Del. David Reid

Motorized mobility vehicles; civil penalties. Establishes a new class of vehicle, the motorized mobility vehicle, as defined in the bill, and establishes requirements for the sale, operation, registration, and titling of such vehicles. The bill requires the Department of Motor Vehicles to establish regulations governing motorized mobility vehicle safety training courses and to implement an educational outreach program to inform the public about the requirements of the bill. The bill, other than the educational outreach program, has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027.

Department of Conservation and Recreation; acquisition of property to establish a state park; Loudoun County. Allows the Department of Conservation and Recreation to acquire from the Conservation Fund approximately 1,240 acres of real property and any buildings or structures thereon between Little River Turnpike, James Monroe Highway, and Tail Race Road, known as Oak Hill Farm, in Loudoun County for the purpose of establishing and operating a state park on such property. This bill incorporates HB 239.

First-time home buyer savings plan; townhouses; principal limits. Includes townhouses in the definition of single-family residence for purposes of the First-Time Home Buyer Savings Plan Act. The bill also increases (i) the aggregate amount of principal that can be contributed to a first-time home buyer savings account from $50,000 to $100,000 and (ii) the limit on the amount of principal and interest or other income on the principal that may be retained in such an account from $150,000 to $200,000. The bill defines first-time home buyer, and includes that term in the definition of qualified beneficiary.

Policy of the Commonwealth; data centers. Provides that it is the policy of the Commonwealth to encourage the responsible operation of data centers in the Commonwealth while supporting grid reliability, affordability, and the deployment of renewable resources. The bill provides that in furtherance of this policy, the Commonwealth shall (i) promote coordination between data centers, state agencies, and regional grid operators to share information on energy usage, interconnection timelines, and barriers to rapid deployment of renewable and flexible energy resources; (ii) incentivize data centers to participate in demand response programs, implement energy storage and management systems, and leverage automated technologies to reduce peak demand and support grid stability; (iii) encourage flexible energy practices that allow data centers to adjust energy consumption in real time in alignment with available renewable generation; (iv) ensure large-scale data centers pay their fair share of infrastructure investments, mitigating impacts on residential and small business ratepayers; (v) require data centers to report water and aggregated energy usage, sustainability measures, and participation in grid support programs to appropriate state and federal agencies; and (vi) promote cybersecurity, physical security, and supply chain security measures to protect Virginia data center operations from foreign adversary access or compromise.

Data center tax revenue; local residential renewable energy incentive program; tangible personal property tax reimbursement; penalty. Authorizes the governing body of any county, city, or town that collects real or personal property taxes for any real or personal property owned by a data center to create a local residential renewable energy incentive program, through which funds shall be used to reduce existing utility bills for residential customers, to reduce reliance upon fossil fuel power generation facilities, to reduce the need for construction and placement of new transmission lines, and to minimize future electricity costs for residential customers. The bill provides that 15 percent of new data center revenue, defined in the bill, shall be spent toward residential solar and battery storage investment and 15 percent of new data center revenue shall be spent toward providing pro rata reimbursements for residents' tangible personal property tax assessments for any qualifying vehicle. Finally, the bill provides that if any locality violates the requirements for such incentive program, the local treasurer shall immediately transfer any remaining funds directly to the State Treasurer. The State Treasurer shall direct such remaining funds to be used for authorized purposes and thereafter such locality's incentive fund shall be dissolved. The bill makes it a Class 1 misdemeanor for a local treasurer to violate such requirement.

Workers' compensation; disability of law-enforcement officer; spousal wage replacement; report. Requires the employer of a law-enforcement officer who sustains a line of duty injury, as defined in the bill, to pay or cause to be paid to the spouse of such law-enforcement officer 66 percent of such spouse's average weekly wage during the previous three years, up to 80 percent of the average weekly wage of the Commonwealth, provided that certain requirements are met. The bill directs the Workers' Compensation Commission to establish an application review process for claims for spousal wage replacement pursuant to the bill's provisions by January 1, 2027. Certain provisions of the bill have a delayed effective date of January 1, 2027.

Personal property taxation; classifications; major energy consumer equipment upgrades. Establishes a special classification for generating equipment purchased on and after July 1, 2026, for the purpose of upgrading the backup or standby power systems of a major energy consumer (i) from equipment that does not meet Tier 2 emission standards to selective catalytic reduction generators that meet or exceed Tier 4 emission standards or (ii) to meet New Source Performance Standards as enforced by the Department of Environmental Quality, as applicable. The bill provides that such equipment may be taxed at a lower rate than is applied to other tangible personal property.

Vested rights. Alters the criteria for determining when a landowner's rights shall be deemed vested in a land use. Under current law, such vesting occurs when the landowner (i) obtains or is the beneficiary of a significant affirmative governmental act that remains in effect allowing development of a specific project, (ii) relies in good faith on the significant affirmative governmental act, and (iii) incurs extensive obligations or substantial expenses in diligent pursuit of the specific project in reliance on the significant affirmative governmental act. The bill provides that vesting in a land use includes the development of a specific project as contemplated by and consistent with a significant affirmative governmental act and any related approvals, conditions, plans, or application materials accepted or approved by the locality, including the right to make minor modifications to such approvals that substantially conform and do not materially alter the character of the development contemplated by the significant affirmative governmental act. The bill further provides that a zoning administrator shall issue a written determination as to whether a proposed change is material or nonmaterial and that if a zoning administrator determines that a proposed change is material, an applicant may appeal the decision pursuant to general law. Finally, the bill narrows the circumstances by which a locality may treat a use as a valid nonconforming use by providing that if a landowner's rights are vested in a land use, that use shall not be rendered nonconforming by subsequent ordinance changes, except where the General Assembly explicitly authorizes retroactive application of new standards to protect public health and safety.

Pari-mutuel wagering; historical horse racing; percentage retained for distribution. Provides that with respect to all authorized historical horse racing terminals, of the amount that a horse racing licensee retains from wagering on historical horse racing pools and in addition to the current distribution required under law, 0.0125 percent each shall be distributed to the Shenandoah County Agricultural Foundation and the Great Meadow Foundation to support the promotion, education, maintenance, and safety of horse racing at such facilities.

Department of Energy; Virginia Solar Energy and Battery Energy Storage Systems Program and tax credit; solar energy and battery energy storage projects. Establishes the Virginia Solar Energy and Battery Energy Storage Systems Program, to be administered by the Department of Energy for the purpose of (i) coordinating and supporting the development of solar energy and short duration battery energy storage industries and projects by other public or private entities; (ii) evaluating and approving solar energy and short duration battery energy storage projects as qualified projects for the purposes of the tax credit established by the bill; and (iii) determining which items and services are considered eligible project costs for a given qualified project, as defined in the bill. The bill establishes requirements for what can be considered a qualified solar energy and battery energy storage project based on whether the use of such project is for a residential, commercial and industrial, or utility-scale project. The bill establishes a tax credit for the installation of such residential, commercial and industrial, or utility-scale solar energy and energy storage projects for taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2027, but before January 1, 2032. Finally, the bill requires the Department to monitor allocation of the tax credit and publish quarterly transparency reports summarizing such information and to establish and maintain a public dashboard displaying certain information on the solar energy and short duration battery energy storage installations by January 1, 2027. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2027.