Summary: Compensation of court-appointed counsel. Raises the limitation of fees that court-appointed counsel can receive for representation on various offenses in district and circuit courts. The bill also limits the fees charged for the cost of court-appointed counsel or public defender representation to persons determined to be indigent to an amount no greater than the amount such person would have owed if such fees had been assessed on or before June 30, 2024. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2025. This bill is identical to SB 356.

Summary: Maximum number of judges in each judicial district and circuit. Increases by one the maximum number of authorized juvenile and domestic relations district court judges in the Twentieth and Thirty-first Judicial Districts. The bill also increases by one the maximum number of authorized circuit court judges in the First, Ninth, Fifteenth, and Twenty-fifth Judicial Circuits. This bill is a recommendation of the Committee on District Courts and the Judicial Council of Virginia. This bill incorporates HB 154 and HB 717 and is identical to SB 710.

Summary: Nonbinary sex or gender designation option.Requires all forms or applications to offer any applicant the optionof "male," "female," or "nonbinary" when designating the applicant'ssex or gender. The bill contains technical amendments.

Summary: Community service work in lieu of payment of fines and costs; work performed while incarcerated. Requires a court to establish a program and allow any person upon whom a fine and costs have been imposed to discharge all or part of the fine or costs by earning credits for the performance of community service work or work performed while incarcerated, defined in the bill as any work done on or after July 1, 2020, by a person confined in any penal or corrective institution of the Commonwealth or any of its political subdivisions who is paid a wage that is less than the Virginia minimum wage. The bill requires such program be available during imprisonment in a local, regional, or state correctional facility. The bill provides that a person who is performing work while incarcerated shall be credited at the same rate as the community service work rate less any wages received. Under current law, a court is required to establish a program for providing an option for community service work in lieu of payment of fines and costs but offering such option is not mandatory. The bill also requires the local, regional, or state correctional facility to provide confirmation of the hours worked and the credits earned for such work upon request of any person who has performed work while incarcerated or his representative.

Summary: Child victims and witnesses using two-way closed-circuit television; standard. Expands the age range during which a childmay testify using two-way closed-circuit television in a criminalcase to include any child younger than 18 years of age at the timeof the trial. Under current law, an alleged victim must be 14 yearsof age or younger at the time of the alleged offense and 16 yearsof age or younger at the time of the trial to testify by two-wayclosed-circuit television, and a child witness must be 14 years ofage or younger at the time of the trial to so testify. The bill alsoprovides that the court may order that the testimony of a child betaken by two-way closed-circuit television if it finds that the childis unavailable to testify in open court in the presence of the defendant,the jury, the judge, and the public if the court finds, by a preponderanceof the evidence, based upon expert opinion testimony, that the childwill suffer emotional trauma that is more than de minimis as a resultof testifying in the defendant's presence and not the courtroom generally.Under current law, the court may order such testimony be taken bytwo-way closed-circuit television if there is a substantial likelihood,based upon expert opinion testimony, that the child will suffer severeemotional trauma from so testifying.

Summary: Rate of fees; legal representation of indigent defendant. Limits the fees charged for the cost of court-appointed counsel or public defender representation to persons determined to be indigent to an amount no greater than the amount such person would have owed if such fees had been assessed on or before June 30, 2024.

Summary: Fines and costs; period of limitations on collection; deferred payment agreement. 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, no action shall be brought to collect the debt.The bill also provides that for any defendant sentenced to an active term of incarceration and ordered to pay any fine, cost, forfeiture, or penalty related to the charge that such defendant is incarcerated for, or any other charge for which such defendant was sentenced on the same day, the court shall enter such defendant into a deferred payment agreement for such fines, costs, forfeitures, or penalties. The bill requires the due date for such deferred payment agreement to be set no earlier than the defendant's scheduled release from incarceration on the charge for which such defendant received the longest period of active incarceration. This bill is identical to SB 514.

