CONTENTS | < PREVIOUS | NEXT > | BILL INDEX

General Assembly

P Passed

P HB397

Correctional impact statements. Provides that there will be one fiscal impact statement prepared by the Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission for all adult sentencing changes; currently there are two: one prepared by the Commission and one by the Department of Planning and Budget. Juvenile bills will continue to be prepared by the Department of Planning and Budget in conjunction with the Department of Juvenile Justice. The 10-year look forward period of the enacted laws is reduced to six years. If the agency preparing the bill does not have sufficient information to project the offender population impact, the words "Cannot be determined" will be printed on the bill. Effective July 1, 2002, an analysis of the impact on local and regional jails, juvenile detention facilities, and state and local community corrections programs will be required. The bill also provides that the Corrections Special Reserve Fund is to be used only for capital expenses, rather than operating expenses as under current law. This bill is the recommendation of a joint subcommittee created pursuant to Item 477 D of the 1999 Appropriation Act. The subcommittee's study is available as a legislative document.

Patron - Woodrum

P HB510

General Assembly; exception to the first-day introduction requirement for charter and claims bills. Allows charter and claims bills to be filed after the first calendar day of the session in accordance with the rules of the General Assembly, which is the case for all other first-day introduction bills. The procedural resolution provides that these bills may be introduced after the first day with the consent of two-thirds of the members of the house.

Patron - Cranwell

P HB719

Membership; Joint Commission on Technology and Science. Increases the membership of the Joint Commission on Technology and Science ("Commission") to 12 by adding two more Delegates, in accordance with Rule 16 of the Rules of the House of Delegates, and one more Senator. The terms of members have been changed to coincide with their terms of office. Additionally, the Commission, which was required to annually elect a chairman from among its members, would be required to elect two co-chairmen, who are members of different political party caucuses.

Patron - Purkey

P HB906

Legislative consideration of sales and use tax exemptions. Changes the requirements for submitting information to the Department of Taxation regarding requests for sales and use tax exemptions by limiting such required information to nonprofit organizations. It also eliminates an obsolete provision requiring that exemptions for non-profit organizations only be considered in even-numbered years. In 1999, § 30-19.03:1.1. was amended to allow the General Assembly to consider any tax relief measure, such as a request for sales and use tax exemption, at any time during a regular or special session.

Patron - Cranwell

P SB193

General Assembly; archival of original bills and resolutions. Requires the Clerk of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of Delegates to transfer to the Library of Virginia the original bills and resolutions introduced in each house for archival purposes. Although the clerks are allowed to destroy these measures under current law, the practice has been to send them to the Library for preservation.

Patron - Trumbo

P SB583

Joint Commission on Workforce Development. Establishes the Joint Commission on Workforce Development as a legislative agency to study all aspects of workforce development and assist in stimulating, encouraging, and promoting workforce training and development in the Commonwealth. The Commission will, among other things, (i) evaluate the impact of existing statutes and proposed legislation related to workforce training and development, (ii) investigate, research and consider issues related to workforce training and development, and (iii) annually report its findings and recommendations to the General Assembly.

Patron - Hawkins

P SB595

Correctional impact statements. Provides that there will be one fiscal impact statement prepared by the Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission for all adult sentencing changes; currently there are two: one prepared by the Commission and one by the Department of Planning and Budget. Juvenile bills will continue to be prepared by the Department of Planning and Budget in conjunction with the Department of Juvenile Justice. The 10-year look forward period of the enacted laws is reduced to six years. If the agency preparing the bill does not have sufficient information to project the offender population impact, the words "Cannot be determined" will be printed on the bill. Effective July 1, 2002, an analysis of the impact on local and regional jails, juvenile detention facilities, and state and local community corrections programs will be required. The bill also provides that the Corrections Special Reserve Fund is to be used only for capital expenses, rather than operating expenses as under current law. This bill is the recommendation of a joint subcommittee created pursuant to Item 477 D of the 1999 Appropriation Act. The subcommittee's study is available as a legislative document.

Patron - Stolle

F Failed

F HB58

General Assembly; disclosure of office allowances. Requires members of the General Assembly who receive an allowance for unvouchered office expenses and supplies provided by the general appropriation act to keep a detailed and separate account of these funds and to file an annual disclosure statement. The disclosure statement must be filed with the State Board of Elections no later than the date members must file their statements of economic interests with the Clerks of the House and Senate. The statement must include an account of all receipts and expenditures recorded during the preceding calendar year. Unexpended balances must be carried forward and accounted for in the next reporting period. The bill prohibits legislators from making expenditures from these funds to family members.

