2016 Bills of Interest

2016 BILLS OF INTEREST

1. HB 665 (Howell) – Commission on Employee Retirement Security and Pension Reform established. The Commission will study and make recommendations relating to the financial soundness of retirement plans, the suitability of retirement and attributes that will be suitable for future employees, the impact on state and local governments of the retirement of experienced employees between 2016 and 2026 and strategies for replacing these employees, elements of compensation and benefits packages essential to attracting and retaining a highly productive state and local government workforce.

The Commission will be composed of 11 legislative members, 8 nonlegislative citizen members and 2 state officials. VEA, Virginia Association of Counties, Virginia Municipal League, Virginia Governmental Employees Association, Virginia Sheriffs’ Association, and the Virginia State Police Association will have voting representation on the Commission. The costs for actuaries, experts, statistical analyses, etc., will be paid by the VRS. The Commission’s work must end by July 1, 2021.

HB (69) McQuinn – to include all school retirees in the health insurance credit and

HB (408) Ingram – to include in the enhanced retirement of those who retired before 1990 were both left in Appropriations. However, both are to be included in the above study.

2. SJ 85 (Deeds) includes HJ 112 (Landes) – provides for a joint 13-member Senate and House study of the future of public elementary and secondary education. This study is deemed necessary because of the “wide array of education-related legislative proposals during each regular session of the GA,” because the “many education-related legislative proposals require more discussion and study than the committees are able to devote to them during the regular GA session, because “the committees recognize the need to jointly examine innovative education reforms and emerging education issues on a year-round basis, and “public elementary and secondary education in the Commonwealth will benefit from a deliberate, thoughtful, coordinated, and year-round approach to legislative education reform.”

The committee will collaborate with the Board of Education, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Standards of Learning Innovation Committee and other stakeholders to study (a) the need for revisions to or reorganization of the standards of quality with emphasis on the effective use of technology, (b) emerging education issues in the Commonwealth, (c) the future of public elementary and secondary education in the Commonwealth and make legislative recommendations as necessary.

Members of appointed work groups will include representatives from the Department of Education, the Standards of Learning Innovation Committee, the VEA, the Virginia Association of Counties, the Virginia Municipal League, the Virginia Association of Elementary School Principals, the Virginia Association Secondary School Principals, the Virginia Association of School Superintendents, the Virginia School Boards Association, and other interested stakeholders as deemed appropriate.

The committee is limited to four meetings in 2016 and four meetings in 2017; however, the Joint Rules Committee may authorize additional meetings during this two-year period. The committee will make a report by November 30 of each year.

3. SB 364 (Chafin) – provides for a local option health insurance plan, similar to the state employees health insurance plan, to be established for employees and retirees of local governments and school divisions and their dependents. (Incorporates Vogel’s SB 384)

4. SB 360 (Howell) – directs the Superintendent of Instruction to develop and provide to local school divisions a model exit questionnaire for teachers. (HB 503 – Kory would have tracked teacher turnover by cause, geographical area, school division, etc., and would have required reporting the findings to the Governor and General Assembly and posting on the Department of Education website. This was tabled on a voice vote in the House Elementary and Secondary Subcommittee.)

5. HB 203 (Lingamfelter) – to provide support services to young people between ages 18-21who have aged out of the foster care social services program was left in Appropriations. However, it was enacted through the budget bill.

6. HB 8 (Dickie Bell) – would have established a 13 member board to oversee a virtual school system for K-12 students. Vetoed by the Governor.

7. HB 389 (LaRock) – would have established parental savings accounts for students with IEPs and for home schooled students. Vetoed by the Governor.

8. HB 516 (Landes) – would have required public schools to notify parents of instructional material that includes sexually explicit content and permit parents to review the material, and provide nonexplicit instructional material when parents so request. Vetoed by the Governor.

9. SB 588 (Obenshain and Suetterlein) – would have provided for a referendum on a Constitutional amendment to grant the state Board of Education authority to establish charter schools instead of the local school boards. Defeated in the Senate when the Lt. Governor broke a tie by voting no.

10. SB 737 (Obenshain) – would have prevented public employers from paying leave or benefits to any employee to directly or indirectly work for or on behalf of a 501(c)5 employee organization, professional association, labor union, or labor organization. Violation would be a Class 5 felony. Failed in the Senate when the patron pulled the bill.

11. HB 131 (Rob Bell) – The Tebow Bill – Would have allowed home schooled students to participate in Virginia High School League activities. Vetoed by the Governor.

12. HB 524 (LeMunyon) – makes teacher performance data maintained in a teacher’s personnel file or otherwise confidential.

13. SB 564 (Norment) – makes data for school personnel licensure applications such as transcripts or other documents exempt from the Freedom of Information Act.

14. All school calendar bills were defeated.

15. HB 1213 (Albo) – allows a juvenile who has committed a delinquent act on school grounds that would be a misdemeanor if committed by an adult to introduce educational plans or behavioral assessments that relate to whether he acted intentionally or willfully. (Incorporates HB 1200 by Collins.)