An Act to amend and reenact § 19.2-134.1 of the Code of Virginia, relating to collection and reporting of data related to adults charged with a criminal offense punishable by confinement in jail or a term of imprisonment; Virginia Longitudinal Data System.
HB1084 amends Virginia law governing the Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission’s collection of data on adults charged with criminal offenses punishable by jail or imprisonment. The bill requires the Commission to collect statewide and locality-level information annually from state and local agencies, criminal justice agencies, circuit court clerks, and, where applicable, the statewide Circuit Court Case Management System. The data is to be used only for research, evaluation, or statistical purposes, with confidentiality and security protections.
The bill expands and specifies the categories of information that must be gathered and reported. These include demographic details about the person charged, the charging document used, offense characteristics, prior pending cases, supervision status, criminal history, detention and bail status, bond conditions, pretrial services involvement, use of a bail bondsman, and failure-to-appear information. The measure is tied to the Virginia Longitudinal Data System, indicating an effort to improve the state’s ability to analyze criminal justice outcomes over time.
The bill amends § 19.2-134.1 of the Code of Virginia by broadening the scope and detail of criminal justice data that must be collected and reported by the Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission. It increases reporting obligations for multiple state and local entities and reinforces the Commission’s authority to obtain data for research and statistical analysis. The practical effect is to create a more comprehensive statewide dataset on adult criminal charges, bail, detention, and related criminal history factors, which may inform policy analysis, sentencing research, and criminal justice reform efforts.
The available record shows no committee transcript or vote history indicating opposition or debate, and the bill was enacted as Chapter 260. Based on that outcome, the overall sentiment appears favorable or at least noncontroversial. The bill’s focus on data collection, reporting, and research likely made it broadly acceptable to lawmakers interested in criminal justice administration and evidence-based policymaking.
No specific points of contention are documented in the provided materials. Potential areas that could raise concern in a bill of this type include privacy, confidentiality, administrative burden on courts and agencies, and the use of demographic and criminal history data in criminal justice analysis. However, the text expressly limits use of the data to research, evaluation, or statistical purposes and requires confidentiality and security protections, which likely addressed many concerns.