Summary: Standards for attorneys appointed to represent parents or guardians; child dependency cases; compensation; multidisciplinary law offices or programs; report. Requires the Judicial Council of Virginia, in conjunction with the Virginia State Bar, beginning July 1, 2026, to adopt standards for the qualification and performance of attorneys appointed to represent a parent or guardian of a child when such child is the subject of a child dependency case, as defined in the bill. The bill also requires the Judicial Council of Virginia, beginning July 1, 2026, to maintain a list of attorneys admitted to practice law in Virginia who are qualified to be appointed to represent indigent parents involved in a child dependency case. Prior to July 1, 2026, counsel must be appointed from the list of attorneys qualified to serve as guardians ad litem. The bill provides that beginning January 1, 2025, court-appointed counsel for a parent, guardian, or other adult in a child dependency case will be compensated in an amount no greater than $330, or in a case for the termination of residual parental rights, $680.The bill authorizes the establishment of up to two multidisciplinary law offices or programs in localities, jurisdictions, or judicial districts that affirm they have met specified criteria for the purpose of representing parents in a child dependency court proceeding or in a child protective services assessment or investigation prior to such proceeding. During any calendar year that such an office or program is in effect for at least six months, the office or program must submit a report on program outcomes, expenses, recommendations, and other pertinent information to the Office of the Children's Ombudsman and the Chairmen of the House Committees for Courts of Justice and on Health and Human Services and Appropriations and the Senate Committees for Courts of Justice and on Education and Health and Finance and Appropriations by November 1.

Summary: Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission; court records; online access to case management systems. Provides that if a clerk of the circuit court provides secure remote access to nonconfidential court records, the clerk shall, by a signed agreement with the Director of the Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission, provide secure remote access to such records to staff of the Commission. The bill clarifies that a clerk is not prohibited from providing online access to a case management system to any person designated by law to prepare sentencing guidelines.The bill also requires the clerk of each circuit court to provide online access to a case management system that may include abstracts of case filings and proceedings in the circuit courts to the Commission for purposes related to the preparation of sentencing guidelines. The bill requires the Commission to ensure the confidentiality and security of the information obtained through such online access and prohibits the Commission from publishing personal or case identifying information. This bill is a recommendation of the Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission.

Summary: Virginia Public Procurement Act; additional public works contract requirements. Provides that public bodies shall require the contractor and its subcontractors for any capital outlay project, as defined in the bill, to complete certain safety training programs, maintain records of compliance with applicable laws, and participate in approved apprenticeship training programs. The bill provides exemptions from such requirements for reasons related to lack of availability of apprentices and high costs. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2025.

Summary: Department of General Services; Office of PharmaceuticalServices; report. Establishes in the Department of General Servicesan Office of Pharmaceutical Services to develop and execute a planto consolidate state agency prescription drug purchasing and pharmacy benefit management programs to increase efficiency in prescriptiondrug purchasing and constrain spending on prescription drugs. Thebill directs the Department to provide to the Governor and the GeneralAssembly an interim report on the development of the plan by November1, 2024, and a final report on the plan by November 1, 2025.

Summary: Information Technology Access Act; digital accessibility. Makes numerous organizational changes to the Information Technology Access Act. The bill defines "information and communications technology" as it relates to digital accessibility, defined in the bill, for all persons with disabilities. The bill permits the head of each covered entity, defined in the bill, to designate an employee to serve as such covered entity's digital accessibility coordinator and provides that such digital accessibility coordinator is responsible for developing and implementing such covered entity's digital accessibility policy. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2025.

Summary: State parks; procurement exemption; NaturalArea Preservation Funds created. Exempts the Department of Conservationand Recreation from competitive sealed bidding or competitive negotiationfor the purchase of items for resale at retail outlets and food servicesoperations at state parks. The bill also establishes the Natural Areas Preservation Projects Fund and the Natural Areas Preservation Acquisitionand Development Fund.