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Subcommittees

Firearms Subcommittee

Meets on: Friday at 8:00 a.m. in House Committee Room

Members: Jeff Bourne (Chair),  Amanda Batten,  Carrie Coyner,  Glenn Davis,  Dan Helmer,  Clint Jenkins,  Ken Plum

Public Safety Subcommittee

Meets on: Thursday at 6:00 p.m. in 400-B Subcommittee Room

Members:  Mark Levine (Chair),  Ronnie Campbell,  Joshua Cole,  Kaye Kory,  Sam Rasoul,  Roxann Robinson,  Shelly Simonds,  Tony Wilt

Bills in committee

Bills reported out 

HB 1753 Va. Law Enforcement Professional Standards Commission Accreditation Grant Fund & Program; created. Funds to create standards for law enforcement agencies.

HB 1894 Naloxone or other opioid antagonist; certain employees of DJJ authorized to administer. Allows probation, parole officers, and others to administer naloxone in case of an opioid overdose emergency. This is only if the user has documentation giving consent.

HB 1909 School board property, certain; establishment of gun-free zone permitted. This allows any school board to deem any zone owned by the school system a gun-free zone.

HB 1941 Law-enforcement officer; discharge of firearm, etc., release of video or audio recording. Requires law-enforcement agencies to post videos or audio from any use of force to a public website within 15 days of the incident.

HB 1948 Law-enforcement officer; duty to render aid, duty to report wrongdoing by another officer. Makes it mandatory for a law-enforcement officer to provide aid if they witness anyone suffering bodily harm, and report any wrongdoings.

HB 1992 Firearms; purchase, etc., following conviction for assault and battery of a family member. Prohibits the purchasing, possession, or transportation of firearms to persons convicted of assault and battery of a family member.

HB 2085 Emergency Services and Disaster Law; local and interjurisdictional emergency operations plans. Requires local jurisdictions to review that their emergency plans apply equally to all people in the community, including minority communities.

HB 2128 Firearms; criminal history record information check delay increased to five days. Increases the the background check wait time from three to five days when transferring a firearm.

HB 2216 Va. Missing Child w/ Autism Alert Program; renames Va. Missing Person w/ Autism Program. Expands the previous program limit from an age limit to any age of a missing person with autism.

HB 2226 Criminal street gang reporting; notice & process for contesting entry of information into databases. Requires law-enforcement agencies to notify guardians if the person is under the age of 18 before he/she is put on the Organized Criminal Gang File. It also requires annual reports to the DCJS.

HB 2231 Group Violence Intervention Board and Division of Group Violence Intervention; established, report. Establishes the Group Violence Intervention Board to coordinate efforts between local, state, and federal efforts.

HB 2258 Substantial Risk Order Registry; maintenance by State Police. Requires law-enforcement to release the Substantial Risk Order Registry to institutions of higher learning.

HB 2276 Plastic firearms and unfinished frames, etc.; manufacture, import, sale, transfer, etc., penalty. Creates a felony charge for any persons manufacturing, importing, transferring, or possessing firearms that are not detectable by firearm detection devices.

HB 2291 Law-enforcement civilian oversight bodies; deputy sheriffs. Expands authority to oversee Sheriff’s Offices by civilian oversight bodies.

HB 2295 Firearm; carrying within Capitol Square and the surrounding area, state-owned bldgs. Creates a misdemeanor charge if a firearm is carried with the Capitol Square area and within Commonwealth owned buildings

.HB 2310 Concealed handgun permits; demonstration of competence. Expands the requirements when applying for a concealed handgun permit. In addition to an online course/test, the applicant with have to demonstrate competence with a handgun.

HB 2319 Firearms; access to certain persons in a shared dwelling, civil penalty. Provides up to a $500 penalty to those persons not storing their weapon properly with other persons that cannot posses firearms in the dwelling.

HB 2325 Corrections Ombudsman, Office of the Department of; created, report. Creates the Office of the Department of Correction Ombudsman to oversee inmate treatment. This outlines duties and responsibilities of the office.

Bills Passed

HB 1796 License plates, special; removes fee for issuance to Va. National Guard retirees. Special license plates; Virginia National Guard retirees. Removes the fee for the issuance of a special license plate for retired members of the Virginia National Guard. Currently, such special license plates cost the same as the prescribed cost for a typical Virginia license plate.

HB 1894 Naloxone or other opioid antagonist; certain employees of DJJ authorized to administer. Certain employees of the Department of Juvenile Justice; naloxone or other opioid antagonist. Authorizes employees of the Department of Juvenile Justice designated as probation and parole officers or as juvenile correctional officers to possess and administer naloxone or other opioid antagonist for overdose reversal pursuant to an oral or written order or standing protocol issued by the prescriber within the course of his professional practice.