Patron - Purkey

F HB531

General Assembly; distribution of the Code of Virginia. Provides that members of the General Assembly must annually choose between receiving copies of the Code of Virginia, the supplements and replacement volumes and the hardbound volumes of the Acts of Assembly. The bill also clarifies that the hardbound volume set of the Code for House members will be paid from contingent funds of the Clerk of the House. The current law only addresses the payment of the Code for Senate members.

Patron - Tata

F HB941

General Assembly; disclosure of office allowances. Requires members of the General Assembly who receive an allowance for office expenses and supplies provided by the general appropriation act to keep a detailed and separate account of these funds and to file an annual disclosure statement. The disclosure statements must be filed with the respective Clerk of the House or Senate no later than the date members must file their statements of economic interests. The disclosure statement must include an account of all expenditures recorded during the preceding calendar year. Unexpended balances must be returned to the Commonwealth.

Patron - Williams

F HB1120

General Assembly Select Commission on Transportation. Creates a 20-member legislative Commission to study and make recommendations on transportation programs and policies in the Commonwealth.

Patron - Robinson

F HB1140

General Assembly; office expenses. Changes the office expense reimbursement arrangement to an accountable plan within the meaning of the Internal Revenue Code and the regulations thereunder. Members will be required to substantiate their business expenses on a quarterly basis and return any amount in excess of the substantiated expenses.

Patron - Jones, S.C.

F HB1267

Joint Commission on Workforce Development. Establishes the Joint Commission on Workforce Development as a legislative agency to study all aspects of workforce development and assist in stimulating, encouraging, and promoting workforce training and development in the Commonwealth. The Commission will, among other things, (i) evaluate the impact of existing statutes and proposed legislation related to workforce training and development, (ii) investigate, research and consider issues related to workforce training and development, and (iii) annually report its findings and recommendations to the General Assembly.

Patron - Rust

F HB1447

General Assembly; legislative compensation; creation of a Citizens' Advisory Commission on Legislative Compensation. Specifies the current regular and additional salaries of the members of the General Assembly appropriated in the general appropriation act and provides, beginning in January 2004, for the increase in the regular salary of members of the General Assembly to $27,000 and the increase in salary of the Speaker of the House and Lieutenant Governor to $38,000. Amounts are set forth in the Code so that future proposed salary increases would have to be voted upon separately from the appropriation bill. The bill also provides a separate office equipment expense allowance, set at a maximum of $2,500 for a four-year period. Members are required to submit a voucher and accompanying receipts prior to receiving payment for equipment expenses. Finally, the bill requires the Joint Rules Committee to appoint, beginning in 2002, and every four years thereafter, a temporary Citizens' Advisory Commission on Legislative Compensation to examine the salary, expenses, and benefits of members of the General Assembly and their administrative assistants and secretaries. The Commission shall report its recommendations to the Governor and the General Assembly by December 1, after which it shall cease to exist until a new commission is appointed three years and seven months later.

Patron - Hull

F SB355

General Assembly; judicial nominations. Increases the responsibility of the Committees for Courts of Justice, the committees responsible for determining the qualification of justices and judges in the Commonwealth, in the selection process of persons elected to the Supreme Court of Virginia and Virginia Court of Appeals. In addition to qualifying candidates for these courts, the committees will be statutorily responsible for nominating qualified candidates for consideration by their respective house. The houses shall be required to consider the committee's nominations first.

Patron - Edwards

F SB410

Joint Commission on Health Care. Allows the appointment of a former member of the Senate or House of Delegates who previously served on the Commission to fill a vacated term created when a legislative member fails to retain his membership in the house from which he was appointed.

Patron - Barry

F SB569

General Assembly; per diem for legislative aides. Provides that the General Assembly shall annually appropriate funds sufficient to pay per diem and mileage for two persons to serve each member of the General Assembly as a secretary or administrative assistant during a legislative session or extension thereof.

Patron - Rerras

C Carried Over

C SB646

Information on proposed constitutional amendments. Modifies the present law requirement for the preparation and distribution of a brief, neutral explanation of each proposed constitutional amendment approved by the General Assembly and submitted to the voters for approval or rejection. The changes include a requirement to post the explanation on the State Board of Elections website on the Internet, authorization for a brief statement on the effect of a "yes" or "no" vote and summary of pro and con arguments, and a requirement for prompt prepartion of the explanation.

Patron - Whipple