New state laws take effect July 1
Most of the new laws passed by the Virginia General Assembly this year will take effect on Monday, July 1.
Here are some highlights:
Speed limits – Counties that do not maintain their roads, including Fairfax County, are allowed to reduce speed limits to less than 25 miles per hour, but not less than 15 mph, in business or residential districts. Localities can also restore a speed limit that was previously reduced.
Traffic – Any moving violation in a highway work zone is subject to a fine of up to $300 for the first offense. The fine would increase up to $500 for a second offense and up to $750 for a subsequent offense within a 12-month period.
Firearms – “Auto sears” are now banned. These are devices that can convert a semiautomatic firearm into a fully automatic weapon that is able to rapidly fire a full magazine of bullets.
The removal or alteration of serial numbers from firearms is banned. Antique firearms are exempted.
Lucia’s Law – Any parent, guardian, or person 18 or older responsible for the care of a child will be charged with a felony if the child gains possession of a firearm and they have been notified that the child poses a threat to themselves or others. The law is named for Lucia Bremer, 13, of Henrico County, who was killed by a mentally ill teenager.
Towing – Tow truck drivers are prohibited from soliciting towing services at the scene of a wrecked or disabled vehicle after a law enforcement tow has been initiated.
Tow truck drivers and towing and recovery operators are prohibited from causing any other person to solicit or offer towing services at the scene of a wrecked or disabled vehicle requiring a tow.
Localities in Northern Virginia require written authorization from the property owner from which a vehicle is towed. The penalty for certain trespass towing offenses is increased from $150 per violation to 10 times the total amount charged for removal, towing, and storage.
Localities in Northern Virginia are allowed to require a permit for companies when the location of the tow and the storage site are in the same locality.
Another new law requires a towing operator to notify a resident of a multifamily dwelling unit at least 48 hours prior to towing their vehicle as a result of an expired registration or inspection sticker.
Towing operators are prohibited from requiring an individual who shows up to retrieve a vehicle to provide any document not otherwise required by law.
Voting – The deadline for local offices of elections to submit a locality’s election results is extended from seven days to 10 days. This gives local offices more time to ensure all ballots are properly counted, results are certified, and abstracts are submitted.
Individuals with any disability, not just a physical disability, can vote curbside. Poll workers must undergo training on disability access.
When a polling place changes, local election registrars must post information at the previous location on how to find the new polling place.
Notice of a change in an election district, precinct, or polling place must be mailed to all registered voters at least 30 days before the next election. The previous requirement was 15 days.
Child marriage – The legal age for marriage is 18 and minors who are declared emancipated cannot marry.
Electronic meetings – A new law validates otherwise lawful actions taken by a public body using electronic communication means occurring from March 20, 2020, until July 1, 2021, with respect to the Virginia Freedom of Information Act if the body provided public notice, public access, and public comment commensurate with the requirements of existing VFOIA provisions.
Another new law amends the definition of a meeting under VFOIA to clarify that a gathering of two or more members of a public body is not a meeting if there is no discussion or transaction of any public business.
People with disabilities and caregivers who participate remotely in public meetings can be counted for the purpose of establishing a quorum.
The number of all-virtual public meetings that certain public bodies may convene in a calendar year is expanded from no more than two or 25 percent of the meetings held in a year to no more than two or 50 percent of the meetings held in a year, whichever is greater.
This new law does not apply to local governing bodies, school boards, planning commissions, architectural review boards, zoning appeals boards, or boards with authority to deny, revoke, or suspend a professional or occupational license.
Legacy admissions – Public higher education institutions are prohibited from giving preferential treatment in admissions decisions on the basis of a student’s legacy status.
Cats – The practice of declawing cats is illegal except if necessary for therapeutic purposes.
Solar energy – The program capacity for the shared solar program with Dominion Energy is raised up to 150 megawatts. The State Corporation Commission must recalculate the minimum bill assessed to program subscribers to cover the costs of distribution and transmission services.
Emissions inspections – The amount the emissions inspection program coordinator may be paid per year is increased from $3,500 to $5,000 for the provision and maintenance of equipment. The maximum fee for emissions inspections is increased from $28 to $30.
Public notices – Any ordinance, resolution, notice, or advertisement that is required to be published in a newspaper can be published in an online-only news publication instead.
Emergency custody – A family member or legal guardian can be present when a person is undergoing evaluation for an emergency custody order or temporary detention order unless the family member or guardian is considered to pose a medical, clinical, or safety risk.
Education – The Virginia Board of Education must establish guidelines related to school-connected overdoses and parental notification.
Historic buildings – A 30-day delay is required before a permit may be issued to raze or demolish any structure that is a historic landmark or building.
Surveillance technologies – All state and local law enforcement agencies and sheriff’s departments must provide a list of surveillance technologies procured by the agencies and departments on an annual basis to the Department of Criminal Justice Services.
Manufactured housing – The owner of a manufactured home is entitled to $5,000 in relocation expenses if their rental agreement is terminated because the manufactured home park is sold to a buyer that is going to redevelop the park and change its use.
State pollinator – The European honey bee is designated the official state pollinator.
Need better understanding of the solar energy program. I am considering going off greed from Dominion power completely (not selling energy back to power company..
Need to clarify where you consider Northern Virginia is: I live close to west Virginia which is north of Virginia or are they given special exclusive treatment for eastern Virginia to Washington DC.
Not hard to understand why ‘grid’ was typed ‘greed’ when mentioning Dominion Power.
Is that cat law for real?
Yes and it should be because removal of cats claws is animal abuse!
