Emergency Response Exposure Grant Fund and Program. Creates the Emergency Response Exposure Grant Fund and Program to award grants to localities to support certain emergency responders who were exposed to a qualifying emergency, defined in the bill. The bill requires funding to be used for annual cancer screenings and health care expenses incurred by eligible emergency responders, defined in the bill, in the event such emergency responders are diagnosed with cancer from toxic material exposure. The bill permits funding to be used for out-of-pocket medical expenses not otherwise covered by insurance, workers' compensation, or other available funding. The Department of Fire Programs shall administer the Fund and Program.
Income tax deductions; in vitro fertilization. Allows an income tax deduction for taxable years 2025 through 2029 for an individual or married couple filing jointly for expenses incurred for in vitro fertilization, as defined in the bill.
Sexual abuse of certain children; penalty. Increases from a Class 1 misdemeanor to a Class 6 felony the penalty for sexual abuse of a child who is 13 or 14 years of age.
Felony homicide; certain drug offenses; penalty. Provides that a person is guilty of felony homicide, which constitutes second degree murder and is punishable by confinement of not less than five nor more than 40 years, if the underlying felonious act that resulted in the killing of another involved the manufacture, sale, gift, or distribution of a Schedule I or II controlled substance to another and (i) such other person's death results from his use of the controlled substance and (ii) the controlled substance is the proximate cause of his death. The bill provides that venue for a prosecution of this crime shall lie in the locality where the underlying felony occurred, where the use of the controlled substance occurred, or where death occurred. The bill also provides that if a person gave or distributed a Schedule I or II controlled substance only as an accommodation to another individual who is not an inmate in a community correctional facility, local correctional facility, or state correctional facility, or in the custody of an employee thereof, and not with intent to profit thereby from any consideration received or expected nor to induce the recipient of the controlled substance to use or become addicted to or dependent upon such controlled substance, he is guilty of a Class 5 felony.
Commonwealth Savers Plan; Access Fund established; report. Establishes the Access Fund as a portion of the Fund of the Commonwealth Savers Plan (the Plan), to be managed by the governing board of the Plan (the board) as a part of the Fund but to be accounted for separately from the Fund, into which certain Fund moneys shall be allocated for the purpose of supporting the Plan's goal of enhancing the accessibility, attainability, and affordability of higher education for all citizens of the Commonwealth. The bill directs the board to (i) establish or identify and fund certain programs and partnerships to further the goal of enhancing the accessibility, attainability, and affordability of higher education for all citizens of the Commonwealth, including programs and partnerships that provide scholarships, grants, or mentoring and coaching services to certain identified populations of students; (ii) use certain distributions from the Access Fund, in accordance with the investment objectives and total return spending policy described in the bill and the standard of care set forth in applicable law, to support such programs and partnerships; (iii) appoint an Access Advisory Committee for the purpose of assisting the board by making recommendations relating to any such programs and partnerships for which distributions from the Access Fund could be used; and (iv) submit to relevant committees of the General Assembly and the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission by December 1 of each year a report on the Plan's activities relating to the Access Fund for the preceding year. Finally, the bill directs the Audit and Actuarial Committee to, in addition to its other duties set forth in applicable law, assess and make recommendations to the board regarding the availability of Fund moneys for allocation to the Access Fund.
Assault and battery; serious bodily injury; penalty. Creates a Class 6 felony for any person who commits an assault and battery that results in serious bodily injury, as defined in relevant law, and adds such new offense to the list of violent felony offenses for the purposes of the discretionary sentencing guidelines. The bill contains technical amendments.
Exchange of items on roadways; ability of localities to prohibit. Authorizes localities to prohibit by ordinance the exchange or attempted exchange of any item between a pedestrian and the occupant of a motor vehicle located on a roadway in such locality, subject to certain exceptions. The bill provides that a violation of any such ordinance may be made punishable by a fine of not more than $50.
Child support orders; date of conception. Provides that any child support order is retroactive to the date of the conception of the child. Under current law, such support order is retroactive to the date of the filing of an action for the establishment of such support order. The bill specifies that its provisions will only apply to child support orders entered for children conceived on or after July 1, 2025.
Computer trespass; elementary and secondary schools; school board; penalty. Makes it a Class 6 felony for the offense of computer trespass when such offense is committed against any public, private, or religious elementary or secondary school or any school board.
Siting of data centers; parks, schools, and residential areas. Requires that any local government land use application required for the siting of a data center, as defined in the bill, be approved only for areas that are one-quarter mile or more from federal, state, or local parks, schools, and property zoned or used for residential use.
Department of Medical Assistance Services; remote monitoring services for pregnant and postpartum patients; reimbursement. Expands provision for payment of medical assistance for remote patient monitoring services provided via telemedicine to include all pregnant and postpartum persons. Under current law, only high-risk pregnancies are covered.
Digital Content Authenticity and Transparency Act established; civil penalty. Requires a developer of an artificial intelligence system or service to apply provenance data to synthetic digital content that is generated by such developer's generative artificial intelligence system or service and requires a developer to make a provenance application tool and a provenance reader available to the public. The bill requires a controller of an online service, product, or feature to retain any available provenance data and requires a capture device to include a provenance application tool by default. The bill grants the Attorney General the exclusive authority to enforce such provisions and impose civil penalties pursuant to the bill. Under certain circumstances, the Attorney General may offer a developer an opportunity to cure a violation before imposing such civil penalties. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2026.
