Virginia General Assembly poised to enact bills on guns, immigrants, taxes and much more

The Virginia State Capitol in Richmond.

The Virginia General Assembly is considering legislation on guns, voting, criminal justice, immigrants, and other major issues.

After “crossover day,” on Feb. 11, all the bills passed by the House of Delegates are sent to the Senate and vice versa.

The two chambers then delve deeper into the details of the bills, but no new legislation can be introduced. If the bills passed by the House and Senate are different, legislators seek a compromise. Only bills that are agreed to by both houses are passed by the General Assembly and sent to the governor.

Following is a list of some of the thousands of bills passed the House of Delegates, Senate, or both:

Guns

Both chambers passed bills requiring background checks for firearm sales, including gun shows.
The House passed a bill restricting the sale or transfer of guns defined as “assault weapons” and would make it a misdemeanor to have a large-capacity magazine that holds more than 12 rounds.

A House bill would prohibit anyone who is not a licensed firearms dealer from purchasing more than one handgun in a 30-day period.

Both chambers would establish a procedure for removing firearms from anyone posting a danger to themselves or others.

Under a bill passed by the Senate, anyone convicted of stalking, sexual assault, or assault against a person because of his race, religion, or national origin would be prohibited from possessing or purchasing a firearm.

The House passed a bill requiring anyone applying for a concealed handgun permit to demonstrate competency with a handgun.

Criminal justice

Both chambers would reinstate parole for certain incarcerated persons, including a provision stating that anyone sentenced to a term of life imprisonment for crimes committed while a juvenile should be eligible for parole after 20 years.

A House bill would increase the age at which a juvenile must be tried as an adult for murder or aggravated malicious wounding from 14 to 16.

Both houses would eliminate the practice of suspending driver’s licenses due to unpaid court debt.

Both the House and Senate would decriminalize marijuana possession. Under the Senate version, the maximum civil penalty for anyone caught with up an ounce would be reduced from $500 to $50 or be subject to five hours of community service. A bill passed by the House reduces the penalty for marijuana possession from to $25.

The Senate passed a bill banning flavored vaping products.

Voting 

Both the House and Senate passed bills stating people would no longer need to specify a reason to vote absentee.

A bill passed by the House would allow anyone qualified to vote in Virginia to be allowed to
register to vote on the same day that voting is conducted.

Both the House and Senate passed bills stating that anyone who applies for a driver’s license at a DMV would be automatically registered to vote.

Taxes

A bill passed by the House would equalize the taxing authority of cities and counties, which would give counties the same authority cities have to impose taxes on meals, cigarettes, and hotel rooms.

The House also passed a bag tax that would charge retailers a 5-cent tax per disposable plastic bag. 

Transportation bills approved by both houses would raise the gas tax, but would do it at different rates. The Senate bill also would impose a highway user fee for alternative fuel and fuel-efficient vehicles.

Immigrants

A House bill would repeal the requirement for citizenship to obtain a driver’s license, while the House will would allow undocumented residents to apply for a “driver’s privilege card.”

Both the House and Senate passed bills allowing non-citizens to pay the in-state tuition rate at state colleges and universities if they attended high school in Virginia for at least one year and earned a diploma or attained a GED.

Both chambers passed bills aimed at limiting cooperation between local police departments and ICE, but the House bill is more comprehensive.

Minimum wage

Both the House and Senate would increase the minimum wage from the current $7.25 an hour to $15 in several years.

The House version would raise the minimum wage to $10 July 1, $11.25 next year, $12 in 2022, $13 in 2023, $14 in 2024, $15 in 2025, and adjust it for inflation after that.

The bill passed by the Senate would raise the minimum wage to $9.50 Jan. 1, 2021, then to $10.50 July 1, 2022, and $11.50 July 1, 2023. After that, the minimum wage in Northern Virginia would rise incrementally $1 per year until it reaches $15 when it would then be adjusted for inflation.

Discrimination

A Senate bill would ban workplace discrimination against pregnant women.

Bills passed by both houses would ban local land-use decisions that discriminate based on race, gender or inclusion of affordable housing in a development.

A bill passed by the House would to add sexual orientation, gender identity, and disability to hate crime laws.

Education 

A bill passed by the House would require school boards to provide mental health awareness training to teachers.

Another House bill would require the Department of Education to develop policies on transgender students.

Both chambers passed bills to ensure school dress codes include anti-discrimination protections based on race and ethnicity.

Other bills

Both chambers ratified the Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Both chambers called for a referendum on the Nov. 3 ballot calling for a state commission to develop a redistricting plan to redraw congressional and state districts.

Bills passed in both the House and Senate would repeal a state law requiring women seeking an abortion to undergo an ultrasound 24 hours beforehand. A House bill would allow nurse practitioners to perform abortions; the Senate would allow physician assistants, as well as nurse practitioners.

Both the House and Senate would make Election Day a legal state holiday instead of Lee-Jackson Day.

Both chambers would allow local governments to move or contextualize Confederate monuments.

The Senate passed a bill permitting localities in Northern Virginia to impose fines on the owners of abandoned shopping carts.

The existing prohibition of collective bargaining by public employees would be repealed by the House, although certain exceptions would be allowed. A bill that passed the Senate would give localities the option of allowing public-sector collective bargaining.

Both chambers would ban the use of handheld communications devices while driving.