Prohibiting sale, transport, etc., of assault firearms,certain firearm magazines, silencers, and trigger activators; penalties.Expands the definition of "assault firearm" and prohibits any personfrom importing, selling, transferring, manufacturing, purchasing, possessing,or transporting an assault firearm. A violation is a Class 6 felony. The billprohibits a dealer from selling, renting, trading, or transferring from hisinventory an assault firearm to any person. The bill also prohibits a personfrom carrying a shotgun with a magazine that will hold more than seven roundsof the longest ammunition for which it is chambered in a public place; underexisting law, this prohibition applies only in certain localities. The billmakes it a Class 6 felony to import, sell, transfer, manufacture, purchase,possess, or transport large-capacity firearm magazines, silencers, and triggeractivators, all defined in the bill. Any person who legally owns an assaultfirearm, large-capacity firearm magazine, silencer, or trigger activator onJuly 1, 2020, may retain possession until January 1, 2021. During that time,such person shall (i) render the assault firearm, large-capacity firearmmagazine, silencer, or trigger activator inoperable; (ii) remove the assaultfirearm, large-capacity firearm magazine, silencer, or trigger activator fromthe Commonwealth; (iii) transfer the assault firearm, large-capacity firearmmagazine, silencer, or trigger activator to a person outside the Commonwealthwho is not prohibited from possessing it; or (iv) surrender the assaultfirearm, large-capacity firearm magazine, silencer, or trigger activator to astate or local law-enforcement agency.The bill further states that any person who legally owns anassault firearm on July 1, 2020, may retain possession of such assault firearmafter January 1, 2021, if such person has obtained a permit from the Departmentof State Police to possess an assault firearm in accordance with proceduresestablished in the bill. A person issued such permit may possess an assaultfirearm only under the following conditions: (a) while in his home or on hisproperty or while on the property of another who has provided prior permission,provided that the person has the landowner's written permission on his personwhile on such property; (b) while at a shooting range, shooting gallery, orother area designated for the purpose of target shooting or the target range ofa public or private club or organization whose members have organized for thepurpose of practicing shooting targets or competing in target shooting matches;(c) while engaged in lawful hunting; or (d) while surrendering the assaultfirearm to a state or local law-enforcement agency. A person issued such permitmay also transport an assault firearm between any of those locations, providedthat such assault firearm is unloaded and secured within a closed containerwhile being transported. The bill also provides that failure to display thepermit and a photo identification upon demand by a law-enforcement officershall be punishable by a $25 civil penalty, which shall be paid into the statetreasury. The bill also requires the Department of State Police to enter thename and description of a person issued a permit in the Virginia CriminalInformation Network (VCIN) so that the permit's existence and current statuswill be made known to the law-enforcement personnel accessing VCIN forinvestigative purposes.
Del. Dan Helmer
Sponsored bills
Out-of-state concealed handgun permits; reciprocity.Reinstates the prior law providing that the holder of an out-of-state concealedhandgun permit who is at least 21 years of age is authorized to carry aconcealed handgun in Virginia if the other state (i) has a 24-hour-a-day meansof verification of the validity of the permits issued in that state and (ii)has requirements and qualifications that are adequate to prevent possession ofa permit by persons who would be denied a permit in Virginia. Under currentlaw, the holder of an out-of-state concealed handgun permit who is at least 21years of age is authorized to carry a concealed handgun in Virginia if (a) theother state has a means of verification of the validity of the permits issuedin that state, accessible 24 hours a day, if available; (b) the person carriesa government-issued photo identification and displays it upon demand of alaw-enforcement officer; and (c) the person has not previously had a Virginia concealedhandgun permit revoked. The bill states that the Attorney General shall (1)determine whether states meet the requirements and qualifications of the bill,(2) maintain a registry of such states, and (3) make the registry available tolaw-enforcement officers for investigative purposes. The bill further requiresthe Attorney General to review the determinations of whether states meet therequirements and qualifications of the bill and update the registry accordinglyevery two years. The bill removes the requirement for the Superintendent ofState Police to enter into agreements for reciprocal recognition with otherstates that require an agreement to be in place before the state will recognizea Virginia concealed handgun permit as valid in the state and provides that theAttorney General may enter into agreements for reciprocal recognition with anystate qualifying for recognition. The bill also reinstates the recognition ofcertain Maryland concealed handgun permits and eliminates the requirement thatthe Superintendent of State Police enter into agreements for reciprocalrecognition of concealed handgun permits or licenses with other states whereagreements were in existence on December 1, 2015.
