Fire Company Definition Bill Amended to Address VACo Concerns
On February 2, the House General Laws Subcommittee #1 heard testimony on HB 1765 (Carr), which as originally drafted, would expand the definition of Fire Companies in the Code of the Virginia to include firefighter support organizations whose purpose is to provide rehabilitation and support services to firefighters. The definition of a fire company is […]
Recordation Tax Distribution Bill Dies in Committee
SB 1161 (Stuart), as introduced, raises from $20 million to $60 million the amount of recordation tax revenue that should be annually distributed. This bill holds Hampton Roads Regional Transit harmless by keeping their $20 million dollar allocation annually. The important change in this bill, and one VACo members will be delighted to hear, is […]
“Tik Tok” Bill Expanded to Include All Public Bodies Passes the House
HB 2385 (Brewer), as originally drafted, would prohibit any employee or agent of any executive branch agency or person or entity contracting with any such agency from downloading or using any application, including TikTok or WeChat, or accessing any website developed by ByteDance Ltd. or Tencent Holdings Ltd. (i) on any state-issued device or state-owned […]
Bill Prohibiting Localities to Regulate Towing Fees Passes House
SB 979 (Marsden) and HB 1649 (Wyatt), as introduced, would prohibit localities from setting limits on towing fees and other associated fees for trespassing passenger vehicles that are in localities without a local ordinance setting these fees. VACo opposed the initial legislation as we believe this pre-empts local authority and restricts the ability of local […]
Fireworks Bill Fizzles Out
On February 2, the House General Laws Subcommittee #1 heard testimony on HB 1813 (March), which among other provisions, would strip local government authority to regulate the sale of or use, ignition, or explosion of fireworks within a locality. This bill or ones with similar intent have been periodically introduced in past General Assembly sessions, […]
Bill to Prohibit Data Centers Within One Mile of a Park Fails
SB 1078 (Peterson), which prohibits the location of a data center within one mile of a national park or state park, failed in the Senate Rules Committee by a vote of 13-4 last week. VACo spoke in opposition to the bill as it would encroach upon local authority to make land use decisions. Similar pieces […]
Capitol Contact ALERT! Call Now to Oppose Problematic Bill That May Result in Negative Impacts on Local Water Quality
Bill to be Heard Monday, February 6 – Call Your Delegates Now to Oppose HB 2282 (Edmunds), as amended, would allow forest harvesting activities to be exempt from the Virginia Stormwater Management Program even if the land does not intend to be reforested or turned into agricultural use. In effect, these changes in the law […]
Capitol Contact ALERT! Call Now to Oppose Bill Gutting Localities Ability to Regulate Solid Waste
Bill to be Heard Monday, February 6 – Call Your Senators Now to Oppose SB 1365 (Lewis) would exempt Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs) from local flow control ordinance by State law. MRFs are facilities that separate recyclable materials such as metals or other recyclable products from solid waste. The definition of a MRF, as set […]
Bill Creating a New Exemption from Stormwater Regulations for Harvesting of Trees Passes House Subcommittee
Under current code, the clearing of land for the harvesting of forest products is exempt from applying to comply with the provisions of the Virginia Stormwater Management Program (VSMP) law so long as the land is “reforested artificially or naturally” or “converted to bona fide agricultural or improved pasture.” HB 2282 (Edmunds) as amended would […]
VACo School Construction Financing Bill Tabled Without Public Testimony
In the early dawn light of January 27, and without taking public testimony, the members of House Finance Subcommittee #3 voted 5-3 to lay HB 2316 (Bourne) on the table, effectively ending the chances for the bill’s passage. As previously reported, this bill would permit any county or city to impose an additional local sales […]
Bill to Make Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU) a By-Right Use Fails
HB 2100 (Hudson), as introduced, mandates that any single-family dwelling (SFD), or property that allows for SFD, be permitted to include an accessory dwelling unit (ADU). The bill was amended in a House Counties, Cities and Towns Subcommittee to remove the mandate and instead direct the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) to […]
VACo Seeks Feedback on Waste Disposal Preemption Bill
SB 1365 (Lewis) provides that a locality may not adopt a local ordinance that would prevent or prohibit the disposal of garbage, trash, or refuse at any materials recovery facility as such term is defined in the bill. The amended bill reported out of the Senate Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources Committee by a vote […]
Bills Gutting Local Authority to Regulate Short-Term Rentals Fail
HB 2271 (Marshall) and SB 1391 (Lewis), which exempt short-term rental property managed by a Virginia realtor from any short-term rental ordinance, were laid on the table in their respective committees at the request of the bill patrons. Both the Senate Local Government Committee and the House Counties, Cities and Towns Committee also requested that […]
Problematic Workers’ Compensation Bills Denied or Referred
As previously reported, a number of bills making changes to the Workers’ Compensation Act are winding their way through the General Assembly. Two of the remaining bills have either been tabled or referred to the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC). HB 1631 (Bulova) / SB 1088 (Ebbin) would allow dispatchers to claim workers’ […]
Virginia Department of Education Miscalculates Basic Aid Distribution by $200 Million
On January 27, Superintendent of Public Instruction Jillian Balow emailed school superintendents across the Commonwealth that due to human error at the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE), the Basic Aid Calculation Tool released in mid-December did not include recognition of the grocery tax hold harmless payment, which began in FY 2023 as part of the offset […]
Problematic Bill Related to Local Enforcement to be Heard Tomorrow in Committee
SB 1495 (Surovell) provides that any person aggrieved by an enforcement action by a locality, where the enforcement action was based upon a willful disregard for applicable law, regulation, or ordinance, shall be entitled to an award of compensatory damages and to an order remanding the matter to the locality with a direction to terminate […]