person with an autism spectrum disorder or a developmental disability, or is a person with a disability, or (ii) in the office of an oral or maxillofacial surgeon or a dentist who has obtained a permit for sedation and anesthesia, if the recipient is a person with an autism spectrum disorder or a developmental disability.

School boards; student member required. Requires each school board to establish a method for the selection of a student to serve as a member of the school board, subject to the following conditions: (i) the student is enrolled in a public high school in the local school division; (ii) any such student is eligible to be selected as a member of the school board without regard to such student's age or citizenship status, provided, however, that in the event that the method for selection of the student member is election, the student meets the qualifications to hold elective office set forth in Article II, Section 5 of the Constitution of Virginia; (iii) the school board establishes detailed policies, procedures, and timelines relating to such selection method, including policies that establish term length, eligibility to serve with or without voting privileges, eligibility for a salary, eligibility for selection to subsequent terms, and grounds for removal; and (iv) each student selected to serve as a member of the school board serves in addition to and not as a replacement for any member duly authorized and selected to serve on the school board in accordance with relevant law, and each such student member factors into the calculation of a quorum.

Industrial hemp; maximum THC concentration. Increases from 0.3 percent to one percent, in the definition of industrial hemp, the maximum concentration of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in the plant Cannabis sativa and excludes hemp products with a THC concentration of one percent or less from (i) the definition of marijuana and (ii) tetrahydrocannabinols as found on Schedule I of the Drug Control Act. The bill allows the Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services to destroy Cannabis sativa found to have a THC concentration greater than one percent only if such Cannabis sativa is intended for human consumption; reduces the application and registration requirements for any person seeking to grow, deal in, or process industrial hemp; and prohibits the Board of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Commissioner from adopting any regulation that prohibits the use of industrial hemp or hemp products in the production of any commercial feed product regulated by the Board.