In Virginia, new legislation passed by the General Assembly and signed into law by the Governor generally goes into effect on July 1. For your convenience, the staff of the Division of Legislative Services has produced a publication that provides a brief summary of legislation passed by the 2008 General Assembly that is of interest to the citizens of Virginia and is likely to have an impact on their daily lives. Please click here to download your copy.
Here are the bills David successfully passed during the 2008 General Assembly session that become law today:
Cyberbullying in Public Schools: Strengthens Virginia Anti-Bullying Act by requiring the State Board of Education to develop and issue guidance to address cyberbullying in Virginia public schools. The passage of this bill resulted in BullyPolice.org, a national watchdog group for state anti-bullying laws, upgrading Virginia’s rating to A++, which is the highest possible ranking.
Unfunded Mandate Moratorium: Frees local school districts from expensive unfunded mandate by creating one-year moratorium on ACCESS for ELLs test as the state-approved limited English proficiency assessment, potentially saving up to $2 million annually.
Free Speech and Election Reform: Reverses ban on political clothing at polls and makes changes to improve administration of elections, especially in larger precincts.
The following bill was emergency legislation David passed that went into effect on Feb. 23, 2009:
Closed Corporate Tax Loophole: Clarifies that the minimum tax is imposed on telecommunications and electric suppliers that are organized as pass-through entities, saving $30 million this year and up to $7 million annually.
(Note that the ban on smoking in restaurants and bars throughout Virginia goes into effect on Dec. 1, 2009.)