HB 1895 Fines and costs; accrual of interest, deferral or installment payment agreements. Fines and costs; accrual of interest; deferral or installment payment agreements. Provides that no interest shall accrue on any fine or costs imposed in a criminal case or in a case involving a traffic infraction (i) for a period of 180 days following the date of the final judgment imposing such fine or costs; (ii) during any period the defendant is incarcerated; and (iii) for a period of 180 days following the date of the defendant’s release from incarceration if the sentence includes an active term of incarceration. Current law prohibits interest from accruing on such fines or costs for a period of 40 days from the date of the final judgment imposing such fine or costs or during any period the defendant is incarcerated. The bill also removes the requirement that a defendant be unable to make payment of a fine, restitution, forfeiture, or penalty and costs within 30 days of sentencing in order to be eligible to enter into a deferred or installment payment agreement and allows any defendant to enter such payment agreements. The bill removes the requirement that a defendant make a down payment upon entering a deferred, modified deferred, or installment payment agreement.

HB 1909 School board building or property, certain; establishment of gun-free zone permitted. Certain school board property; establishment of gun-free zone permitted. Permits any school board to deem any non-school zone building or property that it owns or leases where employees of such school board are regularly present for the purpose of performing their official duties as a gun-free zone and prohibit any individual from knowingly possessing, purchasing, transferring, carrying, storing, or transporting firearms, ammunition, or components or combination thereof while such individual is upon such property, except certain individuals such as law-enforcement officers and qualified retired law-enforcement officers.

HB 2128 Firearms; criminal history record information check delay increased to five days. Sale or transfer of firearms; criminal history record information check delay. Increases from three business days to five business days the time provided for the Department of State Police to complete a background check before a firearm may be transferred. If a dealer who has otherwise fulfilled all requirements is told by the State Police that a response will not be available by the end of the dealer’s fifth business day, the dealer may complete the sale or transfer without being deemed in violation.

HB 2216 Va. Missing Child w/ Autism Alert Program; renames Va. Missing Person w/ Autism Program. Virginia Missing Person with Autism Alert Program. Renames the Virginia Missing Child with Autism Alert Program to the Virginia Missing Person with Autism Alert Program and expands it to apply to any missing person with autism, regardless of age. The bill defines a “missing person with autism” as any person (i) whose whereabouts are unknown, (ii) who has been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder as defined by the Code of Virginia, and (iii) whose disappearance poses a credible threat to the safety and health of the person.

HB 2258 Substantial Risk Order Registry; maintenance by State Police. Substantial Risk Order Registry; maintenance and access. Authorizes the Department of State Police to release Substantial Risk Order Registry information upon request to institutions of higher education and other research organizations or institutions for the purpose of monitoring and evaluating the impact of substantial risk orders on public safety. The bill requires the Department of State Police to remove the names and other personal identifying information from the data before it releases such information.

HB 2295 Firearm; carrying within Capitol Square and the surrounding area, state-owned bldgs. Carrying a firearm within Capitol Square and the surrounding area, into building owned or leased by the Commonwealth, etc.; penalty. Makes it a Class 1 misdemeanor for a person to carry any firearm within (i) the Capitol of Virginia; (ii) Capitol Square and the surrounding area, as described in the bill; (iii) any building, parking lot, or parking structure owned or leased by the Commonwealth or any agency thereof; (iv) any building owned or leased by the Commonwealth where employees of the Commonwealth perform their official duties; or (v) any building where the General Assembly meets or conducts its business. The bill provides exceptions for law-enforcement officers, court officers, authorized security personnel, and active military personnel while in the conduct of such person’s official duties; any retired law-enforcement officer who is visiting a gun range owned or leased by the Commonwealth; and any state employee of a state or juvenile correctional facility who is authorized to carry a firearm while in the conduct of such employee’s official duties. The bill provides that an individual who lawfully possesses a firearm may keep such firearm in his locked vehicle in a parking lot or parking structure described in clause (iii) so long as the firearm is (a) secured, (b) not visible, and (c) in a container or compartment inside of the vehicle. The bill requires that notice of the provisions prohibiting the carrying of such firearms be posted at each of the public entrances to Capitol Square and such buildings, parking lots, and parking structures. The bill also provides that any firearm carried in violation of these provisions is subject to seizure by a law-enforcement officer and forfeiture to the Commonwealth.

HB 2310 Concealed handgun permits; demonstration of competence. Concealed handgun permits; demonstration of competence; emergency. Provides that any applicant for a concealed handgun permit who completed an online course to demonstrate competence with a handgun and contacted the circuit court clerk’s office prior to January 1, 2021, but was prohibited from appearing in person at a circuit court clerk’s office because of COVID-19 restrictions is eligible to apply for such permit through April 30, 2021. The bill contains an emergency clause.