Study; Department of Transportation; U.S. Route 50; report. Requests that the Department of Transportation study traffic congestion on that portion of U.S. Route 50 between the intersections of Interstate 66 in Fairfax County and U.S. Route 15 in Loudoun County and the feasibility of implementing improvements to such portion of the highway.
Nomination of candidates for elected offices;primary election or partisan nomination process required; restrictionson nomination method selected by political party; party identificationon ballots. Requires each candidate who has been nominated bya political party or in a primary election to be identified by thename of his political party. The bill removes the restrictions oncandidates for elected school boards and soil and water conservationdistricts from being nominated by a partisan nomination method orat a primary election. The bill further provides that a political party committee may not select a nomination method that will havethe practical effect of excluding participation in the nominatingprocess by qualified voters who are unable to attend meetings becausethey are (i) a member of a uniformed service, as defined in § 24.2-452,on active duty; (ii) temporarily residing outside of the United States;(iii) a student attending a school or institution of higher education;or (iv) a person with a disability.
Paid family and medical leave program. Requires the Virginia Employment Commission to establish and administera paid family and medical leave program with benefits beginning January 1, 2023. Under the program, benefits are paid to eligible employees for family and medical leave. Funding for the program isprovided through premiums assessed to employers and employees beginningin 2022. The amount of a benefit is 80 percent of the employee'saverage weekly wage, not to exceed 80 percent of the state weeklywage, which amount is required to be adjusted annually to reflectchanges in the statewide average weekly wage. The measure caps theduration of paid leave at 12 weeks in any application year. The billprovides self-employed individuals the option of participating inthe program.
Indoor shooting ranges; prohibited in buildingsnot owned or leased by the Commonwealth or federal government; exceptions;civil penalty. Prohibits the operation of an indoor shootingrange, defined in the bill, in any building not owned or leased bythe Commonwealth or federal government unless (i) fewer than 50 employeeswork in the building or (ii) (a) at least 90 percent of the usersof the indoor shooting range are law-enforcement officers or federallaw-enforcement officers, (b) the indoor shooting range maintainsa log of each user's name, phone number, address, and the law-enforcementagency where such user is employed, and (c) the indoor shooting rangeverifies each user's identity and address by requiring all usersto present a government-issued photo-identification card. The billprovides that any person that violates the provisions of this sectionis subject to a civil penalty of not less than $1,000 nor more than$100,000 for the initial violation and $5,000 per day for each dayof violation thereafter.
Carrying or storing firearms in motor vehiclesand vessels; exceptions; penalty. Provides that any person possessingor storing a firearm in a motor vehicle or vessel shall secure suchfirearm in a locked container, other than a glove box, that is notwithin the dominion and control of or readily accessible for promptand immediate use by any person within the motor vehicle. The billprovides exceptions for law-enforcement officers, licensed securityguards, military personnel in the performance of their lawful duties, or any person having a valid concealed handgun permit. A violationis punishable by a civil penalty not to exceed $2,500. The bill alsoremoves the current exception for carrying a concealed weapon forany person who may lawfully possess a firearm and is carrying a handgunwhile in a personal, private motor vehicle or vessel and such handgun is secured in a container or compartment in the vehicle or vessel.
Right to work. Repeals the provisions ofthe Code of Virginia that, among other things, prohibit any agreementor combination between an employer and a labor union or labor organizationwhereby (i) nonmembers of the union or organization are denied theright to work for the employer, (ii) membership in the union or organization is made a condition of employment or continuation ofemployment by such employer, or (iii) the union or organization acquiresan employment monopoly in any such enterprise.
Tax on fossil fuel investments by electric utilities. Imposes a tax on investor-owned electric utilities and electric cooperatives based on the amount that the utility invests in a year on fossilfuel infrastructure. The rate of the tax starts at 2.5 percent ofthe amount of a utility's fossil fuel investments in 2021 and increasesin annual increments thereafter until reaching 100 percent in 2040and thereafter. The measure directs that the revenue collected fromthe tax shall be deposited into the Clean Energy Development Fundand used to pay administrative costs of the Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy; reduce the electric utility bills of customers that optto purchase electricity from renewable energy sources; invest inrenewable electric energy generation sources in low-income communities;establish and fund block grants to enable community solar facilitiesand energy storage installation; and enable attainment of renewableportfolio standards based on regulations adopted by the Department.
Campaign finance; prohibited contributions tocandidates. Prohibits any candidate from soliciting or acceptinga contribution from any public service corporation, as defined in§ 56-1, or any political action committee established and administeredby such a corporation.