What’s next? Can’t dock the tails or ears for breed standards? Or how about can’t pierce a child’s ears, or maybe get your baby boy circumcised. To me this law about declawing cats is opening up the door to laws violating our rights and freedoms.
I am so happy to see this I have never agreed with the practice of declawing a cat it is definitely animal abuse
It better be, many civilized countries in the world, have banned declawing. years ago. There we are still debating it, is truly appalling.
Why wouldn’t you declaw a cat? They destroy your furniture.
Barry, why would you have a cat if you love your furniture more than a living being? Or are you just trying to make people angry?
And they get over it.
Because they feel that pain for life it hurts them a lot that’s why they have Toys out to help with the claws scratching post and whatnot so why did you call them and hurt them for life when you can buy toys to help them with their clawing problem
Take time to train your cat, it can be done! A simple water sprayer works wonders and won’t injure the cat.
Regarding the voting deadline changes – does that mean that people are allowed to send in a ballot postmarked after the election day – or will that part of the law still be in force (that the ballot must be postmarked by election day)?
It doesn’t say that. After the polls close, the locality now has 10 days to submit the results.
Yes, thank Heavens! I am the owner of a cat who came to me declawed. I suffer a hundred heartaches a day watching that poor little thing try to play (she can’t catch), jump onto my lap or high places (she often cannot secure her foothold and falls to the ground) and most of all, watching her try desperately to sharpen her non-existant claws. Cats need to anchor themselves with their claws to achieve that deep stretch and get proper exercise. She will *never* be able to release the pent-up tension that only a deep stretch can relieve. Declawing a cat is the equivalent of cutting off the first joint of your finger and wearing mittens for the rest of your life. I hope vets will not be inventing “medically necessary” reasons to declaw a healthy cat. If people value their furniture over the well-being of their sentient feline, then they shouldn’t get a cat. There are plenty of ways to satisfy a cat’s scratch urge. People can apply double stick tape to corners of furniture (there is tape made specifically for this purpose), provide sisal rope scratching posts, and give the cat their own piece of old upholstered furniture to scratch. I can’t wait for tomorrow. I hope the law will be extended to docking tails and ears of dogs in my lifetime. It’s illegal in many European countries to mutilate animals like that. If you move to Europe with a dog that has docked ears or tail or a declawed cat, you better have papers proving it was done before the animal came to Europe b/c you will be questioned. Sorry for the sermon, but I’ve been waiting for this law a long time!
Would love to see them add the stuff people do to dogs to that list, ear modifications to Doberman springs to mind. The only reason people do it is to “make their dog look cool,” F off with that noise.
It’s about time….Cruelty to animals!
Yes, the cat law is law now. You cannot declaw your 😺
why would you declaw a cat that is cruel.
Take the first section of all your fingers off, see how that feels.
What’s passed on health care this years for the people.
AMAZING news regarding declawing cats now being illegal. About time! Such great news.
What about skilled game
Thank you for the cat claws. It’s humanely unnecessary to take those off a cat who is healthy. It’s the owners responsibility to teach their cat not to mess up furniture. Good job.
How about the new education laws?
Cat declaw, really? What about debarking dogs? This seems more invasive then declawing..
Cat declawing is very harmful to cats. “Declawing can cause paw pain, back pain, infection, tissue necrosis (tissue death) and lameness. Removing claws changes the way a cat’s feet meet the ground and can cause pain like wearing an uncomfortable pair of shoes. Improperly removed claws can regrow, causing nerve damage and bone spurs”. As for dog barking, try ear plugs. The internal vocal structures of dogs are not too different from our human ones. Dogs have vocal cords. Are you suggesting removing the vocal cords from domestic animals to prevent it from making sound? I am happy my dog barks and alerts me to any Mike that may be approaching.
Also, what about docking tails and clipping ears? Isn’t that just as abusive?
Why was the European Honey Bee named the official state pollinator when there are many bees that are native to Virginia that should have gained the title? see https://www.dcr.virginia.gov/natural-heritage/document/vainvertlist-bees.pdf
We should be celebrating our native bees and not ones that were introduced to Virginia.
Many years ago I got to see first hand what declawing can do to a cat. My ex-husband insisted on having our new four month old kitten declawed, his reason was because he didn’t want his new furniture ripped to shreds! My sweet boy would stand on his back legs and look at me so pitiful, I knew how much it hurt him. He had such enormous, beautiful eyes , I am so thankful for this law.
It’s crazy how all that matters to most is this cat law. The sad world we live in. The child marriage laws are great, kids shouldn’t be getting married nor having sex changes. For God’s sake, they’re KIDS. The education law is great because why the f*** wouldn’t you tell a parent their child had an overdose at the school, immediately when you’re quick to call them about minor things? This why y’all kids are so messed up, because none of you really care and they feel that. If declawing a cat is more important then knowing right away that your child overdosed at the school or a prev can marry your child as a child there is something seriously wrong with America.
Cat claws, pickleball, electric cars, and virtue signaling. Top priorities for Mason residents.
I’ve had several cats without front claws. It certainly never limited their ability to do anything including jumping up on furniture, playing with balls, defending itself when playing with the dog, wrapping itself in blankets, etc.
Declawing is when you take the entire claw out of the cats paws leaving with just stubs, doing so will leave the cat feeling completely defenseless. Its the same as surgically removing your finger nails, Just worse.
Declawing a cat is the same as cutting your fingers off. You can trim their nail where they won’t be so sharp.
And I say amen. Good to hear from someone sane. 👍