Department of Education; artificial intelligence system use in instructional settings; development of AIS safety guidance required; AIS Innovation in Education Pilot Program established; report. Requires the Department of Education, in consultation with school divisions and other relevant stakeholders, to compile information on current uses of artificial intelligence systems (AIS) for student instruction in public schools in the Commonwealth and to establish and post in a publicly accessible location on its website guidance for the safe, ethical, and equitable use of AIS in instructional settings in public elementary and secondary schools. The bill requires each school board to establish, implement, and enforce policies consistent with the guidance developed by the Department in accordance with the provisions of the bill. The bill also directs the Department to establish and oversee the AIS Innovation in Education Pilot Program for the purpose of funding, evaluating, and scaling innovative uses of AIS in public elementary and secondary schools by providing support to school divisions in piloting AIS applications for instruction, tutoring, student engagement, operational efficiency, and teacher support and to submit an annual report to the Chairs of the House Committee on Education and the Senate Committee on Education and Health by December 1. The Pilot Program has an expiration date of July 1, 2030. This bill is identical to HB 1186.
Department of Education; assessment; certified student support agencies; report. Requires the Department of Education (the Department) to assess the impact of developing a program to provide student support programs to students enrolled in a public elementary or secondary school through certified student support agencies, as defined in the bill. The bill requires the Department, in conducting such assessment, to consider (i) a framework by which a certified student support agency would enter into a memorandum of understanding with a school board for the purpose of providing student support programs, as defined in the bill, and suggested components of such memorandums of understanding, such as (a) documentation establishing the organization's nonprofit status, (b) a description of each student support program that such organization provides, (c) policies and procedures relating to privacy, background checks, mandated reporting, and the transmission, collection, use, and disposal of student personal information, and (d) consent forms and procedures to be used by such student support programs to obtain the necessary consent from the parent of any student under 18 years of age; (ii) the feasibility of establishing and administering a certification process for certified student support agencies; (iii) potential compliance monitoring and enforcement mechanisms and subsequent penalties for noncompliance to ensure that each certified student support agency complies with such program; (iv) policies and procedures for the secure disposal of a student's personal information upon such student's withdrawal from a student support program, upon the cessation of any such program, or upon such student's graduation or transfer from the school division; and (v) cost estimates, including staffing needs, for the development and implementation of such program. The bill requires the Department to submit a report on its findings to the Chairs of the Senate Committees on Finance and Appropriations and Education and Health and the House Committees on Appropriations and Education no later than November 1, 2026. This bill is identical to HB 178.
Virginia All-Payer Claims Database; disclosure of information; limitation. Specifies that the nonprofit organization facilitating the administration of the Virginia All-Payer Claims Database shall not disclose information relating to reimbursement beyond what is otherwise publicly available. Under current law, provisions against disclosure are not limited to information that is not otherwise publicly available.
Unauthorized use of voice or likeness; punitive damages; statute of limitations. Expands the existing ability for any person to maintain a suit in equity, including the accompanying remedies available and statute of limitations, for the unauthorized use of his name, portrait, or picture for advertising purposes or for the purposes of trade to include the unauthorized use of his voice or likeness. This bill is identical to SB 753.
Electric utilities; virtual power plant pilot program; Phase I Utilities. Requires Appalachian Power to petition the State Corporation Commission for approval to conduct a pilot program to evaluate methods to optimize demand through various technology applications, including the establishment of virtual power plants, by July 1, 2027. The bill requires the pilot program to evaluate electric grid capacity needs and the ability of such virtual power plants to provide grid services, including peak-shaving, during times of peak electric demand.
Unauthorized use of voice or likeness; punitive damages; statute of limitations. Expands the existing ability for any person to maintain a suit in equity, including the accompanying remedies available and statute of limitations, for the unauthorized use of his name, portrait, or picture for advertising purposes or for the purposes of trade to include the unauthorized use of his voice or likeness. This bill is identical to HB 581.
Zoning; wireless facilities; temporary support structures. Requires a locality to include in its zoning ordinance provisions that allow for the use of temporary support structures that meet certain requirements. The bill defines a temporary support structure as a monopole or portable wireless communications facility used to provide wireless voice, data, or image transmission within a designated area. The bill provides that an application for a temporary support structure may request approval for up to 180 days with extensions not to exceed two years.
Consumer Data Protection Act; data controller responsibilities; precise geolocation data. Provides that, for purposes of the Consumer Data Protection Act, a controller of personal data shall not sell or offer for sale precise geolocation data concerning a consumer.
Streaming advertisement volume control; civil penalty. Requires a video streaming service, social media video service, or third-party advertising manager, as defined in the bill, that serves consumers residing in the Commonwealth to exercise reasonable care to normalize the audio of short-form content, as defined in the bill, so that such audio is not transmitted at a louder volume than the long-form content, also defined in the bill, it accompanies, consistent with the regulations adopted by the Federal Communications Commission pursuant to the federal Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation (CALM) Act for television broadcast stations, cable operators, and other multichannel video programming distributors. The bill provides that the Office of the Attorney General shall enforce the provisions of the bill. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027.
Stalking by electronically transmitted communication; penalty. Provides that "electronically transmitted communication" includes communication by telephone, computer, or other electronic device for the offense of stalking, which is punishable as a Class 1 misdemeanor or, if the second offense occurs within five years of a prior conviction for stalking, is punishable as a Class 6 felony.
