Circuit court clerks; fees; Technology Trust Fund Fee; report; recordation tax of certain deeds; report. Increases the Technology Trust Fund Fee from $5 to $8. The bill also increases the amount of the fee to be allocated for one of the purposes as described in current law from $4 to $6. The bill authorizes the remaining $2 of the fee to be allocated to individual circuit court clerks' offices for one of the purposes as described in current law. The bill also provides that no recordation tax shall be required of a quitclaim deed or deed to correct a fraudulently recorded deed, including a deed of trust, between a grantor and grantee when no consideration has passed between the parties. Finally, the bill directs (i) the clerk in each circuit court in the Commonwealth to provide detailed information to the Compensation Board and the Auditor of Public Accounts on the total amount of local Technology Trust Fund Fee revenue collected and expended and (ii) the Compensation Board to aggregate such information and submit a report summarizing the information to the Chairs of the House Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations by December 1, 2026.
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 SB 394.
Use of unmanned aircraft systems by law-enforcement officers; search warrants; model policy. Expedites the issuance of a search warrant for unmanned aircraft systems by law-enforcement officers upon a finding of reasonable and probable cause by an authorized judicial official, as defined in the bill, and permits the use of unmanned aircraft systems without a search warrant when law enforcement is surveying the scene of a crime or to respond to a public safety call for service when such crime scene or call for service is located on public property, to locate a person when such person has fled the offense location during the initial response to an incident, or to provide real-time aerial observation to increase on-scene safety and security. Such provisions are subject to a reenactment clause. The bill also requires the Department of Criminal Justice Services, in consultation with the Virginia Indigent Defense Commission and the Virginia Association of Commonwealth's Attorneys, to establish a model policy for the use of unmanned aircraft systems by December 1, 2026. This bill is identical to HB 1219.
School boards; student cell phone and smart device possession and use policies. Amends the requirements for the student cell phone and smart device possession and use policies that each school board is required to develop and each public elementary and secondary school is required to implement pursuant to applicable law to require such policies to, except as provided in applicable law, restrict student cell phone and smart device possession and prohibit student cell phone and smart device use on school property from bell to bell. Current law only requires such policies to restrict student cell phone and smart device possession and use on school property from bell to bell.
Public schools; student instruction; addictive potential of time spent using certain electronic devices. Requires instruction concerning time spent using electronic devices such as computers, cell phones, and other smart devices and the addictive potential thereof to be provided by the public schools as prescribed by the Board of Education. This bill is identical to HB 1486.
Genetic sequencing; organ transplants; use of foreign genetic sequencing or genetic sequencer operational and research software; foreign storage of genetic sequencing data; health insurance coverage for certain foreign organ transplants; civil penalty. Prohibits medical care facilities from (i) using genetic sequencers or any operational and research software, as such terms are defined in the bill, produced in a country designated as a foreign adversary by the federal government and (ii) storing genetic sequencing data with a country designated as a foreign adversary by the federal government. The bill requires medical care facilities to certify their compliance with such provisions, under penalty of perjury, annually with the Commissioner of Health and subjects medical care facilities that violate such provisions to civil penalties. The bill also prohibits health insurance carriers from covering human organ transplants that occur in China or other designated foreign countries and subjects carriers that violate this provision to civil penalties.
